Owning a convertible is a no-brainer if you live in a warm, sunny area. Yes, they aren't the manliest of cars, but who cares! You can just pop the top down on sunny days and go for a ride. Heck, it can even make going to work for a less painful adventure.
Convertibles aren't all fun unfortunately. They have unique problems. The vast majority of convertibles today come with a solid glass window in the back. The benefit of this is that you don't have a window that the fog up over time. The downside is a piece of glass in a moving fabric roof is always a danger to crack or break. In this article, however, we focus on the vinyl rear windows found in some convertibles.
Is there a benefit to having a vinyl rear window in a convertible? Yes. They are flexible and don't crack unless they are really old. In truth, that's about the extent of the benefit. On the downside, the rear windows will start to fog up over time, and even show crease points where they get bent when the top is folded. Is there anything you can do to treat this problem? The answer is yes.
The first step is fairly simple. You can go to the parts store and find products that will banish the brown fog of death from your rear window. The really shocking thing is many of these products actually work. They get rid of the foggy appearance, but will not return the absolute clarity that you had when you originally purchased the vehicle. Instead, it is, like driving without your prescription glasses. You can see general shapes, but everything is blurry. Still, it is better than nothing and a very cheap solution you can implement in an hour or so.
A second solution is to simply replace the rear window. It may sound like a complicated thing, but really it's not. Any car fabric shop can simply take the window out and sew in a new one. It takes about an hour for them to do it, but will cost you a couple hundred dollars. Still, it will be like having a brand-new window and you'll actually be able to see what's going on behind the car. What a concept!
Owning a convertible is definitely something that you want to do if you live in a warm area. The opportunity to throw down the top and just go for a drive is something that is simply irresistible. If your rear window starts to fog up, don't let it get you down. Getting a fix is not going to cost you an arm and a leg and can be done quickly.
Dirk Gibson is with DCJAutoParts.com - find
high performance auto parts for your car.
