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Cracked Windshield

6K views 17 replies 10 participants last post by  turboguy327 
#1 · (Edited)
Had the car out last evening, parked it in my driveway. Went to bed, dreamed of kittens and butterflies and all sorts of wondrous things.

This evening around 7:00 I get in the car to go out and notice this friggin' crack in my windshield.

Vehicle door Automotive exterior Windshield Sky Bumper


Yesterday there was no crack. When I was driving no rock, pebble or anything else hit it.

I got out of the car, looked it over and could see absolutely no impact mark.

Drove it over to my Chevy dealer. They were open late, fortunately. The service guy looked at it and didn't see any impact mark either. Under their better lighting I could see that the vertical part of the crack goes all the way down below the rubber gasket. He thought it was probably defective but of course could not promise me it would be covered under warranty.

The guy told me to bring it in tomorrow and show his service manager to see if he'll warranty it. I suspect he will. They have been really good there.

Back in June I had a defective right front strut mount/bearing assembly
(http://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread.php?237434-Creak-when-turning-the-steering-wheel)
Last Friday the CEL came on for the P05F Active Grill shutter thing. The CEL went off on it's own, thankfully, so no fix necessary (yet?).
Today, cracked windshield.

I absolutely LOVE this car, but I've been spending FAR too much time at the dealership in the 9 months I've owned this car. It's my first GM/American car.

Yes, I expect that the windshield will be warrantied, but GMS's quality control seems to be really, really lacking. A car is the sum of its parts and GM needs to start making sure their suppliers are delivering quality.

Sorry to sound so negative, but this is damned frustrating.

Best,
Rick
 
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#2 ·
Sorry to hear your bad luck with the windshield and other items. It really stinks.

Sounds like the dealership will cover it but the hassle and time is a pain in the butt.

Good luck.

P.s. Ive been really fortunate with mine but im knocking on wood as I type this reply. :)
 
#5 ·
Just got back. They are going to warranty it. I expected no less. Romeo in Kingston, NY have been great. Every time I've been there. Which is part of the point; I've been there too many times.

As far as any other vehicle... well, yeah...true. The strut mount/bearing assembly being defective could happen on any car. The Active Grill Shutter throwing a warning could happen on any car. The windshield having a spontaneous crack appear could happen on any car.

However, all three happening in the first approx 12k miles... not good.

Best,
Rick
 
#6 ·
Rick, I assume that you probably know this already, but NYS requires the insurance companies provide no-cost glass coverage. Had you been faced with paying, your insurance would have fully covered the cost without requiring a deductable. Glad GM stepped up, as they should have. I agree with you about quality control. I'm seeing too many postings of part failures on Gen2. Is this a result of price reduction? Gen1 seems more reliable. Just a feeling on my part.
 
#7 ·
I was aware that they provide basic preventative fixing, like using epoxy to reinforce a chip before it expands. That happened to me on my 2003 when a rock flew up off the road.

I didn't think that they covered an entire replacement, which is what GM is doing, for free.

Thanks,
Rick
 
#8 ·
Most real insurance covers windshields 100% for an appropriate repair or replacement. Windshields crack on their own all the time, heat, bumpy roads, cold, ice, cold liquids on hot glass, internal built up stresses, AC blowing on hot glass, rocks, birds, teenagers, construction vehicles, snow coming off the top of tractor trailers, you name it, cracks and windshields go together. yes, overnight on their own too, in my experience most windshield cracks form or grow when the car is alone and its dark out.

Just call you insurance company... and don't get so wrapped up over things you can't control.

and yes, new cars have thinner glass and larger glass surfaces and thinner, more rigid adhesive lines, all designed to make the car either more efficient of safer in an accident, and all of which contribute to an increased crack rate.
 
#9 ·
Most real insurance covers windshields 100% for an appropriate repair or replacement. Windshields crack on their own all the time, heat, bumpy roads, cold, ice, cold liquids on hot glass, internal built up stresses, AC blowing on hot glass, rocks, birds, teenagers...

Teenage birds?

;)

Of course you are objectively right. Again, what is aggravating me is the number of issues I've had (and many others on this forum have had) in such a short period of ownership.


Doesn't mean I don't love my baby. I just wish it wasn't so needy...

Best,
Rick
 
#13 ·
I had a windshield crack a few months ago, initially, I thought, as you did, it was improper installation that had caused the crack. but when the repair guy came, he only needed one look to tell me with certainty that it was caused by hitting a rock, he lifted the wiper and showed me a tiny white speck along the crack. so check your crack carefully before drawing a conclusion,

dealers won't cover windshield cracks unfortunately. I was lucky because in MA, insurance carriers are required to cover windshield with 0 deductible. so I got it replaced with an OEM glass.
 
#14 ·
Well, the Service Manager told me he'd get it warrantied, so we'll see.

If not, the kind folks here let me know that the same law applies here in NY as it does in MA, so I should be good in either case.

Thanks,
Rick
 
#17 ·
Last Thursday the 25th I got a call that my new windshield was in so I made an appointment to bring the car into the dealership the next day. They had previously told me they don't install the windshield, they hire SafeLite to do the job.

Went in the next day only to be told that SafeLite had blown off my appointment as well as another appointment that day. Apparently, they've had problems with SafeLite before.

The dealership were very apologetic. They arranged for a local glass installer to come to my house the following Monday.

Bottom line- the local guy came on time and installed the new windshield.

Thanks to everyone here for enlightening me about the NYS laws requiring insurance companies to replace windshields as well as repair them. I didn't need to involve them as the dealership warrantied it (which they probably didn't have to do).

Best,
Rick
 
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