What’s An IR Glass Windshield?
An infrared-reflective windshield is a technology used for filtering out the infrared waves of sunlight. No, not the entirety of them, but up to 50% of IR light is reflected back in the atmosphere. This helps keep your vehicle cooler, saving you money on gas in the long run. How? Well, since your car is naturally cooler, the AC will be on less, draining less fuel in the long run.
The simplest way to tell if your car has an IR windshield is by looking for a purplish haze on it. Alternatively, you can just cross-check between cars if yours feels cooler, but be mindful that both vehicles are parked in the same weather conditions before doing so.
How Does IR Glass Actually Work?
For the purpose of this explanation, you can think of sunlight waves as two-fold. Some waves contain infrared, while others are just “visible light”. The type of light which actually lets us see what’s around us.
Solar auto glass, like it’s also called because of these properties, is made in such a way that it can differentiate between these waves of light. It then filters out only the infrared, radiant rays, which are invisible to the naked eye, but which we nonetheless feel as heat.
Since solar auto glass only blocks, or to be more precise, reflects IR light back into the environment from which it is coming from, it doesn’t impair your vision. Your visibility of the road is unaffected, whether you have a regular windshield or one made with infrared glass.
On average, your vehicle can stay cooler by up to 10 degrees Fahrenheit using this auto glass technology. This is a direct benefit to you in a multitude of ways, especially in our more arid climate of Arizona.
Not only do you feel less drained by the heat, but the plastic surfaces in your car will be less hot too. Same goes for leather seats! As such, there are less instances where you accidentally burn yourself touching various parts from the inside of your car.
The Only Downside
Specific devices that are radio-controlled, such as automatic car starters, are going to require a patch that lets them “pass through” the IR blocking properties of the glass.
Any Other Benefits?
It is true that the most obvious and direct benefit you receive from a solar auto glass coated windshield is the cooling of your car. The more darker the interior, the greater this effect. However, it also indirectly saves you some cash!
When it’s too hot in your vehicle, you most likely turn on the AC. In turn, an AC uses your vehicle’s alternator to functions, and alternators are powered by the engine. So, when all the pieces fall into place, you could say that the AC increases gas consumption.
The cooler your car though, the less need to turn it on! That’s how infrared glass saves you gas money! If you additionally want to think long term about it, that saved money will pile up and basically cover the cost of your IR windshield, since it runs more expensive than regular ones.
What If My IR Glass Gets Damaged?
Since solar auto glass is different from regular OEM glass, you’ll need to specify this when discussing a replacement with us over the phone. However, if you just provide us your VIN number in advance, we’ll see ahead of time that your model uses IR glass.
Our friendly customer care team awaits your call at (480) 525-6554. We service the entire Phoenix Metro Area, for no additional cost, and with full coverage insurance you’ll pay $0 Out-of-Pocket too! Lifetime warranty included for all replacements.
