Learning All About Automotive Paint

Signs You May Have A Leaky Windshield

Windshields are like clear bucklers that protect riders from flying debris, bugs, and inclement weather. However, unlike the shields in video games, a vehicle's windshield is not invulnerable to damage and deterioration. Depending on its age and other factors, it can become the source of water leaks in the car. Here are few signs this may be the case and how to test it to confirm.

Subtle Symptoms of a Problem

If your windshield is lifting in places or has holes and cracks, then it's obviously the source of moisture in the vehicle. However, it's rare a leaky windshield will be this easy to diagnose. Instead, your car or truck will display a variety of subtle symptoms that indicate there is an issue. This includes:

  • Mineral stains on the dashboard and inside of the glass. They usually present as white streaks and spots.
  • Rust spots in various places inside the vehicle. Cars in areas that get a lot of rain are particularly susceptible to this as chronic contact with moisture causes the metal in the vehicle to deteriorate. Rust presents as red spots, sometimes tiny in size, and frequently show up on the floorboards, door panels, and metal parts of the dashboard.
  • Moldy and musty odors in the vehicle. When the vehicle's carpeting and fabric are exposed to moisture for long periods of time, it will develop mold and mildew. This may start out as a bad smell that doesn't seem to go away no matter what you do but may advance to actual mold appearing on the front seats.
  • Foggy interiors are another sign of a leaky windshield. Windows that fog up on the inside after it rains on a hot day or while sitting in the sun means there's water trapped somewhere in the vehicle and causing a bit of steam.

As any one symptom can be caused by a number of other issues, it's important to take the totality of issues into consideration when diagnosing whether you have a leaky windshield.

Confirming Where the Leak Is

Although these two methods of confirming a leak in your windshield are easy to do, you need a second person to observe the outcome of your experiments.

The first method involves using a hose to spray water around the edges of the windshield. Make sure the water is on the lowest possible setting; otherwise, it simply bounces off the glass. Have the person inside the vehicle watch the edges of the windshield carefully to determine if there is water seeping through.

The second method involves making very soapy water and pouring the bubbles around the edge of the windshield. Use an air compressor to blow air around the edges of the windshield from inside the vehicle and have your companion look for movement in the bubbles sitting on the glass.

Once you've figured out your windshield is the problem, contact a local auto glass repair company to help you fix it.


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