Panoramic Glass Roofs. Are they safe.

andy8442

What do you all think of panoramic glass roofs, paying particular attention to safety.Can they be as strong as a good old lump of steel above your head?

Obviously car manufacturers won't be sticking a bit of shed glass up there, but its glass,how strong can it be?

All the MPVs we are looking at get 5 star NCAP tests, but do NCAP test the models with these roofs, and if so what are the results?because I can't find them. Come to think of it, what are the NCAP ratings for passenger safety for all 7 passengers in an MPV?

atrixblue.-MFR-.

these roofs are thicker than a windscreen and heavily laminated and have the sunroof type webbing in it for heat dissapation from the sun.

a part of the cars structure that you can be sure, the glass should not shard or shatter and behave just like a windscreen but tougher in a crash.

vikingaero

A lot of cars with panoramic roofs are fitted with plus versions of ESP (Electronic Stability Programme/ESP+). This is normally a lower trigger point for ESP intervention which suggests that panoramic roofs could be less safe unless ESP+ is fitted.

daveyjp

Asides from safety check your insurance company classes a replacement as a glass replacement with no NCB issues or a bodywork job.

In the early smart days a few of broke when stones hit the leading edge of the roof. This is 15 years ago now and I'm sure design has moved on.

WaveyDave_2

daveyjp wrote: »

Asides from safety check your insurance company classes a replacement as a glass replacement with no NCB issues or a bodywork job.

In the early smart days a few of broke when stones hit the leading edge of the roof. This is 15 years ago now and I'm sure design has moved on.

This is not necessarily true. My insurer (Admiral) considers any manufacturer options (anything above standard spec) to be modifications. They will only cover "modifications" if previously informed, and even then only if they agree to cover them. I recently went through hell trying to get them to cover the panoramic roof at all on the policy (full policy, not glass). They do not (and neither to many others) cover the panoramic roof on the glass policy.

Mr_Thrifty

No, not safe at all. If the glass breaks it would be a disaster.

Jimx26

Mr_Thrifty wrote: »

No, not safe at all. If the glass breaks it would be a disaster.

Do you have any evidence to back up this absurd statement?

fred7777

As other have said glass roofs are laminated and will have the same shatter properties as a windscreen.

I terms of crash safety the roof isn't a "lump" of steel it's a sheet and has very little strength anyway. The vast majority of safety strength in a crash is provided by the pillars on the doors and roof edges and the box shape of the vehicle body.

hc25036

Modern laminates are almost certainly stronger than the steel they are replacing. The weak spot will be the joints and I would expect that they are given special attention by the manufacturers.

Mr_Thrifty

Jimx26 wrote: »

Do you have any evidence to back up this absurd statement?

No... bu surely can't be good to be driving around in a mobile greenhouse?

fivetide

Mr_Thrifty wrote: »

No... bu surely can't be good to be driving around in a mobile greenhouse?

Makes no odds. The strength of the car is in the pillars etc not in the thin bit of steel over your head.

Think roll bars in convertibles.

5t.