The distortion on our 2000 A4 1.8TQMS is pretty obvious and I'm trying to decide if I should have the dealer do something about it. I really hate the idea of putting a replacement windshield in a brand new car, however.

I reviewed several posts on the topic in the archives. Are the problems still prevalent? Any other owners of '99 or '00 A4's notice the problem?

Kind of scary on a $29,000 car. Yes, I realize that perfection is tough to achieve, but I've previously owned probably 15 cars (the Audi is the most expensive thus far) and this is the worst distortion I've ever seen. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Otherwise, the car is great. I forgot how much fun turbocharged cars could be. I love the steering feedback and the handling. I love the red glow of the interior. It would certainly be a shame if Audi got rid of it. Now if I could just have the white needles from the S4!!

I have the same distortion in my S4. I actually had a 98 1.8T and the factory (Ingolstadt) windshield was good, but the replacement I had installed when a rock hit it was distorted. (distortion is all over the archives if you search) It was Audi glass too. I had yet a third windshield installed, and the prob. was solved (still Audi glass). No real problem with new glass, as far as leaks and such. Now, I need new glass in my S.
Tristan '00 S4

Did the dealer replace your windshied free of charge? I have had a distortion on my 99.5 A4 since I got it. When I took it to the dealer, they said that they have never heard of the problem and won't replace it. I filed a complaint with AoA and I am going to meet with the AoA rep. soon. Has anyone had Audi replace distorted windshield? This problem is all over the message boards and I can't believe AoA is telling me that they don't know about the problem...

Sorry to hear about it on the '00 models. I would have expected that Audi would have corrected this problem by now.

The windshield on my 98.5 Avant has distortion on both sides but mostly on the right. Not quite bad enough to change but still annoying.

My wife's 98.5 1.8T had same distortion but to a much worse degree. When I showed it to service rep, it took him less than five seconds to agree that it had to be replaced which they did. Replacement has a little distortion but is a lot better than the original one.

That's at least one distorted windshield that AoA knows about because they paid for it.

Because we had it on both cars, I asked service rep if this was a common thing on A4's.. Of course, he denied that it was, saying these were the only ones he had ever heard of. Yeah, right.

I have slight distortion on the right but not enough to be a nuisance. I drove a drunk friend home one night in his camaro and the windshield was very distorted, and I assumed it was because it was such a steep angle to the curved glass. Or it was just a POS. Could just be the latter. My Chevy truck didn't have any distortion but it is a fairly upright piece of glass with very little curve.

I agree with those who have heavily distorted glass that more should be expected from such a fine car. Maybe it is harder to make glass that is raked and curved than we think.

parkept
99.5 1.8T qms

...you will see distortion in their window glass as well. I think it's a combination of the required curvatures of the glass and the way the glass is bonded for safety. I've even seen distortion in the side windows of other cars. Like mentioned before, flatter windshields (like that on my Xterra) don't seem to exhibit this distortion. Personally, unless it's just really THAT bad, I'd wait until a big rock nails it, and then hope that the replacement glass is better. With my luck, I'd replace it and THEN get hit by the rock, so that's why I suggest that! :-)

Charles

Our 97 A4 1.8T has severe distortion in both front and back windshields. But, my 90 Accord 2 door has much more steeply raked windows, with no perceptible distortion. Either Audi is trying to save weight or money, or possibly that newer glass formulations safer in a collision but looks worse. Otherwise, there must be a process control problem in manufacturing.

is it worth it to have themn replace it? Is their a chance it won't be fitting as well as a factory installed one?

Ignorant

nt