Windscreen scratch

[DTR]

Hi all

My first post here. I acquired my ES F Sport (white) in June 2021. Love the car ; Mrs DJK says that she feels a royal wave would be appropriate as we drift past pedestrians. We’ve never had an automatic before and thanks to Covid, mileage has been very limited. Only now adjusting to a different style of motoring after a series of manual and highish revving Hondas (no Type R/s though).

Not a brilliant start when somebody drove into the back of it after a couple of weeks. Damage was minimal and sorted out efficiently by the insurance company.

At last to the point of the post; I have a very fine scratch across the windscreen. It is only visible when driving into the low sun. Probably caused my a minute piece of gravel on the wiper blade. I have tried to polish it out with Car Polish to no effect. Any helpful suggestions please?

I had to have a new windscreen on my last Civic.  I know what a performance that was and also how much it costs.  I would rather not follow that route again.

Many thanks in advance and Happy New Year,

Dave

[steve2006]

Obviously your car is not subject to an MOT at the moment but would it fail given the position?

With fully comprehensive insurance I would contact Lexus for advice and if they say a replacement is required get a genuine one fitted by them.

Making a windscreen claim does not normally affect your NCB but there will be an excess to pay, this is normally less if you use the insurer’s “approved” supplier but you don’t have to if you don’t trust “Fit it Quik Windscreens Ltd”

Also there is no immediate requirement for replacement so even a couple of months waiting for the OEM part is not too bad.

[First_Lexus]

51 minutes ago, DTR said:

Hi all

My first post here. I acquired my ES F Sport (white) in June 2021. Love the car ; Mrs DJK says that she feels a royal wave would be appropriate as we drift past pedestrians. We’ve never had an automatic before and thanks to Covid, mileage has been very limited. Only now adjusting to a different style of motoring after a series of manual and highish revving Hondas (no Type R/s though).

Not a brilliant start when somebody drove into the back of it after a couple of weeks. Damage was minimal and sorted out efficiently by the insurance company.

At last to the point of the post; I have a very fine scratch across the windscreen. It is only visible when driving into the low sun. Probably caused my a minute piece of gravel on the wiper blade. I have tried to polish it out with car polish to no effect. Any helpful suggestions please?

I had to have a new windscreen on my last Civic.  I know what a performance that was and also how much it costs.  I would rather not follow that route again.

Many thanks in advance and Happy New Year,

Dave

If it’s a light scratch - that is one you can’t feel with your fingernail - then try CarPro Ceriglass. I’ve used it to good effect a couple of times. The trick is to get the supplied hard pad damp and then really work the affected area. Takes a while by hand but does make a difference in my experience.

 

[DTR]

Thanks for your suggestions. As has been said, no panic to get it sorted so I shall wait until the holidays are well over and consult with my dealer. Reviews of the Car Pro stuff look good but I am concerned about any surface treatment on the glass.

Dave

 

[paulrnx]

3 hours ago, DTR said:

Thanks for your suggestions. As has been said, no panic to get it sorted so I shall wait until the holidays are well over and consult with my dealer. Reviews of the Car Pro stuff look good but I am concerned about any surface treatment on the glass.

Dave

 

So you are concerned about replacing the windscreen and concerned about polishing it out. Rock and a hard place I think.

[Malc]

20 hours ago, steve2006 said:

Making a windscreen claim does not normally affect your NCB

Steve, maybe this should be another post Forum  item .......  when I last renewed my car insurances I was reminded that I still had to mention the actual Claim for a replacement windscreen  ......  whilst not held against one at renewal ........... however I'm thinking it might not be too long before the insurers do actually treat this as a Claim formally to affect one's NCB etc and  " UP "  the annual premium accordingly

I hope not but there we are, who trusts insurers to actually really act in the very best interests of their clients !

Malc

[m4rkw]

If you have automatic wipers don't even consider getting it replaced anywhere other than the dealer, the rain sensor will never work properly again and the likes of AutoGlass will not care or help you.

[First_Lexus]

40 minutes ago, m4rkw said:

If you have automatic wipers don't even consider getting it replaced anywhere other than the dealer, the rain sensor will never work properly again and the likes of AutoGlass will not care or help you.

My last NX had a windscreen replacement (through insurance) with National Windscreens. A perfect job, no issues with calibration of radar cruise, automatic wipers or anything else. They used a genuine Lexus windscreen too.

