Welcome to our
Windshield Crack Repair Guide
Our windshield crack repair guide will walk you through what we can and cannot repair. A long crack repair is your last chance to save your original installation seal, and a costly replacement. However, repairing long cracks must meet our parameters before we accept the task, such as weather conditions and others described below. We may require you to bring your vehicles to us. If you learn your damage is not repairable and you would like to have your windshield replaced see our recommended auto glass shop for a free quote.
Our Windshield Crack Repair Requirements:
The above picture are examples of damage that we typically repair beginning in the spring and we stop when temperatures drop below 50 degrees in the fall season. These examples meet our requirements listed below...
- 14" or less. 12"in is the length of 2 dollars bills.
- Cracks not in the driver's critical viewing area.
- Damage occurred no more than 4 months ago
- Single crack – not multiple (see illustration)
- The crack does not connect from edge to edge.
- Cracks that have no prior repair attempts.
Things to consider about windshield crack repair.
Our windshield crack repair improves the appearance by 70% to 80%. Results will vary based on age, amount of contamination, location & severity of the damage. It will be less visible on the outside of the vehicle, but will be more noticeable on the inside of the vehicle because the light coming into the vehicle makes it easier to see. A professional repair will improve the damage but just like a common chip repair it is not going to be invisible.
If you rather not see a faded line on your windshield, or want the damage to be completely invisible, then you will be happier getting a comprehensive windshield replacement. As long as you don’t mind paying the extra cost.
If this is your original windshield seal you may want to repair it instead of replacement, because an original is the best seal.
If you found our website helpful, please let us know and help spread the word. Just click our recently added Like button below. Thank you
Types of Long Cracks we do not repair.
We cannot repair long cracks that reach into the driver's critical viewing area. This can be determined by placing regular sheet of paper and placing it directly in front of the drivers line of vision. If the crack enters this area, it is disqualified. As shown above.
In this example, the crack extends from edge to edge. This is considered a broken windshield and should be replaced and therefore disqualified for a repair.
In this example, there is multiple cracks and not a single long crack, and is disqualified for a repair. We recommend a comprehensive windshield replacement.
Will a long crack repair pass a lease return inspection?
A lease return with a repaired long windshield crack may not pass inspection depending on the crack length. However, something to consider: If you have several months or years left on your lease, consider that another rock may hit your windshield again giving you another crack. It may be very disappointing to spend several hundred and in many cases close to a thousand dollars on a new windshield installation only to get hit again before your lease is up.
Instead, a better option may be to have your windshield repaired to stop further spreading of the damage with the expectation that another rock will eventually hit your windshield causing more damage. Then replace your windshield just before you return your lease. This way your only spending the big money on the new windshield replacement once.
In conclusion, deciding on weather to get a windshield crack repair instead of replacement is a little bit tougher call as more damage will be visible, yet a replacement may cause air noise or water leaks if not installed properly. Here is my take on it. If I had a lease, I would repair it whenever possible and then replace ( if it has a long crack ) just before the lease return so everything is nice a clean for the inspection. If I owned a nice car (rather than a lease) and like to keep it nice looking, I would replace it only if the crack was longer than 12"inches.