How big is too big to repair?
About the size of a quarter — with three things that override the size no matter how small the damage is.
A repair works by filling the break. Resin goes into the chip, it cures, and the damage stops where it is. That works when the break is small and self-contained. Three situations get in the way of that:
- Damage at the edge of the glass. The edge is where the windshield carries load. A break there tends to run, and filling it does not hold the way filling a break in the middle does.
- Damage in the driver's line of sight. A repair leaves a faint mark. A faint mark directly in front of your eyes is a problem of its own, so this area often means replacement even when the chip is small.
- A crack instead of a chip. A long crack is a different kind of damage from a star or a bullseye, and length runs past what a fill will hold.
Everything else is a judgment made by looking at the glass: how deep the break went, how clean it is, and whether it has already started to run.
Repair or replacement: what is actually different?
Five things change, and only one of them is cosmetic.
| Chip repair | Full replacement | |
|---|---|---|
| The glass | Stays in the vehicle. The break gets filled | Comes out. New glass goes in |
| The factory seal | Untouched | New seal, and the adhesive has to cure before the vehicle is safe to drive |
| What you end up with | The damage stops spreading. A faint mark usually stays | New glass, no mark |
| Cameras and sensors | The glass does not move, so there is nothing to recalibrate | Recalibration when your vehicle needs it |
| Your insurance | Some policies cover a repair with no deductible | Your comprehensive deductible may apply |
The row that decides the most is the last one. A repair and a replacement are not two prices on the same scale — under some policies they are two different questions, because one of them can cost you nothing and the other one may start at your deductible.
Why does waiting turn a repair into a replacement?
Because a chip is a break with an edge inside the glass, and that edge moves.
Heat expands the glass. Cold contracts it. A rough road flexes the body around it. Hot air on cold glass does it faster than anything else. Every one of those puts load on the edge of the break, and at some point the break runs. When it runs you have a crack, and a crack is a different job from a chip.
That is the whole money argument, and it has nothing to do with appearance:
- This week: a repair. Under some policies, a repair costs you nothing, because the insurer covers repairs with no deductible — a repair is cheaper for them than a replacement later.
- After it runs: a replacement, where your comprehensive deductible may apply, plus recalibration if your vehicle needs it.
Your deductible is whatever your policy says — commonly $250, $500, or $1,000, but yours is the one on your declarations page. It is set by your insurance policy, not by the shop. If your insurer applies a deductible to a covered claim, that amount is generally yours to pay under the policy. United Auto Works does not pay, waive, reimburse, or hide customer deductibles. What you can still change is which side of that line you are standing on, and the only way to change it is to deal with the damage while it is still small.
Walk in at 4712 Englewood Ave and we will look at the glass and put the quote together the same day. No appointment, no obligation, and you take the answer with you either way. Then, if you go ahead, we schedule the work.
Call or text (806) 808-0990.
See how our auto glass service works →
What does a chip repair cost?
We do not publish a price, and any number you find online belongs to somebody else's windshield.
The number depends on the vehicle, the glass, whether the damage is a repair or a replacement, and whether there is a camera behind it. Text photos of the glass to (806) 808-0990 and we send back a free estimate in minutes. We confirm it when we see the car.
The number that decides more than the price is your deductible. Two questions to your carrier settle it:
- Does my policy cover a chip repair with no deductible? Some do. It depends on the insurer and the policy, not on Texas law.
- Which coverage handles my glass claim? Glass damage that does not come from a collision is usually handled under comprehensive, if your policy has it. It is worth hearing them say so before you file.
Run the numbers before you file → · What your policy covers in Texas →
What happens to the camera behind the glass?
A repair leaves it alone. A replacement does not.
If your vehicle has lane keeping, automatic emergency braking, or adaptive cruise control, the camera for those systems is often mounted to the windshield. A chip repair does not move the glass, so the camera stays exactly where the factory put it. A replacement takes the glass out, and the camera then has to be recalibrated — it has to be told, precisely, where it is now pointing. A camera that thinks the road is a few degrees off is worse than no camera.
We are responsible for that recalibration when your vehicle needs it, and it happens before the car goes back to you. It is also one more line in the money column: on a vehicle with a camera, a replacement costs more than the same replacement on one without.
What should I do this week?
Four steps, and the first one takes ten seconds.
- Photograph the damage with a coin next to it. That one picture answers the size question before you drive anywhere.
- Go easy on the glass. Heat, cold, and a rough road all push a chip along. Hot air straight onto cold glass is the fastest way to lose a repair you could have had.
- Get it looked at before you call your carrier. Knowing whether you are looking at a repair or a replacement changes what you say when you call, and it costs nothing to find out.
- Bring the car in. Walk in during shop hours, or call or text and we will book a time.
A chip is cheaper than a windshield, and under some policies the difference is your deductible. Bring the car by and we will tell you which one you are looking at, before you commit to anything.
Text photos to (806) 808-0990 for a free estimate, or walk in at 4712 Englewood Ave.
See what auto glass covers → · What your policy covers in Texas →