Cracked or chipped windscreens can be a safety issue beyond that of obscuring a drivers' vision and should be repaired or replaced at the earliest opportunity.

A windscreen, or windshield as it is also known, does more than shield the drivers face from the wind. It also protects the occupants inside the vehicle from all manner of debris, including rain, insects, dust, road debris and so on. Furthermore, the windscreen of a vehicle plays an important role in the overall structural integrity of the vehicle.

While a chipped or cracked windscreen may seem safe enough to drive with, the truth is that you can never really rely on it to function as it is designed to in this condition. Extreme heat or cold, the constant vibration of driving at any speed or the jarring and jolting common in off-road navigation could all contribute to a chip becoming a crack, a crack becoming larger or the windscreen failing altogether.

In South Australia excessive chipping, cracking or even scratching on a windshield are enough to consider a vehicle as not being roadworthy, even if the drivers' vision is relatively unimpaired.

Windshields are made of toughened glass to maintain their strength and shape while under force from the air pressure directed against them when a vehicle is in motion. In the event of a collision the windscreen is designed to fracture rather than break or shatter, to avoid showering the occupants of the vehicle with possibly lethal projectiles of glass.

Cracked windscreens cannot be relied on to behave in this manner during a crash as the structural integrity of the windshield may have been compromised. Even a badly chipped windshield cannot be expected to behave in this manner as the glass may have tiny (but extensive) fracture lines that are not immediately apparent to the naked eye but are sufficient to weaken the structure.

Needless to say, the safety implications of a cracked or broken windscreen are multiplied considerably if you undertake driving at higher speeds, such as on highways or country roads, or when taking a 4WD off-road for a bit of sport. One decent jolt could render the windshield effectively unusable or even unsafe.

Chris's Mechanical have the skills and experience to replace your windshield. If you are unfortunate enough to suffer a cracked or broken windshield in the Hawker or Flinders Ranges region, we can have you safely back on the road in a matter of hours. If the damage to the windscreen is severe enough to prevent driving, we also offer emergency vehicle recovery in the Hawker region.