Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) Autoglass & a tale of woe

A friend of mine in NI was faced with the £1,500 Morgan quotation so explored another avenue.

He went to his local Agricultural Engineers and they fired him off to the local heavy goods screen replacement
outfit.
They took one look and removed the screen whilst he stood by and it cost him £100 sans heated elements, don’t overthink it just get to one these outfits.

I recall him saying after the cutting was done they sealed the laminated edges by covering them in meths and setting fire to them. Never cease to be amazed at Irish adaptation and resolve with their engineering - no problems just solutions waiting for them to find😎

This is not a bad option. I managed to get a chip in my windscreen 2 days before I was due to go to the Yorkshire Dales on holiday, and it was right in front of the driver. No chance of booking a repair in the time available, so I went to Halfords, bought a kit, and fixed it myself, it was a very straightforward process. That was back in 2017, and the repair is still absolutely fine.

Well here I am sitting in Sainsbury’s in Exeter. I drove up the 80 mins from Dartmouth this morning so the Coupe could be done at the depot under cover etc.

They sent through the usual email confirming the appointment for today about two weeks ago.
Last time they did this they cancelled the night before due to not getting the screen in so I was dubious.
I phoned on Monday and was told it was in hand at the branch.
They phoned yesterday and asked for pictures??
I was out and not near the car so sent the xcar video

Arrived in the peeing rain at 8am this morning as they asked me to be early as they had not done one before.

What could go wrong I hear you say?

Yeah. Wrong screen. Aeromax screen. No replacement rubbers. Not heated.

Blokes in depot apparently only get the job assigned two days before. Decently apologetic and serious about the cockup.

It will be two months next week.

I experienced exactly that some years ago when my Ford Galaxy failed its MOT on a stone chip. Admiral used the RAC to replace it, and the new screen was terrible. The aberrations in the glass were far more distracting than the stone chip had been.


The problem with that is there will be no way of easily demisting the screen.

"In the UK, the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 mandate that every motor vehicle must be designed and maintained to ensure the driver has a full, clear view of the road and traffic ahead. This includes strict requirements for functioning windscreen wipers, washers, and, by extension, demisting systems to keep the glass free from obstruction."

Morgan fit heated screens instead of heater vents to meet the regs.

Not a worry down by.
When I had a last minute wiper motor gearbox cease, Whip the screen off was the advise - there are some good anti legislative people down here and that’s exactly why I fit in😎🙏🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Alistair, really sorry to read of your current predicament. However I think you were possibly prepared for some aspect of that which you are currently experiencing... It does seem that the more we have to reply on corporate systems, the more potential there seems to be for a foul up along the way..?

I wonder if it might seem reasonable to take some measure of control of the process yourself..? Perhaps by ordering the screen from the MMC to be delivered to you then arrange to have it fitted by whoever you think might be capable of carrying out the task..

I think I typed recently of my 991`s windscreen replacement... If you have read of the other posts on the variation of quality of screens, I was in no mind to have my screen replaced with either a cheaper or substandard item, or to have it fitted in any way which was not up to original spec.. For sure I was looking for the cost or part thereof to be covered by my insurance company but, I was prepared to pay for the task fully myself rather than opt for a sub standard alternative.. To that end I had my Porsche dealership order the screen and have it fitted, my expectation being that they would likely employ Autoglass or others to carry out the actual fitting process, which bothered me not, as given I tasked Porsche with replacing the screen, it was down to them to provide a quality of service matching their brand marketing.... Bottom line if anything had been damaged during the fitting process such as scratched paint or damaged trim etc.etc.etc., then they would have more clout with the fitter than would I...?

Fortunately for me all of that worked out better than hoped, in there was no issue relative to fit and finish, and Footman James who had initially suggested there would be a limit placed on their windscreen replacement, paid for the task in full.

Whatever.... Again so sorry to read off what is undoubtedly a very frustrating situation... Just wanted to providee an alternative line of thought..

Hope you get it resolved soonest Alistair..

You are so right (and kind) Luddite.

Every time they invent a more idiot proof (computer) system we find a more highly developed idiot. Something I learnt 40 years ago inside the IT industry and still laugh at now, don't know why I laugh given it is a fact not a fable. An older revision of this might have been Emperor's new clothes!! Same day different fluff. Great for the 95% to the cost of the 5%. As a business this makes sense as long as you are willing to take 5% on the chin.

The branch leader was very professional. He avoided saying "we do this a lot for the specialist stuff, really sorry" whilst saying it as a decent person. A clever business would put this bloke in charge of a "high value specialist path through the system" and charge a small premium. I would willingly pay the premium to a fair degree (10%?) knowing I got specialist care.

The claim was raised on 18 December. I doubt it will be fixed by the 18th February.

I've fitted a couple of Trad 'screens including new frame channel rubber to one, bit of a pain (because I'm fussy on finish) and you need a large bench, both were originally unheated so just used flat laminated cut to size by the local glass merchant who sandblasted the BS6206 in the corner, about £60 a pop

I'm reminded of Douglas Adams (Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy) famous quote:

When designing something that is completely foolproof do not underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools.

To finish the story of the replacement screen in the Coupe.

Friday 17th April I was asked to turn up in Exeter again.
They had checked the screen delivered against the photo's prior to arrival this time.
They had the seal to go around it.

Three hours later I got the call saying it was done.
As usual the Mog had caused a slight panic as they had never seen one before and so had no experience of where the heated screen wires were. As a result they shorted them to the body and popped the fuse. No blame for that, I was not able to guide them and I own the car! Apparently they are at the top near the rear view mirror in case you ever need to know.

Turns out they took my advice and ordered a screen through Morgan instead of trying to reinvent the wheel.

The team doing the job were friendly and very professional about handling it all credit to them.