non-OEM windscreen too curved?

[master garion 1]

ok i figured I better check with you lot before I go nuts with my insurer/Smith & Smith. Cracked the windscreen on my E46 so I called my insurer as I had glass cover. Told them I wanted OEM glass. They got S & S to sort it out but insurer won't allow OEM glass cos price differential too great (S & S priced up both options). Both insurer and S & S adamant nothing wrong with the non-OEM (Chinese made) windscreens and claim to have done thousands etc. Couldn't be f**ked fighting them and thought they couldn't be that bad.

First thing I noticed after getting car back was the optical distortion in the bottom few inches of the windscreen. I figured I could live with that but then I just noticed in the last couple of weeks (because of all the rain) that the wipers are not wiping the 6 inches or so near the bottom of the A-pillar on the passenger's side. It seems to me like the glass is too curved (especially at the edges) and the wiper blade doesn't make contact with the glass along its entire length. At the moment, only two thirds of the passenger's side wiper touches the glass with the remainder just hanging in the air.

Anyone else had this problem? Any thoughts/comments? Btw, wiper blades are OEM bosch with spoiler etc.

[swordfish 30]

I have non-OEM glass from S&S and have bosh braceless wipers and yes my left one does not touch the entire surface of my windscreen. However I do not have any distortions at the bottom of the screen... your one must be faulty... you can apply for re-assessment from your insurer if distortions are great enough and argue that it is not safe to drive like this on the road and ask for an OEM windscreen. Hope that helps.

[Michael. 2312]

Oh my lord. Chinese glass in a BMW. What next.

I'd be sure to pay extra for the real deal.

[master garion 1]

Whats this inches crap NZ is a metric country since 1972.

P.S. if you want a genuine BMW screen you can simply pay the difference that what I did, Insurance company paid the first $350:00 as that is what they allow in their cover.

Oh my lord. Chinese glass in a BMW. What next.

I'd be sure to pay extra for the real deal.

Of course I can pay the diff for OEM glass (who's ever been stopped from paying more for anything?) and was even asked if I wanted to but it's the principle of it. Why should I have to pay for glass that can be wiped properly by the wipers? Shouldn't the replacement (OEM or otherwise) at least be expected to perform like the original or is that an unreasonable expectation? Thought that's why we have glass cover in our policies.

[elmarco 56]

Yep, I agree.

I refused to let them put non-OEM windscreen in mine for precisely the reasons you have found out the hard way, but did compromise on who did the work (Novus vs Team McMillan). I argued that they charge me a premium based on it being a more expensive car (the premium isn't the same as a Toyota Corolla), so were fully aware of the costs for this kind of thing when they entered the contract. That and if the other supplier (XYG from memory) were actually a comparable product to the OEM's like Pilkington or Saint Gobain/Sekurit with the same quality controls & specifications then they would actually be OEM suppliers and likely be the same price. The reason they are cheap is they are an inferior product. Personally, I would fully accept a well known OEM supplier that didn't have the BMW badge on it (like the 3x above) but they only seemed interested in the S&S XYG vs BMW NZ supplied - so they paid in the end...

They have to warrant the work they have done, so just take it back and tell them to fix it.

[Smith&Smith 0]

Hi Master Garion, We are sorry to hear that you are not satisfied with the glass installed and we would welcome the opportunity to reassess the screen and replace your wipers free of charge. You can contact us on 0800 80 90 80 to arrange a time that best suits you.

[Wom 0]

ok i figured I better check with you lot before I go nuts with my insurer/Smith & Smith. Cracked the windscreen on my E46 so I called my insurer as I had glass cover. Told them I wanted OEM glass. They got S & S to sort it out but insurer won't allow OEM glass cos price differential too great (S & S priced up both options). Both insurer and S & S adamant nothing wrong with the non-OEM (Chinese made) windscreens and claim to have done thousands etc. Couldn't be f**ked fighting them and thought they couldn't be that bad.

may I ask who your insurer is please?

I really don't want to have to deal with this rubbish if it ever comes up