dazr32 Posted October 8, 2005 Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 could someone please try and help with my problem i have been away for two weeks on holiday and while i was away i got a phone call on the third day off one of my mates to tell me that someone had put the rear window through on my car. ( i personally would not have told my mate had it been the other way round as it understandibly pissed me off but i was thousands of miles away and couldnt do anything about it.) now i am back i have phoned vw today and they say that the r32 comes with blue tinted glass but when i have been to the car to look at it it looks green, has anyone been unfortunate enough to have had to replace there rear glass and if so what colour is it. any help would be appreciated . thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 8, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 apologies smudge for the language but it has been a long day and i am a bit annoyed to say the least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smudge Posted October 8, 2005 Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 Totally understand your feelings mate, just gotta do the mods job. As for the answer, I've had two windsreens in my R32 ownership days, but never a rear. I'd have thought they were the same all the way around, but a bit weird if they weren't. Might be worth your while dropping Ian C a PM, he works for Autoglass, and knows rather a lot! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gti_Fly Posted October 8, 2005 Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 R32 glass is Blue. Whereas all other Golf IV's use Green. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 8, 2005 Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 Cheers for the link Smudge. Daz, as GTi Fly mentions, the R32 has different blue tinted glass throughout. Not in the office today or tomorrow - a weekend off for once! - but from memory a product code of something like 85**BBLH5 where ** is possibly 57. Likely to take a day or two to deliver from Leicestershire where we store 100,000 product lines for our UK branches. Where abouts are you in Wales? The two most important points here are Mk4 (1998-2003 on our system) and the blue tint. There is a neat solution to confirm glass tints on any car: In broad daylight, visit your car with a white piece of paper / envelope. Half wind down the drivers' doorglass and then put the paper inside, half over the glass / half over the gap. View from the outside and the white paper will turn a different hue. With the R32, expect this to be grey blue. Not as strong as the Mercedes Benz Avantgarde spec blue, instead a more subtle hue. The glassline on your FC Ins certificate may well dial through to Autoglass HQ UK. If you cannot find this number or your insurers are closed, you can always go straight through on 0800 36 36 36. Accouts are held with all the main insurers meaning no authorisation is required and you don't have to pay and reclaim - usually just a 50 or 60 excess. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 8, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 thanks very much for that info ian this site has got to be the best place i have ever found for information. you people never cease to amaze me thanks again for the info ian, and to smudge for the heads up, now i just need to get on to the insurance company about how quick they can do it as i cant use the car because the glass has shattered but not fallen in, my kind next door neighbour but gaffer tape over it to try and keep it intact but it will fall in at the slightest knock and we need a car for monday so i dont know what the insurance will say. but once again thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 8, 2005 Report Share Posted October 8, 2005 No worries. Any further questions just pm or post here - will note to keep checking this thread. In the office Monday onwards hence if you have any problems you are more than welcome to ask for me personally. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smudge Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 Nice one Ian, some very useful tips there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogbucket Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 Even doing the paper test I find its difficult to tell what colour the glass is. I had a windscreen fitted by RAC autoglass a few months ago and sitting in the car the colour looks the same as the side windows. Doing the paper test all the glass looks slightly green. I only suspect the windscreen is wrong because they had it in stock at my local branch the day I went round there which seems unlikely for a such an unusual item. Can you check splintex part numbers Ian? My windscreen is 43R-008592 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 Well at least RAC Autowindscreens fitted proper maunfacturers glass for once - Splintex - even if its sadly not like for like being a different colour! Sounds green to me if they had it on the shelf. Not sure how I can check part numbers as the glass manfacturers, car manufacturers and Autoglass use Eurocodes as touched on above. 8557ABLH3MV 85=VW, 57=Golf MkIV, A=Windscreen, BL=Blue tint, H3=bodyshell, M=Moisture pack, V=VIN notch. etc Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogbucket Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 Found the invoice and the part number is written as 8558LGRI (sorry for the thread highjack btw ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 LGRI? Autowindscreens don't use proper Eurocodes then, but sounds like green to me! Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 10, 2005 Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 Didn't realise the R32 blue glass has the solar coating. Stupid of me really - Avantgarde Merc's with the blue tint, mentioned above, have been solar coated for years. Autoglass only use manufacturers sourced parts, hence a guaranteed tint match - blue solar - and give a lifetime warranty for peace of mind as well. The glass is not normally going to be in stock in any branch due to such low demand. Main branches in Wales show an overnight delivery though. Incidentally, the cost is a fraction of what I was expecting: £278 is pretty much the same as the stock green glass. Usually a rarer tint is much more expensive! However, with a fixed Fully Comp' Insurance glass excess of 50 or 60 pounds, the actual product cost is not really a concern. The product source time however is. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 cheers ian your colleage in bangor which is the nearest branch to me told me today that their fitter was picking the glass up on his way to me tomorrow and that i would be the first job, what is the solar protection for is it to do with uv rays or am i way off the mark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hotdog Posted October 10, 2005 Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 First off Daz, sorry to hear about the aggro with the glass. Next, the solar tint is supposed to reduce the UV rays which is supposed to keep the car cooler in summer, especially with all that black leather. And it also stops you ageing prematurely you old fart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 cheers for that mark i just hope the lowlife that did it can sleep well at night knowing that he has happily added his name to my list of things to take care of, i know a few of the so called boys about town as one of them does some work for me so i will be on his case to try and find out if he knows anything and get him to find out what he can. i dont think it had anything to do with him but you never know. so i will keep an open mind on that. by the way thank you for the kind words in relation to your concern over my ageing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 11, 2005 Report Share Posted October 11, 2005 Excellent - faster than I thought considering your rural address. Tomorrow as in Tuesday - so all sorted now? Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 11, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2005 afraid to say no ian nothing at all to do with autoglass, it was volkswagen who dropped the clanger cos they did not check the glass when they picked it from the parts location and they have sent a rear screen for a passat estate, so we are trying again tomorrow and hopefully the right screen will show up fingers crossed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 12, 2005 Report Share Posted October 12, 2005 Opps! Wrongly marked parts are a absolute bastard as they seldom get spotted behind all the protective packaging. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 12, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 12, 2005 ian i am having a nightmare sorry if this post is starting to drag on but the autoglass fitter has come today and has not lined the screen up properely when he has installed it, so it looks like it is on the piss when looked at from directly behind the car,but thats not all he has only gone and trimmed the seal that sits round the window to try and hide the fact that screen is on the piss and to add insult to injury he has scratched the tailgate where he has cut the seal. admittedly it is under the seal and could probably sort it out with a touch in stick as it is under the seal but it is not the point. i am kicking myself cos i gave the lad the benefit of the doubt thinking that it would do my head in if someone was sat on my shoulder as i was trying to do a job, but now i am sorry i didnt. i have been on the phone to the branch manager and he is coming tomorrow morning to asses the damage. it is not finished their though because i pulled the car out of the garage when i got back off holiday to double check there was no more damage to it such as scratches and it was fine,i have pulled it out of the garage today and there are a number of vertical scratches down the drivers side rear quarter preceeded by what looked like some black sealant, i pulled the fitter about it and he reckoned he didnt know anything about it, but he had rested the inner covers for the tailgate on the side right by the scratches. my guess is he has picked the trims up and they have fallen down the side scratching the car. talk about a nightmare, at the very least the screen needs replacing and then there are the other issues.i am self emplyed now but i used to service aircraft so i have a fairly critical eye for things such as shut lines/trims/scratches etc. i have tried to polish the scratches out and they are nearly invisible but that is only cos i cant leave things like that alone i should kick off about them really though i am more concerned about the piss poor install of the screen . any advice people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted October 12, 2005 Report Share Posted October 12, 2005 Oh that sounds just great. Certainly don't try and polish the scratches out Daz! Leave them as evidence. How on earth could the technician fit it squint - it's a standard Golf heated rear in all but colour? Not a tech' myself so cannot comment on the difficulty of this particular job - but goes without saying popular car (Golf MkIV) means frequent replacement. Bangors' branch manager will hopefully be able to sort things out: If not then give me a call in HQ. