Is windshield pitting really bad on 5th gens?

Nobody Special

Nobody Special

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Being that the glass is in more of an upright position, is anyone having issues with the sun when it is on a low angle?

Do you use a "hood shield" or bug deflector?

Or, if you use such an item, does it seem to help slow the pitting?

Brands/Models?
 
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I do know for sure...gen 4s windshield glass sucks...i truely believe there glass is softer than most.......gen5s...no dought toyota didnt change shit....
 
I have chips all over my windshield right now... Been too lazy to get another one. Original glass though! I seem to get one or two every year.

I recently installed a bug deflector, but that was mainly to protect the hood edge. I doubt it will help with windshield chips much.
 
I got a rock chip in my '18 4Runner within a week of buying it, then it grew to a big crack clear across the whole windshield. I have yet to replace it, but the glare off the crack does bother me at times. I have not noticed a lot of pitting but I don't drive it that much.

Toyotas now come with a "sound deadening" windshield, but I don't know if that makes them more prone to pitting. A bug shield my help with bugs, but not rocks and gravel which are heavier. The "clear bra" does help with chips in the front of the hood and fenders. On the newest 4Runners, you can't have a bug shield because it interferes with the sensors for the adaptive cruise control.
 
Nobody Special said:
Being that the glass is in more of an upright position, is anyone having issues with the sun when it is on a low angle?

Do you use a "hood shield" or bug deflector?

Or, if you use such an item, does it seem to help slow the pitting?

Brands/Models?
Click to expand...

No mods. 18 months and 17K miles. Zero chips.

Good luck I guess, enhanced by following distance.
 
I think all modern vehicle glass is like that. My FJ Cruiser's windshield had a ton of "sand sparkles". Ironically though, it still had the original windshield when I traded it in. I had to have my '19 4Runner's windshield replaced last January after one month of ownership. The replacement windshield is already peppered. My wife has a '18 C-HR and its windshield has lots of sand sparkles too.
 
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No problems with my '13 or '19. They put red cinder $hit on the roads here if there is the slightest hint of ice, so it's not like there isn't a possibility. You want soft glass? Try a Gen 6 Mustang. I got scratches on my back glass from the animal's brushes at the car wash. Unfortunately I have rock hard water and have to go through.
 
My 19's windshield is so soft that a gas station windshield cleaner left scratches while trying to clean off but guts. There was no metal to glass contact, just scrubbing some stubborn guts. I've also got small pits from rock strikes... sugar cane trucks are notorious for throwing rocks all over the place, long distance after pulling out of the fields.

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2010 with almost 160000 miles (original glass) and a 2020 with only about 15000 miles (also original glass), just normal sand sparkles on the old one and few tiny sand sparkles on the new one. Both have taken some significant rock impacts with out cracking. I haven't found the windshields any worse than any other vehicle. They're definitely better than our Subaru Crosstrek that is on it's 3rd OEM windshield, but that is a larger and maybe thinner windshield than the 4Runner's.

If you drive as many vehicles as I do... '20 4Runner is 39th vehicle I've owned and I have rented about 30-40 cars a year for the past 10 years... then you begin to notice stuff like this is mostly the same across many vehicles.
 
I had to replace my windshield earlier in the year with less than 5k miles and 5 months of ownership. The rock that hit it didn't even strike it that hard and I was surprised there was any damage. Been driving 20+ yrs and only the 2nd windshield i've ever had to replace and the first in almost 15yrs. It went from a small chip to a 11" crack real quick. And the replacement cost is damn expensive ($1,209 for oem glass+calibration+ taxes). Thankfully my insurance paid for most of that.
 
Tbasse01 said:
My 2016 has zero marks in it crystal clear

Stop tailgating and the stones won't hit your windshield
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On the mountain roads around here, the plows dump crushed stone for grit rather than salt/sand. Most of my rock chips come from vehicles traveling the other direction on 2 lane roads.

I've also broken my own windshield within 5 miles of having it replaced - watched the rock thrown up by the left front tire and land bottom right corner. Still had the tape on.
 
Y2Ksport said:
I had to replace my windshield earlier in the year with less than 5k miles and 5 months of ownership. The rock that hit it didn't even strike it that hard and I was surprised there was any damage. Been driving 20+ yrs and only the 2nd windshield i've ever had to replace and the first in almost 15yrs. It went from a small chip to a 11" crack real quick. And the replacement cost is damn expensive ($1,209 for oem glass+calibration+ taxes). Thankfully my insurance paid for most of that.
Click to expand...


I just had to look up windshield calibration. :pout: :pout:

Man... It is safe to say they want personal vehicle ownership to go away for the most part.
Not just based on the windshield... So much more going on.
 
Jeremy556 said:
On the mountain roads around here, the plows dump crushed stone for grit rather than salt/sand. Most of my rock chips come from vehicles traveling the other direction on 2 lane roads.

I've also broken my own windshield within 5 miles of having it replaced - watched the rock thrown up by the left front tire and land bottom right corner. Still had the tape on.
Click to expand...

Yes, anytime I am in CO, usually there to ski, the number of rocks ricocheting off my windshield is off the charts.
 
I think daily usage is going to be the main factor. Where I live it's an 7 mile drive on the highway either direction to get anywhere. On top of that it's a highway that gets a lot of construction traffic which means lots of debris on the road. Every vehicle in my household (3 Toyotas, 1 Honda) at the very least has some sand sparkles. My 4Runner and my wife's C-HR have the most as they get driven the most, and both have a few very tiny chips. It sucks but there's not much getting around it.
 
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