[JST]

Just got home from a 4th of July roadtrip (took the new GTI--what a cool car). I went to back the M3 out of the garage to take it up to the store, and to my chagrin discovered a five inch L shaped crack in the windshield, originating in the middle of the passenger side A pillar. When I parked the car last Tuesday, there was no such crack. There's no evidence whatsoever of any chips, rock strikes, or other cracks anywhere in the vicinity of the crack.

So, any ideas what caused this? It was hot while I was gone, but other than that the car sat in the garage and didn't move for about five days. Weird.

Also, anyone have recommendations of good glass places in No. VA?

 

[nate]

earthquake :dunno:

 

[lip277]

That's actually pretty typical for tempered glass. One of two things happened... You had a small rock chip that started it or the glass was slightly damaged when it was installed. The hot weather puts stresses on glass regardless of the car being driven or not. I had the same thing happen to my truck a few weeks back. There was a real small rock chip that I didn't even notice. Went away for the weekend and saw when I came home a 12" long crack going right through it. The chip was right against the passenger side piller.
I had another windshield that cracked two weeks after being installed. I went out to go to work one morning and there it was... nearly all the way across. The company replaced it (no charge- under warranty)
Sounds like there was a nick of damage on the edge of the glass just needing the right stresses to open it out...
:tsk: gotta love glass sometimes....

 

[DLO]

Z4 windshield cracked

I had an L shaped crack develop in my Z4's windshield today. I drove the car all afternoon and had it hand washed around 2. I parked it outside at 5 and the windshield was fine. When I got in the car at 6, I noticed a 6" line extending from the mirror area to the passenger side. There was an L shaped crack from the top of the glass in the middle that turned to the passenger side. The black mirror assembly is behind that area and may have exposed the section of glass to hotter temps.

 

[neill]

If you take a fine tip ballpoint pen and run it along the length of the crack, and it will flow smoothly along the crack all the way, likely a stress crack from installation - how old is your car / have you just had the 'shield replaced recently?

Stress cracks are rare after the first 4-6 weeks on the road of a brand new car....

If the pen hits a spot where it "hangs up" (ie. the tip falls into a very small pit in the crack) this is likely the location where the crack originated and where the windshield was hit, usually by a small stone.......

Here in Alberta, they tend to spread a fine gravel on the roads in winter as opposed to sand, with the predictable results. I count on losing a windshield every winter season. I have been told that there are more windshield glass shops in Calgary than there are in Los Angeles!

 

[MatWiz]

Here in Alberta, they tend to spread a fine gravel on the roads in winter as opposed to sand, with the predictable results. I count on losing a windshield every winter season. I have been told that there are more windshield glass shops in Calgary than there are in Los Angeles!

I would check to see if the mayor's cusines own Auto Glass Shops, and then call Dateline NBC. :bigpimp:

~

 

[neill]

Indeed !! :rofl: :rofl:

The city takes great PR measures to ensure us that the problem is not what they are putting down, but rather what gets tracked onto the roads from rural gravel roads around us....

(ps - isn't Dateline the folks that jury-rigged the GM pickups with the igniter on the side saddle gas tanks? :tsk: )