What Makes a Cracked Windshield Worse?
A tiny crack can quickly turn into a large, dangerous problem.
Cracks in your windshield need to be addressed immediately. When you get behind the wheel of your car after ignoring a crack in your windshield, all that you're doing is inviting an accident and injury onto yourself and anyone else who may share the roadway with you. If you notice a small crack in the glass of your auto, don't wait for it to worsen or spread before having it repaired or replaced - do something about it right away.
The vast majority of cracks will never affect how well a driver sees out of their windshield. Although visibility might not be impaired while driving, should other factors such as debris impact on the windshield - or should the crack become larger over time - it may give drivers an impaired view.
The primary reason to fix a chip immediately is safety. A broken or cracked windshield could be shattered by debris on the road, air pressure inside and outside of the vehicle, or even slamming shut in high winds. All of these situations can create flying shards of glass that are extremely dangerous for anyone traveling in your car. Very small cracks on your windshield will not affect visibility at all; however, let's say you're driving around with this tiny little fissure in your window, and then on your way home, something flies up onto the glass-like gravel from another driver's wheel well, for example. Now you have two problems: You have a little chip in your windshield, but also you have this foreign object obstructing your view. When it begins to rain or when the sun is low on the horizon, that small piece of rock becomes very distracting.
The most obvious sign that there's a problem with your windshield is impact damage - cracks caused by items hitting the glass. However, problems beginning inside might require an absence from your vehicle to spot:
Rainwater can get under the edge of vinyl-compound wiper blades and cause rust spots to form on the glass itself. This happens more often than many realize since water runs down into seams where two pieces of glass meet at the bottom of each side of the windshield.
The point is, people who ignore the smallest of problems with their windshield do so at their own peril - literally! Window World works to fix all types of cracks and chips in car windows to restore clear vision and ensure safe travel for motorists throughout San Diego County. Whether your windshield needs a repair or a replacement, make sure you get it done right away by a professional.
However, it is not at all uncommon that a small chip can spread into a larger crack or even have both types of issues with your car's glass - be it side windows, back glass, or the windshield. In this case, you will need to deal with all problems at once.
The outcome is not always a choice between a new windshield and just a chip repair. It is possible that the windshield does not have to be replaced, but the chip has to be fixed with a special resin that fills up the damage in a more or less invisible way. In most cases, you should notice an improvement when viewing through the affected area after repairing small cracks and chips on your car's windshield. However, if there are bigger damages in form of large cracks covering part of your windscreen it might vastly reduce visibility and thus affect driving safety. In these cases, it is advisable not to drive without replacing the broken windshield as soon as possible.
Even if the crack you notice isn't directly in your line of sight, it still poses a potential safety hazard. For example, if you're driving at night and headlights shine through the crack, then that could be distracting - especially if the light source is right in front of your car's interior lights.
As mentioned before, you should always ensure that your windshield is in a good, safe condition. Don't take any chances with your safety; fix chips and cracks as soon as you notice them to maintain the structural integrity of your vehicle's windshield, back glass, or other windows.
And lastly, although rare, some windshields might be damaged to the extent that repairing them is not an option. If this happens, you should have your car inspected by a specialist first to find out if there are other options available for fixing or replacing your broken windshield.
Titusville, FL