cruisin

hey guys, just wondering if it's possible to repair chips in the front windshield. Last time I had a chip in my mx6 2 weeks later a crack went from one end of it to the other, so I thought I heard it was possible to repair them. I'm in south florida now, so if anyone knows if it's possible or what to do let me know. It's from a rock, you can feel it on the outside but not on the inside, probably the size of about a fingernail in length, a bit less.

cruisin

just called a bunch of places, they say for 50-60 bucks, they can put epoxy on it to try to prevent it from further cracking the windshield. Wondering if that would actually do more damage, since they suction it and then do that, then just leaving it alone, any opinions?

wingless

Yes, the crack may be repaired. The fix will prevent the crack from growing. It will remain visible, as it is now.

Alternately, my insurance company provides 100% replacement coverage, if the crack cannot be covered by a $1 bill.

Any glass company can do either repair.

JGriff

I'd recommend that you give it a try. I had it done a few years ago on my 1992 Audi 100S, and the patch was barely detectable, and the crack never got worse... even after a few years.

IMHO, it was much better than running the risk of a poorly-executed replacement job i.e. leaks, wind noise, black goop smears, non-OEM glass etc.

For $60 bucks, what do you have to lose? If you don't like it, you can still have the windshield replaced.

356driver

Get the chip fixed before it becomes a crack. The epoxy repair method works well most of the time and it is all but invisible. At the very worst, it forestalls the expensive replacement of your windshield to a later date.

skl

I've had them repaired as well and it works. Didn't do it fast enough on my A4 company car (which gets a LOT of highway miles) though and I could watch the crack grow as I drove. That one had to be replaced- didn't feel as bad as the car is leased but seems ok with no leaks, etc...

STATMAN

I had a small rock chip (less than the size of a pencil eraser) in my windshield, and with the cold weather here in the north, the chip turned into a 2 foot long crack a couple months ago. I had to have it replaced and went to the dealership to have all original glass, gaskets, etc., installed. It actually turned out better than new. This has been a topic on quite a few threads. For instance, see:
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...dshield+repair
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...dshield+repair

The morale of the story, get it replaced if you have comprehensive insurance with a minimal deductible (you don;t get dinged for a comp claim), or try to get it repaired and see how it turns out. If it looks bad, have it replaced (the repair is only about $40 to $50).

My replacement cost about $400+ on the CS -- lucky it wasn't the 997S, because replacement is much more expensive (and my comprehensive deductible is $1000).