So I finally got my windshield replaced. But why do glass manufacturers choose blue tint when demand for the glass gets low? Why not settle on bronze or gray instead? Instead they go with blue, which in my opinion would only look right on a blue car.

I'm not complaining about the subtle overall tint, that I can live with, my concern is with the sun glare strip across the top. I specifically brought up the topic over the phone that I didn't want a noticeable tint strip, especially not a blue one. The lady eased my worries, but that's exactly what they brought to install on my car. I saw the windshield before it was installed, and unfortunately had to delay the poor installer for about 25 minutes while I called Nissan to check if any OEM glass was still available and make up my mind about what to do.

In the end they offered to pay nearly my entire deductible and send me a gift certificate to someplace that I can't remember right now. I didn't have much choice, he had already cut out my cracked glass, so I agreed to go ahead with the install.

It helps that I got a good deal on it, but it's the only blue on the car, so it'll take some getting used to. Oh well, not the end of the world, at least for the first time in 3 years, I don't have a huge crack going across the windshield that redirects sunlight into my eyes.

 

I honestly never even notice one way or another when all the glass matches. The first time I ever realized there were two tint colors on the 3rd gen was on my old/original black VE before I had any window tint, it got broken into at the rear quarter window and I pulled one at the junkyard without even realizing there was a difference. I stuck it on and immediately you could see the bronze vs. blue difference between the side glass and the quarter window. I eventually tinted the whole car and of course then it was moot.

I take it none of your other windows are tinted? Why not put some tint on the front window to cover up the blue tint strip? You didn't want to go with an OEM glass from a junkyard?

 

I delayed it for 3 years contemplating whether or not to pull glass at the yard or file an insurance claim. I decided just to file a claim in the end. For one, it's not easy to get glass out without breaking it, second, it's a lot of work and supplies, third, the cost is about the same vs filing an claim and getting brand new glass. And most importantly, replacing a windshield isn't something a novice should be doing. I'm fully confident I could do it right, but after urathane, primer, specialty tools and studying the proper way to do it, it didn't make any sense to bother doing it myself. One of the few things I will ever say that about.

That said, now that I know how hard it is to find anything other than blue tint, I will definitely be on the lookout for an original windshield to pull at the junkyard for a future replacement. Not exactly easy to find an OEM windshield in perfect condition at the junkyard though.

All my windows are tinted, did it myself last summer. The blue isn't all that noticeable from most angles. Applying an additional tint strip is an option I thought about, but I didn't want any tint at the top in the first place. The VLT would also be highly illegal and I have a feeling it would end up looking worse anyway with the edge of the strip somewhere above or below where the blue fades out.

 

So what did you do for the front windshield molding? IIRC it's made up of several pieces and only a few of them are still available from Nissan. Is there an aftermarket option?

 

The top molding is all that was replaced with aftermarket stuff, fits perfectly fine. Everything else is in decent shape anyway, so no big deal.

 

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