E-mails that originate from mailing lists are mostly a nuisance, but occasionally one slips through with a useful piece of information. One such e-mail recently came from a local car wash I occasionally use.
It suggested to check your windshield for chips and small cracks before visiting their car wash. Sometimes the rapid temperature when entering the car wash, especially during winter months, could cause a small chip or crack to turn into a ruined windshield, the e-mail read.
It also included a letter from the International Carwash Association, which explained that a car wash alone could not cause a windshield to break. I am as surprised as you to find out an International Carwash Association exists.
This hastily read e-mail had little relevance for me until later that same day when a car in my shop experienced a windshield failure. We all heard a loud pop and after searching for the source we noticed a large crack in the windshield that we didn’t remember seeing before. It cracked when the car was being lifted for an oil change. After inspecting my technician’s placement of the hoists lifting arms, I could find no fault in his technique.
Fortunately, this doesn’t happen often, but apparently incidents can also occur at car washes. A vehicle with a windshield that does not have any previous damage is not going to crack just from being lifted or going through a car wash. Alternatively, a technician can accidentally drop a tool on the glass or be too aggressive removing the cowlings to get to the wiper mechanisms and damage the glass. That should be a no-charge windshield for the customer.
So why did it happen this time? A passenger vehicle is typically lifted from its built-in, strengthened factory lifting points. The lifting process does place stresses on its body that are different from normal road use, but this should not be an issue. Metal corrosion around the windshield is usually the culprit. If you can see visible corrosion in the body work adjacent to any part of the glass, you can be rest assured that it also resides underneath the edge of the glass. Corrosion expands and swells the metal and paint work. It is this swelling combined with unwanted body flex that can crack a windshield when the vehicle is being serviced on a lift.
When we looked at the car in our shop that day, we could see the point where the fracture originated. Unlike a small stone chip or significant rock hit, which will usually have a clearly recognizable impact point, cracks that start from the edge of the glass and move inward are usually stress cracks. This car had a noticeable stress crack originating from the top centre, and of course you guessed where I’m going with this; it was right in the middle of a large rusty bubble.
The corrosion is usually a product of a stone chip or from a previous shoddy windshield replacement. You really must pay attention when having your auto glass replaced. Time is money for everyone including auto glass installers. The faster they can get it done, the faster they can move on to the next job. Before heading in for a glass replacement examine the roof and A pillars of the vehicle. Note any defects in paint at that time. After the windshield is replaced, closely examine the same area. If the paint is scratched or damaged, you will need to deal with it immediately or else it may turn into a problem later on.
Your automotive questions answered
Hi Lou. Love your column and always learn something even if it’s about a vehicle I don’t own.
We have a “buy and hold” approach to cars. We typically buy used cars with three to five years of wear, and pay cash or pay them off within a year. We trend toward European cars like Volkswagen, Volvo and Land Rover. These vehicles tend to have higher maintenance and repair costs, but we justify that against the fact we don’t have car payments.
Your colleagues in personal finance advocate that homeowner’s budget for 5 per cent of the value of their house for maintenance and repairs. Is there a similar number that would apply to cars?
Because we hold onto our vehicles for a long time, we often get to that point where we wonder if the repairs are worth it, relative to the remaining value of the car. We usually end up making the repairs and then trying to sell, because without the repair the vehicle would have little to no value. Any thoughts on how to plan for or decide on when is the right time to move on from an aging vehicle so you’re not throwing good money after bad?
Thanks, Monty
I don’t have a percentage of value sort of number like your housing reference. I do however have a cost per year number in my head that I often think of. This number will obviously be different given local labour rates, but here in the Toronto region I think $1,000 per year of maintenance and repairs averaged out over the life of the car is average. This number really depends on what you are driving though. A small econo-box will usually be in the $600 to $700 range and a European sedan will often be double that or more, especially as it ages. It seems the further you move into the larger sport European vehicle market the higher that number will be. Given your trend for European vehicles such as the Land Rover, I would say you are in the higher end of the range.
An owner may have three to four years of little costs associated with the vehicle and then a couple of heavy expense years. The problem is that most people don’t track their yearly expenses. When they receive their invoice, they just jam it into their glove box and only refer back to it for warranty needs and taxes. They experience a couple harder years but forget about all the light years. When is the right time? When the heavy costing years seem to never go away.
Lou Trottier is owner-operator of All About Imports in Mississauga. Have a question about maintenance and repair? E-mail globedrive@globeandmail.com, placing “Lou’s Garage” in the subject line.
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