Windshield break #2

[Neal]

I'm on my 2nd windshield that was replaced in December of 2018 by Newmar. The first one broke unexpectedly but seemed be a very small rock ding near the bottom center. The crack showed up one morning after raising the opaque shade to my complete surprise.

Now on the 2nd windshield it appears to be an identical scenario. Small rock ding, barely noticeable, near the bottom right of center. It formed a crack about 6 inches long and stabilized until my last campground where it was sunny and hot, I put the opaque shade down and as I was getting ready to start washing the front I heard a subtle pop noise, the crack went bottom center to top right.

The common scenario here is a very very small rock ding on the bottom of the glass I'd say 2 inches up from the bottom. It seems that the glass there is very thing, I'm not sure the thickness is uniform or not but my hunch is it's thin on the bottom. My thinking is that if I can prevent these very minor rock dings on the bottom it may help with longevity of the windshield. When I get #3 installed which I believe will be this coming October I plan to put clear bra adhesive tape along the bottom of the glass to help add a protective barrier.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LXD0VMP/?tag=rvf01-20

On another note, the last time around I was insured with National General who handed off to Duncan for the glass. I made sure I had glass coverage when I got my insurance, it was not on by default, and as replacement is approximately $4500 a pop you better make sure. This time around I'm with SAFECO who partners with Safelite Solutions. This is an entirely different ballgame as Newmar doesn't work with SAFECO/Safelite for some reason and now I'm waiting what seems like a long time to hear back to see if the estimate I got from Newmar will be covered in full or not. Getting through to SAFECO and Safelite has not been a good experience. As I just renewed I think next year this time I'll be looking for another insurance company.

 

[redbaron]

I was with an agency that used safelite. As stated Newmar will not work with safelite.

I had safelite transfer the claim to Duncan. This happened same day. A call to Duncan confirmed, and then newmar took over from there.

 

[Neal]

Thanks. I will try that.

 

[TJ&LadyDi]

Sorry you took another hit, @Neal. I’m afraid it is the nature of these beasts. We’ve been fortunate in not having any damage for almost 3 years.

From looking at our windshield (also cracked because of a rock ding), it looks to me like there is more curvature at the bottom than at the top. This could set up more stress at the bottom and make it more prone to breakage. Just a suspicion on my part; no science to back it up. Your “thinner at the bottom” theory may have some merit as well.

In our case, it was a big, nasty rock hit that sounded like a gunshot! I saw the rock come off of a passing truck and it just froze me like a major league fastball! LadyDi was driving at the time and I couldn’t even manage a verbal warning before the strike. Interestingly enough, at first it was just a medium-sized chip with no radiating cracks. It wasn’t until the next day when cracks began to appear. Now, we have 3-4 cracks ranging from about 8 inches to 18 inches. I’m sure they will continue to grow. Thus far, they have stayed on the far right side, but could probably go anywhere.

As for insurance, we are pleased with our State Farm glass coverage. Just $100 deductible and no hassle about who could do the replacement. They even told me that replacing a motorhome windshield was more complicated that doing a car and that we should be sure to pick an installer that knew what they were doing. I had already decided on RV Glass Solutions in Coburg, Oregon, and before I could respond, the SF adjuster said “we’ve had good results from RV Glass Solutions in Oregon but you can take it wherever you want.”

TJ

 

[FL-JOE]

Benefit of being a Florida resident is that insurance companies can not charge you a deductible for glass damage. When I had my 4369 windshield replaced it was $3,600 at Nappanee. Duncan handled it because I had GS insurance. Newmar acted like any other insurance and I would have had to pay in advance and get the money later from my insurance, but with Duncan involved they simply called and got a credit card number for the entire amount.

The very next year we got a ding in the upper right corner coming through Alabama. As soon as we got to a campground I called for a mobile repair before it spread. They actually were able to send someone out before 5pm and fixed it.

 

[Scooterfan]

A tad off topic...but recently I used the "RainX" chip repair kit to try and limit damage from a chipped windshield. The instructions (and YouTube video) seem to assume that our windshields are somewhat slanted. Well, they are not...they are vertical. Thus, the resin doesn't easily flow to the crack using the device they supply. Once finished, it didn't look as if the chip was any better. I'm going to try again. If I can't repair it myself, I think I'll call a mobile repair company (Safelite?) as my insurance company does not cover replacement windshields. So far (over a year) the chip has not migrated into a larger crack. Any ideas?

 

[flyboy013]

I have Progressive and had a rock hit the windshield about 2.5 years ago. I immediately call Progressive who handed me off to Safelite. The came to my boondocking location a few days later and repaired the chip. I’ve had no issues since.

