Is the wind deflector Plexiglass or fabric mesh? Also how does it mount? Wonder how soon we could see 3ed party deflectors?

 

Fabric.

Aftermarket deflectors for the regular convertible took a very long time to appear (couple of years?). The numbers are too low to motivate aftermarket vendors. I would expect the same to happen for the Roadster.

 

Does it actually do much? With it making raising/lowering the top nearly impossible from the driver's seat, I wonder if it's worth it to bother with.

 

The fabric one on our MINI convertible made an amazing difference. Much more than you'd have expected from looking at it. Really extended the top-down days here in the midwest!

I've heard that since this one is smaller, it may not be quite as effective as that one was, but I have no doubt it will help. I had a similar fabric one on my Z3 and the difference was quite noticeable.

Don

 

Well, I guess you could always remove it in summer, then add it back when it gets a bit cooler to extend the life of the convertible.

 

The review on MotoringFile says:

http://www.motoringfile.com/2012/01/...er-s-roadster/

 

Yep, in the hot part of summer, you want as much wind as you can get!

Don

 

I wish it was plexiglas...I ordered it and took it off as soon as I got home. It's very distracting when looking through the rear view mirror.

 

I actually didn't find it that distracting...I mean, the rear window is already TINY....I drove all week with it in place, top up OR top down.........

 

Liquid, take it off and see what a big difference it make...

 

The tradeoff for taking it off is that you lose the wind deflector function. I don't have experience in a Roadster, but it makes a big difference in the convertible.

How well does the fold-down feature work? What if you just fold it down when you have the top up?

 

Yah. 100% Agree it makes a major difference in the cabrio.. However in the roadster even with the windows up and the deflector in, There is still a lot of wind. Also in the cabrio the windscreen was below the site line.. In the roadster it is sitting much higher.. I have the windscreen in the bag in the trunk for those days when I need it ..

It folds in half quick. But it also pulls off quick, and it takes up very little room to store it .

It by no means is a life an death issue. It's just one small thing i noticed..

 

HAHA, I actually took it down a few times this weekend...my wife is one of those that always wants the windows up and the screen in if the top it down....I perfer it all gone ;-) Still though, doesn't bother me much...course I learned to drive in a full size van with no windows in the back back before they had fancy backup cameras and such

 

Thank you

 

Is it possible to order a replacement deflector?

 

+1. I leave it in place all the time and am perfectly happy. I actually like how it cuts down on the brightness of headlights from following vehicles at night.

The folding feature exists only because of the fact that the manually operated top was standard for the 2012 model year R59. The folding windscreen provided the necessary clearance for reaching back and grasping the top pull. Of course, the semi-automatic top mechanism became standard in 2013 and the foldable windscreen design, although moot, was left as-is.

 

The OEM part number for the R59 wind deflector is 54342758886. As with any OEM part, they're not cheap. I see that ECS Tuning has them for $189 and that's at 18% off. Suspect other sources are comparably priced.

 

Yep, we have the mesh ones, I like the mesh better then the plexi or any aftermarket as it baffles the wind and does not bounce around. Also for the wind deflectors on the R52 and R57, it really works.


54342758886

https://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/54342758886/

 

The deflector in the Roadster has nothing like as much effect as in the Convertible, where I would rate it as 'essential'.

And the folding could be so the manual top can be reached, though it also makes the removed-and-folded deflector narrow enough to fit on the Roadster's bulkhead 'parcel shelf'.

Not that I ever remove mine - it's so much easier to just get used to leaving it in place all the time, so that the roof can be lowered any time it stops raining....

 

Here's one that's personalized. http://www.kingpennindustries.com/bl...r-accessories/

 

Nice...but that will not work in a lot of the states.

 

Also avaialble at OutMotoring....
https://www.outmotoring.com/product....oductid=125870