Anyone ever polish their windshield???

[Cevan]

I just got this email from Hagerty today. It's a video where they polish a windshield of a bug with a DA polisher using compound. Mine has the normal amount of pitting for a 31 yr old windshield. I'd love to have a clearer windshield without the expense and hassle of replacing mine.

https://www.hagerty.com/articles-videos/Articles/2017/02/15/glass-care

[JmuRiz]

IT will get your glass super clean, but if you have scratches and pits you'll need something like Cerium Oxide

https://www.amazon.com/Gordon-Glass-Cerium-Oxide-Oz/dp/B007KOC19C

Note: I haven't tried it yet, but am tempted on my '73 glass.

[Dmitry at Pelican Parts]

Wow, that looks really interesting - if anyone is looking for products for their car, we have an excellent Car Care section. Happy to answer any questions that you all may have!


-Dmitry

[KTL]

Scratch removal is one thing. Polish will usually take care of very fine scratches and haze. But the Porsche windshields seem to be very soft in that they show a LOT of pitting. Of all the cars i've owned, I don't think any of them have had a windshield so sandblasted looking as the 911s are.

So I would expect to spend quite a lot of time doing several applications to get noticeable results. Griots Tech Q&A section says anything you can feel with a fingernail will be nearly impossible to remove. Run your finger over the glass after you've cleaned it (use some clay first and you might be very surprised what you pull out of the glass) and if you feel a lot of catching on the pits, it's probably not worth the hassle to polish it?

Not to mention many of these old cars are begging for a windshield seal replacement. Might just be better off getting a new windshield and seal. I have pulled the original seals from both my former '87 and current '86 and have found some rust down in the frame. Plus the seals were toast and they both had loose fitting glass with horrible wind noise.

[Cook&Dunning]

I had thought about trying to polish / remove pitting from my old H5 headlights. I saw a video on youtube of a guy who did this to some old fog light glass lens. I will have to look for it - he basically wet sanded through various grit sandpapers, ended with the Cerium-oxide mentioned above. The only thing I worried about was as you sand down the glass to remove pits, in theory the glass is getting thinner. I would not try on a windshield.

I think the rubbing compound could remove some very minor scratches or pits, which could improve the look.

[kevin930t]

The problem you will run into if you do that,you will get whats known as a lens affect..

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[kevin930t]

I have found if you get 0000 stainless steal and a little compond you will get one heck of a clean windshield inside and out..

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[Dpmulvan]

I have optical grade cerium oxide if anyone wants to give it a shot. I collect early American bottles mostly early to mid 1800's. When their dug up sometimes they have a cloudiness due to reaction with soil water et. We tumble them using copper and a slurry of water and cerium oxide, aluminum oxides and silicon carbide. The cerium oxide is perfect for windshields. Some of these early American bottles go to 6 figures.

[Tobra]

You will be disappointed with the results, I was when I tried it.

[jlex]

I remember talking to my dad about windshield polishing years and years ago to eliminate scratches. I remember him saying it appears to work well until you drive at night with it.... that's when the streaking, swirling etc from the polishing shows up. I'd only try it on a small section to begin with, then see how it works out with on-coming headlights...

[Jeff NJ]

You will never get the outside surface of the glass wave free if polishing by hand, especially if you have to polish deep enough to get out the pits. The thickness of the glass must be exactly the same for the entire windshield or you will get a prismatic effect, waves and distortion, which will certainly be more annoying than the pits. No harm in trying as long as you are prepared to replace the windshield if it doesn't work, because it wont. I used to work with mirror and glass and polishing out anything other than hairline scratches was a waste of time.

[Bill Douglas]

I cleaned the windscreen of the 911 with paint thinners. Wow, it was really clean for a while until the little pits from decades of stones started to fill up with road film or dust and dirt. I guess a clear wax might fill in the microns deep pits after the paint thinners clean. I'll try that next time.

[KTL]

I have used 0000 steel wool on windshields for years. Works great as a mild abrasive to clean more aggressively than just window cleaner with paper towels.

I'd avoid putting a wax on the windshield. It creates glare at night. Especially if driving in the rain. I have noticed this from car wash based wax on my daily driver cars

[Puma]

I've wondered about this so I'm glad to see the responses. I'm thinking this is more for a show car that isn't driven. Glad I didn't try it.

I have used a clay bar to get a windshield clean and it works very well. Follow up with a clean, dry microfiber towel. Use only the condensation from your breath as lubricant and you'll get a stunning clean windshield. I don't use any chemicals as they just leave a film.

I do not ever use paper towels. Paper is an abrasive and actually scratches glass. Over time it just makes glass cloudy and hold more contamination. Paper towels are a sure way to ruin glass.

[Fast Freddy 944]

I found that Coca-Cola takes off road grime, followed by the stoner brand window cleaner sealant works great!

[NickP]

I have tried cerium oxide with a medium polishing pad on old window glass during the restoration of my 911. Basically, if you can feel the scratch with your fingernail it won't come out, the scratch is too deep. Cerium oxide seemed helpful on the really minor scratches and it took away any glue residue, tar and water spots so my windows were squeaky clean but still had the scratches I was hoping to remove.

[ClickClickBoom]

Replaced mine with a PPG replacement. Windshields are consumable items, the difference between the old one and the new PPG is amazing. Find an old school glass shop or do it your self.

[DanielDudley]

Yep, works for light scratches, not so much pitting.

[boosted79]

"Some of these early American bottles go to 6 figures."

And I thought I had a problem with what I've sunk into things that have a piston and crankshaft in them

I've got some old bottles I found on the bottom of the St Lawrence River, interested in a trade? bottles for tools, Porsche parts, etc.

[KTL]

Paper towels on your eyeglasses or plastic windshields like those on boats or motorcycles is a sure fire way to scratch them. But most if not all auto glass since the 70s is hard enough, and tempered, to not be harmed by even the cheapest of paper towels.