Any comments on Safelite Auto Glass?

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I've had one bad result with them followed by a very good result both in terms of the glass and the installer (I've kept his details for future reference).

I'd say beware of what you're buying if you have a higher end vehicle. I noticed a negative difference right away but I was selling that vehicle so it didn't matter to me in the end.
 
All, thanks. I think I'm going to pass on Safelite and keep looking.

I did call the local Toyota dealership and they quoted me $1,200 for just the glass. Labor to install it would be extra. Can't afford that so I'll keep looking.
 
Originally Posted By: SeaJay
If you are paying for it, get the best. If your insurer is paying for it, safelite is the choice they often go with.


Around here you get to choose your glass company, but the insurance company may balk at a very high price from the dealer. In that case you can usually get the insurance company to bargain the dealer down some, and then pay the difference yourself.
 
Four years ago I had the hood fly open on my '99 Corolla while driving down the highway. The hood buckled back and destroyed my windshield. I was in a time crunch and had to find a place that could fix it within a day. I called around and found a guy that ran an independent shop. He went on and on about how bad the hacks (as he called them) at Safelite were...not only were their windshields of very poor quality he said, so were there installations. He said they don't even clean up the mounting area after they remove the old windshield before installing the new one, and many people complained of leaky windshields after they installed them. I would not use them, not even in a pinch...
 
Originally Posted By: RW1
All, thanks. I think I'm going to pass on Safelite and keep looking.

I did call the local Toyota dealership and they quoted me $1,200 for just the glass. Labor to install it would be extra. Can't afford that so I'll keep looking.


A good quality windshield shouldn't cost any more than about $300 or $400 installed...that dealer is smoking something...
 
Ok, so we had a crummy aftermarket windshield in the Toyota Matrix, it looked sandblasted and hazy in some spots.

A big rock put a large crack in the windshield.

My insurance company contracts with Safelite, I had never used them before.

Took it to the safelite shop, I had a zero deductible so didn't care. Safelite charged $415 to the insurance company for the windshield replacement.

Two weeks later my wife acquired another little chip, so I'm not sure what to do. I'll just leave it, don't want to make another glass claim.

I may call safelite and see what their "warranty" covers.
 
Your insurance will cover the repair. It's worth having it looked at for safety reasons.
 
I had a Safelite windshield installed in my Honda S2000. I paid cash. The Safelite windshield is getting pitted rapidly, I only have about 10K miles on the Safelite replacement. But it's not wavy or distorted, it's just fine optically.


Low cars like the S2000 and Miata do "seem" to accumulate pits and chips more rapidly. My original was so pitted at 45,000 miles, it was annoying to drive into the sun.

I'm sure the Safelite will look similarly pitted when it accumulates 45000 miles. Lots of sand here on the Florida turpike. I can feel it if I stick my hand up. Also, gets in the car with the top down.
 
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Our Acura MDX has a Safelite windshield from FY (DOT 459 - made in China). It's okay -- it does have the blue tint at the top where the OEM one did not. It isn't severely pitted, and there are an acceptable amount of waves in the glass. OEM glass has distortions, too...just not as many.

Our CR-V also had an FY windshield when we bought it (probably installed by Safelite). During some bodywork repair a few years ago after someone pulled out in front of me, the windshield was replaced with a Pilkington (177 - made in Ohio, USA). I'm very happy with the Pilkington windshield -- it has the blue tint and a minimum amount of distortions. In fact, I think it looks as good to me as any OEM unit.
 
Again, thanks all for the comments. I'm definitely not going with Safelite and have told my insurance company.

I'm currently emailing with a company in Tacoma called Genuine Auto Glass. I asked in my original email about whether they offer OEM or OEE. The email didn't really answer but did say that they can order in a PGW glass for me. We'll see where this goes.

I saw on one website a statement that there is no longer any US made auto glass.
 
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I lost the factory windshield on my 2014 Subaru XV Crosstrek last fall due to a kicked-up stone on the highway. I had it replaced by a small local (one man) shop. He used a Pilkington. I didn't notice any flaws or distortions with it, but after a few months a vertical crack started to form from the center bottom, right above the bonded on plug for the "windshield defroster". I didn't get a chance to swing by the glass place until spring, but he noticed right away the crack was from the inside, which would be a defect per him. He ordered me a new w/s and installed it no charge. I don't know what the replacement is however. There's no markings on it that I can find. He had issues locating me a replacement w/s for this model and that in itself took weeks for this particular replacement. Dunno if it was because of what I experienced or not.
 
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