S4 - 2 months and new windscreen already

[MarkOC]

I've only had the car 2 months and I had a tiny stone hit my windscreen on the M23; a little tiny chip, but it has cracked the windscreen and Autoglass couldn't get the crack to seal, so it's a new windscreen. Luckily they are going to provide OEM glass under the insurance, but it's a royal PITA, especially as I will have to get the camera calibrated and the windscreen coated again.

 

[AlnSaz]

I've only had the car 2 months and I had a tiny stone hit my windscreen on the M23; a little tiny chip, but it has cracked the windscreen and Autoglass couldn't get the crack to seal, so it's a new windscreen. Luckily they are going to provide OEM glass under the insurance, but it's a royal PITA, especially as I will have to get the camera calibrated and the windscreen coated again.

That's very annoying and there's not a lot you can do about road debris getting chucked on the car
I've 3 small chips, probably caused by gritting trucks and a large scuff where a rock was thrown up by a van on the opposite carriageway. Hopefully they won't get any worse - the car isn't even a month old!
Do you think the A4/S4 is more prone to this - I've seen a few posts about cracked windscreens and chips?

 

[MarkOC]

That's very annoying and there's not a lot you can do about road debris getting chucked on the car
I've 3 small chips, probably caused by gritting trucks and a large scuff where a rock was thrown up by a van on the opposite carriageway. Hopefully they won't get any worse - the car isn't even a month old!
Do you think the A4/S4 is more prone to this - I've seen a few posts about cracked windscreens and chips?

That sucks that you have had so many already, I would get them repaired ASAP to stop them getting worse, especially with the cold weather we are having. Mine was covered by insurance so only had to pay £25 for Autoglass to come and attempt to seal the crack, just have to pay £75 now for the new windscreen.
I don't know if the A4/S4 is more prone in general, but I have never had a chip or crack in a windscreen that has required a new windscreen before.

 

[cuke2u]

All windscreens are made a from laminated glass, how can the A4 be any more prone?

 

[Concerned Cat]

All windscreens are made a from laminated glass, how can the A4 be any more prone?

My last car was a Leon. After 20k miles the windscreen was covered in small chips. So far (3.2K miles) my Avant seems to have none. I suspect there are different glass grades & hardnesses.

 

[Paul Golding]

All windscreens are made a from laminated glass, how can the A4 be any more prone?

I imagine that different shells would exert different stresses on the glass when twisting and therefore helping cracks to appear more readily, so I wouldn't be surprised to hear that some cars are more prone to a crack in the screen than others.......whether that applies to the A4 or not, is another matter entirely.

 

[cuke2u]

That part could be true, but as for quality I guess the stamp on them means they must be to a certain standand, but then do we really hear of that many cracking, certainly none in Audiworld, a few here. They do have to be tested for impact as part of the pedestrian tests and possibky tested for other flying objects. I have had a few stone hit mine that have chipped it without any issues. Thing is a forum is unreflective of the real world as it appears to members there are issues when, compared to the numbers sold there aren't.
I would just put it down to the OP being very unlucky and the fact that the state of our roads at this time of year with rain and freezing temperatures will mean we have more stones and gravel than is usual..

 

[SMI77]

All windscreens are made a from laminated glass, how can the A4 be any more prone?

+1, and that forum members represent a minuscule amount of the total A4 owners worldwide.
Audi, like other manufacturers, physically test vehicles in extreme conditions after R&D in the lab. Audi would know the what body stresses is acceptable in an A4, or in any of its vehicles. If the body flexed so bad it cracked the windscreen that also reflect in sales, so any manufacturer would not want that to happen.

 

[cuke2u]

Quite...