Robert from Windrestrictor is a real innovator, the first to deliver a laser etched illuminated windscreen for the Saturn Sky, and now the first to provide a permanent mount installation for inside the cockpit (mounted behind the seats). PimpMySky.com was able to get ahold of one of new windrestrictors custom-etched for one of the founders of the Phoenix Sky & Solstice Car Club.

At first glance, you will notice that the new windrestrictor is TWICE as thick as the first model. The orginal product, modelled after the Kappashere wind deflector, was created to be mounted in the trunk seal, so it had to be thin. Even at 1/8" of an inch, however, closing the trunk with the windrestrictor in place required and extra-hard slam. More importantly, our recommendation was that you remove the windrestrictor when you put the top up to minimize any strain it might put on the trunk seal, rear window, and roof. With the new in-cockpit model, however, you can leave the product in all the time.

Our pre-production model came without some of the felt, velcro, and wiring that the production models will come with, but installation was a snap. We double-checked the wiring diagrams on the vehicle, to find the perfect place to splice in the power, and decided to go with the parking lights, which is a dark brown wire shrink-wrapped to a black wire in the wiring harness. For the do-it-yourself non-technical installer, finding and tapping into the correct wire may be the trickiest step in the installation process.

Photo of Windrestrictor installation before velcro points are covered by cosmetic metallic tape.

Like the trunk-mounted windrestrictor, the new product does not require any drilling or major modification to the car itself. Although we like the OEM product, we don't like the fact that you have to drill holes in the vehicle to install it. With the trunk-mounted windrestrictor, installation was a simple as replacing four screws inside the trunk with a different type of screw designed to hold the windrestrictor in place. With the new model, you will need to install velcro strips behind the seats to hold it in place. Our pre-production version had only one piece of velcro on each side, but we are told that the production models will have more velcro attachment points to reduce vibration while driving at high speeds.

In our installation, we added a small switch inside the center console glovebox so that the user could turn the device off. For those who install this connected to the parking lights, as opposed to the brake lights, we think this switch is a must. After a weekend of drive-testing, we believe that when driving long distances at night with the top up, the red LED glow inside the cockpit could become annoying. Also, we felt that in some more harried driving situations, looking over your shoulder through a red glow might limit your vision, so you may want to turn it off.

Some people are concerned about how an etched windscreen affects visibility out the back window. Well the answer to that has to do with your surroundings. If you take a look at the two photographs below, you will see that when driving in a bright environment, the etching is almost invisible, but when in a darker wooded area, it is highly visible.

While we are not done with our testing on this new model, we are definately pleased with the thickness and the fact that this model does not interfere in any way with the top, the trunk seal, or the back window, and it does not need to be removed. The only remaining challenge is to work out the kinks regarding vibration and chatter that might come from the windscreen at high speeds, but we know that Robert is working on these issues.

We really like the brighter illuniation on the new model (due to it's thickness), and instead of the on-off switch, we are thinking about installing a dimmer switch to control brightness, giving the driver some variability. Also, on our future customer installations, we will be installing a molex-type connector so that the owner can re-route power to an always-on source, or a 12v battery pack (great for car shows).

The cost for this product has not yet been set, but a custom laser etched product with professional installation will probably cost under $400, making this one of the most dramatic modifications you make do to your SKY without permanently modifying the shape or look of car.

Oh, and regarding the wind? Does it work? The answer is that we think it removes about 40% of the wind in the cockpit, in particular, minimizing the amount of tubulent wind that comes into the cockpit from the rear, which is the wind that causes long hair to whip stingingly in your face. While it doesn't remove this wind altogether, it does make the driving experience more pleasurable.

For more photos of the installation of this new Windrestrictor (plus photos of other models), please visit our photo gallery.