A windshield heater for the classic car?
11/30/2019
Anyone who rides their classic not only when the sun is shining, but also now, in the cold and damp season, will be very familiar with misted-up windscreens.
On the Triumph TR6 that I currently ride, as on many other oldies, the ventilation/heating is inadequate as we understand it today. You are constantly cleaning and wiping the windows from the inside to get a clear view to the front, and the damp air can hardly be expelled from the interior. It usually takes several minutes or kilometers before warm air from the heater dries the damp windscreen.
Alpine (among other manufacturers) had already installed heated windscreens in the A110 in the early seventies and Morgan or Caterham use this technology in their "modern classics" in order to fulfill the (current) legal requirement for vehicles without windscreen ventilation.
If I could, I would install a heated windshield in all classic cars if it were technically feasible. In addition to the windshield, such a retrofit requires wiring, sufficient power and an additional switch. However, as there are no longer even unheated windshield replacements available for some classic cars, it will probably remain a wish.
In my opinion, such a retrofit would not detract from the historic value of the vehicle, as the thin heating wires are barely visible. But of course I also know of friends in the classic environment who reject such modern modifications. What do our readers think?
