GREENSBORO, N.C. — Rev up your engines, and let's VERIFY.
VERIFY QUESTION
Good Morning Show viewer Alice McBride asked, "Can the heat cause your windshield to crack?"
VERIFY SOURCE
We crack this question with an expert source.
Cynthia Roy is the owner and lead automotive technician of Roy's Automotive in Greensboro.
VERIFY PROCESS
Roy confirmed heat can crack a windshield, but "only if the windshield has been compromised in some sort of way already, such as a rock hitting it, or if you've got a small crack already. The heat will cause that small crack to expand, and it could crack all the way down the windshield."
Look around the shop parking lot, and you will find the evidence. Roy showed WFMY News 2 an example of a car that had a small chip on its windshield, which turned into a long crack all the way down to the wipers.
But, she said the problem does not have to get to that point.
"You can get the windshield company to come out, and they can fill the small crack or rock chip with an epoxy, and that contracts and expands at the same temperature as the glass, itself, which will keep it from cracking any further," she said.
And, despite your gut instinct in that sweltering summer sun, resist the urge to crank the AC.
"If it is 100 degrees outside, and your windshield is extremely hot...that rapid oscillation between hot and cold can actually make it crack probably more than anything else," Roy said.
Yet, windshields are designed for durability. Unlike a window pane, they are made out of several layers of glass and thus are heat resistant.
That said, windshields are far more likely to crack in cold weather than in hot weather, as Roy said the cold air can make windshields more brittle.
VERIFY CONCLUSION
Yes, heat can cause windshields to crack, but only if there is an underlying problem.
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