Windshield Replaced/Dash-Glass "Welting"(?) - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Strife · #1 06-10-2006, 12:52 AM

I just had my windshield replaced in my 560SL (Pilkington? English? Never heard of it, but it has no optical distortion). The installer did a mediocre job although he used (my) new trim; the top strip sticks out a bit on either side, and he filled in with urethane. After I trimmed it, it looks OK, but not under close scrutiny.

Anyway, there is a "welting" at the edge of the dash near the glass. It is possibly tan in color, and it was sticking out quite a bit and not looking good before the replacement, and after, it was worse - I have a black dash with a maroon interior. Does anyone else have this problem?

I really didn't like the looks of it, but there is not much room to work with there, you can't paint it, spraying is messy, etc. So I took a bottle of black shoe polish scuff remover,and tried applying it with a Q-tip (AFTER, of course, I laid down mats all over my interior. Otherwise, I GUARANTEE that I would have spilled it, with disasterous results).

This sort of worked, but I needed to apply more. So, I had some syringes and needles used in refilling inkjet cartridges, and I used this to reach down in there and get enough "juice" to basically dye the welting black as it soaked the fabric. It looks much better now, and it didn't take much time. Maybe it will dissolve the welting in a week or two, maybe it will look great for years, who knows.

Roncallo · #2 06-10-2006, 01:12 AM

Yes

I had this problem on my 1988. When the windshiel was replaced I handed the guy a Sharpi marker to color the tan stuff. SEM coloring would probably be better. It now looks great. I still have the problem on my 86. I will just have to wait until the glass gets replaced.

John Roncallo

coleyjf · #3 06-10-2006, 03:07 AM

Strife

re I just had my windshield replaced in my 560SL (Pilkington? English? Never heard of it, but it has no optical distortion).

Top UK and World glass manufaturer - have a look at
http://www.pilkington.nl/

cheers

Jim

Jim B. · #4 06-10-2006, 05:20 AM

Well I have got a couple of cracks in my windshield, that spread from the heat and cold I think

and that windshield had been replaced about 2 years ago, and it was supposed to be the Sekurit which was recommended by friends at mbcoupes.com as the MB factory preferred glass.

Is Sekurit still the best glass to use for Mercedes Benz replacement?

Can those mobile glass installers (used one for a 1991 Volvo and they did well, no leaks or cracks after) any good for a big Mercedes - those cars are pretty rare here)

David Langsam · #5 06-10-2006, 11:43 AM

Thanks for the link, Jim. The previous owner had the windshield replaced about 8 years ago and used Pilkington. I have the receipt and it's about $1100. I'd never heard of them and always wondered. Now I'm impressed - I'll have to treat it better.

For what it's worth, the welting on mine is quite faded yet still in place. It appears to have started out as black and is now greyish. It looks pretty fragile at this point.

David

rtodd_young · #6 06-10-2006, 06:20 PM

For what it's worth, my 2006 C280 has Pilkington glass and I *think* my wife's 2003 E-class wagon also has Pilkington window glass. Maybe they're the new provider for Benz?

iglobalflyer · #7 03-31-2009, 10:39 PM

The windscreens in the Jet I fly are made by Pilkington... $23,000.00 a piece...

coleyjf · #8 04-01-2009, 02:01 AM

They also invented the "float glass" system of manufacture. Allso if anyone has been up the Sky Tower in Aukland New Zealand, I believe that they made the glass floor which you stand on at the top

!!!!!

Jim

dugald · #9 04-01-2009, 08:24 AM

Here's an old BW thread about refurbishing that welting:
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/r-c107-sl-slc-class/1319914-dash-gasket.html

donbryce · #10 04-01-2009, 10:39 AM

I did my welting last year when I re-did the dash cap ('86 560SL) the PO had stuck down with that double sided tape they supply. My welting, or whatever it's called, was faded black to white, and the cloth cover over the rubber had deteriorated badly. I figured out the required width, which varied as the cap's imperfect edge spread across the old dash, and decided to try 1" wide velcro, the fuzzy side of course, which I had a partial roll of from a previous project. It has a peel-and-stick backing.
In theory, it seems simple enough. Just peel off the backing and stick it down as you go. In practise, with the glass in place, it was one of the most frustrating jobs I've ever done. I used several long thin sticks and wires to insert the piece into the 'untouchable' crevass where the edge of the dash meets the glass, peeling off the backing as I went along. The part behind the instrument cluster was the worst. It took over 4 hours to get it all in there, smoothed down, and small cuts at the corners where it had to curve back.
If the glass was out, this would be a simple job, if you were planning on using a dashcap afterward to hide the inner part of the velcro tape edge. It still looks good. If I get a minute, I'll take some pics (car is in storage right now) and post them later today.

BabyBlueBenz · #11 04-02-2009, 09:35 PM

My '86 has an ten-inch crack in the windshield eminating from the lower corner on the passenger side, apparently from thermal or tensile stressing over the years.

SWMBO has determined that our car insurance (State Farm) will cover the cost of its replacement and they've provided a contact number to arrange for a mobile installer to come out to do the work.

Has anyone had the experience of an insurance-company arranged windshield replacement?

I doubt that we would be given a choice of replacement glass manufacturer (or even the installer)...but if the opportunity is presented, I would go with Pilkington. Sometime in the past, the driver's door glass was replaced with a Pilky and the clarity of it is impressive.