Upgrades 17. Windscreen Retaining Channels

I'd been on the lookout for an aero option since day one, mainly for when I take the car on the track. Just before Christmas someone posted an aero kit for sale on the forums which I gladly snapped up. It came with a carbon rear mirror, carbon aero screen and the retaining brackets. I'd also wanted these retaining brackets from day 1 because they not only make the windscreen quicker to hot swap with the aero screen, but they also attach the windscreen to the chassis , rather than just being bolted to the scuttle. This in theory should keep the vibrations of the windscreen down even more, which certainly was happening at some levels of RPM.

So the first job was to install the aero brackets, the can be bought from a few places, but the Caterham part is here (N.B. you will need 1xRHS and 1xLHS). There is also a great video from Turn 7 which helps the process, see end of post.

So the first job is to remove the knee panels, I simply squirted a load of the PTFE WD40 Silicone lubricant on both panels where they meet the rubber. Walked away for 5 minutes, then came back and took them off. They still needed a little bit of persuasion to get out, but they came out nicely in the end. I chose to tackle one side at a time so the windscreen didn't need to be removed during the installation of these brackets.

I started on the passenger side, once you have the panels off, you will see that the windscreen is simply bolted to the scuttle, which is a very flimsy aluminium panel, I removed the bolts and nuts and put them aside (the bolts will be reused). It was then a case of simply putting the retaining channel in place, aligning it perfectly so the bolts of the windscreen would screw in with your fingers (do not force as this will break the captive nut, I learnt the hard way). Once you are happy with the alignment I then chose to tighten the channel to the chassis using some larger washers and I also used the metal spacer on top of the channel for extra reinforcement.

I repeated the steps on the drivers side, which was a bit more involved as this involved removing the master switch setup as well, although this was only another 2 nuts and bolts. I found it much easier to remove the tacho and RPM to allow light under the dash, and also it allowed easier access to behind the dash. Once the retaining channel was installed I had to use a knife to file away a bit of plastic on the lower section of the master switch mounts so it wouldn't foul the newly installed channel.

Once both channels were installed I then snipped the spade connectors off the heated windscreen wires and replaced them with simple Wago boxes. This will allow fast removal of the screen for aero installation. On the drivers side, the wire was easy to locate and was a black wire connected with spades into a green/orange wire. I can't recall what the left hand side was, but you should be able to trace it from the windscreen, mine was nestled above a big metal box, which I "think" might be for the windscreen wiper motors.

Now everything was in place to reinstall the screen, I decided that I would extend the wires a little on the windscreen so they were easier to find in the cabin when reconnecting up the heated screen. To do this I simply soldered some extra wire on and then protected it with heat shrink.

I then tested removal and installation of the screen before committing to putting the trim panels back in place. I can also confirm that this has reduced the vibration on the windscreen when driving quite a bit too.

When installing the bolts again, they should go in mostly by simply turning them using your thumb, as I mentioned above, do not attempt to overtighten as you will likely break the captive nut.

Turn 7 Installation Video