Soft windshields
 

Is it just my car or do you have issues to.I have a 03 4.6 and I get more rock chips in my windshield then any other car I have owned.Is this glass unusually soft and do they make a better windshieds that will not take such abuse.

I got a rock chip in my 05 4.4 the first day I owned it *#%$()*$)% Once replace through BMW Seattle, I haven't had one yet in over 1.3 years (crossing fingers).

I agree...my winshield is terribly pitted!

I have the same issues with my windshield. Anyone know to what extent the damage has to be before ins. will cover replacement? I have 2 small (about 1/16")rock chips about 1/4" apart from each other. While they're small, they're right in my line of sight and very annoying...

Rock chips and pitting are usually two different issues. If a rock hits the windshield with enough force, it will chip (star, crack, whatever you want to call it) regardless of how 'hard' the glass is.
Pitting, or your windshield looking like it was sandblasted, probably is a function of glass quality. The windshield on my '85 728i was terribly pitted when I bought it as a 12 year old car, so bad that I couldn't see out it when the sun hit it just right. No rock chips, though. I had a new PPG windshield installed, no problems after 6 years. Still looks new.

So if you have a sandblasted looking windshield, I would vote for poor glass quality. A rock chipped windshield, that's just bad luck. :rolleyes:

Same goes for just the glass overall.
I've had my drivers side replaced due to 2 small scratches about a inch long that I couldn't stand looking it....

Lo and behold, I have 1 each on the front passenger and rear driver as well. Glass is just soft IMO.

Oh yeah, if you get a rock chip, take your car to a place that fixes rock chips (Novus) to get it fix before the crack spreads. Its cheap, $40 or so. Check your insurance for coverage, but you may be better off paying out of pocket because the insurance will listed the $40 chip repair as a 'collision' on your policy, making it look like you ran into somebody. :confused:

Yeah I have had to have about 5 fixed on the windscreen, same thing went for my Z4 I had (had to have the whole windscreen replaced) Both my last X5 (2004) and my 2003 325i never had these issues, I also have issues with dimples on my hood, makes me so annoyed!

Hi cpatzer, I know how you feel, my last 3 BMWs got "rocks" in the first week! I picked up my X5 in January, and the day after (!) I got the "traditional" rock!

Well - it must be something with a kind of good luck sign from above, and I hope that I will enjoy this car as much as I did the E34 and E39. :driver:

Note that damages bigger than an eye means that the windshield MUST be replaced shortly, as the repair won´t last very long.

And yes, BMW windshields are soft and looks like sandblasted after 1-2 years. :banghead:

The replacements don't seem to be too bad though. Whatever it was they used it has stood up pretty well.

No chips or 'sandblasting' on the X in 4 years. My e39 took a rock not even an hour after I had her. Took her in to a glass repair shop and haven't had a problem since - I can't even tell where the rock hit anymore.

I have a sandblasted-looking windshield and you guys are going to think I'm crazy as to what I'm about to suggest. I hate seeing my X5 dirty during the winter months up here in the Northeast (where they heavily sand & salt the roads during snowstorms), so I frequent a new super high-pressure, touchless car wash after each and every snow storm. When they first installed this new car wash during the summer, I was especially impressed on how clean the X was after a 4 minute high-pressure wash. Now it's winter, and every carwash in our area is required to recycle water (as per law). Well, I wonder how much filtering is going on with this dirty; sand & salt infested water during the wash cycle. After a wash last month, as I pulled out into the street to drive away, I noticed a "starfield" of small pitts on my windshield that would rival some planetariums. Boy was I PO'd. A few days later, I noticed small pits & tiny dents on the hood surface and rear hatch - like I was doing 70 mph in reverse and hit a stone??? It's got to be this car wash. When I attempted to contact the owner of the car wash/gas station, his response was "the sign says enter at your own risk". Nice. Anyway, I'm curious, anyone else out there with a pitted windshield frequent a high-pressure car wash, or am I and my theory just plain crazy? :(

I have a few rock chips.

I would say that you are correct, the car wash did it. Which doesn't make you feel any better, or your X look any better. I have a friend in Minnesota that owns a gas station/ car wash, and having helped him work on it, I can tell you that if the owner of your car wash isn't keeping up on his filter maintenance, then lots of dirty water is getting cycled thru. :confused:

I can't think of any good options to persue, other than make a really huge stink about it. Or make friends with a lawyer. Or a hit man. :flame:

if they're in your line of sight, it's usually covered.

I would say, contact a lawyer. Depends on your state but those signs don't usually hold up in court. A friend of my had his ///M5 damaged in a car wash that said they "hand wash" well it was a guy with a rag that wipes the car before it goes into the "touchless carwash".

They ended up paying for the repairs to his ///M5.

If they won't budge, your lawyer could always argue that it was supposed to be a "touchless carwash". Seems to me that the rocks did a lot of "touching".

On another note, I would never recommend using those "touchless" carwashes, ever, if you value your paint job. All of the sand and dirt under that high of pressure turns into sandpaper or a virtual sandblaster. Eventually you will peal off the clearcoat. Winter or not I would hand wash.

What I do if I am feeling especially lazy is bring a bucket and wash mit to the local pull in and do it yourself car wash. It says no handwashing, but they don't seem to mind so long as you are paying the whole time you are handwashing.

