Washing my car today and noticed the windows was cracked. I did not notice when I was driving. How safe is it to drive a car with a cracked wind shield? Do dealer have wind shields in stock or do they get ordered? I requested a factory original not an after market, does it matter? Bummed.
It depends on size of crack and where it is located. If its just a chip without spidering those aren't terrible and can be fixed very well without replacing the windshield. If its close to the edge of the glass and / or a large splintering type crack then i'd be careful with driving it and it needs to be replaced fully. Even smaller chips that have the spider pattern can't be perfectly fixed as they can't get the gel perfectly into all the cracks. they can fill it and it should be perfectly fine but if you look close you will almost certainly be able to see it. Also, if the chip is on the drivers side in your field of vision, id err on side of caution and replace I actually swapped the windshield on my cali even though I only had small spider chip on passenger side simply because it annoyed me. it should go through the comprehensive portion of insurance where most people have 0 deductible. I had the dealership do it. was around 4500 or so for the cali. took them a few days to get it in stock and took them only a few hours before I could get it back once they had it hope that helps.
one additional note... go OEM. if it was most other cars it wouldn't matter, but people are weird with Ferrari's as I'm sure you know. the insurance pushed me to go aftermarket glass, but none of their installers would touch a Ferrari fortunately so it gave me plenty of leverage and they agreed pretty quickly to just go with OEM
G2G...That's a bummer. I got both a chip & a crack on my Porsche's windshield within the space of a few months, the latter thanks to head butting a turkey on a fun back roads drive. I have left them both as is, largely 'cause I was so annoyed that they both happened so soon after having Huper Optik ceramic installed on the windshield. I was told (a) if they are not in the field of view, and (b) if you run your fingernail over them and you cannot feel them - they will pass inspection in Texas. I've monitored both closely, and they do not seem to be growing. That being said, if they were on the Cali, I'd replace them as it would seem to low-rent not to! And, as Drop said - definitely insist on OEM...T
It looks like it started at the edge, stilts two directions. One is about 8 inches the other about 6 inches. Does it have to be done by a dealer? Dean
The dealer had a specialist come in anyways, so no reason it has to be done by a dealer, I just didn't have another option I trusted It's hard to guess what will happen with any given crack, and I'm certainly not an expert, but 8 inches certainly isn't small. If it's close to the edge and growing, if it reaches the edge it could potentially break the seal. If nothing else make sure to watch if it's growing, as they can grow quick. Anything on my cali I always err on the side of caution and fix it quick.... I'm a mile from the dealer and don't daily drive it so it's pretty easy for me (other than the cost of course)
I would take it to the dealer, because if the glass guy damages something, or it leaks on you later and then damages something, good to have the dealer standing behind it. Some states it's a no-deductible replacement through insurance. I would insist on OEM.
Whatever you do not wash it or get the windshield wet and temperature difference will shatter it fast... cold water on a hot windshield = xxxxxxxxxx
Yes my insurance has a no-deductible replacement. I have stated I want the OEM wind shield. I would like it done fast, I'm going to talk to the company that does the wind shields for USAA and see if they can get the glass, and they can do the job in a short time. If not I will need to drive or trailer it to Chicago. Not sure how fast the dealers can get the glass either. I just want it fixed. Thanks for all the ideas and advice. This put a real damper on my weekend.
Just a suggestion. Since you're getting a replacement OE windshield, if your original windshield was the standard unit you might want to upgrade to the "heat insulated windshield". The upcharge is pretty minimal I believe.
That's a great idea. We have these on our cars and it DOES work We had of FF windshield smashed while being serviced. In late July.... the trauma was waiting for an OEM FF windshield to be shipped during the August shutdown. Hope the parts wait is not too long I would insist on OEM and do consider the upgrade glass if reasonable I would deal with hassle of letting a dealer do it....as then you will have warranty coverage on install and someone to stand by the repair in case of issues later Our dealer managed the replacement through a specialist body shop that does a lot of F car work but we did the deal as a normal dealer service transaction. They paid for it all and were stellar and standup the whole time. Last, I'd get it fixed sooner v later but that's me Good luck
Fixed! No Ferrari dealer close (6 hour drive) and they wanted my car for 2 days. I went with a local exotic car dealer. They said they do Ferrari glass, no issues. I asked how soon, they said how long did Ferrari dealer say? Glass is ordered from Ferrari dealer. You can only get OEM glass for Ferrari. Ordered glass, took 5 days. They installed it today. Looks great. Basically they had my car one day, drop off in morning, picked up in evening. Very please.
