What Makes Windshield Replacement Important?
Contents
- What Do You Know About Windshield Replacement?
- Law Demands To Replace Damaged Windshield
- Which Factors Contribute To Windshield Damage?
- Never Compromise on Price
- Windshield Replacement Procedure At The Glass Company
- What Makes One To Choose Windshield Replacement?
- Small Negligence Can Cost Your Life
- Seek A Professional
- Windshield Glass Repair Vs Windshield Replacement
- Important Facts On Auto Windshield Replacement
- Conclusion
What Do You Know About Windshield Replacement?
Windshield replacement is very important for both safety and drivability. If you neglect it or consider it as a minor issue then, you might need to pay its worth at the cost of your life.
Windshield absorbs 65% of the car’s total weight during rollovers and 45% of the impact when there is a strong collision from the front end. Also, it plays a very important role in deploying airbags towards appropriate directions.
All these are very important during untimely situations. Therefore, windshield replacement is very important.
Law Demands To Replace Damaged Windshield
Windshield replacement for your four wheeler is not just for the sake of looks. Even the law demands to replace damaged windshield in many places.
A serious consideration should always be taken to maintain the windshield in good condition. This is because, proper windshield offers safety and drivability.
This is the reason why, even the windshield vendors have a great demand in the market. Many companies who are into windshield business come forward to offer services in fixing the windshield that best suits your requirement and budget.
A windshield is said to be damaged if it has a crack or a small sized bull’s eye. If police find that your windshield is damaged or improperly installed, they have complete rights to sue you.
You would be asked to pay the fine charges or settle the matter in the court. Sometimes, they might even go to an extent of seizing your car.
As the windshield is positioned to be at the front of the car, you cannot escape from the eyes of the police even with a small scar. Therefore, you need to fix it at least for the sake of respecting the law.
You might feel that a police fine is much lesser compared to the cost of replacing the complete windshield. But, you need to calculate multiple fines, which means that you will be fined each time you are under the sight of the police.
Rather, if you take a strong decision to replace the windshield, you will not only save the fines, but also ensure yourself for your safety and drivability.
If price is your concern then, you need to have appropriate insurance using which, you can demand the company to replace your windshield. Therefore, it is better to choose a policy that covers windshield replacement.
Which Factors Contribute To Windshield Damage?
A number of factors contribute to the damage of a windshield. Since windshield is a glass, it gets damaged very easily by forces that range from medium to strong levels.
Bouncing Stone Phenomenon
Sometimes, due to improper driving style, or muddy and rocky roads, stones can bounce with force. There are many chances that they fall on the windshield with strong force.
Sometimes, even kids play in the parking zone areas and might hit the windshield with stones or balls. Such incidents can easily threat a damage to the windshield.
Temperature Changes
Sudden change in temperatures to extreme levels can cause a severe damage to windshield. The molecules contract in extreme cold climates and expand during hot seasons.
If the glass is frozen due to severe cold, most of the people make a mistake by pouring warm water on the windshield, with an intention to defrost it.
This causes the glass to experience a sudden change in temperature, thus resulting in cracks. Sometimes, the glass can undergo severe damage, to an extent of getting shattered.
Careless Driving
Sometimes, careless driving can lead to the damage of your windshield. If you force a sudden brake when you a see a speed breaker, or go over it with full speed, there are chances that the car experiences a sudden and strong jerk that in turn affects the windshield.
This causes the windshield to undergo cracks or even sometimes, the glass might shatter. When dealing with a glass company, you should always remember certain points.
Never Compromise on Price
The biggest mistake one does when trying to replace the windshield is to cringe at the price that the glass company offers. There are chances that the insurance company will be ready to bear the expenses, as a part of the policy, either in full or part. Most of the policies cover windshield replacement as it is a very important activity for the good maintenance of a car.
Windshield Replacement Procedure At The Glass Company
When the owner of the vehicle shows the damage to the windshield repair person, the person makes a clear examination about the damage.
