Glass Crack. How to deal with it ?

[youdontwannaknow]

Today morning I heard a loud cracking/snapping type of sound when driving my '13 Accord and after a few minutes noticed this crack on the windshield, driver's side. Size of the crack is ~6" right now. Strange thing is when I first noticed it was only about 3" starting from the left then it grew by the minute. In about 2 hours it grew to 6" and started curving downwards. From the outside when I touch the roundish spot where it seems to start I dont feel a pit or anything. Just a little roughness. I would imagine if it is a rock chip it would have some kind of impact crater ? So what do you think might be gong on here ? Could this be a potential warranty claim ? Insurance claim ? And most importantly what is the risk ? Should I stop driving it ? I mean the crack is increasing even when the car is just sitting.

 

[Eddie]

Keep driving and contact your auto insurance. Many auto policies have a free windshield replacement clause. ed

 

[youdontwannaknow]

Anyone think this is a stress crack ? given that it starts right at the edge of the windshield ? and there is no major sign of anything hitting the glass ?

 

[JTK]

Ugh.. just went through this with my 2014 Subaru XV Crosstrek. Just picked it up in fact, with it's replacement windshield installed. Insurance covered it. Would have been about $400 w/out.

 

[doitmyself]

I'm gonna guess that the roundish spot is an indicator that something hit the windshield. I have seen some rock hits that result in a tiny pin head size damage that cracks when heating/cooling takes place. Minnesota law says that it is illegal to drive with damage that obstructs your view (open to interpretation). Minnesota has optional no deductible glass replacement on their insurance. Probably $10-$15 per year....probably a good option to have. On many of today's cars, the windshield contributes structural strength to the roof system, so you want to get it fixed for safety sake. Best of luck.

 

[paul246]

Its a rock hit, no pit is necessary and usually the surface has a slight roughness to it as you have described.. The reason it spreads so fast is the stress built into a curved windshield finding a release.

 

[racer12306]

When you get it replaced, request OEM glass. If it's going through insurance it shouldn't cost you extra.

 

[zzyzzx]

Originally Posted By: youdontwannaknow

I would imagine if it is a rock chip it would have some kind of impact crater ?

I think that's it on the far left of the crack.

 

[rjundi]

My wife leaves them alone till it comes upon inspection time. Her reasoning is that it likely will get hit again.....It recently happened again. My only suggestion is avoid Safelite autoglass. We have found their windshield to almost be like funny mirrors.

 

[rjundi]

Originally Posted By: youdontwannaknow

Anyone think this is a stress crack ? given that it starts right at the edge of the windshield ? and there is no major sign of anything hitting the glass ?

That round circle at edge of glass looks clearly like a hit to me.

 

[andrewg]

Originally Posted By: paul246

Its a rock hit, no pit is necessary and usually the surface has a slight roughness to it as you have described.. The reason it spreads so fast is the stress built into a curved windshield finding a release.

This...^ Recently I had a very skilled windshield repair tech come fix two chips for me. He told me that I was fortunate that the rocks didn't strike closer to the edges of the windshield. He said that when struck in that area, the stress on the glass almost always cause a crack.

 

[Smcatub]

Originally Posted By: rjundi

My wife leaves them alone till it comes upon inspection time. Her reasoning is that it likely will get hit again.....It recently happened again. My only suggestion is avoid Safelite autoglass. We have found their windshield to almost be like funny mirrors.

We had Safelite fix a major chip. Only the missed the major chip, and filled a tiny little flake way far away from what we asked them to fix. A day after we got it back, before they could get us back in, the chip we had asked them to fix turned into a foot long crack. Safelite wouldn't do anything for us - not even a discount. I went with a local company for the replacement, and I was very happy with them vs. Safelite.

 

[JTK]

This is why I avoided the big, chain places. A co-worker had them replace a w/s on his high dollar F150 a few years back, to later find his cowl siliconed in place. Total butcher job. He eventually got it repaired right, but it took some doing.

 

[CarbonSteel]

I had this happen on the FX4. The first thing to do is cover it with scotch tape to prevent contaminants from entering. I would check out a crack repair place. Most of them can fix this so that you cannot see it and in most cases your insurance will pay for all of it. Cheaper than a windshield replacement and worth a try.

 

[01rangerxl]

Not a warranty claim, that is a definite rock chip. Whether or not to run it through insurance depends on if your policy has a deductible for glass, and the cost of the windshield. A lot of basic windshields for common cars are pretty cheap, but if the car has some sort of sensor or other parts in the windshield for some feature, they can get very expensive very quick. Ask the installer what brand they will use. It should be OEM, Pilkington, PGW, Carlite, Saint Gobain, Sekurit, etc. You want a company whose glass is used in production vehicles. Cracks can grow very quickly due to flexing of the vehicle's body and temperature changes. Give it a good smack and it will grow another few inches.

 

[ecotourist]

Very likely a stone struck the edge of your windshield. These edge strikes are very likely to spread, just as you're observing. Just had the windshield replaced on my '07 Accord. Had a large double hit in my visual field. The stone hit twice and left two stars that intersected, half an inch or so apart. Had it repaired but that was even more distracting. Repair plus replacement (a few days later at the same shop) was about $300 Canadian. For those interested in the double hit issue, I think the stone must strike first on one end (it must be irregular in shape), it sort of "trips" and then the side hits. It was big enough that I saw it coming. Ecotourist

 

[Chris142]

My ins does not cover glass.a new windshield is only $160-$175 installed.my jeep is very pitted.it will be next.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Chris142

My ins does not cover glass.a new windshield is only $160-$175 installed.

Not bad. My insurance does cover glass, but it falls under the regular comprehensive coverage which means it's subject to deductible which I had set at $500 at the time. New OEM windshield for my car was $650, so insurance only covered the last $150. Sucks.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: doitmyself

I'm gonna guess that the roundish spot is an indicator that something hit the windshield. I have seen some rock hits that result in a tiny pin head size damage that cracks when heating/cooling takes place.

That's exactly what happened to my Town Car years ago. I had a stone chip that I didn't even see, thanks to it being in the "black" section of the windshield, like the posted photo, and it spread, and cost me a windshield.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: youdontwannaknow

And most importantly what is the risk ? Should I stop driving it ? I mean the crack is increasing even when the car is just sitting.

Aside from other concerns addressed in the thread, it could be an enforcement issue. Up here, that would be worthy of a ticket, or at least an enforced replacement under penalty of inspection with threat of registration being yanked.