General Windscreen - wrong size!

[alexGS]

Yesterday my new windscreen turned up - pretty quick service! Next day delivery to my place, from a glass place a 25 minute drive away that didn't have the screen in stock, so it came by courier from a hour-and-a-half drive away first...

Anyway. Today I kicked out the old windscreen (that I put in just under two years ago) and fitted the new... except that I didn't, because it didn't fit! There's a 15mm gap at the side, and an 8mm gap at the top.

Standing the two windscreens side-by-side, I can see about a 5mm difference all around, which is about what you'd expect. BUT (and here's the fun part), if you measure with a tape measure, stretched taught, from corner-to-corner, side-to-side, and top-to-bottom, the two are within a couple of millimetres of each other! It's nuts... :bang:

So my conclusion is that the curvature of the glass must be different, or some other reason (though you'd think that the diagonal measurement or the side-to-side measurement is what would show the difference, since the tape measure doesn't follow the glass curvature).

Anyway the windscreen was labelled 'Uno 3dr 5dr van'
and made by a company in China I think.

I've never thought of the Brazilian-style Cityvan (the one with the clamshell bonnet) and similar Brazilian-style Uno as having a different windscreen, but I guess that this is the case. Or, the one I've got is wrong because of a manufacturing fault. Either way, it now has to go back, though the glass company is wondering what they're going to do about it.

At least my part of the job went smoothly

Cheers!
-Alex

 

[(CZ)enda]

Although I do not think it is the case, this also happens if you fit Mk2 windshield into Mk1 Uno without changing the gasket for a Mk2 one.
How do I know ?

 

[Chas Uno]

Although I do not think it is the case, this also happens if you fit Mk2 windshield into Mk1 Uno without changing the gasket for a Mk2 one.
How do I know ?

:yeahthat:

I'm glad Enda confirmed that. I heard that there was very subtle differences between the mk2 and mk1 screen but never had it confirmed. Maybe Alex was sent a mk2 screen instead of a mk1?

Quite glad I picked up a set of glass from a mk1 turbo (£10 off Ebay!) a couple of years back as I do wonder if it will start getting hard to get hold of mk1 front screens soon?

 

[alexGS]

Although I do not think it is the case, this also happens if you fit Mk2 windshield into Mk1 Uno without changing the gasket for a Mk2 one.
How do I know ?

Oh!

Well, maybe I should try to fit it with a Mk2 gasket (rubber surround), as I have access to one of those. I'll go and pick it up tomorrow before I return the apparently-wrong windscreen. It's gotta be worth a try...

What makes you "not think it is the case"?

Otherwise the glass shop is quite happy to take it back, since they've been completely unable to source another Uno windscreen to try. I still have a possible second-hand option available, though I've been there, done that.

And then I have the Mk2 windscreen available, but that's not tinted, and I do like my green tint. I think they should have given the Uno Turbo rose-tinted windows; would have been a nice touch

-Alex

 

[thepottleflump]

Are Mk1 & Mk2 screens different? I swapped a Mk1 screen for some seats with Peterg who had a Mk2, as far as I know it went in without a hitch.

I can't imagine them being in short supply just yet especially if mk1 & mk2 are the same and what with the car was such a massive sales success they're probably in stock all over Europe, off course I could be wrong as I wouldn't be surprised that falling demand means glass companies start consolidating & disposing of stock.

AlexGS, I'd think you're problems relate to the "Made in China" sticker.

 

[Trevor]

Hi there,

Not 100% sure, but think that there was 2 sizes of window rubber in mk1 unos, an early and a late?

Cheers Trevor.

 

[(CZ)enda]

What makes you "not think it is the case"?

I guess it was your mentioning of the Brazilian Unos of which I know nothing, otherwise I would be pretty sure I was right

What happened to me was that I bought a windshield marked in similar manner, something like "Uno/Fiorino 3d/5d" without reference to a manufacturing year, manufactured by Polish company Nordglass - http://www.nordglass.pl. After I asked whether the glass of Mk1/2 had the same dimensions, the sales clerk swore it had. He was wrong and the result of fitting the glass with original Mk1 gasket was the same as yours.
After much head-scratching, loath to go through the ordeal of disassembly/arguing with the clerk/another glass or new gasket hunting/reassembly, I decided to apply a silicone into the gap. I do not know whether it provided for watertight sealing or not - the car was stolen and wrecked by some juvenile junkies about a week later , which was the final solution of my "to get a new gasket or not to get the new gasket - that is the question" dilemma.

Only much later, through the local Uno forum, I realized that the Mk1/2 windshields differ by circa 5 - 10 mm and that the difference is to allow for the later gasket, which is wider.

I saw the exact dimensions somewhere on the net then, unfortunately, now I seem to be unable to track down the data for your reference...

 

[alexGS]

Well thank you (CZ)enda... :worship:

Possibly the most useful advice I have ever received from the forum... saved at least an hour of travelling and meant that I got the new windscreen I wanted after all.

