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Calgary drivers are more than familiar with the nuisance of a cracked or chipped windshield, but one expert is lifting the veil on vehicle glass repair.
David Chester, service centre manager at a Speedy Glass location in southeast Calgary, says the city is probably the busiest place he’s ever worked when it comes to auto glass.
Originally from Norwich, England, Chester moved to Calgary in 2013 after travelling around the world for work in Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia.
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“Without a doubt, (Calgary is the) busiest place in the world for rock chips . . . we use bigger gravel here, it’s not sand,” he said.
“It’s great for business, obviously, (but) not so good for the consumer and even for myself,” Chester said. “I find myself sometimes replacing my windshield once a year if I’m driving up and down Deerfoot.”
He noted that when a windshield chips, it’s ideal to repair it as soon as possible to prevent a crack. Faster repairs also make for a “better finish,” before dirt and moisture get into the chip.
It’s especially a problem during Calgary winters, when he says cold, frosty nights and sunny mornings are trouble.
“If the temperature of that windshield changes drastically, that would cause those chips to split every time.”
He said vehicles can lose 30 per cent of their structural integrity with a cracked windshield.
“It’s really important to get these things fixed, especially if you’re driving around small, young families or anything like that.”
Chester is a top technician with Belron Canada Inc., and recently won an international competition showcasing the best auto glass specialists from 30 countries.
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Chips are the No. 1 thing they deal with in Calgary, but he says other things such as hail damage, vandalism and broken glass from animal collisions are among other reasons people come in for repair.
“Usually the first thing the customer needs is the glass (repaired) to get that vehicle driveable again, before they get into a body shop,” he said.
It’s illegal in Alberta to drive a vehicle that doesn’t have a clear view of the road. Chester said rules vary by province and country.
He said people moving to Calgary are often surprised by how fast their windshield cracks.
They often hear complaints about gravel being flung up by other vehicles on Deerfoot Trail, or sometimes drivers that cut across lane boundaries where gravel accumulates.
“Most Calgarians are aware of it, and they’re kind of used to it, but certainly for the new the new families and people coming in from out east . . . they’re all new to this.”
Windshields of many modern vehicles also have an added layer of complexity — camera systems.
These systems are used to drive features like adaptive cruise control, lane departure warnings and others.
Chester said recalibrating these systems is important and often overlooked.
“The reason we have to recalibrate those cameras is because every time a windshield goes back in, the windshield thickness can be different slightly,” he said.
The “microscopic amounts” of difference in angle of the windshield or the cameras won’t necessarily cause malfunctions, but can affect performance.
“Rather than being 100 per cent accurate, it might be 90 per cent accurate,” he said. “(But) small changes can make a big difference in an accident or an extreme event.”
swilhelm@postmedia.com
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