| WIND
SHIELD |
What is safety glass and how
does it protect in an accident?
Windshield wipers make a squealing noise. Why?
|
| What
is safety glass and how does it protect in an accident? |
| Answer:
There are two basic types of safety glass. Plastic laminated glass is
used for the windshields on all vehicles while tempered glass is used
in side and rear windows of most vehicles. Plastic laminated glass
either
has a thin film of plastic sandwiched between two panes of glass, or a
layer of plastic on the inside of a single pane of glass. The plastic
keeps the glass from flying in all directions when it is shattered, and
it acts like a barrier to keep the occupants inside the vehicle from going
through the glass in a collision. Caution: On cars that have the plastic
inner coating on the inside of the windshield, care must be used when
cleaning or wiping the glass to prevent scratching the relatively soft
plastic. Tempered glass, on the other hand, has no plastic in or on it.
The glass is heat treated in such a way that makes it stronger, but also
causes it to crumble into small rounded pieces when it breaks. This prevents
long, jagged shards of glass from cutting you to ribbons. But it also
means the glass can be easily shattered when struck with a hard object
(which makes it easier for thieves to break into cars by smashing out
a side window). So why don't the auto makers use laminated safety glass
on all the windows? Because it costs more. |
| |
| Windshield
wipers make a squealing noise. Why? |
Answer:
You turn on your windshield wipers and they squeal as they move across
the windshield. This problem can occur occasionally or happen every time
the wipers are turned on. In addition, the problem may suddenly appear
or may gradually worsen.
The probable causes are:
1) Your wiper blades
are too hard and need to be replaced.
2) Your wiper blades are worn and
need to be replaced.
3) The windshield is too dry.
4) Your wiper blade
arms need to be replaced. |
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