When you look at new cars, you are probably looking at fuel efficiency, engine power and creature comforts such as heated leather seats. You probably give more attention to how many cup holders there are than you do anything about the auto glass. When you research features of new car models, you will see specs for everything from the tires to whether or not they can play your smartphone playlists through Bluetooth. However, there is just not much info about the windshield and other auto glass. Here are six interesting automobile glass facts you probably did not know about.
Windshields Are Laminated
Have you ever seen a movie where a windshield shatters when it is shot at or punched by the bad guy? This does not happen in real life. Windshield glass is laminated. This means there are two layers of glass with a flexible membrane in the middle. This keeps the glass together if it is shattered. The windshield in your car is also a safety feature that is just as important as your seat belts and air bags.
Why Auto Glass Is Tempered
Tempering glass involves exposing it to high heat and quickly cooling it. This makes glass stronger, and it also makes it so the glass will break into tiny fragments when it is compromised. Tiny fragments of auto glass in an accident reduce the risk of injuries that shards of glass can cause. Yes, even tiny bits of glass can cut, but they are not as dangerous as larger pieces that can penetrate the body and lacerate major blood vessels. Tempered glass of side, rear and sunroof windows also make for a quick escape. Rescue personnel use a small glass punch to shatter tempered vehicle glass, but some new cars have laminated glass throughout.
UV Filtering and Photochromic Eyewear
Auto glass of modern vehicles provides advanced filtering of ultraviolet light. This helps protect occupants from exposure to UV light while traveling, and it also helps to protect car interiors from being damaged by years of exposure to the sun’s rays. Without UV filtering, upholstery and carpeting will fade, vinyl and leather seats and dashboards crack, and fabrics become brittle. The downside to UV-filtering auto glass is that your photochromic eyewear that automatically darkens in the sun will not darken as much inside your car. Keeping a clip-on sunglasses attachment or prescription sunglasses in your car may be necessary for those really sunny days if you have photochromic eyeglass lenses.
Resin Windshield Repairs
Stone chips in your windshield can be quickly fixed before they begin to spread into a crack, according to All Valley Auto Glass. Stone chips usually only affect the outer layer of glass in your laminated windshield. Over time they will develop into a windshield crack. Chips that look like a bullseye are the easiest to repair. Windshield replacement is expensive, and your automobile insurance company may offer resin windshield repair without having to pay a deductible. Stone chip repair uses negative and positive pressure with a repair device that is attached to your windshield over the crack. A clear resin fills the chipped area to help prevent it from cracking.
High Tech Windshield Glass
Some cars already have fancy features such as night-vision camera images projected onto your car’s windshield to see things such as deer lurking in the dark in the middle of the road. Projecting images and information onto your windshield is one thing, but car makers are working on making windshields an interactive display device. Mercedes-Benz showcased a windshield display that responded to gesture commands at the Consumer Electronics Show of 2012.
Adding Window Films Offers Protection
Laminated glass in side and rear windows offers protection, but there may be a concern of them preventing the easy escape that tempered glass offers in the event of an accident, submersion or fire. However, there are many drivers who wished they were more protected in their vehicles from smash-and-grab robberies that take advantage of the shattering capability of tempered glass. A smash-and-grab robbery is where a thief comes out of nowhere and smashes a side window to quickly grab a purse, laptop or other valuable object seen inside your car. It typically happens at red lights and drive-through ATMs. If you do not have laminated glass on all of your vehicle’s windows and want it, companies such as 3M and Llumar produce window films that resist smash-and-grab robbery attempts.
Glass has been in use by mankind for thousands of years, and now chemical and electronic technology is keeping it up to date with our modern demands. There are many more interesting facts about automobile glass that are just waiting to be discovered.
