Had a good Safelite experience today

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As mentioned in another thread, the wife and I are trying to help one of our apartment neighbors while she's out of the country for an extended time dealing with family stuff. Her car (a 2010 Forester) failed its safety inspection three months ago due to a cracked windshield and she was never able to get it taken care of before she left because she has too much going on. We offered to get it replaced if she would deal with her insurance who got Safelite involved.

The tech called, a friendly and clear-speaking guy, letting us know exactly when he'd be here, and called again when he arrived. He couldn't have been nicer, not minding if I watched because I was interested the process, chatting as he did so. I think he had the old glass cut out in a matter of minutes without making any mess. Some minor cleanup, some prep, and a new Fuyao windshield went in nice and straight and looks great. The dash was dusted off, the glass was cleaned and the stickers were saved. He even supplied replacement 'real' 3M plastic velcro for the E-Z Pass. I couldn't have been happier with the tech, the results, or the service.
 
My experience with Safelite was similarly good. They showed up when they said, and had the correct model windshield which was a somewhat special sound suppressing version that came with the car's trim level. He explained how they remove and install the glass, and most importantly, didn't get a drop of the glue on anything. I was really impressed. I can't caulk a bathtub without making a huge mess.
 
Satellite has cleaned up their act somewhat - but they also dominate a majority of the North American AGR market. A majority of their business is from insurance replacements - they also own one of the major glass claims processors for insurance companies.

My most recent interactions with them were good. The installer told me he started out out installing glass at the local Pick & Pull but jumped on the opportunity to work with Safelite due to stability. I’d certainly trust Safelite a lot more than some guy working out of a truck and installing cheaper Chinese glass and urethane - I see those guys at the local Mygrant Glass quite a bit.
 
I have had a windshield replaced on my 2015 F150 every year since I bought. Every time is was from a vehicle travelling in the other direction. My insurance Lady answers the Phone , Steve, do you need another window? Ov er the past 20 years Safelite has been wonderful
 
This is a nice surprise, to hear good stories about Safelite. About 5 years ago I frequented two different glass profession forums and Safelite was considered the scourge of the industry. They had a reputation of very poor glass quality (they abandoned their own manufacturing),but now source the same as everyone else. They had a reputation of treating their employees bad and over-booking them, making for rush work.

Did they get new management? Very glad to hear positive stories about them.
 
I've had good luck with Safelite as well and will use them next time I need a windshield or repair.
 
Our daughter had a similarly good experience as well with Safelite(State College, PA) in her 2015 Civic. She went to their shop even though they would have come to her.
They were as professional & friendly as any business that she had worked with. They installed a new Pilkington windshield in a timely fashion, kept all window stickers(registration/inspection) perfectly. No problems at all.
 
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I have had both the front and rear windows in my Ram replaced by Safelite. The rear window is a power slider and was replaced at their shop with no issues. The windshield was a couple years later in my driveway. The tech must not have sealed it properly. I had a water leak that buggered up my headliner corners at the windshield. They replaced the window for free and even allowed me to get the headliner detailed at their cost. I had to ask about this but the manager was very nice and had no objections. I picked the place and they paid the bill. Overall 2 good experiences with Safelite.

just my $0.02
 
Nice to read of a good experience, experiences. Especially so for a company I often see getting flogged on forums. As with many things, imagine it's dependent on the tech and/or Safelite shop/store.

Kudos for helping out your neighbor.
 
As mentioned in another thread, the wife and I are trying to help one of our apartment neighbors while she's out of the country for an extended time dealing with family stuff. Her car (a 2010 Forester) failed its safety inspection three months ago due to a cracked windshield and she was never able to get it taken care of before she left because she has too much going on. We offered to get it replaced if she would deal with her insurance who got Safelite involved.

The tech called, a friendly and clear-speaking guy, letting us know exactly when he'd be here, and called again when he arrived. He couldn't have been nicer, not minding if I watched because I was interested the process, chatting as he did so. I think he had the old glass cut out in a matter of minutes without making any mess. Some minor cleanup, some prep, and a new Fuyao windshield went in nice and straight and looks great. The dash was dusted off, the glass was cleaned and the stickers were saved. He even supplied replacement 'real' 3M plastic velcro for the E-Z Pass. I couldn't have been happier with the tech, the results, or the service.
I've had several good experiences with them.
 
Just curious what he used to cut the old adhesive to get the old w/s out and how he cleaned/prepped the mating surface. This is where I've seen them get hackish. Or on vehicles where interior/exterior panels had to be removed.
 
Just curious what he used to cut the old adhesive to get the old w/s out and how he cleaned/prepped the mating surface. This is where I've seen them get hackish. Or on vehicles where interior/exterior panels had to be removed.
Safelite banned long knives recently - the tech who did my parent’s windshield told me but said there are some cases he still uses one.

They are using an Equalizer tool these days.
 
Years ago I had the glass in a Mitsubishi Eclipse replaced. Wasn't affecting passing inspection, field of view, etc., but was rather annoying watching that crack spread over time. Safelite did a great job and the glass they used was a bit different than the OEM, but at that time was also 1/3 the cost. From start to finish the process was flawless and I wouldn't hesitate to use them again if ever needed.
 
When my JK needed a new windshield a few years back Safelite was great. I just felt really bad for the tech. He asked to use my bathroom, which he did. It turns out my fathered peed and never flushed. Felt bad for the guy, made us look like dirtbags. He didn't say anything but I know in his shoes I'd be a little disgusted.
 
Just curious what he used to cut the old adhesive to get the old w/s out and how he cleaned/prepped the mating surface. This is where I've seen them get hackish. Or on vehicles where interior/exterior panels had to be removed.
I'm not saying this is what he did because I didn't watch him the entire time, but the end result looked like he had somehow shaved the original adhesive down to just a hair's thickness then used that as a guide to apply the new bead of sealant. It wasn't down to metal. It was perfectly uniform. Whatever he did it looked clean and correct.
 
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.... my fathered peed and never flushed. Felt bad for the guy, made us look like dirtbags. He didn't say anything but I know in his shoes I'd be a little disgusted.

Brother that's a walk in the park compared to the surprises my boys have left me and lawd knows who else..
 
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