Is it worth it to pay extra for a car with a heated windshield
Many drivers, looking for a brand new car, pay attention to the presence in the equipment list of such an option as windshield heating. Undoubtedly, the system is useful in the harsh Russian winters. But is it worth the money that official dealers ask for it?
In order to make life easier for drivers living in cold countries, automakers have invented such a useful thing as a heated windshield. The "advanced" windshield is a multi-layered product consisting of two sheets of glass itself, a polyvinyl butyral film and thin filaments through which an electric current passes. The latter, as a rule, are made of nichrome or other refractory material.
There is no doubt about the effectiveness of a heated windshield - this option really helps Russians out in the frosty season. Firstly, such a "lobash" warms up faster in winter. Secondly, it instantly melts snowflakes falling from the sky, thereby improving visibility for the helmsman. And finally, thirdly, heated windows fog up much less.
However, this option also has several disadvantages, the main of which is the high price. Let's take, for example, the most popular foreign car on the Russian market - KIA Rio. The car in the simplest configuration is offered to customers at a price of 739 rubles, while for a car with heated glass - and only the "older" versions of the model have it - they ask for 900 rubles.
KIA Rio not interested in you? Looking for a luxury car? Let's say. Ford Focus now costs from 841 rubles in the basic version - without heating, of course. The "winter" package, which includes this option, is available at a price of 000 "wooden", but only in a more interesting Trend configuration for 21. Total: 500 rubles.
Looking for a crossover? The price for an “empty” Renault Duster starts at 699 rubles, and with a heated windshield, from 000 rubles. And so on…
But you will most likely have to pay for a heated windshield more than once. Imagine how insulting it would be if a stone flew into an expensive “lobash” on the highway. And it's good when there is a CASCO policy that allows you to change the glass for free as many times as you need. Otherwise, you will be billed for a round sum for replacing the “headband”.
The list of disadvantages of windshield heating is not limited to serious costs. Drivers also complain about the incorrect operation of radar detectors, which are confused by the threads on the “lobash”, and the glare that occurs at night. True, this is hard to believe. Most likely, such comrades simply use cheap gadgets and do not bother with regular glass cleaning. But how do you know.
What is the result? Those who have a limited budget and live in the “warm” regions of our Vast, where the thermometers rarely fall below -5 degrees, can quite easily do without heating the windshield. If there is an “extra” money, as there is an urgent need for a “lobash” with electrons, then buy it - this option, as we found out, certainly cannot be called useless.
