New Glass Deters Thieves
Invisaguard HSG could keep criminals at bay.
by Mike Davis (2005-10-03)



Two old-line industrial giants supplying the auto industry, DuPont and PPG, have joined forces with a minority marketing firm to introduce to the aftermarket an innovative auto side glass aimed at hampering the bad guys from snatching your luxury SUV or its high-end goodies.



Don't think there's a need? My local paper this morning had these two items: Seven 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokees parked at a dealership were broken into and their $1,800 navigation systems stolen. The owner of a 2004 Honda Civic reported the airbags were stolen from his car while it was parked in a shopping center. The briefs in the paper didn't say so, but chances are, entry in these cases was obtained by smashing a side window out with what the cops say is the tool of choice, a baseball bat.



At the news conference in suburban Detroit announcing the new "high security glass," Glenn Stafford, president of Invisaguard LLC, the marketing firm for the aftermarket product, asked how many in the crowded room of media and executives from various companies had had their cars stolen or broken into. Practically every hand went up.



Fundamentally, the new glass resists repeated blows from a bat, hammer or crowbar, delaying entry to a vehicle for a couple of minutes, during which the alarm has been set off. Entry to a vehicle with conventional tempered side glass takes just an instant with a pointed tool. According to law enforcement folk, this delay - and frustration - is all it takes to deter the theft.



Laminated for your enjoyment



Invisaguard HSG (for, you guessed it, High Strength Glass) initially is being marketed through Henderson Glass, a glass repair-and- replacement chain just in Michigan . When the rollout is completed successfully, marketing will be extended to other high auto theft or intrusion areas such as Miami , Los Angeles , Chicago , Dallas and Las Vegas, Invisaguard Executive Vice President Eric Holliday told TCC.

Initially HSG will be offered through Henderson just for large General Motors SUVs: Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Envoy. That's because the side window channels in those vehicles accommodate an easy replacement with HSG - and also because they are frequent targets of thieves.



The new high-security, intrusion-resistant glass is a laminated product developed jointly as a system by DuPont. which supplies the plastic interlayer, and PPG, manufacturer of the glass. Laminated side glass is making a comeback as original equipment in new vehicles, from which it was displaced by tempered side glass for safety reasons nearly half a century ago. This latest high-strength version is a result of improved technology in laminates, laminated glass and tempered glass, according to Michael Sanders, DuPont's director of automotive safety.



To put this development in perspective, recall that in the earliest days of the automobile, it "yoostabee" there was no glass at all - the first cars were just open, motorized buggies. But windshields made of plain plate glass soon appeared as car speeds began to exceed buggy speeds and wind in the face became an annoyance. By the mid-1920s, closed cars began to outnumber open cars, and the market for original equipment side and rear glass grew exponentially.



However, the problem with plate glass was that in crashes, it shattered, gravely injuring vehicle occupants. In 1927, Cadillac and Ford introduced laminated windshields as a safety measure, and the rest of the industry soon followed. After that, side and rear glass also became laminated. As owners of unrestored vintage cars know, though, laminated glass tended to become "milky" when air got to the interlayer. In addition, technology of the time limited laminated glass pretty much to flat glass manufacture while automotive design was demanding curved side glass. And even the laminated glass in use in the Thirties and Forties could "shard" in crashes.



One of the first developments coming out of the auto industry's extensive automotive safety research in the Fifties was improved laminated windshields with a thicker laminate plastic that resisted sharding and actually partially absorbed impacts from unbelted occupants in front impacts. Following closely behind was the application of tempered side glass, which could be molded into curves and when shattered, broke into small glass pebbles rather than knife- like shards.



The premium punch



Fast forward to recent years, when owners of upscale vehicles may load their rides up with thousands of dollars worth of additional aftermarket equipment like navigation systems and premium entertainment centers including DVD players -- and leave laptops and cell phones inside as further bait for smash-and-grab thieves, not even considering theft of the vehicles themselves. This is a special problem in urban areas where Invisaguard envisioned a luxury aftermarket demand while the main interest of DuPont and PPG is marketing their products to OEMs and Tier One automotive suppliers.



Henderson Glass's Invisaguard's HSG four-window installation in the typical GM SUV is priced at $1,995. It is hoped that ultimately there will be an insurance premium break, but Stafford and Holliday both feel that even without that, the product will prove attractive to owners of $50,000-plus SUVs who typically have loaded them up with expensive gadgets.



Athletes and entertainers would typify such buyers but oddly the first customer has turned out to be the Pontiac , Mich. , Police

Department, which mainly patrols in Chevrolet Tahoe police specials.

