Windshield Rock Chip Protection (Houston: purchase, construction, safety)

[jenfarm_]

I drive a midsize SUV that I bought 3 years ago. I've had to replace the windshield a month after purchase and have since had 2-3 rock chips repaired and now am looking at another full replacement due to a chip that popped the morning I was supposed to have it repaired.



I know this is Houston (the city that is forever under construction) so it's pretty much to be expected plus maybe a little bit of bad luck... but my question is has anyone tried the windshield coatings that are supposed to help with some protection against rock chips? If so what has been your experience/would you recommend it? Any recommendations for places for install? I normally don't worry about or even think about that kind of stuff... but I'm starting to think it may be worth the investment with this car due to history. If those coatings are even worth it.


TIA

[Hemlock140]

There are coatings such as Rain-X that help keep it clear, even without the wipers on in light rain, but nothing really helps with rock chips. We have the same trouble here and it's not the construction as much as the All-Terrain tires so common on pickup trucks and SUVs. Those wide tread capture small pebbles which then get thrown out at highway speeds, and hit the windshields behind them. Modern cars with the cameras for adaptive cruise control, lane centering assist and other safety features may not function correctly with any coatings not factory recommended.

[Htown2013]

This happened to me a lot when I first moved down. What has helped is to not follow too closely behind another vehicle when moving at highway speeds, do not follow closely behind construction vehicles, tractor trailers and especially dump trucks on highways. Allow a lot of space.. Better yet get around them and not be directly behind them either in your lane or an adjacent lane.

I still get rocks but it has gone down by a factor of 5 doing the above.