Is it the glass... or the windshield angle?

[ExoShield]

We've heard both sides of this debate.

Some owners blame the glass.

Others think Gladiators simply take rock impacts differently because of the windshield design and the places they're driven.

What's your opinion after owning one?

Has your experience changed the way you think about it?

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[ErylFlynn]

There is no debate, this has been a known issue before the JT/JL, and even JK eras. The windshield does not have enough angle for a deflection, or to allow the wind to carry it over. Even Gorilla Glass and other hardened glasses will all get chipped eventually given the way the window is designed.

 

[ExoShield]

Yup, the windshield angle definitely seems to be the common thread in a lot of these discussions.

Do you think driving environment plays just as big a role, though? Highway driving vs. off-road vs. gravel roads?

 

[Labswine]

Yes.

 

[DylanM]

Only time I've ever gotten windshield damage has been while driving on pavement. There's less traffic to throw stuff into your windshield off pavement, and generally in those places you're travelling slower so the impact speed isn't as high.

 

[WambliSka]

Gorilla glass is absolutely shit. I’m on my fifth Jeep and never had issues like I’ve had with that horrible glass. A month after leaving the dealer the glass already looks like a 5 year old windshield with a million tnyvdot pockmarks. And the “warranty” is non-existent because Jeep will not honor it, will weasel out if it and Corning won’t even talk to you. Ask me how I know. A $1,300 TURD…

 

[WestwallNF104A]

Yup, the windshield angle definitely seems to be the common thread in a lot of these discussions.

Do you think driving environment plays just as big a role, though? Highway driving vs. off-road vs. gravel roads?

My two cracked windshields were during highway driving.

 

[Free2roam]

It's not just angle but the lack of curvature of the windshield itself. Most cars and trucks have curvature as well as angle. Flat glass will tend to crack before a curved one. Just as with almost anything that is curved vs. flat. .02¢

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