Do not buy the FR trailers with unprotected front glass

[Canadiancrew]

Back in the 70's I drove a Chevy pickup for work. We went through a lot of windshields on all the company trucks. Never cracked the glass on my personal car. I came to the conclusion that the angle of the windshield has a lot to do with the angle of impact. Pickups used to have a really straight windshield so the impact was almost a straight hit. My newer trucks have a much more racked back front windshield. The hit on my car was greater than 45 degrees and most time will cause a deflection of the stone. I would think that a hit on the glass on the front of the trailer would be an almost straight on hit and it would have to absorb the impact as opposed to reflecting it.

[Wolverine 1945]

Is it possible that there is a difference in quality of glass between auto manufacturers ???
Difference between Chinese & American made glass ???

[PenJoe]

Originally Posted by katkt

Just a quick comparison.

I had the windshield in my 2010 F150 replaced about a week ago. Insurance covered it, so no doubt there may have been some padding of the bill the way hospitals overcharge for their services, thinking the insuarnce companies will beat them down, but...


$1200 was the final bill(the glass itself, was around $550). I'd wager that same glass fit way more PU's then just a 2010 F150.
Thinking in terms of quantity here. ie the more you make, the cheaper they can be produced.... When factoring cost of production, where volume is concerned, that may not be a bad price. They'll make far fewer windows like the one on the camper, then the quantity that gets made for an F150.

Holy cats! A passing semi pinched a rock off a rear tire and broke our 2013 Silverado windshield. About the same size as the F150. The glass company said they had an upgrade tint from the original. It was $260 total installed. At first, the insurance would only pay $50 for a repair, so we paid the balance.The insurance company later paid the difference. Surprised the insurance company didn't balk on your claim.

[n0useforaname]

Travel Trailers in general are dark and gloomy. I was super excited to have a windshield on mine.. not to mention the numerous people who compliment it. In central PA everyone has a keystone or jayco.. so you rarely see one.. the jayco Eagles are nice, but keystone is junk.. and the lower than eagle jayco lines left a lot to be desired IMO. I shopped for months prior to buying.

[mike.t]

Originally Posted by Toyman

Why would anyone buy a trailer, or class C with a window on the front, especially one with no protection?

To look out of. It would be easy to protect it. Why indeed.

[mike.t]

Velcro in 6 places and a thin piece of paneling to cover window.

[jimmoore13]

Originally Posted by katkt

Just a quick comparison.

I had the windshield in my 2010 F150 replaced about a week ago. <<SNIP>>
$1200 was the final bill(the glass itself, was around $550). I'd wager that same glass fit way more PU's then just a 2010 F150.
<<SNIP>>

That sounds really high. I paid cash to replace the windshield on a 2004 Toyota RAV 4: $275.

[jimmoore13]

Lance makes premier quality RVs. Many have front glass.
I wonder what the rate of failure is on the Forest River and Lance campers. Perhaps it can be chalked up to bad luck. One can take a big rock to the windshield of a car or truck on the way home from the dealer.

[DieselDrax]

Originally Posted by jimmoore13

That sounds really high. I paid cash to replace the windshield on a 2004 Toyota RAV 4: $275.

Hmmm...comparing a small 2004 SUV windshield to a 2010 full-size truck windshield...

[mike.t]

Originally Posted by katkt

Just a quick comparison.

I had the windshield in my 2010 F150 replaced about a week ago. Insurance covered it, so no doubt there may have been some padding of the bill the way hospitals overcharge for their services, thinking the insuarnce companies will beat them down, but...


$1200 was the final bill(the glass itself, was around $550). I'd wager that same glass fit way more PU's then just a 2010 F150.
Thinking in terms of quantity here. ie the more you make, the cheaper they can be produced.... When factoring cost of production, where volume is concerned, that may not be a bad price. They'll make far fewer windows like the one on the camper, then the quantity that gets made for an F150.

https://fixmyglass.safelite.com/FixM...teDetails.aspx

[bhirmiz]

Originally Posted by morganrc1955

This is what happened to our Flagstaff 25FKS after one small rock chip.
Will cost $800 to replace and will happen over and over again. In my opinion this is a terrible design flaw from the factory. The windows should have a travel cover like they used to.

buy a thin plexi glass sheet from home depot and cut to shape put 4 black or clear 3m valcro tape on the outside to it. and put it on. you got a protected glass now.

[jimmac91]

We have that same camper. It's nice to have that big window but it is my fear as well that glass will break going down highway far from home. So far it's been fine. No issues in our second summer.

The 2019 model has rounded glass.

[wabakami]

Originally Posted by Kaadk

When we did the factory tour of Rockwood/Flagstaff last year, they were explaining these used the same automotive grade glass as a windshield and will withstand the same forces as a windshield, which is why they can now do big open windows instead of the ones they used to have to fit under the covers. Under that reasoning, what broke the OPs windshield on their trailer, would have just as easily broken the windshield of their TV.

