window chip

epod86 · 04-11-2009, 05:24 PM

It can depend, a lot. if it's a small chip, a repair guy is just going to epoxy fill it and polish it out. It will have some distortion right at that spot if you look at it at the right angle, and the color/shade might be a little off. If you live in a cool climate (around freezing), or a hot climate with the AC full blast (but not likely in this situation), the temperature difference will eventually make the crack grow due to differential expansion/contraction and you will have to replace or deal with a cross windshield crack. This method really only works when the chip is less than half the thickness of the windshield, as there is enough glass to take the strain (hopefully). Really though, it's just a ticking time bomb.

The next level is to drill out the crack to relieve the pressure. This won't crack as easily, since the hole provides a relief point during expansion/contraction. If you've ever seen a beat up drum set, you'll find holes drilled in the cymbals at the ends of cracks, in this case to relieve the vibration, but same basic idea. They then fill the hole with epoxy like before, same distortion and all, but hopefully no cracking in cold weather. The problem is, no autoglass or similar guy will do this because there is a good chance he'll crack/break the windshield anyway during the drilling. We have a guy at a gas station in a VW van who does this, but he does it with no guarantee that he won't break the glass, but doesn't charge you if he does.

The final, obvious choice is replacing the windshield. Eventually, in all likelihood, you will have to do this anyway. In SoCal though, at least you won't have to worry so much about temp differentials propagating the crack. My family has had to replace two windshields in two cars in two years in Colorado. Cold weather, grit, and long 3 hour highway mountain drive to the airport suck for windshields.

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04-11-2009, 05:24 PM	#4 (permalink)
epod86 Base Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 229 Drives: 06 Mustang GT BK M5 Rep Power: 243	It can depend, a lot. if it's a small chip, a repair guy is just going to epoxy fill it and polish it out. It will have some distortion right at that spot if you look at it at the right angle, and the color/shade might be a little off. If you live in a cool climate (around freezing), or a hot climate with the AC full blast (but not likely in this situation), the temperature difference will eventually make the crack grow due to differential expansion/contraction and you will have to replace or deal with a cross windshield crack. This method really only works when the chip is less than half the thickness of the windshield, as there is enough glass to take the strain (hopefully). Really though, it's just a ticking time bomb. The next level is to drill out the crack to relieve the pressure. This won't crack as easily, since the hole provides a relief point during expansion/contraction. If you've ever seen a beat up drum set, you'll find holes drilled in the cymbals at the ends of cracks, in this case to relieve the vibration, but same basic idea. They then fill the hole with epoxy like before, same distortion and all, but hopefully no cracking in cold weather. The problem is, no autoglass or similar guy will do this because there is a good chance he'll crack/break the windshield anyway during the drilling. We have a guy at a gas station in a VW van who does this, but he does it with no guarantee that he won't break the glass, but doesn't charge you if he does. The final, obvious choice is replacing the windshield. Eventually, in all likelihood, you will have to do this anyway. In SoCal though, at least you won't have to worry so much about temp differentials propagating the crack. My family has had to replace two windshields in two cars in two years in Colorado. Cold weather, grit, and long 3 hour highway mountain drive to the airport suck for windshields.