Chief Rollie Gackstetter told TCC that the high-security glass will provide extra protection for his officers who are exposed to assaults and projectiles, will help keep expensive law enforcement equipment from being stolen while officers are away from the unit on foot, and will keep prisoners from kicking out a back seat side window to escape.



Accordingly, the combination of Henderson, Invisaguard, DuPont and PPG now is turning to other vehicle aftermarket applications, including Ford Crown Vic Police Interceptors and the new Dodge rear-wheel-drive, V-8-powerd police units just coming into the law enforcement market. For the luxury market, they're also designing applications for the Chrysler 300C, and are also in the early stages of research with the Department of Defense for military vehicle applications.



They didn't say so, but I suspect there will be a market for applications in Third World markets. A $2,000 drop-in installation is a lot cheaper and faster than rebuilding entire body and door systems to accommodate bullet-resistant glass. For the GM SUVs, front-door HSG measures only 4.4 mm thick versus 3.8 mm for the tempered it replaces. The world market also may be why BMW will be the first OEM customer for the DuPont-PPG product. BMW will offer the high-security glass as an extra cost factory option on its 5- and 7-Series cars.



Is there a future for HSG in the high production OEM market?

Typically when new innovations are introduced, they start as low-volume options - like the BMW offering - and then grow. DuPont's Sanders believes the stronger side glass provides significant improvement in occupant protection, especially in side impacts and rollovers. For example, it provides a "reaction surface" for side airbags.



Right now, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is working on new side-glass technical standards that might well ease - if not require - the installation of HSG. One conceivable objection, however, could be access by emergency rescue personnel; glass resistant to thieves is also a barrier to the good guys. Sound analysis and consideration of alternatives should help resolve that question.



Modern laminated side glass already has made a comeback in production vehicles because it provides acoustic qualities - vehicles so equipped are simply quieter than those with tempered.



So it's likely there's new glass in your automotive future. Sprays of glass pebbles along urban street parking areas may become a sight of the past.

 

Nice. Its good to know that Laminated Side glass is being used more often now. Volvo has been using Laminated Side glass since 1999 in its S80 and now offers it as an option on all Volvos. Most newer S80's were ordered with this option. Not a very expensive option(around $200), but it allows up to 6 hits to the glass before completely collapsing.

 

Well tint KINDA does the same thing. Its not as strong, but it hold the glass in one piece.

 

Like the article mentioned briefly, keeping the thieves out also keeps rescure personal out that much longer as well. In most cases it probably wont be a big deal, but I wonder if a car is on fire and crushed so the doors can't open if that couple of seconds lost could mean the victom survives or gets burned to death?

 

I was listening to the radio last night and they had some sort of advertisement for VIN etching in windows. I don't know how theft deterrant that really is. I mean... are they gonna look for the VIN number on the windows? This is to keep from thieves stealing an entire car.

 

Well just think about this, when they replace the window, it doesnt come with the new VIN. Usually all Toyotas come with the VIN on all the glass, at least my Camry did. I find it strange that my GS doesnt though...

 

It is not meant to stop the thieves looking to steal your stereo, or joyride in the car, or even use the car to commit other crimes. It is meant to stop the pro thieves that steal the entire car for resale in other parts of the country or world. Those are the guys that swap VIN plates. The idea with having the VIN on all the windows is it is expensive to replace all the glass thus making the car less profitable for the theives so they will pass over it. I'm not really sure how well it works though, as there are a lot of other thieves out there that steal cars for other reason than just resale.

 

exactly what i was thinking.

 

Harder to get in means harder to get out. Rescue personel will likely have to get retrained on how to smash open a window in emergencies, probably special tools.

 

Nightsticks and fire axes are never going to be obsolete when it comes to busting someone out. A car thief isn't going to walk up to a car with a fire axe.

 

The big picture is not about the car thieves and potential lost of property though. It is about if this new glass poses a potential problem for saving lives. I'm sure they will figure it out soon enough, but I rather have my car stolen then get trapped for that extra few secons in a buring car. For me, my wife and kids lives are more importent than the car itself. Supposedly the glass can withstand about 6 full blows before it gives away. That could be an extra 5 seconds. Being in TV we often see and report about fatal accidents. I've heard of people escaping from a buring car with 3rd degree burns but at least they survived. An extra 5 seconds might be too long for victoms like that. Anyway, like I said I'm sure they will figure it out.

 

Forget rescue personel. If I am stuck in an accident, how am I getting out? If my car is on fire or it is sinking in a body of water (and the doors are not working obviously ), it will take me longer to get out. Granted, these cases will not happen every day. It is a "What if?" situation, but then again, so is the situation of the car getting broken into.

If special tools/handling procedures come out to help alleviate this drawback, I am pretty sure the thieves will be able to get their hands on these too.