For sometime I have made statements that windshield repair was a better and safer choice than replacement. The reasoning was that when possible, windshield repair preserved the factory seal. With news reports, including ABC's 20/20, stating that 70% (7 out of 10) of the windshields are improperly installed. Fox Undercover, in Denver, Colorado in Feb. 2005, found there were problems with all the installations they taped, including one where the wrong adhesive was used. In April of this year, an investigation by the Louisiana Speaker Of The House showed problems were common among installations. Other reports and surveys have shown similar problems.

With the above said, last Monday I met Ashley G. Of Moore, OK, and she told me of an accident that she had been involved in. I found it significant because less than a week earlier I had repaired the windshield in her 2002 Camaro. The repair was a large 1-1/8" combination chip (about 1/2 dollar size) with a large impact point. While this repair was not cosmetically the best due to the large impact point, I was able to get a complete fill on the repair. The repair was made in accordance with NGA and NWRA recommendations.
When I asked Ashley if I could share this information on my blog and website, she said, "yes, everyone needs to know how important a windshield is when the vehicle is in an accident." She stated that on Friday, Sept. 22, she had been in an accident with the Camaro I had repaired the windshield on a few days earlier. Upon impact the air bags deployed, with the passenger side deploying against the windshield. She stated that the factory windshield had stayed attached to her car and while badly damaged, the safety system worked correctly and the repaired chip had held up. Finally she told me that at that point the body shop was trying to get the hood open, so they could determine how much engine damage had been done, which would determine if the Camaro would be totaled.