chips in windshield

[mrgrn]

I noticed today i have like 20 small chips in my windshield, just barely catch them with the fingernail. Should i have them patched, do you think they will crack?it is winter here, but they use only salt. i have no idea where all of these came from? In 17 years of driving i have never had that many chips in all of my other cars put together?does antbody else have a lot of chips?

[fire_502]

I don't have anywhere near 20, but I got 2 in one day a few months ago. I even already had my hood deflector, and I still got them. One was pretty big and grew to the size of my fingernail in the 8 hours I was at work, so I got it patched that day. The other one was on my way home from the patching and it was tiny and right near the bottom by the wipers, so I didn't bother. It hasn't spread at all. Considering I never got any chips in my last car, yeah, I'd say I have more with the Vibe.

[joatmon]

I have one chip, from a big rock that a semi kicked up. It hasn't grown, but I would like to get it patched. I have had stars patched before and they worked well. Some insurance companies will cover the cost of the patch becuase it will prevent the chips and stars from growing into cracks, and it's cheaper to patch a chip than replace a cracked windshield. Kind of depends on your coverage, the last time I checked a stone chip patch cost about $75 or so.A rapid temperature change can make a chip grow into a crack. (Don't throw boiling water on the glass to melt frost or ice, )

[indyerf]

I'm about to have my third windshield installed. First one took two rocks from a dumptruck and chipped, but they didn't grow (it was summer). Second one took a small rock near the edge and grew a foot in a couple hours during the winter. I drove the same route in my old Stratus for over a year and never had a problem. The Vibe windshield seems a little more fragile than most. Extra flexing from the sunroof may have contributed, but temperature was likely a bigger cause. Supposedly the comp claim on my insurance won't affect my rates - we shall see!

[tokmik]

Call your insurance company and see if they can put you in touch with somebody to get that fixed or look in the phone book. I know where I get my oil changed at Kwik Kar Lube and Tune they have somebody there that does it. They can fix that. Anyhow back on subject, yes insurance understands how much cheaper it is to fix the cracks then replace the windows so ...hopefully next week you will have no more chips. Get it done soon. I've seen chips like that spread out over the entire window overnight. i think theres a service through mitsubishi called diamond star protection or something thats made to protect mainly your windshield, and the rest of your windows, im not sure if they still do it, but when the evos were first introduced to the u.s. they offered something along those lines.http://www.autoglassguru.com

[djkeev]

Quote, originally posted by mrgrn »I noticed today i have like 20 small chips in my windshield, just barely catch them with the fingernail. Should i have them patched, do you think they will crack?it is winter here, but they use only salt. i have no idea where all of these came from? In 17 years of driving i have never had that many chips in all of my other cars put together?does antbody else have a lot of chips?Hi,A tiny surface chip will most likely not cause any further problems. If the chip is deep and has a small crack to it, it will probably grow over time. There are systems to patch a deep crack, drilling little holes, injecting glue into the crack, etc. They don't go away, they just don't cause a major crack.The only problem they present is mostly at night with headlight glare as you accumulate more and more chips. Also the wipers won't wiper clean for little moisture pockets impede the process.I'm not far from you but since moving to NJ I've noticed that "we" panic whenever a snowflake falls and NJDOT covers the highways with crap because few people know how to drive in snow so in this land of too much money we wipe the roads clear of it ASAP. Notice how the roads are white after a storm? Way too much melting agent. A grain of salt will chip your glass just as well as a small chunk of rock will. If you travel 80 a lot you are getting these salt chunks at 60 - 80 MPH against your glass.It's the price we pay for living here (along with insane taxes and an idiot governor)Dave(I just noticed this original post is 6 years old!! I'm sure this problem has been fixed by now!)

[NUBlackshirts]

Quote, originally posted by indyerf »...The Vibe windshield seems a little more fragile than most....I would have to agree with that. I don't know what I got on my windshield, but I now have a ton of very fine scratches all over it. gets really annoying when driving towards the sun. Between the crappy paint and the crappy windshields, I can see where GM slashed costs on building the Vibes.

[Whelan]

Not sure how your auto insurance works down in Jersey, but I am used to chips and nicks. Follow a dump truck or semi after a snow or during the spring when sand and rocks are all in the road still. They kick up and chunk at the window. Eventually you get so many pits it becomes hard to see through the window in sunlight, and glare at night becomes an issue.In CT I have 0 deductible glass coverage. I call up my insurance, tell them I want a windshield. The claim is put it and does not affect my rates, premiums, nothing. They come and replace it where I live or work so I am not without a car for a day. Great service and I have never NOT had glass coverage. A windshield for my Matrix costs $700!

[NUBlackshirts]

$700??? That seems like a lot.I went up to Safelite and got a quote online for $214+tax installed for my '04 Vibe.