Oh No!
 

If you ever wonder should I take that bike rack off when not in use the answer is YES! My daughter drove to NYC from New Jersey.Parked the car in a garage where they park it for you.On return the rear windshield is broken due to the bike rack not being noticed.They offered to make all repairs and deliver the car to her house.Sounds good we will see.She took a train to my house and one of my cars.And yes I took my bike rack off my car.

I wouldn't let them lay another finger on my car.

They are going to take it to some shop where a guys brother's cousin will install junkyard glass or call one of those services that send a truck.

You want original quality glass installed at the dealership by trained technicians with warranty on both product and service.

I'd have the car towed to the dealership for repair and present them with the bill.




-Tim-

Our rack comes off whenever there isn't a bike on it, simply because the car is new and the vertical pole of the rack sits directly in front of the backup camera.

Well, that and I'm sure someone would try to steal either the rack, or whatever parts they could get off of the rack.

Tim makes a good point. Poor quality glass can be a safety hazard and a poor install can result in a leak. Remember, they're the same people who couldn't PARK a car; why trust them for the repair?

Some cars have specialty glass or forward facing cameras for collision avoidance systems. Subaru Eyesight is an example. For these you don't want the guy in the truck slapping glass from an unknown source into the car while you are at work.

Even re-attaching rear view mirror on the glass has to be done right.

Cheap rear windows have cheap defogger systems. Some rear glass is highly curved and has a very detailed install process requiring disassembly interior panels. You want Lexus glass on your Lexus and Audi glass on your Audi.

Even going to the dealership isn't a guarantee that it will be installed right. One has to insist that it be done by a collision repair tech who replaces glass on wrecked cars all the time and is factory trained. Replacing glass is a body shop repair, it is not an engine or chassis repair.

This all assumes that it is a nice car. A beater car might be different.


-Tim-

How can a bike rack break the rear window? Was it one of those ones that sit on the glass? How would parking affect this? I'm missing a piece of the story here...

That reminds me of my coworker and cycling pal who forgot he had his bike on the roof of his Alfa Romeo when he drove into the underground parking garage at his condo. The clips proved to be the weakest link, and the bike (a mid-to-high-end Motobecane) and rack landed upright as a unit. He did need some roof dents and scratches repaired on the Alfa, but recognizes how much worse the whole scenario could have turned out.

I have transverse load bars and a pair of Yakima bike racks for carrying bikes on the roof of the Passat wagon, but I am very paranoid about using them.