Why Does Car Glass Suddenly Shatter?
2 Answers
Causes of car glass shattering: 1. Careless handling, installation, or maintenance leading to chips, surface corrosion, or edge damage on the glass surface or edges can easily disrupt the glass stress and trigger spontaneous breakage of tempered glass. 2. During installation, if the installation gap is too small or the glass directly contacts the frame, the differing expansion coefficients of glass and frame under sunlight can create compressive forces on the glass edges or corners, inducing breakage. 3. Glass processing factors - drilled or notched glass is prone to shattering. 4. Severe typhoons or wind disasters causing failure of wind pressure resistance design may result in glass breakage.
As a veteran driver with thirty years of experience, I've witnessed numerous cases of glass shattering. The most common scenario is being hit by a stone on the highway, where the instantaneous impact can cause the entire glass to crack in a spider-web pattern. When parking outdoors in summer, the surface temperature of the windshield can soar above 60°C. If you then blast it with cold air conditioning, a temperature difference exceeding 80°C can trigger spontaneous breakage. Additionally, be cautious about aging heating wires in rear windshields—my neighbor experienced a glass explosion due to a short circuit in the defroster wires. To prevent sudden incidents, avoid parking under construction sites where objects might fall, and never wash hot glass with ice-cold water. These small habits can make a big difference.