The person will counsel the owner of the vehicle about how big the damage is, how long would it take to repair the damage, or does it really needs a complete windshield replacement, about the cost, alternatives if possible and so on.
Based on the information provided by the repair person, the owner decides how to move forward with the repair process. Replacing with a complete new windshield takes few minutes and is the fastest process compared to other types of windshield repairs.
What Makes One To Choose Windshield Replacement?
Windshield repair costs much less when compared to complete windshield replacement. However, the decision must be taken based on the severity of the damage. If the damage caused is just small cracks or nicks, it is better to go for repair rather than complete replacement.
But, if the damage is too big that it is worth unsafe drivability then, it is recommended to go for complete replacement.
Sometimes, the cracks start from the frame that are less than 3 inches. That might not cause problem in the beginning. However, if proper care is not taken during the starting stage of the damage, it might lead to a situation where the complete windshield need to be replaced.
That is the reason why, it is better to repair while still in controllable stage to save money.
Small Negligence Can Cost Your Life
Cracks are caused due to many reasons like rock hits, tension created by the frit and environmental changes. In certain situations, if the cracks are created at the edges of the windshield, the impact is worst.
The cracks spread very fast towards the inward direction of the windshield and if still care is not taken then, there is a threat of the glass getting shattered. Also, the vibrations created while driving, will still enhance the impact.
Therefore, it is not wise to neglect the damage when it can be controlled easily with less expenses.There are chances that the glass might be shattered during an unexpected time, such as when you are driving in outskirts areas where you can find it difficult to get help, or while you are on highways.
A small negligence can cost your life. So, never ignore even a small windshield damage, as it might not cooperate to work to safeguard you during untimely situations.
Seek A Professional
It is good to have a knowledge about windshield repair and windshield replacement. However, windshield is very important part that offers safety and drivability. Therefore, you cannot start working on it when you have no practical experience.
A small miss of perfectionism might demand you to pay your life. Thus, seek for a highly skilled professional who has good knowledge and experience on working with various instances of windshield damages. They can best guide you with the type of repair, type of glass, and can guide with accurate quote for the repair or replacement charges. Also, learn if there are any insurance policies that might help you to deal with such damages that occur in the future or long run.
Such policies wills surely benefit you and save your money and time. Since the vehicle should not be driven at least for one hour after windshield replacement, the policy holds guidelines that guide you with the usability of the vehicle after the replacement work is successful.
The technicians also need to be responsible to give genuine and proper details to the customers so that, the incidents do not recur in future, else the company needs to bear the damage charges as per the policy rules.
Ensure that your vehicle is in good condition every time you drive, so that you can be confident about your safety. Vendors such as A2Z Auto Glass and Mirror, can offer you the windshield of the quality and range you are looking for, as they are best known brand for their quality products.
This is an auto glass company that is situated in places like Maryland, Virginia and Washington D.C.
Tip – Visit our How To’s And Guide Section
Windshield Glass Repair Vs Windshield Replacement
The below table compares both windshield repair and windshield replacement in terms of many aspects. One should surely know when it is important to go for repair and when to go for replacement.
Windshield Glass Repair | Windshield Replacement |
|---|---|
Cost of repair is $30 to $60 | Cost of replacement is $500 |
Go for repair if the damage is a small crack | Go for replacement if your glass shattered completely |
Advantages are many, in terms of money and time | Benefits are less in terms of cost, time, structural design matching etc. |
Better to seek for glass repair from Dings Plus Windshield Chip Repair | Replacement should be always done by a certified glass company and skilled professionals |
Saves time, as it can be done within few minutes and the vehicle need not be kept at rest | Time taking as the vehicle needs to be kept at rest for at least one hour |
Saves money as the repair cost is less | Expenses are more as the complete glass should be replaced |
During repair, you are just repairing the already existing glass. So you need not think about various other types of glasses. | If you are planning for complete replacement, you have a choice of seeking for original windshield with various qualities. |
Windshield chip repair is an eco-friendly process | Windshield cannot be recycled. So, replacement of a new windshield is not an eco friendly process. |
Offers optical clarity, adds strength to windshield, prevents wear and tear of wipers. | Careless workmanship can lead to improper method of using adhesives and framing, thus leading to a life threatening issue. |
Important Facts On Auto Windshield Replacement
People who are aware of certain sure-to-know facts about auto windshield replacement would definitely take proper care in every aspect about windshield maintenance. A windshield is one of the structural integrities of a vehicle.
