Windsheild: OEM vs AM?

[Bird-Dog]

Anyone had occasion to look into windshield replacements?

I'm specifically interested in cost:value equation of OEM vs Aftermarket.

I've got a stone chip in mine, though manageable in size at the moment, and that's what will prompt me to pull the trigger on a replacement.

But, I've also got a good bit of speckling or pitting, so I would have eventually replaced it anyway. In direct sunlight you can see dozens, if not hundreds, of tiny flaws in the glass, I suspect it's the result of years of grit and small road debris kicked up on the highway. In addition to just being an annoyance, it makes nighttime glare worse. Anyone else notice this on theirs?

Funny thing about that stone chip, too. I was out on the Interstate in the middle of nowhere without another car in sight and no underpass nearby. A loud BAP came out of nowhere - never saw anything coming at me. It's as though it dropped straight out of the sky... and it hit really HARD and LOUD! I have a sneaking suspicion some fool playing with a .22 shot straight up in the air and it came down on me!

[johnrando]

There are a few threads on here about this. I think BMW glass is made by Pilkington (sp?). I think non-OEM is OK, but you need to make sure it has the right features for the rear view mirror, etc. I have heard that on verts, it makes a difference wrt structural integrity. That being said, I know quite a few people say go OEM but there is a big price difference, unless you can find a deal. Long run, I don't know that it's a huge difference.

[slater]

i'm just about the have mine replaced. i'm cool with aftermarket as long as it's good quality. a friend of mine who does body/paintwork is going to do it for me when i have some paintwork done, i trust he will use something decent. i'll report back on pricing.

peter

[SoCalZman]

Just from what I have heard from my buddies that work at BMW, I will only have my windshield replaced at BMW with BMW glass. It's a one time expense (probably), so why skimp/take a chance on quality?

[az3579]

ALWAYS OEM glass, IMO.
The aftermarket ones pit prematurely and are of generally worse quality. There's a reason they're cheaper.

I got aftermarket glass on my E30 and regretted it. It was almost as pitted within 6 months as my OEM glass was after 250k miles.

[slater]

mine has 110K miles and it is horrendous - almost unsafe at night. anything would be an improvement.

i have had decent experience with aftermarket glass in the past. of course, i rare keep a car for over a year, so... i guess that says a lot. :)

perhaps i may go OEM on this one.

peter

[KevinC]

OEM BMW glass is a bargain - our windshields are something like $400 at FULL retail. You can do better than that even. Aftermarket glass is often crapola.

This is a no-brainer on BMW's - stick with OEM.

[az3579]

OEM BMW glass is a bargain - our windshields are something like $400 at FULL retail. You can do better than that even. Aftermarket glass is often crapola.

This is a no-brainer on BMW's - stick with OEM.

I thought the rain sensor windshield is around $700's?

[slater]

where the heck is the windshield in realoem.com? can't find it anywhere!

[stephenkirsh]

I've gone after market on my Volvo, 325, 330. No regrets. Most I driven was 10-12,000 miles a year. Never had issues with non-OEM glass.

[az3579]

where the heck is the windshield in realoem.com? can't find it anywhere!

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=EV53&mospid=47725&btnr=51_3222&hg=51&fg=05

Boy am I glad to wrong on the windshield pricing.
It looks like the correct part # is 51317059706 for cars with rain sensor and green band at the top.
51318196154 for cars without rain sensor.

[danewilson77]

I went with Pilkington glass through Windshield Guru.

No flame suit required!

[slater]

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=EV53&mospid=47725&btnr=51_3222&hg=51&fg=05

Boy am I glad to wrong on the windshield pricing.
It looks like the correct part # is 51317059706 for cars with rain sensor and green band at the top.
51318196154 for cars without rain sensor.

thanks! $435.

peter

[Bird-Dog]

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=EV53&mospid=47725&btnr=51_3222&hg=51&fg=05

Boy am I glad to wrong on the windshield pricing.
It looks like the correct part # is 51317059706 for cars with rain sensor and green band at the top.
51318196154 for cars without rain sensor.
I thought OEM was much higher too.

Looks like about $435 list for Rain Sensor and Green Band (glass only). In fact, a dealership on the other side of town from me has it listed online for $265, which is pretty close to AM. Called my nearby dealer's parts dept and they will match that price. I have to wonder how much the dealership (over)charges for installation, though? Or will any glazier use OEM or customer supplied glass?


Careful about those SKU's. The numbers you gave are for Sedans ONLY. Coupes and convertibles are different.

And, Thanks to all for the input! It certainly helps!

[az3579]

Careful about those SKU's. The numbers you gave are for Sedans ONLY. Coupes and convertibles are different.


Oops, my bad; I live in a sedan-only world. lol
I plugged in my VIN because I didn't feel like clicking through all those model and year selection menus. :biggrin

[slater]

oh, that's LIST price, doh! great news. now - to find out how much they cost in canada... :)

[stephenkirsh]

Can somebody explain what's In the glass that the rain sensors need?

[ELCID86]

I went with Pilkington glass through Windshield Guru.


Same here on the OB car I sold. Not sure what I'll do on this IR car. Had planned to do the same though.


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[ELCID86]

Can somebody explain what's In the glass that the rain sensors need?