That was the Newbury branch, and I’d highly recommend them.

[Eldavo]

On 1/3/2022 at 7:22 PM, m4rkw said:

If you have automatic wipers don't even consider getting it replaced anywhere other than the dealer, the rain sensor will never work properly again and the likes of AutoGlass will not care or help you.

A friend of mine makes a living from recalibrating the ADAS systems after cars have had a new windscreen. 

[Barry14UK]

I have a very light scratch on mine which I can see when light streams at a certain angle but it is on the inside.  The original owner was a lady and my guess is she used her hand to clear he screen and a diamond ring caused the scratch - seen this before.  I will try the suggested remedy but having spent a very long time using another preparation on the outside scratch of another car unsuccessfully, I am rather sceptical about it working unless the scratch  is very superficial.  Interested to know how OP gets on. 

[SH20]

Talk to some of the national auto windscreen companies like Autoglass etc.   They have equipment that will machine polish out scratches using special glass polishing compounds but is only successful with machine polishing equipment.   You will have seen those Youtube videos where they show the full restoration of plastic headlamp lenses from very dull to crystal clear.  It's the same process for actual glass surfaces but needs a level of experience to remove fine scratches in glass.    Headlamp lenses are restored by various grades of sanding paper discs from 80 to 1500 and glass requires various grades of pastes for the same results.  

[DTR]

Thanks again for your suggestions. I am intending to contact my dealer (Nottingham Lexus) for their advice. I would prefer to leave it in their hands or to use a local franchisee should they recommend one. To be fair when my local branch of Autoglass replaced the screen on my Civic, I had no subsequent problems with active cruise control, auto wipers etc. They insisted that the car was full to the brim with fuel and all stuff removed from the boot etc. In addition the replacement was done at the branch to ensure the car was on a horizontal surface during the set up of the ADAS.

Dave

[DTR]

Should have said, this is not a huge priority for me at tha moment. However, I will report back on the situation as it happens.

Dave

[DTR]

I contacted the dealer. Informed that they did not repair or do anything with windscreens. Recommended to contact local specialist. I expected a more helpful response.

[NemesisUK]

My Dealer also said they don't replace windscreens or recalibrate ADAS but they could take the car and organise everything. 

[DTR]

Now this is seriously embarrassing. I noticed that when the screen was wet, the wiper was leaving a streak of water as it passed. Decided to invest 15 or so quid for a new drivers blade. Not 100% sure as sun is obviously a lot higher at the moment. Looks like the mythical “scratch” has gone. Could it have been a damaged wiper that was leaving an uncleaned line?

The problem is I have become obsessed with the appearance etc. of this car. I have always done usual regular cleaning etc with previous cars, but this car just seems to be in a different class. I find myself enjoying poodling along, soaking up the quietness. The sound system is probably the best I have ever had in a car, but it is rarely on as it destroys the quietness. I know this is all pretty sad and I can’t believe that I am saying it.

Anyway many apologies for wasting your time and thanks for your inputs.

DJK

[LenT]

5 hours ago, DTR said:

Anyway many apologies for wasting your time and thanks for your inputs.

DJK

Dave, you’ve not wasted anyone’s time here.

You’ve intrigued us, entertained us, satisfied us with a possible resolution of your dilemma which may help another LOC member in the future - and joined the merry band of discerning Lexus owners.

Does Life get much better than that?  😊

[Phil xxkr]

21 hours ago, DTR said:

Now this is seriously embarrassing. I noticed that when the screen was wet, the wiper was leaving a streak of water as it passed. Decided to invest 15 or so quid for a new drivers blade. Not 100% sure as sun is obviously a lot higher at the moment. Looks like the mythical “scratch” has gone. Could it have been a damaged wiper that was leaving an uncleaned line?

The problem is I have become obsessed with the appearance etc. of this car. I have always done usual regular cleaning etc with previous cars, but this car just seems to be in a different class. I find myself enjoying poodling along, soaking up the quietness. The sound system is probably the best I have ever had in a car, but it is rarely on as it destroys the quietness. I know this is all pretty sad and I can’t believe that I am saying it.

Anyway many apologies for wasting your time and thanks for your inputs.

DJK

Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful. 😅

Aldous Huxley (1894-1963, British Author)