[s-cars] Windshield Replacement Glass Brand?

[Lee Levitt]

There's a couple of things to watch for...unfortunately, you won't 
know you've picked a loser until it's too late.

First -- when the tech removes the glass, if they use metal tools 
they *will* take paint off your sheetmetal, and in places that you 
won't see. That will cause rust and leaks around the perimeter of 
the windshield.

Second -- prepping the surface with primer and then silicon based 
adhesive is a critical step...getting the glass down against a 
solid bead of adhesive is kinda important. There's no way to tell 
that this hasn't been done right until later, much later.

Third -- letting the car sit for the adhesive to setup is really 
important. Some glass people will let you drive right off. Most 
suggest that you wait an hour before you drive the car. Me, I let 
the car sit for 24 hours after the windshield is installed.

My glass guy, Donny Cotton, comes to my house to replace 
windshields. After he's done, we roll the car into the garage and 
it sits for 24 hours.

Also, by the way, *some* techs will tell you to leave your side 
windows cracked open for 24 hours. Most won't. If you don't, the 
first time you close your driver's door, the air pressure will 
push the windshield up and away from its base and you'll never 
have a good seal.

Why is this important, aside from the potential rust issue?

The windshield is a structural member of the vehicle, and in an 
accident that additional support may be important. Ruin the bond 
between the windshield and the body by slamming your door 30 
minutes after installation, and a year later you may be able to 
push your windshield out with your hand. Great if you're 
submerging in a brook, bad if you've just TBoned a Lincoln.

I would *only* go to an independent for glass R&R. You know who 
will be doing the work at an independent, and you can track their 
history with other local owners. At a chain, you've got a 
revolving door of techs going in and out of the business.

Just my .02

Lee





On Tue Dec 23 14:40:07 CST 2008, Wylie Bean 
<theringmeister at triad.rr.com> wrote:

> I had Pilkington installed about 2 years ago after I took a rock 
> which grew to a full crack on my trip back to NC from purchasing 
> my car in CA. Has bee fine. I insisted on it being done at an 
> auto glass shop instead of by one of their mobile crews. YRMV.