The ops glass shattered so it is not the same as auto windshield glass. Hardened safety or tempered glass (both the same) shatters instead of cracking/fragmenting which can be lethal. Most North American cars use laminated glass on the windshield (only cracks under most impacts) and tempered glass for all other windows.

Now, maybe the tour guide wasn't telling you a porky as in the UK most low to mid range cars come fitted with tempered glass for the windshield. I've had one shatter while driving from a stone impact and had to do what you're trained to do in that instance and poked a hole in the shattered glass to be able to see and safely pull over on the roadside!

[wabakami]

Originally Posted by RACarvalho

I can understand the frustration that a problem like this cause for I myself had my windshield chipped on the first trip (2000+miles) but since then no more chips in almost 5000 miles of the subsequent trips.
It's a windshield and it's in the front so it may be chipped but I don't think its a frequent occurrence and I don't think it has a higher risk than the vehicles we drive.... Also, the same rock/pipe or whatever that hits the windshield if instead hit the front cap, could cause a way more expensive repair...
Therefore I don't agree with the recommendation to not buy because of that.
It is really silly to buy a camper with a windshield and not imagine that it can happen...
The windshield is laminated, like the car ones.
BTW: in the picture below my windshield is chipped, can you see it?

You're right, under the right conditions even our plastic/fiberglass fronts can crack or split.
My drivers side mirror took a hit from a stone in February, it was -22c, the impact punched a 1 1/2" hole in the plastic luckily not damaging the mirror or mechanism.

Geoff

[Flash54]

Originally Posted by IsleDog

would you consider covering that window with some kind of security film? i know 3m and other companies make a film that is applied like a window tint and helps prevent the glass from breaking.

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/building...180802205431:s

would this be covered under insurance as well or no?

My experience with security film is that they are designed to hold the glass in place after it is broken, &/or prevent damage in case of vandals trying to tag the glass. This product should never be sold as preventing glass breakage. There might be a tiny bit of benefit regarding breakage prevention, but it will only be slight. I agree with the people that think the manufacturer should have provided a cover for when the trailer is being towed.

[mike.t]

Understandable to be upset, let your frustration be heard. Then solve/listen to what should be an easy remedy.
Happy camping.

[nozzano22]

We have a 2018 Rockwood with curved front window. I am considering a dark plastic 'cover' held on by velcro.

I will also be looking into mid flaps. Checked out the rock tamers, but I do not want to have to install and remove with my hitch. Want something permanent, maybe the Duraflaps?

[oldxr]

I remember the older trailers with the framed flip up sun shade on them .That protected the glass while towing .I have a 2016 Rockwood 2109s with the exposed frameless glass .No problems yet but the tow vehicle is low and the back wheels are sheltered well.If you are using a 4x4 truck or something tall it will need mud flaps .

[gradeless]

Received 2018 Flagstaff 29RKWS last June and dealer was not on the ball fixing things so called the factory and took it in. One of the things was the black paint around the edges of the front glass were smeared into the front window and smeared paint was between the 2 layers of glass. Mr. Yoder who had helped designed and updated the 29RKWS was the person i dealt with there. He was great and they made repairs quickly. They pointed out that the windshield had cracked and suggested I should let them replace it. I had not noticed the crack from top to bottom at the edge of the windshield, it was only the inside glass that was cracked, the outside was not cracked!)

I was informed that mine was in the first batch of 2018's made and they had since changed the size of the windshield and the mounting gasket when they discovered the windshields were cracking in the Ultra lights. They changed to a slightly smaller sized windshield and a larger gasket (to allow more flex) and that solved the cracking windshield problem. I couldn't tell any difference when they installed the new smaller windshield and the larger gasket. So they were on the ball. They installed new glass on the stove top and replaced lights and switches in the Bathroom.

Now I will worry about getting a stone directly in the window of the Flagstaff. The 29RKWS has been ready for months and next week it will make its first trip of the year to Wisconsin and next month to Colorado and a stop in Iowa on the return trip. I am assuming that my insurance will pay for a new windshield ($0 comprehensive deductible) when and if it happens. I will be checking into getting protective film for the front windshield and a guard on the rear of the F-150. My 3.5L EcoBoost seems to have a lot more pulling power than my 460 had and gets about 4 mpg better mileage when towing.

[DBridenstine]

I work for a glass company that manufactures glass for a lot of RV manufactures. All of the product we produce for front glass applications is FMVSS-205 quality laminated glass. We are starting to see the industry trend to forward facing privacy glass. I believe most of it is in the fifth wheel models that have the living room area in the front of the camper.