 

[Neal]

I have Progressive and had a rock hit the windshield about 2.5 years ago. I immediately call Progressive who handed me off to Safelite. The came to my boondocking location a few days later and repaired the chip. I’ve had no issues since.

I had Safelite come to my site when in AZ this past Feb to fill chips. Didn't want to wait for those to turn into cracks. Different area cracked later. But yes, if you have chips call and get Safelite out, typically it's free, covered by your insurance.

 

[AbdRahim]

Sorry to hear of you windshields. I was thinking usingsoething heavier, like Gorrilla tape. Not sure that any tape would not eventually make a mess.

 

[skychs]

Good to know. I just call Progressive/USAA to confirm our policy. Zero deductible on windshield replacement and they use Safelite. Im feeling better.

 

[bpaikman]

I'm on my 2nd windshield that was replaced in December of 2018 by Newmar. The first one broke unexpectedly but seemed be a very small rock ding near the bottom center. The crack showed up one morning after raising the opaque shade to my complete surprise.

Now on the 2nd windshield it appears to be an identical scenario. Small rock ding, barely noticeable, near the bottom right of center. It formed a crack about 6 inches long and stabilized until my last campground where it was sunny and hot, I put the opaque shade down and as I was getting ready to start washing the front I heard a subtle pop noise, the crack went bottom center to top right.

The common scenario here is a very very small rock ding on the bottom of the glass I'd say 2 inches up from the bottom. It seems that the glass there is very thing, I'm not sure the thickness is uniform or not but my hunch is it's thin on the bottom. My thinking is that if I can prevent these very minor rock dings on the bottom it may help with longevity of the windshield. When I get #3 installed which I believe will be this coming October I plan to put clear bra adhesive tape along the bottom of the glass to help add a protective barrier.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LXD0VMP/?tag=rvf01-20

On another note, the last time around I was insured with National General who handed off to Duncan for the glass. I made sure I had glass coverage when I got my insurance, it was not on by default, and as replacement is approximately $4500 a pop you better make sure. This time around I'm with SAFECO who partners with Safelite Solutions. This is an entirely different ballgame as Newmar doesn't work with SAFECO/Safelite for some reason and now I'm waiting what seems like a long time to hear back to see if the estimate I got from Newmar will be covered in full or not. Getting through to SAFECO and Safelite has not been a good experience. As I just renewed I think next year this time I'll be looking for another insurance company.

We had to replace both split windshields on our 2006 Winnebago - It turned out it was not from water getting into the frame in an area we couldn’t see and weakening the support. The good thing is that insurance covered it - we were able to delay making a claim for a year or two, to get full coverage - I can’t remember why it worked that way. It was great because we were able to replace just before selling.

 

[Neal]

I was with an agency that used safelite. As stated Newmar will not work with safelite.

I had safelite transfer the claim to Duncan. This happened same day. A call to Duncan confirmed, and then newmar took over from there.

Thanks @redbaron as I got a reply from Safelite today to contact Duncan and tell them to take ownership of the claim. I called Duncan, they called Safelite and it's a bit of a mess that needs to be untangled as Safelite has it as a reimbursement. Long story very short is the Safeco/Safelite setup is a royal pain, if you file a claim tell them up front you want Duncan Systems to handle the claim. Duncan stepped up and is handling the transfer as initially I was told I had to go back and start over with the claim or something. Problem is you have to do everything through email with the Safeco/Safelite setup and wait a week between emails. I'm waiting to hear back from the kind gal at Duncan who is trying to straighten things out.

 

[Neal]

It's been handed off to Duncan, just got the call from them. Whew! So much easier!

 

[Neal]

Not turning out to be so easy. Duncan is not able to get Safeco/Safelite to get out of the "customer reimbursement" mode. Trying to get through to Safeco - PITA!

 

[TJ&LadyDi]

Ouch! That’s pretty ugly. At least up to now, we’re feeling pretty fortunate. State Farm accepted our claim, approved use of RV Glass Solutions in Oregon, and we have an appointment set up with them on June 23-25. They have confirmed the appointment and the fact that all the paperwork is in place. Keeping fingers crossed.

TJ

 

[bpaikman]

We had to replace both split windshields on our 2006 Winnebago - It turned out it was not from water getting into the frame in an area we couldn’t see and weakening the support. The good thing is that insurance covered it - we were able to delay making a claim for a year or two, to get full coverage - I can’t remember why it worked that way. It was great because we were able to replace just before selling.

That should read : It WAS from water getting in and rusting the window frame support.

 

[Neal]

Finally! I was told to call 1-800-800-0101 and have them remove the "reimbursement" status of the claim and Duncan now has control over it. Painful!

 

["EZ"]

I guess I need to call Allstate to make sure I'm covered for Windshield damage.