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MOSE Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Daz, Out of curiosity, did the tech walk around the car with you at all? Looking for scratches and dents and other things? I am asking this, because in recent weeks, I have had two screens fitted on two BMWs and on both occassion, the tech(s) walked me around the car looking for simple scratches and marking them on a sheet. Then once the job was done, they walked me around the car again just to satisfy themselves and myself that no damage was done to the bodywork of the car by the tech. I can understand how frustrating that can be, but like Ian has said, I think it is best to leave the scratches alone as evidence. I think Ian would be the best person to give you advice on whether or not the tech should have inspected the car first for surface scratches and then given you the opportunity to do the same once the work was completed. Might swing some more lead in getting the scratches sort mate!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazr32 Posted October 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 firstly sorry smudge for hijacking the threads board. secondly, paul no the fitter didnt offer or do a walk round with me before or after the job was bodged (sorry done). when i asked him how long he had been working for autoglass he hesitated and then said a couple of years, which should have started the alarm bells ringing but he seemed to look like he knew what he was doing . anyway i just could not leave the scratches so i had a go at them and they are virtually invisible now, i would rather do that than have to have the rear quarter resprayed especially with dbp being apparently hard to match and the orange peeling that is associated with it. another good cut and polish and they should dissapear but that just proves they were fresh marks. i had the manager from bangor out this morning and he started by saying that they have the seal at the bangor depot and that he could take the screen out and replace the seal and put it back in!!!!!!!!!. to which i just laughed and said that wasn't good enough so he is replacing the complete screen again, and i have been in touch with vw to make sure they have ordered one as well. when the bloke looked at it today he could not argue as the fitting truely is appauling and he also admitted that the lad had not been with them long at all so 2 years was crap. i will be giving the next bloke some grief thats for sure and to be fair i feel for him already. i cant believe that one piece of glass can cause this much hassle, i had beeter not find out who smashed it in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v6tas Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Yep Autoglass are really poor. I had a large stone hit the windscreen of my previous 4 Motion. After a call to my insurance they put me in touch with Autoglass. They turned up and put a new screen in. On checking the screen it had a crack in it !. A few days later he returned all apologetic and set to work. I was watching from my office window and wondered why it was taking so long, i went down and it turned up he had brought a screen for a Polo with him not for a Golf !!!. Another few days went by and he returned again and this time ended up fitting the right screen. So one window took nearly a week and a half to fit !!. A bit miffed i phoned up his boss and asked for the excess fee to be waivered as the whole process had been a complete joke but all i got was a mouthfull and a lecture on how i was lucky to have had it fixed !!!!!. Having had enough of Autoglass i told him in exact terms what i thought of him and the firm he worked for and put the phone down Im sorry youve had such a crap experience and a very bad one at that but you are not alone !!!. All the best to get it sorted mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soulboy Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Mke sure all the glass pieces are out of the tailgate! When someone broke into my R (by the way did your alarm go off???) Autoglass fitted a new rear screen for me. But, they scratched the back bumper - and said it must have been from when the glass was broken. Secondly, there was a load of glass bits left in the tailgate, and every time you lifted it or shut it, there was a bits of glass rattling up and down. I was not particularly impressed, but dont expect anything different from the motor industry now. Most of them dont know there ar5e from there elbow.........I spent half an hour last week telling a VW salesman all about the mk5 R32 and then arguing that heated seats and metallic paint weren't an optional extra on the mk4. W4nker! The only thing he knew about it, was what he had read in Auto Express FFS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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