Coming in to work today I took a rock on I95. Hit the lower left on the window. There is a small (1/8") circle of "powedered glass" on the outside, and a circle of fractures about the size of a quarter in the glass.

Are there ways to address this without replacing the windshield?

 

Call Safelite Automotive, they will come to your work and repair it for $75.00 and guarantee it not to spider or they will replace the glass. My insurance pays for this free of charge with Progressive. Call asap before it splits or it will be a new windshield over night when the weather cools down

 

When the repair attemp fails (and it will if there's powder), get a real Mini windshield.
I pay an extra $40/year for no deductible glass replacement; you get to pick the type of glass.
3 windshields in less than a year so far.

 

Arnbut:

Three windshields in less than a year? Do you think that this is due to unusually high stresses in the glass as a design flaw which results in a crack when the slightest stress concentration is introduced.....like an otherwise insignificant chip?

I have an 8 inch crack in my windshield (2007 Cooper) which emanated from a chip so small that I didn't realize it was there until the crack formed. My experience with other cars would suggest that this is very unusual, and that the windshield design subjects it to higher stresses than normal.

 

Some people say MINI's are susceptible to glass damage due to the angle of the windshield compared to the road surface.

I happen to believe it's just because our cars are lower to the ground. On bigger vehicles, stones that break our windshields just take a bit of paint from between their headlights. Stones that would bust their windshields just pass over us.

Either way, I've had two repairs in the last 12 months.

Reparations are possible on damage up to about "dollar bill" size, unless the damage reaches an edge or is directly in the driver's vision.

 

Sorry, Coopers may have a short wheelbase, but in terms of windshield height, they are as high as most cars on the road. Corvette, Lotus, et al do not have this problem to the same degree (no pun intended), and their windshields are significantly lower.

It really is the relative angle... simply because it's more likely to be deflected, a glancing blow by an object at a lower angle of incidence is going to do less damage than the same object hitting a surface that is essentially perpendicular to the ground, which will absorb much more of the energy of the impact.

Hit a ball with a 2"x4" at a 90 degree angle, then at a 45 degree angle. Which one do you feel in your hand more?

Anyway, the '02-'03 Cooper had an issue with the frame that cause the windshield to flex more than it should've, but I think that's long since been addressed. Still... I've seen more chips in the three I've owned than in any other car I've had.

 

Most automotive stores sell a windshield repair kit. It only costs about 10 bucks and the repair is very easy to do.

I had my mini about a month and had a rock thrown into the windshield. By the time I got home the crack had spread to about 1/2" long. I figured it was at least worth a try to fix it. That was 10 months ago, the crack didn't spread any further after the repair.

If you do a search there is a write up on here by Octane guy. But if you pick up the repair kit and follow the instructions, the repair is very easy.

 

I have to think your replacement rate is due to your desire to get a "real Mini windshield". The genuine MINI windscreens have a pretty poor reputation around here. Pretty much everyone replaces it with an aftermarket one (PPG I think). Our club has a deal with one of the windshield companies and we love him. Replace with a better windshield. Your problems will be greatly reduced.

 

And take it from someone working in insurance...multiple windshield claims will eventually affect your rates, or even get you non-renewed. 3 a year is a bit excessive.

 

Need to have mine replaced from a nice rock during our road trip..

Cheapest quote in KC was $419 so far...others have been close to $800.

*Ouch*

 

Had mine replaced in the '02, seems it was around $400. Dealer wanted ~$800 as I recall.

 

I've never been hit in the windshild by a small pebble and had my windshield brake... until my MINI. It has to be the angle of it or something. The smallest things always hit my windshild, sand and dirt are the worst... you can hear it just pegging your car.

 

If you go aftermarket, even if it's a relatively known entity like Safelite or PPG, make sure the people doing the work have some level of knowledge of, and experience with, 2nd Gen MINIs. Otherwise, you could end up with far greater repair challenges, to wit:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...d.php?t=119668

__________________

 

i think if you search the forum you will find Mini owners that have windshield problems with no impacts at all...

in fact, i just posted this morning that we had our 2nd 'stress fracture' develop on our Mini in a little over a year...

first one was replaced last June (under warranty) after the service manager did a "pen test"... where they just run a pen tip along the crack to see if they can detect any sign of impact...

the combination of the OEM glass and the stresses the windshield are put through definitely cause windshield issues...

both times the hairline crack developed our car was sitting in the driveway... both times it started right behind the rearview mirror and was about 2" the first day and grew to 10"+ inches (L-shaped) by the next day...

sbp

 

I've used Fix-A-Windshield on other vehicles and it works very good. I don't recall the limit on the size of a chip - crack it will fix but it is worth trying for less than $10. Walmart and your local Auto store will have it.

 

The time I had to replace, I did so with the aftermarket (Safelite). Not only was the tint wrong, but it cracked again just as quickly. My 3rd windshield (OEM) has now lasted over 3 years and got a massive (1.25" diameter chip) from a thrown rock almost a year ago. The Safelite repair has lasted well, and you have to know where it is to see it (and then only in bright sunlight). The rason for the high frequency of MINI windshield breakage is two fold: 1) the angle of the glass and 2) the windshield is a stressed member of the car.

One of my windshields cracked (the aftermarket one) when I jacked it up to replace the wheels. It had gotten a small chip in it that very day.

 

Safelite has been offering the OEM glass for only $20 more than their own. The last time I paid $210 for the OEM glass and $100 for installation. The MINI dealer (where they got the glass from ) wanted to charge me $600 for the glass alone.

 

Gee, I called Safelite here in Torrance, and they said just to repair, its $190, with a life time guarantee. So prices do vary. Considering the price for repair I might just as well get a new windshield.

 

I never had to replace a window in 40 years. Then I moved to San Diego where we can't afford to do street repairs and replaced 3 (non-Mini) in 2 years.

 

After 5 years of ownership, reading the other posts, I feel fortunate that I just got my first crack. It's straight up the middle too long to be patched. I'm feeling very "OUCH!" when I read your posts, as the San Francisco dealer wanted about $900 and the Concord,CA dealer $1200. Insurance company was $300 through Safelite! Concord said that SF must not do it themselves and that they give you a loaner, saying that it has to sit under pressure overnight. I had thought that an original part would be best but maybe OEM is the way to go. Any thoughts on which way is best and if the overnight pressure thing is just a bunch of hooey? Should I just go through the insurance company or are they likely to replace it with a cheap piece that really won't last? Many thanks.

 

sigh :( I just got a big crack this weekend. spidered into 4 different directions. shortest one being about 1 foot and longest ones about 3 feet.

I'm sort of regretting not getting the windshield insurance through the dealer at $1500 for 5 years.

I have to call around to see how much it costs now.

 

try owning a Jeep. Jeep's windshields are totally vertical to the road, they take on 100% of the impact from all rocks. Whereas if your windshield is at an angle (like our Mini's) your taking less of the impact and thus less chance of shattering the window.