[cire]

Originally Posted by aerobod

Aerodynamics will have no appreciable effect on rocks at road speeds (My university degree is in Aeronautical Engineering, so I've studied aerodynamics a lot). Luck, following distance, road treatments in area, driving habits and changes in any of them are all going to be factors. The vehicles I had the shortest lived windscreens on over the past 30 years were a 1996 Nissan Pathfinder (3 windshields in 5 years) and a 2013 Subaru Crosstrek (2 windshields in 3 years), the longest lived a 1990 Honda Civic and 2007 BMW Z4M that both went over 7 years with no replacement, everything else has been somewhere in between (about 4 years on average). Luck, winter conditions & driving patterns have all been factors I think in my case.

I live in the Calgary area as well and have owned many cars including several BMW's. I agree there is no difference in windshield manufacturers. The more upright the windshield the more often it will be damaged. I am on my 3rd windshield (2014 228). I do wait until they are fairly cracked before I replace them. The good news is that they cost less than $300cdn. Windshield replacement in Canada is a fact of life. Everyone's windshield around here has a crack in it.

[jmwilson125]

Mine cracked one day for no apparent reason. The only thing that I could think of was differential heating. When I used boiling water to defrost it.... Just kidding.

But actually one cold winter day I was just driving along and a huge crack just appeared. Nothing hit the windshield and there was not a pre existing chip.

On the topic of windshield chip. Does anyone know if it's possible to fix all the micro chipping from sand and debrees that leave your windshield looking speckled?

If there's not epoxy product out there already there, then should be. Something that you apply like a ceramic coating that fills all the specks.

[Poochie]

The whole purpose of car insurance is to protect consumers from potential major financial disasters not a small financial inconvenience. If you guys make too many glass claims, don't get it twisted, your insurance company will drop you or move you over to a more risky, expensive tier.

Save the claim for when you might need it; like to light your car on fire, so you can get full market value and move to an M2. J/k. Maybe.

[albertw]

Originally Posted by sunil_linus

The whole purpose of car insurance is to protect consumers from potential major financial disasters not a small financial inconvenience

Not the "whole" purpose. The other purpose is to make money for insurance companies.

You don't need insurance if you can afford the loss.

I never purchase extended warranties on anything - cars, electronics, appliances - and I insist on deductibles of around $2500 for insurance I need. A run of bad luck might put me behind for a year or two, but over a lifetime the odds are very good that I will come out way ahead.

Sadly, most people don't understand probability and statistics, so insurance companies make most of their money selling them extra insurance they don't need.

[Poochie]

Originally Posted by albertw

Not the "whole" purpose. The other purpose is to make money for insurance companies.

You don't need insurance if you can afford the loss.

I never purchase extended warranties on anything - cars, electronics, appliances - and I insist on deductables of around $2500 for insurance I need. A run of bad luck might put me behind for a year or two, but over a lifetime the odds are very good that I will come out way ahead.

Sadly, most people don't understand probability and statistics, so insurance companies make most of their money selling them extra insurance they don't need.

I agree on everything you said except the $2,500 deductible; you may as well drop the coverage at that point; unless you total the car, you'll never possible used it..

[albertw]

Originally Posted by sunil_linus

I agree on everything you said except the $2,500 deductible; you may as well drop the coverage at that point; unless you total the car, you'll never possible used it..

I said the same thing in two different ways. You agreed with one but not the other???

[Poochie]

Originally Posted by albertw

I said the same thing in two different ways. You agreed with one but not the other???

Sorry to confuse you, I meant if you're going to suggest a deductible that high you may as well drop the coverage altogether. How often are you going to use the coverage if your out of pocket is that high. Unless it's like a Bentley or RR but a under 50k car, not so much IMO.

[albertw]

Originally Posted by sunil_linus

Sorry to confuse you, I meant if you're going to suggest a deductible that high you may as well drop the coverage altogether. How often are you going to use the coverage if your out of pocket is that high. Unless it's like a Bentley or RR but a under 50k car, not so much IMO.

You didn't confuse me. I just don't agree with you.

I buy insurance to cover losses that I can't afford (house) or that would be very inconvenient (50k car). I justify the cost of that insurance by the peace of mind it gives me, not by how often I expect to use the coverage. (I hope I never have to use it.)

I can afford to pay for minor repairs myself, so I don't need a deductible smaller than $2500. The most overpriced part of the insurance industry is coverage for minor losses, such as dropping the deductible from $2500 to $100 on car insurance or buying an extended warranty on an appliance or computer. By never buying that insurance you're almost certain to save money over a lifetime. Most people can't see that, which is why insurance companies can overcharge for the service.

I agree that once the value of a vehicle drops below some level it no longer makes financial sense to insure it for anything but liability. (For me that level is roughly $15k, but it varies depending on a person's risk tolerance and financial status.) This is because the price of the coverage seldom goes down and often goes up while the value of the car depreciates. Thus the coverage becomes more and more overpriced as the car ages.

[Poochie]

Originally Posted by albertw

You didn't confuse me. I just don't agree with you.

I buy insurance to cover losses that I can't afford (house) or that would be very inconvenient (50k car). I justify the cost of that insurance by the peace of mind it gives me, not by how often I expect to use the coverage. (I hope I never have to use it.)

I can afford to pay for minor repairs myself, so I don't need a deductible smaller than $2500. The most overpriced part of the insurance industry is coverage for minor losses, such as dropping the deductible from $2500 to $100 on car insurance or buying an extended warranty on an appliance or computer. By never buying that insurance you're almost certain to save money over a lifetime. Most people can't see that, which is why insurance companies can overcharge for the service.

I agree that once the value of a vehicle drops below some level it no longer makes financial sense to insure it for anything but liability. (For me that level is roughly $15k, but it varies depending on a person's risk tolerance and financial status.) This is because the price of the coverage seldom goes down and often goes up while the value of the car depreciates. Thus the coverage becomes more and more overpriced as the car ages.

I get what you're saying, I have a NY insurance broker license, expired a long time ago, but I still have a keen understating of how insurance works.

Most people are not financially secure enough to self-insure or be able to comfortable afford a $2,500 deductible, so insurance is almost mandatory to avoid possible bankruptcy. What I am suggesting is to keep the deductible at an affordable amount but only use it when absolutely necessary.

Insurance companies does not really consider the amount of a claim as much as the frequency of claims and the type. So some might think, oh, it only a $500 glass claim, so they won't care, however, they use ALL claims to form a pattern and determine your risk profile
.
So say you make a small glass claim today and three months later you have an unfortunate accident; they might reevaluate you risk profile and deem you unprofitable, thus, start charging more or even dropping you.

So save that claim for when it's only financially necessary, so your insurance company will not have a reason or data to reevaluate your profile and move you to a riskier tier.

Long story short; ALL CLAIMS MATTER.

[bimmerfile]

Originally Posted by albertw

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Sadly, most people don't understand probability and statistics, so insurance companies make most of their money selling them extra insurance they don't need.

OTOH, their lack of understanding keeps the rates for the rest of us at reasonable levels..