First windshield chip, repairable?
 

Just got my first chip in the windshield - had a couple scares before but this is the first actual damage. Driving down the freeway and some Lexus doing 80+ cuts in and out of my lane briefly, as they moved into the lane I guess they shot a piece of gravel at me. What do you guys think, should I take it in to Safelite to get repaired, or does it need to be replaced? It's small but I'm worried that it's too deep - I don't feel a crack on the inside surface of the windshield but it's definitely close to being cracked all the way through. Location is just to left of center, about mid-height. Right where I had a nice view of it as it formed. If it needs to actually be replaced I'd take it in to the dealer for that so just deciding whether to make the Safelite appointment or dealer first.

There are fixatives that repair techs use, specific resins that hold it together. Other people use superglue. It'll never go away though!

Where are you?

Mountain View.

I had my widow replaced at Spider Glass on 10th St. San jose. It was $280 out the door and looks like new. Would recommend.

You may consider taking your car to one of those fellows under the little tents in the shopping centers. If you don't like the fix, you can always have the windshield replaced.


humfrz

If it was only a bullseye the fixit places work quite well unless it is in your line of sight. Because it has some star cracks it will continue to grow with repeated heating and cooling.
You can try a home kit if it is out of the way ,but know it will grow.

Would you expect it to grow if it were repaired professionally? I'm leaning towards replacement since I know having the visible flaw in the windshield post-repair will bother me but I'm still a little on the fence.

Got the same about 3 years ago, low and on the passenger side.
Got it filled at a window shop. They used something like a mini router maybe about a 3/32" hole in the outside layer of glass.
Filled with some sort of epoxy. Don't even notice it really.

Last year got another, low on the drivers side.
Took it to the same shop, but with a different tech.
That repair is not as good and some of the starring is still visible.
Not going to buy new glass though. Until I have to.

With the sun so low all day now, I had to do a thorough windshield clean inside and out.
Realized there are a whole lot of tiny little dings from sand size particles all over now and can be a bit dazzling in the wrong light.

Yeah, the main reason I'm still considering just getting it filled rather than replacing is because I kind of have to expect I'll get more chips down the years and I don't want to go out and get a new windshield every time. Might just get it filled and wait a while, see what happens, then if it does spread or I get more chips later on go ahead and replace.

I gave you the info. They have done many twins. Replace.

I'll have to make some phone calls tomorrow before deciding what to do, was at work all day today and most places were closed anyway since it's a Sunday so couldn't really do anything with this yet. Thanks for the input.

This ^ .
The chip is totally repairable and all would be fine if that was it. The small linier cracks coming off it are a whole different matter. The resin they use may stop them from spreading but that is only a may not a will. Like Ls said one extreme heat cycle and you could have a line right across the windshield all of a sudden.

BTW, Safelight estimate here was $499.99

Check with your insurance company. A lot of them will pay to have that fixed with no deductable. Or you may have a reduced deductible for glass.

Yep. I am waiting patently for my chip to spread to the point it will be covered. So far it is resisting all attempts.

Repair if possible. Maybe it's just me but it seems that aftermarket glass just isn't as "durable" and factory glass. Replacement glass just seems to chip more readily...

From reading the policy it looks like the deductible will apply - it states the deductible is waived for glass replacement in certain states but CA is not one of those states.

Call your insurance first, called mine and they covered my whole windshield replacement at $0 deductible. Very common across US

Edit: Didn't go to second page to see someone already said this. My bad

In Cal it is just a repair with most insurance. For me $280 was way below my $1000 deductible. Just pay and go on with life.


As far as windshield maker, my replacement has all the same markings. I believe it is OEM.

Most low runner vehicle replacement glass is indeed OEM especially on newer cars. It just simply costs more to tool up to make replacements than it is worth so the OEM company just produces it. Once a car goes out of production and the demand for replacements goes down then the OEM company sells the tooling to the cheap ass company and then the quality goes down.

Makes sense.

Went ahead and just got it filled - the tech at the dealership said it was small enough there was no need to replace so I took it to Spider, where they agreed it was an easy repair. Only $60 so I figure even if it does spread later and I replace anyway I'm not out much, and if it doesn't spread I get to keep the factory windshield in place. I can still see the chip but it doesn't stand out enough to bother me.

Very cool.

I need to get whatever glass cleaner Spider uses. 10 days later there's still a totally clean spot around the repair, despite parking under trees constantly and getting rained on (and getting rained on while parked under trees).

Spidy juice.

Yeah, the bullseye chips won't really spead. The small crack seems small enough that it won't spread but if it does start, you could drill out the end of the crack to stop it from spreading. Just need a Dremel, Tapered Carbide Drill Bit for Glass repair, and a windshield repair kit.

Get the mulitple use repair kits like the one in this video.
https://youtu.be/ACPGKP5u6vA

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It’s worth avoiding replacement if you’re able. They usually aren’t gentle removing the old windscreen, and I have friends who have rust problems that result from paint scratches around the windscreen.

Well it looks like there's a crack spreading from the repaired spot again, very small so far so I don't think I can even get a picture of it and it looks like it's just on the inner layer of glass. Advice? Should I just monitor it for now or is it something that could be filled in again if I take it back? With how small the crack is so far they'd probably just have to drill out the first repair and fill the same spot again.

If it is spreading from the repair there isn't much you can do about it. The repairs work by filling the damaged spot with resin and if it didn't get it in there the first time going back and trying again will not work.

Yeah, same thing is happening to the relatively small chip I got last year, which I was able to mostly "fix" for a months, but it's been becoming clearer over the past month or so.

The Safelite I went to after my windshield got chipped said that if the crack starts spreading out from the repair site, they'd deduct the cost of the repair service from the cost of a full replacement.

So sorry, that is why I went straight to replace. I don't like repairs.

Call Spider and let us know how it goes.

MY RV windshield crack has not been repaired by any auto glass repair expert and I am now fed up going here and there. Share any name of the store where I can have rv windshield replacement at a reasonable cost.

I agree with the guys and their advice that it is better to repair this crack and thus prevent it from enlarging than to change the glass. If you had attached pictures of the crack, the situation would have become much clearer. I can advise you to go to the page https://www.carwindshields.info/windshield-repair-kit and read a review of various windshield repair kits. With their help, you can repair the crack yourself. It will be fast and inexpensive buuut of course, you need to have some confidence in your handyman skills ;)

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