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I just realized I purchased my used 2005 SL R230 w/o a wind deflector. I'd like to get one.
I have a few questions regarding wind deflectors:
1) Please tell me if OEM is the best option or there are other decent deflectors on the market?
2) I see they sell cheap OEM deflectors with torn mesh. I wonder if it's hard to replace torn mesh on OEM deflector? I contacted one random place that sells mesh replacement but they told me their mesh fits their deflectors, not OEM ones.
3) Please suggest where to get a replacement mesh roll or large piece of mesh for OEM deflectors?
PS: If you have OEM deflector for sale in absolutely perfect condition please let me know.
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
Re. your second question I think replacing a torn mesh would be difficult. With the deflector up, the mesh has a sloping 3D shape. It's a beautiful design but its effectiveness is limited when you're tall.
Re. your second question I think replacing a torn mesh would be difficult. With the deflector up, the mesh has a sloping 3D shape. It's a beautiful design but its effectiveness is limited when you're tall.
Thank you! I see few slightly used OEM deflectors for sale online and all of them come with tiny holes. I'll keep digging to better understand the repairability of the mesh... Considering the OEM deflector wasn't cheap I guess there should be a way to fix it.
I'm just 6'2". I guess it's OK for SL because it's pretty roomy inside.
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
I did notice the same thing. And, interestingly, the roll bar on that photo shows the vague imprint of an OEM wind deflector. Here's a pic of my car (summer...) with the deflector visible: no brackets, a metal bezel from L to R. The two straps do leave a bit of a mark, though.
Last edited by Frederick NL; Feb 9, 2022 at 10:41 AM.
I did notice the same thing. And, interestingly, the roll bar on that photo shows the vague imprint of an OEM wind deflector. Here's a pic of my car (summer...) with the deflector visible: no brackets, a metal bezel from L to R. The two straps do leave a bit of a mark, though.
Thank you!!
Please tell if your OEM deflector leave those "vague imprints" like on the pic I posted earlier?
PS: I think it's worth placing something between the roll bar and the straps. I can't see what kind of leather you have there but MY SL65 has delicate leather everywhere. It's good when you are looking at it and bad when you accidentally scratch it or press something on it like deflector etc.
I need to check my roll bar and see if there are any signs of deflector previously installed there.
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
Yes I think it does, but -in my case- it doesn't matter if it does, because I only take the thing off for maintenance on the deflector or the car. And really, no one should take offense of the slight marks an OEM part leaves behind when temporarily dismounted.
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
Took the deflector off and made this photo for you. Not too bad at all. It's cold out here now, a milder temp and a few minutes would probably even things out a bit. And it's on again..
Last edited by Frederick NL; Feb 10, 2022 at 11:11 AM.
Today I came to this idea - why need to buy a metal wind deflector when hypothetically I could install some kind of mesh on top or attach it behind the roll bar and make sure it sits tight there? In this case I will have to raise the roll bar every time I drive my car with top down (if I really want to reduce the turbulence).
Took the deflector off and made this photo for you. Not too bad at all. It's cold out here now, a milder temp and a few minutes would probably even things out a bit. And it's on again..
I see a hole at 10 or 11 hours - is it because of the straps?
2005 R 230 SL350 (M112 3.7). Sold the 1966 W113 230SL recently
Not a hole, that's just material 'outside' the roll bar, pushed back a little by the strap. Making up your own contraption is a bad idea for (I think) two reasons:
1- the car is capable of high speeds. I imagine you have no wind tunnel at home tot test your design thoroughly. If you loose it you're a danger for others.
2- your design will probably not be as effective as OEM. I learned in an 80's Audi that putting up an OEM deflector behind your head was not enough. A strong draft drops down and pushes forward between the seats. You therefore need a 'hat shelf' as well. The OEM does that graciously, not with two flat planes, but in one sloping netting.
Conclusion: do yourself a favour (the joy of low price will be forgotten while the bad taste of poor quality remains).
Not a hole, that's just material 'outside' the roll bar, pushed back a little by the strap. Making up your own contraption is a bad idea for (I think) two reasons:
1- the car is capable of high speeds. I imagine you have no wind tunnel at home tot test your design thoroughly. If you loose it you're a danger for others.
2- your design will probably not be as effective as OEM. I learned in an 80's Audi that putting up an OEM deflector behind your head was not enough. A strong draft drops down and pushes forward between the seats. You therefore need a 'hat shelf' as well. The OEM does that graciously, not with two flat planes, but in one sloping netting.
Conclusion: do yourself a favour (the joy of low price will be forgotten while the bad taste of poor quality remains).
Yeah, I agree with you. If only I could find one in great shape. I still don't know how to fix the torn mesh on a used deflector...
Do the smaller “tabs” of the or the Windschott or Aperta wear more on the leather? Is the OEM with its full width “ledge” a better design (note the imprint in post 11 - if a large area is doing that, I have to think a smaller area would be worse)
I replaced the windscreen material with some material I tried from ebay, and .160 dia. spline for screen doors. It is close enough for me to the original material. It stops the wind and I can see through it pretty well.
Only issue is that it doesn't stretch as much as the original but not really an issue. It does take some time to do this. Hard part is getting the old spline out. It's barried in there pretty good. I've had it on for about a year now with no problems. The material is really inexpensive so this install was just a trial run to see if I could do it. There are a couple of flaws but it looked so good I left it alone. https://www.ebay.com/itm/15381707727...oAAOSwszVeNLF7 ********EDIT***********
Very sorry guys.. It's been a year and I ordered both of these on the same day. One was to thin and the wind whistled thru it.
It may be this one below. I don't remember which one was the good one, luckily they're both cheap. https://www.ebay.com/itm/38260208091...0AAMXQLs5Rq5V9
1 year ago after install
Today (It's a little dusty)
Last edited by marko69; Apr 4, 2022 at 05:53 PM.
Reason: another EBAY item added
I replaced the windscreen material with some material I tried from ebay, and .160 dia. spline for screen doors.
Marko69
Really interested in how you did this. I too looking at purchasing wind deflector with damaged screen, and re-placing mesh, but it looks almost impossible to dismantle frame without causing damage.
Can you remember how you did this, and any tricks you used to fit it?
No need to dismantle the frame. The original "spline" is sewn into the material. You have to take out the old spline which is barried into a channel in the frame. In this video you can see how it's done.
He wastes a ton of time cleaning up the old spline and reuse's it. You don't need to do that. Just get some .160 spline (just a smidge bigger would be perfect) for screen replacement, like a pool screen, and a spline roller. You can buy the original material from Germany which isn't too expensive, but the shipping is absolutely retarded.
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