How to Determine the Production Date of Car Glass?
2 Answers
Here are the methods to check: 1. For about 80% of vehicles on the market, the date can be read in the following format: number + dots. The dots can be either before or after the number. The interpretation method is simple: the number represents the year, and the dots represent the month. If the dots are before the number, it indicates the first half of the year. Subtract the number of dots before the number from 7 to get the month in the first half. If the dots are after the number, it indicates the second half of the year. Subtract the number of dots after the number from 13 to get the month in the second half. 2. A few car models use a different format: number + small dot + large dot. The interpretation method for this format: the number represents the year, the small dots represent the quarter (there are 4 quarters in a year, so the maximum number of small dots is 4), and the large dots represent the month within the quarter (each quarter has 3 months, so the maximum number of large dots is 3).
As someone who frequently tinkers with cars, I find checking the glass production date quite useful. Look for a small code symbol in the corner of the windshield, usually consisting of a number and a dot. The digit before or after the dot represents the last digit of the year—for example, '·10' means 2010. The position of the dot also indicates the month—dots on the left with fewer dots represent earlier months. This method can help you determine if the vehicle has been in an accident. If the glass date is newer than the car's manufacturing date, there might have been an incident. Old glass is prone to cracking or fogging, which affects driving safety, especially in rainy conditions with poor visibility. I recommend checking the glass condition every six months and cleaning it to maintain clarity—don't wait for small issues to become big problems. This trick is super simple and takes just ten seconds, saving me a lot of hassle.
