Heated Windscreens (How do you know?)

[subi4snow]

I recently cracked my windscreen quite badly on a snow trip, it was replaced through Smith & Smith via insurance.

My old windscreen had a visible strip at the bottom in the centre for heating it and defrosting ice etc.

My new windscreen has no visible strip (but a large blacked out section which could possibly hide it?).

I mentioned specifically at the time that I wanted the heated screen and when I first saw that there was no strip like the old one had I questioned it and was told it was heated. Any one know reasons why it might not be working at all/as well as my old one?

When in Tekapo over this last weekend it seemed to take far longer than it used to for the heater to defrost the ice (had to put fan heater on as well in the end) and I am wondering if there is any way to tell for sure whether or not I have been screwed and given a non-heated screen?

[mitSUBishi-guy]

um I thought the heat bars on the bottom of the windscreen were just to defrost the windscreen wipers off the windscreen so that if you turned the wipers on it wouldn't rip the rubber off the blades? Rather than heating the entire windscreen?

I could be entirely wrong though. My car's got the heat bars but I've never used them.

[subi4snow]

they definitely defrost the entire windscreen... well mine used to. I think someone posted a bideo of it working on here too (maybe joker??)

[Swindog]

Get smith and smith to show you thats it actually a heated screen or ask for a breakdown

[ADIKT]

they are visible on my legacy... i would have thought the wire strips would be visible through the glass - the same as mine?

[subi4snow]

My strips were different to that... but yes still were clearly visible. I'm going to go back in again and get them to show me, cheers guys. If it's not they aren't gonna be happy haha

[Dv8er - FSTWRX]

Find where it plugs in for power? Prob not that easy though.

[petrolheadjman]

Plugs are on passenger pillar!! Well mine are

[Joker]

yea is my vid

mine not very effective

[B4 2000]

 JoKer said:

yea is my vid

mine not very effective

Looks pretty effective to me!

Their job is to defrost the wipers and not the whole windscreen

[subi4snow]

mmm. the ones like shown in the pic i would agree wipers only... but my old strip went nearly the length of the windscreen and easily defrosted the whole thing?