Many people do not know that the glass in your vehicle is part of your vehicles safety and structural integrity. Glass is getting bigger and is covering more areas of the vehicles nowadays. All glass including the windshield, back glass and side glass are all important for keeping you safe in the event of an accident.

Do not ever assume that all glass installers are alike or use the same quality products and procedures. For example an improperly installed windshield may not be able to withstand the blow of an airbag or it may have air or water leaks.

Once the old windshield is out of the metal frame which holds the glass in place it must be properly prepped and treated before the urethane is put in. Not only is the preparation of the metal important to prevent rust from forming and potentially spreading into the roof but the products used are equally important.

Some vehicles have electronics embedded in the glass, especially high end vehicles, if the installer uses the wrong urethane it can interfere with the vehicles electronics! A urethane that is non-conductive is a necessity when windshields or other glass contains radio technology, satellite navigation, heads-up display, rain sensor, heating and demisting, or even an electro chromatic system.

 

Rust is much like cancer, once it starts it’s hard and sometimes impossible to stop. Attached are some photos of what can happen with a poor windshield installation. After many months or several years the rust will spread into the roof and cause the paint to crack, lift and chip off. This happens because of poor extraction practices, metal preparation, installation practices and poor adhesive products being used or a combination thereof.