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I took a rock in the front windshield yesterday. Is there
anything I need to watch for when I have it replaced?
The place that has done work in the past has a shop
that I can leave the truck at for the day to have the work
done.
One bit up side to this is getting rid of any sand pitting.
BTW I know what truck got me and the funny thing is
he had the load covered for once.
60MPH raining and I heard the tick when it hit and can
see the broken spot just left of center field of vision. Really
shows up when sun hits it. No bull-eye type crack yet.
Just the crack under dime sized.
I got SafeLite to do mine in the driveway just a few months ago. $300 total- tinted darker at the top with the dots behind the mirror. For a few more bucks you can get one with the POWERSTROKE logo across the top and they have other options on tint. I watched and talked with the installer about common leaks on the driver side getting into the fuse panel. He hadn't heard of that before but when he got my old one out it had a double row of sealant around the driver side along the bottom, and he confirmed the windshield had been replaced before. Kinda confirmed what I was saying and he sealed it back up the same way. Was not his first rodeo as he worked fast and skilled but he did say he'd start doing Superdutys like that in the future.
If you can get factory glass for a little more get it. Dont go the cheapest route the glass will be soft and pitt quicker, I bought a cheap windshield once and it was horrible.
Had the glass in mine done not long ago. Insisted that I get an OEM glass back.... did you know that Harley windshields are $$$$$. The little spots of tinting are Harley symbols. Insurance fought me a little asking if I'd settle for an aftermarket glass. Took the truck over and made them come out and look at it. Then told him I expect an OEM part every time, that's what I buy insurance for.
I agree with the OEM glass,Had a BAD experience with cheaper glass on my GMC.....NEVER AGAIN!
Ditto on our Yukon, same windshield as your GMC pickup I'm betting. It did not last at all and looked like someone took a bead blaster to it after a year.
I got SafeLite to do mine in the driveway just a few months ago. $300 total- tinted darker at the top with the dots behind the mirror. For a few more bucks you can get one with the POWERSTROKE logo across the top and they have other options on tint. I watched and talked with the installer about common leaks on the driver side getting into the fuse panel. He hadn't heard of that before but when he got my old one out it had a double row of sealant around the driver side along the bottom, and he confirmed the windshield had been replaced before. Kinda confirmed what I was saying and he sealed it back up the same way. Was not his first rodeo as he worked fast and skilled but he did say he'd start doing Superdutys like that in the future.
While doing my other things I talked to my glass guy. I asked about tape
and he said no they do it the same way as the factory with Urethane.
He asked me to let him know a few days before hand. So I'll ask for OEM
with the shade dots around the mirror. Don't think I'll do the logo glass.
Back when I was still working in EMS we did an Automotive Extrication class and the instructor stated that you could always spot a non OEM replacement window in a wreck because they shattered differently. Also the OEM glass was part of the engineered safety features to prevent passenger compartment crush. Not sure about now, but why take a chance.
The last OEM windshield we got, we saved about $40 by not getting the SUPERDUTY logo on it. Unfortunately the truck looks a bit nekkid without it.
Superduty logo was an extra $90.00 bucks in my neighborhood.....and if you go tinted along the top it really isn't all that easy to see so....I'm 'necked' and....a cheap skate.
The Carlite guys are pretty proud of the product they make, mostly from the points of clarity and freedom from visual distortion. The OE specs are different then aftermarket in crashworthiness from my understanding from the OE and NHTSA guys at the Transportation Research Center, but that discussion was 20 years ago.
Years ago we were working with the Chrysler guys both out of San Antonio and Oxnard on test programs and at both locations the prototype mini-vans kept cracking their windshield at the same location. It was then when I learned how important the consistency in the process of glass hardening was.
With our test fleet running 200 miles a day sometimes up to 20 vehicles under NVH tests we went through a lot of windshields over the decades. Under those conditions cost was a pressure, but unless we were in a period of economical pressure, I could always justify OE windshields due to safety to my engineering schooled hierarchy.
In civilian life a 10 year flip is a good timeframe to deal with road sand pitting for me.
04-26-2016, 04:23 PM
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