It allows airbags to function properly and deploy towards appropriate direction during untimely situations. They surely rely on windshield to offer security to the occupants of the vehicle. The product is thoroughly tested and designed by engineers to fit the body structure of the automobile.
This care is taken separately for every vehicle. Windshield is held by urethane, an adhesive, and a rubber frame, called as frit. The vehicle should be kept at rest from functioning for at least a minimum period of 1 hour so that the seal hardens and gets strengthened.
If the adhesive or frit are exposed to any contamination during the windshield replacement, then the seal is weakened. Therefore, only experts should be considered for the windshield replacement as they are well trained about the work.
Mechanical Reliability
Windshield is designed by automobile engineers to offer better safety for the occupants of the vehicle. At the same time, every part of the vehicle is designed to be as minimum as possible while not compromising for security, in order to improve the mileage of the vehicle.
However, windshield is one of the most important part that contributes to the security of the passengers. During untimely situations, when there is a collision to the vehicle from the front end, the windshield is the one that is first effected.
Therefore, it is designed to withstand the collision strength of up to 45%. Also, during rollover, the windshield can absorb up to 60% of the complete vehicle’s weight. This way, it offers security to the occupants. If the replacement is not done properly, the windshield would not withstand expected force and would shatter within no time, leaving the roof to be crashed.
And therefore is considered as one of the most important parts of an automobile.
Airbags Deployment
Airbags work to instantly get filled and deploy in a proper direction to save the front occupants of the vehicle. When the impact is from the front end of the vehicle, the airbags deploy in the open area and first hit the windshield.
If the windshield is not replaced with proper standards, then the airbags might collide with windshield to break the glass and deploy outside the vehicle, thus leading to the danger for the front occupants.
Instead of windshield and airbag absorbing the impacts, the front occupants would be absorbing, thus leading to death. This forces the individuals to be ejected out of the car to hit hard surfaces like ground, trees or rocks.
Therefore, always approach a certified glass company for the windshield replacement.
Unique Design Structure
Engineers work to design windshield for every individual vehicle. Therefore, you cannot substitute the product with other vehicle. Hence, only skilled person can get the perfectly fitting product for a specific vehicle by taking appropriate measurements.
This curved glass will not only fill the exact opening, but also is designed to absorb the impact during untimely situations, thus keeping the occupants safe. Sometimes, windshields are available that closely match the measurements of the vehicle. But, one should remember that they might fail during wrong times.
Therefore, always go for the design that will perfectly match for your vehicle and never compromise for the price for such reasons.
Adhesive And Rubber Frits
Windshield replacement is a complex process than just replacing the glass panel. The panel should be glued with appropriate glues. Also, care should be taken that the glue is not contaminated while replacing the windshield.
The glue should to be strong enough to seal the glass so that it can withstand not only the wind, but also the noise of the wind. Also, it should be perfectly sealed to not allow the water to leak from the sealed joints.
If wrong materials are used to fix the issue then, the functionality of the windshield will fail during wrong times.
Contaminants
During windshield replacement, proper care should be taken to fix the glass to the body of the vehicle. Ensure that the glue or the rubber frames are not contacted with any contaminants like dust, oil or grease. If the contaminants enter the seal, it weakens the complete assembly and is thus a life threatening issue.
Therefore, proper care is necessary to save innocent occupants.
Conclusion
Everyone has the right to lead a secured life. It is not that the law is forcing you to have a proper windshield maintenance, but you should have a personal concern from within your heart to lead a secured life.
Also, this article covers various facts, windshield’s role at untimely situations, why and when you should have a windshield replacement. After analyzing all the aspects, windshield maintenance is a very important activity to ensure a secured and safe driving.