TheSamba.com :: View topic - Sekurit Side windows and Sigla front windshield?

Fri Dec 23, 2005 12:09 pm

All the side windows and back window are Sekurit but my front windshield is Sigla. Would that mean that is was replace at some point or did they ever come from the factory like that? I thought I had seen Sekurit front windshields before.

Fri Dec 23, 2005 1:23 pm

buggen wrote: All the side windows and back window are Sekurit but my front windshield is Sigla. Would that mean that is was replace at some point or did they ever come from the factory like that? I thought I had seen Sekurit front windshields before.

My 52 split has an original Sekurit front windshield.

Fri Dec 23, 2005 1:55 pm

Hey Buggen,

If you are talking about your 53 vert, I think it came that way. My Org 57 vert has a Sigla front as well. I am positive it came with the car.

Mike

Fri Dec 23, 2005 3:36 pm

Your windshield is correct.........The glass was changed on all US delivery cars to meet the safety standard in '53. :wink:

Fri Dec 23, 2005 5:39 pm

Yes it's the glass in my vert. Should the Sigla emblem be upside down in the bottom corner? I thought that was strange.

Fri Dec 23, 2005 6:41 pm

Mine is on the passenger side........lower corner, right side up.

Fri Dec 23, 2005 7:24 pm

Mine is on the drivers side bottom corner. This is what it says reading it outside the car:

Made in Germany
Witten-RUHR
SIGLA
AS-1

Mike

Fri Dec 23, 2005 8:03 pm

Mine reads a litttle different:

Made in Western Germany
Witten-RUHR
Sigla (in a box)
AS-1

Fri Dec 23, 2005 8:39 pm

Oh yeah......my Sigla is in a rectangle windshield shaped box. No Western though.

Sat Dec 24, 2005 12:18 am

Maybe mine is replacement Sigla cause it says:

SIGLA
Safty
AS1 -
DOT 25 M 90

Sat Dec 24, 2005 7:36 am

That's very interesting. I have never seen Sigla on window glass. I have only ever seen Sekurit and AS-1. I guess that this is another safety glass manufacturer for North American Cars.
I don't really know too much about the glass so I am glad someone has brought it up.
I was told by a friend to replace my original zwitter Sekurit Windshield for safety purposes with safety glass cut by a glass shop but I always thought that Sekurit mean Safety in German?? :?:

Sat Dec 24, 2005 10:12 am

The difference is that there is "safety" glass and "tempered" glass. Tempered glass will shatter into hundreds of little pieces...........where safety glass will just crack. Safety glass is laminated with a thin piece of clear plastic between two layers of glass. Tempered glass is processed in such a way that when it breaks, it breaks into little pieces as not to have large jagged edges. In '53 all cars in the US were to be sold with safety glass in their front windshield. All 'export' cars were fitted with Sigla Safety glass by the factory before leaving Germany. The "home" market continued to receive the "tempered" Sekurit glass in the front windshield for another year. If your zwitter is a '53 and has Sekurit tempered glass.....it may have originally been a "home" market car instead of an "export" car. :wink:

Sat Dec 24, 2005 10:49 am

"tempered" windshields were used until '61

Sat Dec 24, 2005 11:37 am

53 0val wrote: The difference is that there is "safety" glass and "tempered" glass. Tempered glass will shatter into hundreds of little pieces...........where safety glass will just crack. Safety glass is laminated with a thin piece of clear plastic between two layers of glass. Tempered glass is processed in such a way that when it breaks, it breaks into little pieces as not to have large jagged edges. In '53 all cars in the US were to be sold with safety glass in their front windshield. All 'export' cars were fitted with Sigla Safety glass by the factory before leaving Germany. The "home" market continued to receive the "tempered" Sekurit glass in the front windshield for another year. If your zwitter is a '53 and has Sekurit tempered glass.....it may have originally been a "home" market car instead of an "export" car. :wink:

That's cool info! My 53 Zwitter was a Canadian Export as outlined on my Birth Certificate from Wolfsburg so I guess they were just using up some older left over sekurit windshields at the factory.

Sat Dec 24, 2005 11:47 am

Alan Willis wrote: "tempered" windshields were used until '61

Upon further checking......Alan is correct. M code 89 was an accessory. Safety glass was required in windshields as early as 1934 is states such as Pennsylvania. Beginning in '53 VW dealers were required to provide the cars sold in those states that required "Safety" glass with the M89 code upon delivery. It wasn't until '66 that all cars were required to have laminated glass windshields in all states.

Sat Dec 24, 2005 11:56 am

kafer53 wrote: 53 0val wrote: The difference is that there is "safety" glass and "tempered" glass. Tempered glass will shatter into hundreds of little pieces...........where safety glass will just crack. Safety glass is laminated with a thin piece of clear plastic between two layers of glass. Tempered glass is processed in such a way that when it breaks, it breaks into little pieces as not to have large jagged edges. In '53 all cars in the US were to be sold with safety glass in their front windshield. All 'export' cars were fitted with Sigla Safety glass by the factory before leaving Germany. The "home" market continued to receive the "tempered" Sekurit glass in the front windshield for another year. If your zwitter is a '53 and has Sekurit tempered glass.....it may have originally been a "home" market car instead of an "export" car. :wink:

That's cool info! My 53 Zwitter was a Canadian Export as outlined on my Birth Certificate from Wolfsburg so I guess they were just using up some older left over sekurit windshields at the factory.

My '53 is also a Canadian Export but my birth certificate has the M89 code for "safety glass." My car was delivered at Speedway Motors in Vancouver. Maybe British Columbia required the glass and other parts of Canada did not. I just checked with a friend of mine in Canada and his '54 also has the M code and he lives in Montreal........ :? I am sure your car would be correct with either glass but if I was driving it......I think I would put in the safety glass. :wink:

Sat Dec 24, 2005 12:11 pm

53 0val wrote: kafer53 wrote: 53 0val wrote: The difference is that there is "safety" glass and "tempered" glass. Tempered glass will shatter into hundreds of little pieces...........where safety glass will just crack. Safety glass is laminated with a thin piece of clear plastic between two layers of glass. Tempered glass is processed in such a way that when it breaks, it breaks into little pieces as not to have large jagged edges. In '53 all cars in the US were to be sold with safety glass in their front windshield. All 'export' cars were fitted with Sigla Safety glass by the factory before leaving Germany. The "home" market continued to receive the "tempered" Sekurit glass in the front windshield for another year. If your zwitter is a '53 and has Sekurit tempered glass.....it may have originally been a "home" market car instead of an "export" car. :wink:

That's cool info! My 53 Zwitter was a Canadian Export as outlined on my Birth Certificate from Wolfsburg so I guess they were just using up some older left over sekurit windshields at the factory.

My '53 is also a Canadian Export but my birth certificate has the M89 code for "safety glass." My car was delivered at Speedway Motors in Vancouver. Maybe British Columbia required the glass and other parts of Canada did not. I just checked with a friend of mine in Canada and his '54 also has the M code and he lives in Montreal........ :? I am sure your car would be correct with either glass but if I was driving it......I think I would put in the safety glass. :wink:

That's good advice thanks! :) My car was delivered to VW Canada in Toronto. I just love learning new info on my car. I just ran upstairs and looked at my Birth Certificate for that M89 code (I thought I could be wrong as it sounded familiar) but it was for M20 Speedo instead.

Sun Dec 25, 2005 2:46 pm

So how hard is it to find an OG front window?

Sun Dec 25, 2005 3:09 pm

pretty easy;just PM restojohnney