For most Spaniards, the summer season means that time when they can finally take a few days off and disconnect. Generations pass, but road trips will once again be the most common way of getting around. The largest number of trips take place between July and August. According to the Directorate General of Traffic (DGT), in these two months there will be 94 million long-distance movements on Spanish motorways and dual carriageways, which represents a slight increase of 0.4% compared to the figures for the same period last year.
Many citizens take the opportunity to tune up their vehicles before a road trip. This is a way of avoiding possible mishaps that can interrupt, delay (and ruin) their holidays. The most common thing to do is to check the tyres, which cause 60% of accidents caused by mechanical failure, according to data from the DGT. Once it has been verified that the tread is in good condition for safe driving, checking the pressure is simple: anyone can check it at a petrol station and confirm that the levels are adequate. The battery, lighting and air conditioning systems, technological devices and all engine fluid levels are the other elements to which drivers pay the most attention.
But there is something that can go unnoticed in the checklist. Windscreens are one of the most forgotten elements, despite being one of the most exposed to complications. Just the impact of a small stone (the dreaded chip) can cause a break that can gradually grow, which may end up causing an unexpected setback that puts at risk the peace of mind that is sought during the holidays. In this case, professional help is always the most advisable.
Repair is better than replacement
It is important to be clear that a chip does not always mean replacing the windscreen. When the necessary conditions are met, it is always better to repair it than to replace it, according to Carglass®. The company’s experts, who have been operating in Spain for 25 years, recommend evaluating three aspects to determine whether repair is possible.
• The size of the impact. Its severity can be assessed with a simple trick: if the impact cannot be covered with a two-euro coin, it cannot be repaired and the windscreen will have to be replaced.
• The location of the impact. If it is 2.5 centimetres from the edge, it is not possible to repair it due to the location of the impact, as the repair hood cannot be placed correctly, so a new windscreen will be necessary.
• Finally, Carglass® advises checking that the break does not affect the driver’s field of vision. That is, if it is in line with the driver’s vision. In this case, the solution should also be replacement.
If the windshield is ultimately not repairable, it must be taken into account that recalibration of the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), a set of technological solutions designed to improve the safety of drivers and passengers located on the windscreen. When a windscreen is replaced, the cameras must be removed from the broken glass and re-installed. Once installed, these systems must be recalibrated to ensure they function properly and perform their function of sending the correct information to the safety systems.
If the windshield is not repairable, recalibration of the Advanced Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS) will be necessary, a set of technological solutions designed to improve the safety of the driver and passengers located on the windshield.
However, this operation needs to be carried out by professionals, as these are high-precision elements. It requires suitable facilities and technicians specialised in the field. The International Automobile Federation (FIA) submitted a proposal to the European Parliament, asking that the calibration processes be “transparent” so that ADAS systems “maintain their effectiveness over time”. In this sense, Carglass®, the only specialist company in Spain capable of recalibrating up to 99% of the vehicles in the national car fleet, follows the protocol designed by the R&D Department of its parent company Belron®, which takes into account everything from the lighting and levelling of the facilities to the training of technicians and the use of the most advanced instruments and tools on the market.
What happens if there are recalibration failures?
Failure to recalibrate ADAS cameras and sensors during windscreen replacement, or improper recalibration, poses a safety risk to vehicle occupants and other road users. Joint research by the Belron® Group and the TRL Research Institute has found that cars with incorrectly recalibrated ADAS systems cause collisions, run-overs and other accidents because they are unable to properly calculate factors such as distance, time or braking power.
For this reason, experts recommend using the highest quality windscreens and windshields. For example, Carglass® uses OEE (original equipment equivalent) windscreens. These are the same ones manufactured by the vehicle manufacturers. Their quality is certified at the group’s centre of excellence in Bilzen (Belgium), where rigorous control tests are carried out. Their windscreens are backed by the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Trento (Italy), which defines them as “substantially identical to the originals”. Their results have also been tested in the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, concluding that “the functionality and performance of the ADAS systems were similar for the OEM and original OEE windscreens”.
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