Car Windscreen Heater - Any Good?

[MULLEY]

In winter i'm fed up with scraping ice off the inside of the windscreen & it taking ages to be able to see out of the windscreen unless i turn the engine on for ages before driving off, i just fancy the idea of only a couple of mins with one of these instead:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Brookstone-12 ... 35c2025ed9" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Are these types of heaters any good?

[mat_fenwick]

No. You might as well get your passenger to blow on the screen instead. To be fair, they do emit a small amount of warm air, but compare the power rating of them (160 W max.) to that of a domestic fan heater (1 to 2 kW) and you'll get some idea of the output...

I have one you can have free if you like!

(Should I mention the heated windscreen in the Focus?)

[RxBX]

No. You might as well get your passenger to blow on the screen instead. To be fair, they do emit a small amount of warm air, but compare the power rating of them (160 W max.) to that of a domestic fan heater (1 to 2 kW) and you'll get some idea of the output...

I have one you can have free if you like!

(Should I mention the heated windscreen in the Focus?)

There bloody marvellous Mat

IIRC your's is a Ghia model as mines a Zetec, therefore Mulley if you get one ? makes sure its a top of the range model as I don't know if the lesser spec. model's have them ?



.

[citronut]

the other prob with the plug in heater is it plugs into your ciggy lighter socket, these are renowned for being a bad conection, so it will cause something to melt ( not just the ice ), you will know when you start to smell melting plastic

regards malcolm

[Dollywobbler]

These things are absolute rubbish.

[mat_fenwick]

Probably the cheapest solution would be to pop a normal fan heater in the car and run that for 10 minutes before you set off. Even leaving it on for an hour is only going to cost about 25 pence. Have you got a water leak in the car? I can't think of a time when I've had ice on the inside with dry carpets.

Oh, and


Almost makes up for driving a Ford! Standard on the Ghia and LX, I think an option on others. I wonder if there'd be enough interest for a windscreen manufacturer to make up a batch for the BX…?

[Dollywobbler]

Worth looking into. I know you can get them for Morgans and Westfields, but I don't think they're cheap!

The Green Tiger is being used as a wood store at the moment, so is very damp inside. There's ice all over the dashboard!

[mat_fenwick]

On a VW forum I use they're looking into getting a batch custom made for the T3 van, and it works out at £220 + VAT + delivery each for a minimum order of 10. That doesn't seem too bad really, but given the fact there's less and less of us using our BXs as a daily driver all year round ( ) I wonder if there'd even be 10 people willing and able to stump up getting on for £300 plus fitting.

[citsncycles]

I have one of those fan heater for the Land Rover, and it's better than nothing, but only in the way that it slows down the ice reforming after you've scraped it all off.

I didn't take much notice at the time, but there was a company at the NEC displaying a variety of replacement heated screens.

I'll be replacing the screen on Timex next year (it has a couple of chips, plus the surround needs repair), but with new ones costing from £90 fitted, I'd have to think hard before going to the expense of a heated one. Add to that the fact that the alternator seems to barely keep up with the heater motor, I suspect I may need to uprate the charging system too.

[MULLEY]

I think the reason why the inside of my car ice's up is that there must be moisture from the door seals coming in & also the roof tray is damp as the front drain tubes are blocked. There's nothing worse than scraping ice off the inside 1st, you then go outside to scrape that off & then when you get back in the car, my wifes breath has meant the inside has iced up again

So, it would appear the conscensous is that they are crap, which is a real shame. How much is postage for the one that you don't want Mat? I could give it a try to see if it has any affect or not? Cheers for the offer.

[citronut]

you then go outside to scrape that off & then when you get back in the car, my wifes breath has meant the inside has iced up again

the answer to that is have her stand out in the cold whilst you scrape the ice from the outside

the other options would mean spending dosh on a roll of gaffer tape,but then she would not be able to breath

regards malcolm

[mat_fenwick]

I'll let you know a postage price but shouldn't be much, couple of quid at a guess. I think I cut the lead off it to use for something else but if you want it, it's yours.

[Birotor]

These heaters are superb. Used on the Tour de France Auto retro in Porsches like my ex Le Mans 911 T/R which has a 906 racing engine and a friend with a genuine Ford F40.

[mds141]

On a VW forum I use they're looking into getting a batch custom made for the T3 van, and it works out at £220 + VAT + delivery each for a minimum order of 10. That doesn't seem too bad really, but given the fact there's less and less of us using our BXs as a daily driver all year round ( ) I wonder if there'd even be 10 people willing and able to stump up getting on for £300 plus fitting.

I made a brief enquiry to Pilkington glass who had a stand close to ours at the NEC, as a rough estimate a BX heated front screen would be £500 as a one off, obviously economies of scale would apply.

[kiwi]

Here is another idea! Plug a hairdryer into a power inverter into the lighter socket or run an extension lead to the car from a mains supply and run a dehumidifier. Last idea dont work if you are on a public road.