Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Pricing replacement windshields, and they come in clear, tinted, and shaded

Anyone have any ideas which one is correct for '53? or does it just come down to preference, since windshields are a thing that gets replaced?

Could be wrong, but think what you want depends on side window type. If you have the heat absorption tinted side windows (Solex) I think the WS was also tinted so that kind of determines part of it. The shaded I believe is what they called the light filter and is just a narrow 2 or 3" strip of a darker shade across the top of WS. I think that was optional without needing the tinted side windows.

Awesome, thanks for the info! I have the side windows upstairs so I can take a look, but I'm pretty sure they're clear, so I'd probably want a clear windscreen as well (with or without the shading) I guess.

Side glass has little relationship to whether someone ordered a tinted windshield-which is something people used to do. But anyone steeped in the car biz from a factory and engineering perspective would tell you that clear glass keeps the vehicle interior far hotter (greenhouse effect is the term).

Tinted glass looks better, but it also traps less of the sun's rays and therefore is actually cooler. Which is why in today's cars you are more likely to find tinted glass-especially with factory air conditioning installed.

As for 1953, a Packard salesman's data book should tell you order options. But even these are not hard and fast rules. I no longer have one handy, but there should be one in someone's hands if not on this site.

Just remember that Caribbeans were very special automobiles. And yes, they did have shaded, tinted windshields-at least by 1954. I have photos of these cars on the assembly line and they show shaded, tinted windshields coming down the line. I'm talking actual production cars here.

Cars intended for auto shows were normally equipped with clear glass-or at least clear windshields...solely for ease of viewing inside from outside in a show environment. But even some of these vehicles ended up with their windshields replaced with tinted glass later.