It's official! It's 'that time of year' again when we come out to our cars in the morning not sure if we'll see frost...or worse! If, like us, you live in the South East, you'd have awoken this morning to a layer of snow which had frozen solid during the night. As well as a frozen windscreen to contend with, owners of soft top cars also have their soft top windows to contend with when de-icing their cars.

So, how do you de-ice a soft top window?  There are 3 types of soft top window: Plastic/PVC, Glass, and Heated Glass.  With the latter, it's easy - start your engine whilst you're scraping the front window and turn on the defroster for the rear window. On my Boxster Hood, by the time I've scrapped the front window, the back has normally defrosted enough, though this will depend on your hood manufacturer and indeed the make and model and age of your car.

For those with just non-heated glass rear windows, the temptation is to treat the rear window just like any other and to apply liberal volumes of de-icer liquid along with a good scrape. A word of warning here...be VERY wary about where and how you squirt your de-icer. The rear windows are bonded into your car meaning they are potentially prone to erosion and weakness around where the window meets the hood. Furthermore, de-icer (as it says on the can) CAN cause damage to a hood fabric if over applied. Personally, we 'd not recommend using a de-icer liquid on a rear screen at all. Therefore if using a scraper, just be VERY careful NOT to touch the seal that sits around the rear window as it is very easy to damage this with some vigourous scraping. Bare in mind also the glass is different for a rear window, so be more gentle than normal!

If you have a PVC rear window like the first generation Boxsters or MX-5's, we'd suggest NOT touching the rear screen at all. In the cold (particulary if the hood is old) the rear window becomes ultra brittle. We saw a BMW yesterday in the workshop with the entire rear screen caved in and the owner hadn't even touched it. This was just an old hood which couldn't cope with the layer of ice or frost and just collapsed.  If you do have a PVC rear screen, all is not lost however - turn on the blower in the car (which, if you have a first generation MX5 is VERY powerful) along with aircon if you have it. This should help clear the screen without damaging it.

Of course, for owners of PVC Rear Screen cars, there are two other options: upgrade to a glass alternative, in some cases we can replace just the rear section, OR regulary 'treat' your rear screen to a coating of condition like 'Renovo' which will help keep the PVC more supple, as well as transparant.

If you have any queries regarding your soft top rear window, or to discuss upgrading, please call our helpful sales team on: 01883 718530.