This:

15962

15963

15964


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[stephenkirsh]

So the glass itself is the same, it just comes with the stuff mounted to it for the rain sensor to connect to?

[danewilson77]

So the glass itself is the same, it just comes with the stuff mounted to it for the rain sensor to connect to?
Yes.

No flame suit required!

[Hermes]

OEM Pilkington is fine, but I personally plan on buying OE with the roundel when I will need one.

Honestly you just need to keep an eye out on warehouse pricing, every once it a while they put stuff cheap. I picked up my OE E21 windshield for less than I was quoted for an aftermarket one

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c288/jhermes/320i/null_zpsc0655dfc.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c288/jhermes/320i/null_zpsdb49d55b.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c288/jhermes/320i/null_zps85f83e60.jpg

[danewilson77]

My rear is Sekutit. My Pilkington has the roundel as well.

The friendliest forum on the planet.

[Stewbie]

oh, that's LIST price, doh! great news. now - to find out how much they cost in canada... :)
Interested in knowing this too.

[ELCID86]

My rear is Sekutit. My Pilkington has the roundel as well.

The friendliest forum on the planet.

Neither Pilk. I got on my last car had the rounded. (I had 2 b/c one cracked --most likely due to install error)


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[az3579]

Neither Pilk. I got on my last car had the rounded. (I had 2 b/c one cracked --most likely due to install error)


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If it has the BMW Roundel, that means it's a Genuine BMW part. Even if it's made by the same manufacturer, it can't have the Roundel on it if it's not a Genuine part.

Same thing with my fuel pump. It's made by VDO, yet I purchased it "aftermarket". When I received it, it clearly had the BMW Roundel scratched off where it would have been if I bought it from BMW. Same part, but without the Roundel.

Sometimes "aftermarket" parts, even if made by the same manufacturer of the OEM part, don't quite have the same spec as the Genuine part. I think it depends on the part. For glass, I would think they'd be the same.

[Bird-Dog]

Update: As mentioned above, my local dealership's part dept said they'd match the discounted online price of $265 for the windshield. But, when I asked my service advisor, whom I've been working with on the airbag recall, about installation the total bill was going to come out to $800+. He gave me the names of two mobile installation companies that do work for them and said most people (the dealership included) go with aftermarket glass. Neither of these things were really what I wanted to hear.

So, I'll check around and see if I can find a reasonable price for installation using OEM glass I supply. Else, I think I'll live with the speckles and stone chip a while longer.

BTW, the service advisor rattled off a list of other parts needed for the install. This included $125 for the adhesive, which seems incredibly high. But, he also named a number of small parts including mirror covers and such.

Anyone know what items must be changed out? I really doubt everything he listed needs changing.

Oh, and he was figuring 6.1 hrs labor @ $120 hr. Ridiculous!

[derbo]

I will only get OE BMW glass or get Pilkington. If you have comprehensive insurance, windshields are covered. I personally would go this route and argue for OE glass and if not, at least get OEM Pilkington.

[MrMaico]

I got my OEM glass from Husker BMW for $240 during a free shipping promo they had going and got it installed by a local Indy glass shop for $80. The only other part I needed was the OEM gasket. So nice to have a clear view, especially when driving into the sun.

[stephenkirsh]

Update: As mentioned above, my local dealership's part dept said they'd match the discounted online price of $265 for the windshield. But, when I asked my service advisor, whom I've been working with on the airbag recall, about installation the total bill was going to come out to $800+. He gave me the names of two mobile installation companies that do work for them and said most people (the dealership included) go with aftermarket glass. Neither of these things were really what I wanted to hear.

So, I'll check around and see if I can find a reasonable price for installation using OEM glass I supply. Else, I think I'll live with the speckles and stone chip a while longer.

BTW, the service advisor rattled off a list of other parts needed for the install. This included $125 for the adhesive, which seems incredibly high. But, he also named a number of small parts including mirror covers and such.

Anyone know what items must be changed out? I really doubt everything he listed needs changing.

Oh, and he was figuring 6.1 hrs labor @ $120 hr. Ridiculous!

Everything about that seems beyond ridiculous. Mirror covers shouldn't need to be replaced. Shouldn't take 6 hours. Glue isn't $125.

I guess there's a lot of rich people out there who don't care. How else can they charge those prices?!

[Hermes]

Yes, the 'glue' is expensive. The windshield is a structural member and needs a special adhesive

[stephenkirsh]

Alright, fair enough. But 6.1 hours?!

[Hermes]

6.1 sounds about right for a dealership billing. Just find a good installer and have them do it as I doubt the dealership themselves do it, likely it's contracted to a windshield guy they know and trust.

For example an old style (up to around E30) windshield takes 1-2 hrs assuming you know what you're doing and everything goes easy, and that is a significantly easier tech to deal with. Honestly, most of the billed time for the 6.1 hrs is probably dealing with removing the old windshield and cleaning out the adhesive so the surface is clean

[ELCID86]

6.1 is ridiculous. The two I've had done in the last year or so only took the guys about 1.5 hours or less.


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[Bird-Dog]

Thank guys!

[danewilson77]

6.1 is ridiculous. The two I've had done in the last year or so only took the guys about 1.5 hours or less.


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+1

Those aren't "book" hours though.

No flame suit required!

[derbo]

I'm pretty sure they use 3M auto window seal.