Windscreen Glass

[sean sherry]

I cannot sort the minefield of choice to have a new screen fitted to my C Class W204. Shannons apparently have a tie up with O'Brain Glass who get very bad reviews. Glass is sourced from China it seems, down to the lowest cost.
In today's cars the Windscreen is an integral part of Rollover safety, so I want an OEM replacement. Do I just go through a Dealer who will most certainly Sub Contract the Job ?????

 

[Patrick_R]

Sean,
I have had a few windscreens replaced before.

I’ve purchased an original screen, and then had a windscreen fitter come to my house and fit the screen.

Of course a dealer will be safer, as if anything happens it should be covered by parts & labour warranty. (Confirm this at time of booking)

Ask them to do the same, sell you a screen, then they will just sub contract the fitting in the dealers workshop.

 

[BenzBoy]

Shannons give you a choice of repairer and you have the right to specify original manufacturing. The alternative is Ralph Moore whom I am sure you know. Buy a glass and take it to him or ask him to source you an original.
http://ralphmooreautoglass.com.au/
Regards,
Brian

 

[abl567]

Shannons have changed, significantly, and not for the better. They are now owned by Suncorp and are very quick to revert to the fine print. While it's true you have choice of repairer the assessors are quick to apply plenty of pressure on the repairer to ensure the outcome is in their favour. You need to fight really hard to get a fair settlement.

 

[Patrick_R]

That’s why I haven’t used Shannon’s now for years.
NRMA offer a classic & vintage policy starting for cars over 15 years old.

Great service and great pricing especially if you have been a member for over 10 years.

They match everything Shannon’s offered and more.

 

[BenzBoy]

Or, take the car to Perfect Auto Body and let then deal with Shannons. PAB are quite competent at dealing with insurance claims and are not easily harassed by aggressive assessors. In fact, quite the opposite.
Regards,
Brian

 

[abl567]

Good advice BenzBoy, as soon as I tackled the relevant assessors head on and demanded a different assessor be assigned to my claim(s) the outcome shifted to my benefit. The claim for the paint damage to our house was the best example and a story I'll tell at a GTG, with a big smile.

 

[sean sherry]

Many thanks for the advice. Dealing individually with Insurance Companies is not easy. You are only one number on their customer list. A big brother to act on your behalf would be the way to go. I will contact Perfect Auto Body tomorrow. I will also contact Ralph Moore.

 

[Jimb]

Hi all from Jimb.
Please offer some correction if I am wrong..
There is no great insurance company, they are not your friend. There are for and against with both of these companies. I am referring to a vehicle on classic insurance.
I went with Shannon's for the following reasons you may or may not be aware of. I may yet regret this choice. I am not suggesting you would normally choose to carry out these activities however from time to time you may be faced with having to. NRMA will not cover your vehicle if you have an accident in a super market car park, or picking up children from school. If you are on an extended trip over a week or two, there comes a time when you have to buy food. There could be a time unusual circumstances make it necessary to pick up children from school. The next point may have been changed the last two I mentioned I checked with the the representative. NRMA had in there policy you could only use your vehicle ten days in any calender month. So if you were away from the beginning of the month on an extended trip after the first ten days you are not covered for the rest of the month this may have changed recently. If your vehicle is on the 60 day log book scheme as far as the RMS is concerned you only need to sign the log book every day. The insurance companies should not impose other restrictions on it's use. I was not aware Shannon's changed to Sun Corp.I may well have made the wrong choice going with Shannon's. I would not be so concerned with tbe Mercedes breaking down if I had chosen NRMA Classic giving free tows if you are more than 120 K, s from home.
Kind regards Jimb.

 

[BenzBoy]

Please remember that an insurance company does not make a profit by paying out to us - despite all their hype about looking after us. However, an insurance company does have a contract with the insured and the threat of litigation is sometime a very useful tool.
Another useful tool is to tell them you are a member of a car club and will make a public announcement at the next meeting about their failure to look after you.
It works. Don't be shy. An insurance company is not a religious charity fighting for the salvation of your soul; it's a cold and heartless business. Of course be polite and pleasant but always remember just how they make a profit.
Personally, I have found Shannons to be 100% reasonable and supportive.
Regards,
Brian

 

[260ebenz]

If I may add my two cents on this topic?

I need to replace the front windscreen in the C220 my local Mercedes did quote wait for are you sitting down $2500 for a front screen!


The C220 has an original Mercedes windscreen which has stone chips and in quite poor condition unfortunately.

Coast Star Gosford apparently do have a genuine Mercedes front screen for $275.

I would have to drive the car to the Dealership 1hr 15mins each way plus the cost of fuel and the cost to have the screen fitted.

I would like to have a new original screen but a long way to go about it and $273 from Mercedes does it sound to good to be true?

O’Brien glass did quote $780 for a front screen.

Novus Autoglass Newcastle’s quote is $295 supplied & fitted the job can be done here at home.

I just wonder if the Novus screen would be good quality?

 

[Michel]

If I may add my two cents on this topic?

I need to replace the front windscreen in the C220 my local Mercedes did quote wait for are you sitting down $2500 for a front screen!


The C220 has an original Mercedes windscreen which has stone chips and in quite poor condition unfortunately.

Coast Star Gosford apparently do have a genuine Mercedes front screen for $275.

I would have to drive the car to the Dealership 1hr 15mins each way plus the cost of fuel and the cost to have the screen fitted.

I would like to have a new original screen but a long way to go about it and $273 from Mercedes does it sound to good to be true?

O’Brien glass did quote $780 for a front screen.

Novus Autoglass Newcastle’s quote is $295 supplied & fitted the job can be done here at home.

I just wonder if the Novus screen would be good quality?

It's a no brainer Tim,

Take the day off and spend most of it in Gosford.
It's your best bet.
Or, go for the drive, buy the screen from Gosford and bring it home.
Then, at your leisure, get a local fitter to do the job for around $100.

 

[sean sherry]

Is Ralph Moore still in Business Phone is disconnected ?

 

[sean sherry]

Like extracting a Tooth getting correct information. All I get is that it meets original specifications , no information of the sourse. Rapid Windscreens say that they have a European sourced Screen for $770 . Chinese is $330.
I'll see what Snannons have to say if I can get through to Claims ! If they won't agree i will make up the difference or source a used Screen.
I am very much aware that the Screen is an integral part of the safety in a Roll Over !

 

[Michel]

Is Ralph Moore still in Business Phone is disconnected ?

Ralph Moore passed away a few years ago.
However, his daughter was running the business.
The website seems to be up and running, but I'm not sure what's happening.
The phone number seems disconnected...

 

[Patrick_R]

I agree with Michel Tim.

As I said earlier in the post.
Genuine screen
Parts warranty
Labour warranty.
Worth the trip.

 

[Patrick_R]

Jim
With your “fine print” re NRMA, are you referring to the car being on club rego?

Brian is spot on.
You need to fight fire with fire with these companies.

 

[260ebenz]

Thanks chaps waiting to hear back from Coast Star Gosford in regards to the screen keep you guys posted.

 

[SEL_69L]

I have a small but quite noticeable star chip in the front screen of my W202.
It is going to stay there.

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BTW, as I write this post, the c280 (V6) is on loan, and is down in Shellharbour. A friend has it for a week.

My Hyundai i20 has also been on loan for a month, and currently lives in Penrith. My daughter is driving it.

That leaves me with the E55 AMG as a daily driver, which also includes duties as a shopping basket.

 

[Michel]

That leaves me with the E55 AMG as a daily driver, which also includes duties as a shopping basket.

What a tough life!
I pity you