Just about a month ago, James Riswick made it known that the Scion Xb's giant nearly vertical windshield had cracked. It was a dime-sized chip with some spider-webbing that was most likely caused by an errant rock...that or a jealous ex-girlfriend with a ball-peen hammer and limited arm strength.
Recently the Mini Cooper S, which is a loaner from the manufacturer, had its window replaced by the dealer at the fantastic cost of 1,231.67 USD. We own the Xb so we ditched the dealer (who quoted us $1,300) and called Glass Doctor. Not only did they come to us, something the Mini dealer surely did not, but they were done quicker and only charged $443.73.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 20,000 miles
carlisimo says:
07:36 PM, 07/ 9/08
Now that I look at it from that angle, it doesn't look "nearly vertical" at all in that picture. Not as rakish as most current cars, but not more vertical than most cars from the last 20 years.
But rock chips and cracks were common in those too.
bimmerjay says:
07:49 PM, 07/ 9/08
$444 is actually pretty steep to me for aftermarket glass on an economy car.
greenpony says:
10:34 AM, 07/10/08
I recall paying between $200 and $300 about three years ago to replace the windshield of a '93 Integra. Just called up a local auto glass shop and they came right out and did the deed right in the driveway. I doubt I'd ever use the dealer for glass unless I had no choice. Just for fun, you should get Glass Doctor to quote you on the Mini.
njscion says:
04:55 AM, 09/ 5/08
I have a 2008 Scion XB and the windshield cracked last week. I don't believe anything hit the windshield. I have seen posts on another edmunds website that a lot of people have reported cracked windshields. I wonder if the car has a design problem.