Thanks for all the comments. Today i went by a dealer and he couldnt even show me a Skoda with a heated windscreen. Instead he showed me a Nissan Leaf with heated windscreen. Maybe it is different from the Skoda version, but the wires were clearly visble and I cant determine if I can ignore them. I tend to be a little worried as it would eventually be an everyday irritation. 

I am now instead considering the additional heater. The dealer told me, that the factorymounted heater Can be remote controlled with Skoda Connect app. The price is 4 times heated windscreen but also far better comfort.

Anyway Thanks again for your input

Do you mean to say that you aren't dealing with a franchised dealer, if I were you I'd find a proper Skoda dealer before you pay through the nose on a heater. 

 

I think you're being strung along by the dealership you're currently dealing with just to get a sale. Try using a broker if necessary. 

Franchised dealer it is. He has however no new or used Octavia on stock at the moment with heated screen to show. I Can surely find one in another dealership, but the optional heater is to consider. I have had a Webasto unit earlier and the comfort is great. So it is pricey but still... i Will look for a Octavia with a heated screen before i decide.

 

6 hours ago, litehead said:

Franchised dealer it is. He has however no new or used Octavia on stock at the moment with heated screen to show. I Can surely find one in another dealership, but the optional heater is to consider. I have had a Webasto unit earlier and the comfort is great. So it is pricey but still... i Will look for a Octavia with a heated screen before i decide.

 

 

Litehead where are you located? Because I don't know if UK dealers supply vehicles with Webasto heaters. 

I am located in Denmark. The pricelist for factory mounted heater said 1.690 EUR which is cheaper than an aftermounted Webasto (2.266 EUR). If you use Skoda Connect app you get to remote control the heater which saves money compared to buying a SMS version of a aftermounted Webasto. The price for heated windshield is 370 EUR (wire type). I asked a VW dealer about their insulated screen which is optional for Golf - costs 625 EUR but not available for Octavia :(

 

I think there is an element of "getting used to it" so whilst you might find the heated elements obvious when consciously and deliberately looking for them, when you're driving day to day you kinda see past them as you focus on what's going on in front of you.

 

I don't notice mine and it's a fantastic bit of kit in the winter. I'd much rather have it than not.

 

The heated screen should be standard. It’s a real safety aid. When everybody else is scraping letterbox-size  peepholes, you simply wait 90 seconds or so and can drive off with good visibility and no misting on the inside of the screen. The downside I think is that the glass on the MkIII seems to crack more easily and have had 2 replacements, the last one forcing me to drive to the Autoglass centre near Derby to have the radar/camera alignment sorted, fortunately all within the then Excess cost of £75. It probably would have worked anyway, however Autoglass inform your insurers of the replacement and specifically state that recalibration must be done. 

In a new Karoq Sportline today. When I looked at the windscreen, rather  than through it, vertical columns of fine wiggly wires were visible. Adjusting my focus down the road, they became invisible to me. 

14 hours ago, gregoir said:

In a new Karoq Sportline today. When I looked at the windscreen, rather  than through it, vertical columns of fine wiggly wires were visible. Adjusting my focus down the road, they became invisible to me. 

 

And that's how to deal with it. Look straight ahead a few yards in front and you don't see them, it's only if you concentrate on them will you notice them to distraction. 

 

Like I said we have them in our trains windscreens and when they first arrived they were really noticeable, but now after a few years of use we don't take any notice of them at all. 

Its not just ice and frost it helps with.  My front window is set to auto (through the menu settings) and comes on and off as and when it needs to. Quiet often i drive up the road on a cold (but not frosty) morning and you can see condensation /misting building up on the outside on the side bits where there are no elements, but the main screen where the elements are is perfectly clear,  Under normal circumstances I would have to have the wipers on constant for a minute or two until it had cleared.

As a side note, I wish there was a VCDS mod so the dashboard light for the windscreen would illuminate when it’s turned on automatically. Just like the fan speed in auto modification. I mean, it offers no real purpose other than I see the light. I just want it though. Meh. 

Does the film-type of heated screen interfere with vision if you're wearing polarized sunglasses? 

I noticed in my on - loan Karoq's menu that you could switch the screen heater to automatic. Also, you could switch on an auxiliary heater. Would that be an electrical immersion heater in a coolant circuit? (my old B5.5 Passat diesel had that)

Neither option was ticked on the loan car menus- maybe because it would have affected the WLTP fuel consumption certification.

As I said elsewhere, the mpg was less than impressive at 40mpg indicated anyway.

I found out today, that in order to remote control the heater via Skoda Connect, you need to have the Columbus edition. I was planning to get Amundsen. Columbus makes it a lot more expensive solution.

I am still considering the factory mounted heater and then just use the remote keyfob to start it.

I dont want to experiment with the wiretype heated windscreen. Pretty bad descision If it turns out that it is irritating

@litehead.

Your making to much of this.

yes you will see the wires if you look for them, but whilst driving you look through the window not at it, so you won't see them.

I've been driving cars with the wire heated screens for years now and i don't see them or think about them.

Even now with talking about it on this thread, i will get into the car in the morning and not give them a second thought.

 

@litehead

Have the wire heated windscreen, have never been an issue. My first car with it and never a problem.

With polaroid sunglasses you can see the lines/mesh a bit, without nothing.

As others have said, don't look at the windscreen, you need to look at the road you are going on anyway. You will never notice it.

Have the webasto kit too ofc, since I'm in Sweden

Edited 11 May, 20197 yr by GenOtmin

On 09/05/2019 at 06:22, ahenners said:

I think there is an element of "getting used to it" so whilst you might find the heated elements obvious when consciously and deliberately looking for them, when you're driving day to day you kinda see past them as you focus on what's going on in front of you.

 

I don't notice mine and it's a fantastic bit of kit in the winter. I'd much rather have it than not.

 

 

+1 ..... if you look for the wires they are there, if your concentrating on the road you wont see them.

Eyesight is likely to make a difference. If you are slightly short sighted I think the wires will be more noticeable.

I am short sighted, but I wear glasses so I don't notice the wires. I've been meaning to sit in my Mk1 Focus with heated windscreen without my glasses to see how much difference it makes. My eyesight is not quite good enough to be road legal without correction.