Windshield Repair and Replacement

Windshields are built strong to stand up to the stress of road travel, but damages such as chips and cracks still occur and, when they do, Glass Doctor® of Albion, MI, will repair or replace your windshield and get you back on the road as quickly possible.

It’s important to quickly bring in your vehicle after the windshield suffers a chip or crack. The windshield provides up to 60% of your vehicle’s structural strength and supports the roof in a rollover accident or crash. It also helps airbag deployment and prevents you from being thrown from the vehicle. When your windshield is weakened by a chip or crack, your family’s safety is compromised.

Repair or Replace?

In general, most chips and some cracks can be repaired, but it depends on a number of factors:  

• Size and depth: Chips up to one inch in diameter and cracks three inches long or less normally can be repaired. Traditionally, if a crack is longer than a dollar bill, it cannot be repaired and replacement will be necessary, but there are exceptions to the rule.
• Type: Windshield cracks come in all shapes and sizes, with some being easier to repair than others.
• Location: Chips and cracks that obstruct your line of vision or have spread to the edge of the windshield tend to require windshield replacement.

Windshield Repair

Repairing a chip or crack is always preferable to replacing your entire windshield, as it’s far more economical and environmentally responsible. When your vehicle simply needs a windshield repair, our experts do their best to have you in and out within an hour. Most insurance plans cover the repair, as insurance companies realize that repairing small chips before they become larger, more expensive problems makes sense. We will even handle the insurance filing for you!

Windshield repair improves the appearance of the glass and restores its integrity through injecting a clear, curable resin into the outer layer of glass. The resin is then cured and polished, preventing the chip or crack from spreading and causing further damage.

Windshield Replacement

If your windshield suffers damage to both layers of glass, the rain sensor, or internal radio antenna, it most likely will need to be replaced. The same goes for complex multiple cracks, edge cracks and chips, contaminated cracks and damage that affects the driver’s viewing area.

Our specialists perform an exacting series of steps during replacement. We carefully remove the windshield, protecting the surrounding areas of the vehicle’s body from damage. We then select a matching Original Equipment Equivalent (OEE) quality windshield and use Auto Glass Safe Council™ (AGSC) approved adhesives to bond the windshield to the frame. The entire replacement process takes approximately 60 minutes or less, but we suggest you follow the AGSC’s recommended one-hour wait time before driving away so that the adhesives set and bond.

We continue to care for your new windshield with our free Windshield Protection Plan. If your vehicle’s windshield is damaged within 12 months of its original replacement, Glass Doctor of Albion, MI, will repair or replace it for free.

Whether small or large, don’t ignore windshield damage, call Glass Doctor of Albion, MI, or schedule an appointment with us today!