<VV> aftermarket rear defrost

[JVHRoberts at aol.com]

It would seem to me, given where the heating system components are, that a  
small vent or vents aimed at the rear window would do an admirable job of  
defrosting, probably better than ANY grid type system, without the hassles of  
trying to glue something to the glass. Now, you'd probably need to run a cable  
or something to turn it on and off, but hey, why not?
 
In a message dated 7/17/2005 12:13:25 PM Eastern Standard Time,  
dreamwoodck at yahoo.com writes:

Hey  John,
I've had two of these, both purchased back in the
'80s, the second  to replace the first one I buggered.
I don't know if Clark's still has  them, since the
catalog index says they are on page 105 and there's  no
evidence of the product inside.
This is a thin metal strip grid in a  mylar stick-on
binder. You mount a switch at the dash and run a
single  wire back to where a spade connector hooks into
the corner of the  grid.
It works quite well,  defrosting in the coldest
weather quite  quickley, although I had a problem with
the wire getting hot and frying the  insulation right
next to the connector at the grid. It didn't blow  the
fuse and continued working, but I never found the
cause.
This  thing does take some careful handling. It goes on
like window film, as in  wet glass, squeegie, etc. and
you have to handle it carefully to keep it  from
crimping, sticking to itself, breaking the metal strip
or knocking  the connector off the corner.
One problem is that it is obvious, something  you
aren't used to seeing. It will never look as good as
the skinny  wires imbedded in a factory window.
Hopefully newer versions are thinner  and less
obtrusive, but to the trained eye orf a Corvair guy,
it seems  you look at the back of he car and the grid
is the first thing you notice.  Also, it would be so
simple today to put in some sort of limiter that  shuts
it off automatically. The original came with a lighted
switch that  you had to remember to turn off.
I'd think Whitney's might be the place to  try if you
don't find it at our vendors, although since I bought
mine in  the '80s, the factory option became really
common and may have killed the  demand for aftermarket.

Chuck Kubin