Windshield Replacement Service
- Even small damage can have significant impact on integrity of windshield.
- Your windshield helps keep passengers in the vehicle during an accident.
- Windshield are crucial to the proper inflation and positioning of passenger side airbags. Airbags deploy against windshield at speeds up to 200mph. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards require adhesives to be more than five times stronger for vehicles with passenger airbags.
- Windshields play a vital role in accident safety and affects the strength of the firewall, prevents foreign objects from entering passenger compartment and passengers from being ejected, and also contributes up to 30% of the roof strength in a rollover accident.
- Made of safety glass comprised of two layers of annealed glass with a layer of PVB (Polyvinyl Butyral) in the middle. This keeps the windshield intact in an accident. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards dictate that this layer must be .030” thick to be used in automobiles and windshields must be made of glass that has at least 70% light transmittance.
- When damage is too expensive to repair, replacement becomes necessary.
- Companies that maintain membership in Auto Glass Safety Council are bound to the highest standards of excellence in the industry and are subject to audit. You can drive easy knowing that your vehicle has been serviced with your safety in mind.
- Safe drive away times regulate the amount of time before the vehicle can be driven after installation. If your vehicle is driven prematurely, it can compromise the structural integrity and function of your airbags. Urethanes can vary widely in times required to sit before driving. We use a DOW product which is OEM approved and has safe drive away times in 30 minutes regardless of temperature and humidity. Other urethane systems can take 24 hours or longer to reach drive away times and conventional cure urethanes depend on temperature and humidity levels to determine drive away times.
- Primers are used to ensure proper adhesion of urethane system and prevent corrosion which can lead to bond failure or corrosion spreading to other parts of vehicle.
- Driftwood Auto Glass uses a certified Master Technician to handle windshield replacements.
- Tensile strength and shear strength vary greatly among urethane systems. We use products that are among the strongest and most reliable on the market.
- No shortcuts! All parts of vehicle are removed that are necessary to place glass directly on urethane. This achieves a stronger bond vs. companies that try to slide glass under the cowl area in an effort to save time.
Notable cases involving improper installations:
Fransway Case - involved a young woman being thrown from her vehicle in single car accident when she was allowed to drive the vehicle prematurely after having her windshield replaced.
Rhyne vs. Windshields America Case - Mrs. Rhyne was driving a Ford minivan on wet pavement when she lost control and rolled the vehicle. The windshield popped out and allowed the roof to crush, causing her neck to be broken. She became a quadriplegic due to her injuries and later passed due to resulting complications.
George Miller vs. Solaglass California, Inc. - First recorded autoglass litigation, (1980). Technician failed to bond windshield to gasket and windshield popped loose from truck. Mr. Miller was ejected from the vehicle and while Solaglass was not found to cause the injuries directly, they were found negligent in the installation. Mr. Miller became a quadriplegic.