Well IMO, you are never going to get better than OEM from the other manufactures. You won't be sorry you went with factory glass, you MIGHT be sorry if you don't.

As my Dad used to say "Take a crowbar to your wallet and get the right part."

 

Is it verified that OEM Lexus has better sound / acoustic properties? Having a hard time fighting the insurance company about OEM. They keep say aftermarket is just as good and if I want OEM, I'll have to pay difference.

Guess I better start saving up and have to put some mods on hold =(

 

Tell your insurance company you "Don't feel safe" driving without OEM glass.

 

That won't work.
They're going to follow their procedure and want to save the $1000 difference in cost of a oem vs aftermarket glass and install.
Depends on the fine print of the policy.

 

Most insurance companies offer a rider that entitles you to OEM parts or not. If you opted for the cheapest possible premium rate you may not have the OEM option.

What you could try to do is tell them that ____________ (fill in the blank with any of their competitors) can give you the same monthly rate WITH a guarantee for OEM parts, and that if they force you to eat the difference between OEM and aftermarket, you will change insurance companies. Tell them the winshield is a structural component of the car and even if the breakage spec is the same you're not risking your life using a non-Lexus approved installation. They are motivated to keep your business, because they are more likely to recoup their cost if you stay with them longer (just talking in terms of statistic probability).

Some might say that's a little dishonest and sleazy to threaten to switch to their competitors like that without having actually received the quotes, but this is EXACTLY what sales people and insurance appraisal do in order to lowball you (i.e. they are lying to you by saying its exactly the same), and its the exact same tactic cops use on criminals to get information. Its perfectly legal and no more unethical than the entire profession of sales and marketing or law enforcement.

At the end of it all, if you do end up eating the cost difference, then justify it by the fact that you have been paying less per month than you would have with OEM part rider. I personally would not put an aftermarket windshield in no matter what.

 

The visual distortion is easily verifiable (though the 1" area from the edge doesn't really hinder driving). The noise difference was quite noticeable to me (some might not be as sensitive to it), but I never measured it.

What insurance company do you use? I heard Allstate will do OEM if requested (need to verify, I'm not sure). Allstate's premium was higher in my particular case, so I went with Geico. If you will always want OEM glass and pay the difference, might as well see what other insurances' policies are like regarding OEM; you might save money even though there's an immediate price increase on the premium.

 

I don't think an insurance is going to care if you threaten to leave for another company.Especially if you have claims.
They're also not going to care about breakage specs etc.An aftermarket windshield passes all Gov specs and is cheaper and that's all that matters.
You have to see what oem part coverage you have and do that before you buy the coverage and most don't..

 

I realize that's meant as a blanket statement/generalization, but as such it is not true, because I've done it before. Does it depend on the company? The particular agent you're working with? How good a negotiator/bluffer you are? Absolutely. Does it work all the time? Absolutely not.

As I said, a knowledgeable insurance buyer asks for an OEM part rider and understands that if they don't have one, they are SOL with regard to making demands. The strategy I posted is potential workaround when initial due diligence wasn't done. It may or may not work but it's worth a try.

If it were me, I would change insurance companies immediately after collecting on claim anyway. Most people should shop for insurance every 2 years anyway.

Understood, but my suggestion was not to tug at their heart strings. It was his last hope of negotiating a better deal, not to try to make an insurance agent care about something.

Agreed. The tactics I'm offering are last resort, after-the-fact. They may not work. Sometimes they do. I've had to use them sometimes in cases where the insurance company was using every possible out to save a buck instead of just taking care of a loyal customer that paid his premiums on time. Sometimes you get satisfaction, sometimes you bite the bullet. All is fair in business these days and there is no more loyalty. Insurance companies used to appreciate loyal customers, and that seems to have changed, so as the consumer we should play the cards we have which is the fact that lots of other companies compete for our business.

 

After an accident,with some insurance companies,you have to fight for oem parts.
I had Travelers and they were very good about oem parts.My body shop was able to get oem parts with another vehicle I owned.
Now I have Allstate because my son in law bought an Allstate Agency that does well.I'm told I will have no problem getting oem parts but forgot about asking about the windshield and other glass..Maybe he can pull some strings if I have a problem getting oem windshield..
The problem is after an accident,you don't deal with your agent.You deal directly with the claims dept and an appraiser.At least that's how it is in my state.
The amount of claims you have is important.Allstate will not renew if you have I believe 4 claims in I think 3-4 years.I'll have to ask my s-i-l..

 

Well...after a few phone calls...insurance insisted they are not getting OEM glass for me. Gotta to think about switching once this claim is finished.

So..what should I do? Go with aftermarket or OEM? It will be close to 5-600 out of pocket for me. =(

Is there a difference? NEW AFTERMARKET ON THE LEFT
OLD OEM ON THE RIGHT

 

I had the after market glass on my other car and there was a difference from OEM but I think someone on the site stated that the difference is that OEM glass comes treated with repellent for rain fall like RainX and the after-market pilkington does not. not huge but if you every looked at a brand new Toyota is says Pilkington next to it, this is the same glass on Lexus vehicles. If cost is a worry as long as aftermarket is Pilkington is the brand your good to go. If possible and you can I would poney uo the extra money for OEM Lexus glass.

 

you can't just compare these two glass like that, a Lexus acoustics glass has laminate film in between the layers, thats why its making your car so quiet, i would get the aftermarket if my car is just a base Honda, for Lexus, go with the OEM

 

Is the acoustic film verified? So no aftermarket Pilkington will have the acoustic film even though they are the manufacture of Lexus / toyota glass?

=( should of gotten better insurance.

 

well anyone change the rear windshield with aftermarket?!?!? defrosters don't work and winter is here an that fog on rear windshield is starting to get annoying...any input would be great..

 

I just replaced the windshield on my F. My insurance company was not going to do OEM because of the age of my car, a 2008. But after a day of negotiating and with the help of my agent, I got the OEM stuff, but with a twist. I have built a relationship with the parts manager at my dealer, I actually started the relationship before he became the parts manager. I have found over my long life time, that building these kinds of relationships with businesses and folks who you deal with makes life a lot easier. But, who you choose to build that relationship with is very important.

Anyway, I could get the windshield at a discounted price, cheaper than State Farm could. So they agreed to pay me the out of pocket costs for the windshield, if I bought it directly, and they would pay the installer directly for the installation. The only issue was, since the installer was not doing the install, they would not take responsibility for moving the glass. So, I had to have it installed in the dealer's parking lot. Not really a big deal. So, persistence here and an understanding agent along with knowing the parts manager all paid off in getting me the OEM windshield I wanted.

Now, as regards to Pilkington, I noticed some of the OEM windshields on the dealer's lot were marked Lexus, Pilkington and I asked the installer about this. He told me that Pilkington has two plants, one for OEM glass and one for aftermarket. He told me that they are not the same, but they are good quality for aftermarket stuff. The best glass is OEM. He seemed to know what he was talking about, but, who knows.

My glass is not Pilkington but was marked exactly like the glass they removed.

Lou