X5 in AK and cpatzer, Thanks for the response. I'm even more embarrassed to tell you I have the same problem with my new 550i I purchased 6 months ago - I only have 7K miles on it and paid $66K! You're right, I should get a very good attorney involved in this. This "touchless" car wash just sandblasted both my cars, which cost me $112K for both. My wife's new X3 will NEVER go through this car wash - I asked her to tolerate the filthy vehicle and don't go through the car wash. I'll hand wash in the driveway now that the weather has warmed up a bit. In the mean time, I need to find out how much the repairs will cost me and go from there... :(

Nice, I got pitting in 2 spots in sets of three right smack in the driver's view. The fixes look hit or miss. Haver there been any recent updates? The pitting looks like white spots that you can feel with your fingernail. Sucks so bad, especially when it rains and the wipers leave streaks against those spots.

fixes are hit and miss.

German OE glass (Audi and BMW) are notoriously "soft". I've had to replace windshields on both a Z3 and A4 in the past, and I talked to a few glass shop owners about it and they agree. You can elect to go with a windshield from PPG, which will stand up to chips better, but it will not have the etched BMW logos.

If damage is on the larger side and in the drivers' field of vision talk to your auto insurance carrier as some will replace the glass for free or with a minimal charge, depending on your policy.

Thanks for the tips I will get on this through my insurance.

I was just wondering about the same thing. Good thing someone brought up this post. I just got my CPO'd 2004 X5 last week and this past saturday as I was driving on the freeway I heard a little nick on the windshield and knew it was a rock or something. Might i remind you, I just heard a small nick and the minute I heard that started looking closely on my windshield and sure enough I found a sideways nick which leaves a black semi circular spot on my windshield.

There wasn't even any big trucks hauling dirt or anything...it was just all cars and SUVs.

Anyways, I also drive a Lexus GX and one night I was picking my brother up from the airport and I heard a big stone. I mean, it was loud and that sure left a star/crack on my windshield. That I was sure left a crack the minute I heard it because it was so darn loud. But the BMW, it was just a faint sound and it took a chuck out.

Am glad that I'm not the only one with bad luck when it comes to windshields.

I've been repairing my own small dings, pits, cracks and bullseyes for the last 3 years. It's not tough to do and I find it helpful to repair them right away before the cracking starts (or starts spreading). By the time you get the car to a repair shop, the crack has often spread beyond repair.

I use the following product:

http://www.amazon.com/Permatex-16067.../dp/B000HBI9XW

It not only works for bullseye damage, but I keep the syringe of resin around and repair knicks and cracks as they occur. You just put a few drops over the damaged area, place a thin piece of clear plastic over top of it and leave it overnight to soak into the damaged area...including cracks. Next day, expose the area to bright sunlight for an hour which UV cures it. You then scrape the surficial cured product off the windshield with a razor. Damaged areas become almost invisible, and I've never had a crack spread once it's been repaired.

I have a crack 5" long on mine right at the passenger A pillar. What does replacing the windshield run with OEM glass?

I have a few chips, but they never got bigger or did a spider web affect. The temperatures have varied severely where i live too. I pretty much expected them to get bigger but they never did. From my experience, the windshields on BMW's are much stronger then Honda, Acura windshields.. .Man those things, once you get a tiny little chip expect it to get bigger by the minute...

Ballpark I would guess $250 to $400 depending on if you choose OEM or aftermarket glass and the shop rate...also if it were me I would install all new seals and trims.

thanks. that is cheaper than what I thought. I should get around to doing this, but it has been like this for a year and I barely notice it...

This is annoying, somehow my wiper arm (the metal blades which hold the rubber insert) managed to scrach the far right of the winshield. It's this awful looking swirl, just like my back windshield rainbow scratch. It blows that after reading the posts, I replaced the blades, but, still got screwed. I commute 60 miles a day all highway, I am not replacing the windshield till I get major damage.

This is funny because I have terrible pits in my windshield but have thought it must be pretty good glass since it has never cracked and had to be replaced. Mine is so pitted that when washed, it still looks dirty!

I watched a rock the size of a golf ball get flipped up on the highway by a dump truck, fly over the car in front of me, and hit my windshield. I almost ducked. No cracks or anything though. No other problems [I]ever[I] before that and i have 94 thousand miles, just lucky I guess.

Actually, this estimate is only about half correct. A dealer will charge $700+ to replace your windshield. Safelite wil replace it for $600 (with an aftermarket windshield). Chips and cracks under 6" can be repaired. Anything larger requires a windshield replacement.

Whoa, that's a crazy price. My Z3s are under $300 as was my Audi A4 with OE glass. I know X5 glass is large, but geez...I guess I'll be calling the insurance co. if I ever need to replace.

F.Y.I. Part of the reason for the high cost is due to the special glass construction needed for the automatic rain sensor.

The Safelite quote is an actual quote. The dealer quote is not exact. They wanted me to bring the vehichle in before they gave me a quote.

Unless you have the optional/additional windshield coverage, insurance companies normally don't pay for windshield replacement due to rock chips/cracks. Most will, however, pay for the repair of the chips and cracks.