Cracked Windscreen - anyone else had the same?

[thx1138]

Hi,

Just got back from the service centre. Had an approx 1ft crack appear right in front of the driver on Friday last week. Today was the first appointment I could get.

I'd assumed it was a warranty repair, but they told me that it's due to a stone chip and so would cost £888!

There is a minute blemish towards one end of the crack, which they insist is where a stone must have hit. I've never had a windscreen crack in 25 years of driving, despite having some pretty hefty stone chips over the years.

So now got to go through the insurance... More hassle.

C

 

[Stanwood Steve]

I had mine replaced and although it was a minor hassle, the replacement was done with care and it's looks perfect. The cost of mine was covered by my comprehensive coverage, so I didn't have any "out of pocket" cost on the replacement. It did take about two weeks for the shop to get the replacement windshield from Tesla. The bill to my insurance company was just over $1,600, by the way. It was done by Safelite Auto Glass. I heard that it's cheaper to have it done at Tesla Service Centers, but I have no direct experience with that option.

 

[BeeGood]

I've never had a windscreen crack in 25 years of driving, despite having some pretty hefty stone chips over the years.

Consider yourself lucky! I grew up in Louisiana (US) with awful roads and lots of big commercial trucks on them. Sometimes it’s like driving through flak.

Regardless of where you live though, I think the risk is always there. Not every rock will do it, but get one at just the right angle and it’ll crack it. Glass is glass, even on a Tesla unfortunately.

Sorry this happened but please let us know what your experience is like if you get Tesla SC to do the work.

 

[KenC]

Hi,

Just got back from the service centre. Had an approx 1ft crack appear right in front of the driver on Friday last week. Today was the first appointment I could get.

I'd assumed it was a warranty repair, but they told me that it's due to a stone chip and so would cost £888!

There is a minute blemish towards one end of the crack, which they insist is where a stone must have hit. I've never had a windscreen crack in 25 years of driving, despite having some pretty hefty stone chips over the years.

So now got to go through the insurance... More hassle.
C

Unfortunate, but windshield cracks are a bit random. Some may be due to stress from installation, which should be warranty'd; but if they find an impact, then it's always going to be a pebble, so you'll have to go thru insurance.

The Model 3 does get more pebble impacts, so it gets more cracks. The nose is low and aerodynamic, and the windshield starts low, and is big, so there's just more glass to hit. All of that leads to more windshield cracks.

You start to pay more attention to the vehicles in front of you, after you've had a crack. Avoid following semis, and vehicles without mudflaps, give a little more follow distance, try not to follow anyone driving close to the shoulder where there's more road debris being thrown up, that sort of thing. Exotic sports cars even put a laminate on the glass to prevent cracks, because they're even lower and more aero, leading to higher hit rates.

 

[Wittangamo]

A few months back I was driving sedately down a winding country road on a gorgeous sunny day. A hickory tree decided to drop a tennis-ball-sized green nut at the exact second I passed under it. My windshield looked like it had taken a shotgun blast right where the camera is located on the mirror mount.

I made an appointment with Tesla, but the insurance company insisted I go through Safelite. They used a Tesla OEM windshield and did a good job. I paid a $250 deductible and recalibrated the cameras myself in software. Bad luck, but I felt I was treated fairly.

 

[name you wish]

So now got to go through the insurance... More hassle.

Which insurance company? Interested to hear the experience...

 

[El joe]

I had mine replaced and although it was a minor hassle, the replacement was done with care and it's looks perfect. The cost of mine was covered by my comprehensive coverage, so I didn't have any "out of pocket" cost on the replacement. It did take about two weeks for the shop to get the replacement windshield from Tesla. The bill to my insurance company was just over $1,600, by the way. It was done by Safelite Auto Glass. I heard that it's cheaper to have it done at Tesla Service Centers, but I have no direct experience with that option.

Got a small ding in my windshield and was considering going with Safelite. Any idea if that messes with the warranty?

 

[commanderCody]

Got a small ding in my windshield and was considering going with Safelite. Any idea if that messes with the warranty?

I watched a big rig throw a rock from 2 lanes over and hit right in front of the driver side. It is low enough to not impact my driving, so I went to safelite and had them fill it with epoxy to save me money for now. You can still see it when the light hit is right (they even tell you it will not be perfect), but for $75 it shouldn't grow into a crack which allows me to spend money on mods.

 

[jbiggs2]

I, too, recently had a chip in the center of the passenger side. Safelite epoxy fill and two months later, it's still good.

 

[kmg_la]

Same thing happened to me, but with the back windshield! It happened within 4 months of ownership and I thought for sure it was a faulty glass issue.

When I took it to the SC, they said there was a minor chip at the base of the glass which meant a stone or something hit it and caused the crack. I was really upset at the time but I get glass cracks can be random/minor unlucky events can cause it. Still...an expensive disappointment!

I paid around $800 USD for the fix and was lucky that it only took 24 hours to get my car back with the new read windshield.

 

[RocketRobbie]

I hear rocks hit my windshield all the time. Freaks me out every time because I got a chip in my windshield on day 2 of ownership in my brand new car. Safelite glued it and it's not noticeable unless the windshield is extremely clean. It was not warrantied though. Damage isn't warrantied, only manufacturing errors. None of the other impacts have caused chips since then though.

 

[commanderCody]

I just got one on the glass above the driver side yesterday. I heard it hit and couldn't find it on the windshield and then looked up and saw a small chip. I need to go get that one epoxied before it spreads.