1980 Triumph Spitfire Windshield Removal

My 1980 Triumph Spitfire has been in better condition than we expected overall. That being said, the windshield was an eyesore on this project. We couldn’t decide what caused the damage, but the damage was bad. Our windshield glass was busted out on both sides of the laminate. Something softball-sized tried to force its way into this car.

This was obviously the original windshield, and the seal was cracked all over. There’s no way it was going to come out nicely. I started at the top where the seal comes together. I tugged a bit between the seal ends and tore away some gasket. I revealed the windshield, and the plan was made.

The seal needed to be “broken” from the glass. A 2 inch putty knife was the tool to use in this situation. I was able to break the seal in most areas, provided I didn’t gouge the rubber too badly. I then used a standard razor blade, or box knife, to cut around the entire windshield. Some areas were tougher than others. Once the seal was cut all around the top layer came off in one great piece, allowing us to push the glass out toward the bonnet with relative ease. Take care when pushing the glass forward. Once its tilted toward the bonnet it will come straight up from there. No need to bend it further. There may be some light resistance at the base from the seal.

Removing the windshield on our 1980 Triumph Spitfire was an easy job overall! There may be better ways to go about it but we had a smooth experience going this route. I would certainly recommend wearing gloves to anyone who chooses to take on this project.

I’m not sure which route we’ll take from here. I would certainly prefer to find an original mk4 windshield, but it could end up with a racing windscreen. I would rather not rivet a lexan windscreen to the car unless there’s no way it could be street legal. A body swap may be the solution here, as well. While we’re on the hunt, we have a long list of other items to tackle before this car is ready for the track.