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I"ve had my 03 C5 for 14 yrs. I am having my third windshield installed today since I've owned it. I wondered if anyone else has had this problem. I think maybe because the car is so low and the front bumper offers no protection, that stones from the dump trucks on the interstate are more prone to hitting and chipping the windshield? Or maybe it"s just my bad luck?!
Sounds like your bad luck unfortunately. I've put 140k miles on one and maybe 50k across two others. No windshield cracks on any of them. My brothers put over 80k miles on theirs as well. No cracks. We also don't trail trucks or other cars and typically like to "lead".
My wife's 2017 Wrangler on the other hand...she's on windshield number 3 in 38k miles. The flat windshield is partially to blame. IMHO her always trailing behind other vehicles doing the similar speed is also to blame.
The life of a windshield depends on where you drive. the conditions of the road and the fact the Corvette sits low in a world of truck and SUV models that toss many rocks.
All you can do is hang back and not get too close to the vehicles in front of you.
Never follow a dump truck - especially on the highway - now you know why. Pass em or let several other cars be a buffer between you and the dumper. Your hood will take a beating if not the windshield.
This is why you see so many dump trucks and similar product hauling trucks with the “Stay back 100 feet. Not responsible for damages” sign on them.
I have never tested it, but thinking about many of those signs, I am not sure you can read the sign from 100’ away. 👀
And, from a legal standpoint I question whether this sign really provides a defense. Years ago I oversaw HR and Safety for a large multi-state concrete company with a lot of trucks on the road regularly (80 mixers, 60 concrete pump trucks, as well as sand haulers, gravel haulers, etc). Our legal firm advised against putting a “Stay Back” sign on our vehicles with the view that we would be “advertising” the potential damage we could cause to other vehicles.
As others have already suggested - stay far back from these trucks (harder to stay back from SUVs since they are so prevalent on the roads).
This is why you see so many dump trucks and similar product hauling trucks with the “Stay back 100 feet. Not responsible for damages” sign on them.
I have never tested it, but thinking about many of those signs, I am not sure you can read the sign from 100’ away. 👀
And, from a legal standpoint I question whether this sign really provides a defense. Years ago I oversaw HR and Safety for a large multi-state concrete company with a lot of trucks on the road regularly (80 mixers, 60 concrete pump trucks, as well as sand haulers, gravel haulers, etc). Our legal firm advised against putting a “Stay Back” sign on our vehicles with the view that we would be “advertising” the potential damage we could cause to other vehicles.
As others have already suggested - stay far back from these trucks (harder to stay back from SUVs since they are so prevalent on the roads).
Yup-This is exactly why people with "Beware of dog" signs are asking for trouble with the sign. When I was in business, and in the lawyers office, I asked him about the dog sign. He said you're pretty much admitting your dog is a menace to society. I feel like it is the right thing to do in the dog or truck situation, but sue happy citizens have screwed up a lot of other additional things besides these two.....
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You are right, being so low to the ground seems to increase the chances that rocks will hit the windshield more often than a car that sits higher. Plus IMO, the windshield on a C5 is pretty soft and damages easily.