Quote:
Originally Posted by Thecastle
No auto insurance glass coverage, and in my case you can't get it on a commercial auto insurance policy. My X5 is a company car and registered as a commercial vehicle. Progressive dosent offer glass protection on commercial vehicles, the rules are different on company cars. On my personal policy it's 200 a year for 2 cars and since I can get windshields replaced for unde 300 in general it's not a good gamble on those cars. The markup,on glass replacement is pretty high, if you shop around you can find a deal, no need to pay 150 hr labor ways for a glue job.
Like you I used to buy into BMW dealers having a special install procedure. It really caused me a lot of worry about replacing my windshield on my baby. But when you think about it if they don't do it right, it can be done it again. After researching I learned there is no special BMW procedure for a windshield install, most dealers don't even install windshields they outsource the install to a local installer, you should ask them. Often times it's safelite, and the dealer just marks up the price. It's not rocket science to replace a broken window be it a car, house, etc.
BMW windshields are installed like any other. Remove 3 pieces of trim, cut the urethane adhesive, remove the windshield and rear view mirror. Apply adhesive to the car frame in continuous beed, place windshield on then put new trim on. It's like putting on pants, everyone does it the same way on leg at a time.
My safelite experiences have been excellent, I've had installers who were the trainers come and do my 335d at the house with excellent and cost effective results. My wife's mini coooper s had its rear window replaced with perfect results. So I wouldn't worry about their quality, it can always be redone if your not satisfied.
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I was responding to the OP, in terms of his insurance....
If you are happy with a gluejob, using the cheapest possible products, enjoy. Heck, sounds like you are renting glass, and a compnay car that gets pretty beat, so there is some wisdom to that solution.
FWIW, Safelite cannot provide a written statement that says 'a safelite glass, installed with safelite materials and methods will result in a car that still meets all manufacturers safety standards'....they will provide you with a statement that says "the glue is approved".
In terms of your assertion you can always have the work redone, you cant just get glass removed and redone, there needs to be a demonstrable, documented defect. Increased wind noise when a glass isnt perfectly set at the right depth is hard to prove. Water intrusion into an area where the guy scraped off the paint and never resealed it and now 6 years later it is rusted.... a glass that maybe sits funny in the frame, maybe it should have been rejected by the installer but he just slapped it in- now you dontt like the aftermarket glass you approved, and they say 'well thats the way the cheap glass is- not part of our warranty'.... lots of ways to F up an install.
Agree many BMW stores have cheap glass installers do their glass. Safelite? Dunno.
Also agree that going to a BMW dealer or any particular installer is NOT A GUARANTEE of a quality job- just like everything in life.
Finally, on the bolded part- how much of the old adhesive is cut away; if the paint is damaged or scratched; if they use the proper mounting kit (dams, spacers, etc) to set the glass depth...all not reflected in your 'Safelite procedure'. I know for a fact that the E39 procedure uses dams and spacers; I honestly cannot say if there is a procedure for the E70 or any of the Xs....
Ive had good luck finding a shop that can follow the BMW procedure, has the tool for my one car, understands my expectations. Will not accept a glass that doenst sit perfectly... Ive used them for the other 4 cars as well. Ive gone there for over 8 years. I dont plan on meeting my 'new to the business, been doing this for 4 months' Safelite installer in my driveway. I dont want him slapping in a flawed glass, only for me to come out and reject it- then more risk of my paint when they come back and cut it out.
In summary- I dont use BMW dealers. And I wont use Safelite. Between those there are many high quality installers one can use. As with so many things, most consumers have no real sense of what constitutes a quality job..
PS - BTW, I have State Farm with a $100 glass deductible. Just got a glass done on the MDX last weekend and they chopped $50 off the deduct with an "up to 50 coupon" I got in the paper, saying 'state farm pays us pretty well, we can give you the full $50'.