I started the day not by returning the new windscreen (as planned) but instead by driving across town to collect jjhepburn's spare Mk2 windscreen which he kindly offered to me (it came from a car that I technically owned, but James stripped for parts and generally we've shared most items )

I stood the Mk2 screen up against the new windscreen that I'd bought. They were exactly the same size! Also noticeable was that both had thinner glass than the Mk1 screen that I had.

So, the rubber surround is indeed a little bigger. It's still not exactly a tight fit - the rubber is free to move slightly (I straightened it up after I took the outside photo below) - but it's a lot better than when I used the Mk1 rubber surround and had a 10-15mm gap.

I rang the glass company with the good news. Meanwhile, since my assistant was unavailable today, I managed to put the windscreen in by myself!

With the windscreen removed, it's a good time to unhook the top of the dashboard (I didn't have to remove the single screw in the centre of the dash top - it was missing). I fitted a length of thin rope into the rubber seal and threw the ends inside the car while I lifted the windscreen into place. I suggest engaging the bottom first (so, having the rope ends at the bottom), and then pulling the ropes along the bottom and up the sides in a synchronised fashion.

The only slight snag was that a small part of the rubber surround got hooked up in the bottom-centre. The solution was to continue with the fitting and then remove the screw in the glovebox and three of the screws underneath the dashboard (I didn't disturb the instrument cluster or the steering column). This allows the dashboard to be pulled out just far enough to get a hand in and pull the rubber out inside the body flange.

I got the Warrant Of Fitness - the Uno is legal to drive again.

thepottleflump - note http://www.glassglobal.com/profile/35455.html - you were right.




Next I treated my Uno to a radio antenna - at last. It had a windscreen-mounted Bosch 'Autofun' antenna, since the usual roof-mounted antenna is mysteriously absent. However, the thin wires for the windscreen antenna were nowhere to be seen when I got the car. I tried rigging some up a few years ago, but it made no difference. In the last few months, the reception had gone from bad to dreadful. I could only get one or two stations!

So I bought a windscreen antenna - $37. Not cheap, but better than cutting a hole in the bodywork that's survived so long without a hole!

The box that sticks to the windscreen requires an earth lead. I drilled a hole between the roof console/mirror mounting screws - since those existing screws go into plastic and are therefore useless for earthing. I could have tapped onto an existing earth lead in the roof console, but decided that I wanted a 'proper' earth.

Getting the antenna lead down to the stereo was a bit of a head-in-the-footwell, swearing job. The previous wires had been there some time and were on the wrong side of the fusebox, glovebox, centre console, etc. Also, my stereo wiring uses a large terminal block screwed to the heater casing. It was impossible to reach this (to attach the live supply to the radio antenna box) until I removed the stereo first.

Hint: it's worth spending a few minutes to find the radio removal tools in the garage. I decided to try prying from the back with screwdrivers (head in the pedals, with torch trying to see). That wasted at least 20 minutes.

Anyway, with everything back in (well almost, still the sunvisors to reattach) the radio works better than it ever has. I had no idea there were so many stations. From the starting frequency of 87.5MHz, the first used to be 89.8 and the second was 95.4. Now, there are 88.1, 89.0, 89.8, 90.0, 91.0, 91.4, 92.8, 93.0, 94.8...

And the vision through a new windscreen is quite something. I think it gives the whole driving experience a welcome lift! The only slight snag is the silly tinted band across the top - not all new windscreens have this, but most do - it's quite distracting to see it bobbing up and down (bit of a choppy ride in my Uno!) and the WOF sticker (top-right corner by law) has to be placed further down so as to be seen from outside.

So thanks again (CZ)enda, and take note, anyone trying to fit a new windscreen to a Mk1, you may need the Mk2 rubber surround...

-Alex

 

[SteveNZ]

From the experences I've have, this is what I believe.

Mk1 and mk2 shells are the same with respect to the windscreen hole. I am quite sure there is not mk1 and mk2 specific screens as well. However there are at least 2 different screens. They required the correct rubber and then they will fit any Uno.

I have come accross both size screens on mk1 unos. And ive found the same screen in both a mk2 and mk1 (both turbos actually). There is no telling if they were the original sizes these days thougn.

I have found many different Fiats and Alfas to have various size screens. I believe the difference is from the screen manufacturer. There will have been more than 1 screen supplier throughout the life of these cars.

 

[(CZ)enda]

Interesting. One just never quits learning, huh?

 

[alexGS]

From the experences I've have, this is what I believe.

Mk1 and mk2 shells are the same with respect to the windscreen hole. I am quite sure there is not mk1 and mk2 specific screens as well. However there are at least 2 different screens. They required the correct rubber and then they will fit any Uno.

Right - that's basically what Mal Simmonds said as well.

One of the differences was the thickness of the glass - the replacement and the Mk2 both had thinner glass than the one I started with. That means the rubber must be different or you end up with extra slack.

Somehow I've got away with changing <counts... 1, 2, 3,...> five screens in Uno Mk1s and never encountered a different size, even though two of those screens were brand-new.

Interesting. One just never quits learning, huh?

That's a very American expression for you!
-Alex