Getting a new windshield

[micky]

I was going to google or ask here but a friend brought it up on his own, and he said that replacing the windshield on his 15? year old car made a world of difference when he drove at night.

I had noticed when I drove into the sun that hundreds of dots that I didn't notice at other times made it v. hard to see. Also nighttime seemed harder lately but but I hadn't tied that to the windshield yet.

So I go to

to see what the price would be, and for glass service only, it's $310. But If I get the standard option, which they say is the most popular, it's 379.98. The only difference they list is that this includes new front wiper blades, and they warn in red for the first option, "New wiper blades are not included with this service. Failutre to replace worn wipers may damage your new glass". [But if it hasn't been scratching your current window it won't scrat the new one.]

Is the only difference that they are changing the wiper blades? And they really have nerve enough to charge 69.98 for blades? And is this option is really the most popular? (And by popular, do they mean commonly bought, or do they mean suitable for hoi polloi? )

**Perhaps these blades enable to the car to fly?

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micky wrote on 2/10/2024 5:41 PM:

For many years cars in Ontario, Canada with 'comprehensive auto insurance' can have the windshield replaced free of charge, probably once every year. I remember my colleague told me he replaced the windshield of his Jeep Cherokee every year because he is a friend of the windshield guy.

I knew a young woman more than forty years ago who didn't (or didn't know she had to) replace  the wiper blade of her VW Beetle, and the bare metal of the wiper blade gouged into the glass. There were no rubber left in the blade and she didn't know why it was making squeaking noise when wiping. Women in the 1980s were just stepping out of the kitchen, I guess.

[Ed P]

Depends on the blades. One of the best is Bosch Icon and they go for about $30. Others are about $10.

A windshield for $310 is rather cheap. Some can hit $2k. especially if you want OEM and have a HUD.

[Snag]

There's a guy in our area that will replace most windshields for 200 bucks plus tax . My rock chipped windshield on my truck was covered by my insurance , only cost me the hundred dollar deductible . Several neighbors had theirs done the same day (he lives about 75 miles away , sets up several for each trip up here) and we're all happy .

[Clare Snyder]

When I bought my Ranger it had a cracked windscrean. I went to the local glass shop for a price. They asked if it was insurance or not. I said no insurance - $300 if I remeber correctly. If it was an insurance job I would have paid $100 and the insurance would have paid something like $600. They asked what glass I wanted - they had 5 or 6 different ones - over half being Chinese. I said "how about OEM?" They daid no problem - have one in stock - same price.

The insurance companies were sick of not knowing what a glass was going to cost, so they got together with 2 major glas companies and came up with a "schedule" that ALL suppliers would adhere to. Yup - they padded the bill - so they can run "we pay the deductible" promotions and still make out like bandits

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I have a 2019 Subaru Crosstrek with their EyeSite system and see this:

Not only windshield specs are important but system must be re-calibrated.

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It must be gut wrenching to see a sizeable stone flying up from the road surface to bounce off your windshield, leaving a spider web or a crack.

[micky]

Wow. I guess they must wipe the windows a lot better. Though I don't see how. Actualy, up to $40 each at autozone. When I didn't specify a car, those are the only ones Autozone showed. I wondeer what brand the window company would use!

Couldn't find any in Autozone without specifying a car!

Maybe they made more than they needed and they're trying to get rid of them? It's a 2005 toyota Solara.

Some can hit $2k. especially if

[Ed P]

Those figures a a little light for some cars with a HUD. Many of the glass places now have the equipment for calibration but a couple of years ago, you had to go to the dealer for that.

[micky]

Every time I put my head up, I lose track of the traffic, so I don't do that anymore.

Ne need to recalibrate in my case, although maybe a chiropractor would have a different opinion.

[Bob F]

Or chunks of glass all over you. That's what I remember from 1960.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Many cars today have large panoramic sun roofs. They look nifty, but at times, they do shatter spontaneously. They can be $3000 to replace.

[micky]

I drove a car with a sun roof one day. I guess you can get a tan, but otherwise it's nothing like being able to put the whole top down.

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micky wrote on 2/12/2024 10:50 AM:

With the top down, if you flip over at 100mph, you'll become a 300yd long bloody smudge on the road surface.

You would still be safe inside if your car had a sunroof.

[micky]

How often do cars flip over? And convertibles are less likely to flip over because their center of gravity is lower.

Even more safe if you drove a tank.

[Ed P]

Agree with that. I've never opened the sunroof on my last couple of cars. I don't even know if it works.

Been years since I had a convertible. They are nice a few days a year. I never put the windows down either. Climate control in modern cars works well. Mine is set for 72 degrees.

[Bob F]

I open my sunroof a few time a year. It is necessary to be able to clean the drains for the "gutter" around it that is supposed to keep leakage out of the car. At least, I don't have a friggin' convertible top to worry about.

[micky]

I'd clearly gone to their webpage to get this price, and they wanted my email addresss.

The day after, they sent me an email taking $25 off the price, and the day after that they took $50 off the price.

I'm going to wait 4 more days so they will take $100 more dollars off the price, and then maybe I'll get the new windshield.

[Xeno]

Cars don’t flip, they trip.

No need, just a decent roll bar will suffice.

____ Xeno

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micky wrote on 2/13/2024 10:04 AM:

Wait longer. Their algorithm might offer to give you money to have your windshield replaced by them. Their programmer might not have realized this glitch in the algorithm, that the calculation has to stop when the price is less than zero.