Top 10 windshield manufacturers

Review of the best according to the editorial board. On the selection criteria. This material is subjective and does not constitute advertising and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.

How to choose a windshield

Despite the fact that the windshield is not the most complex design and technical product, it, like other parts, has its own separate parameters and features. The editors highlighted the most important aspects of the choice of windshields on the domestic market, which should be followed when buying yourself:

Originality. As a rule, original car glass is a kind of quality standard, which is equal to all manufacturers, one way or another engaged in their development. It is quite simple to distinguish the original from the copy at the present stage, since there is a simple system for standardizing these two concepts. So, all duplicates are made under the general designation ARG, while the original windshields (and not only) are marked with the abbreviation OEM.

There will be several recommendations on this aspect:

1. if the question of cost does not matter to you, then do not hesitate to choose the glasses of the original sample;
2. in case finances still have weight, then take a closer look at the copies, relying on other points of these recommendations.

Glass type. On this basis, products are divided into two separate groups:

1. WL is a triplex glass, the peculiarity of which is in a multilayer structure (usually three layers of organic or silicate (silicon) glass are to be bonded). It has long been used by automakers as a standard, as it provides the best protection against various types of damage, has increased durability and higher performance.
2. T – marking indicating the glass of a tempered sample. Once this type of windshield was the main one in the automotive industry, but later, for safety reasons, it was replaced by the aforementioned triplex. Despite its high hardness, the hardened quartz structure is very fragile, due to which the ingress of even a small stone can lead to complete destruction of the windshield. These models are still present on the market (albeit in small quantities), but we in no way recommend purchasing them.

Marking. The recommendation to look closely at the product labeling is not taken from the ceiling, and has rather weighty justifications. Often, copy makers do not pay attention to this 'trifle', and, either because of ignorance, or out of laziness, they manage to make mistakes in the standard description.

It must be remembered that any marking should contain not only information about the type of windshield, but also the manufacturer's data, the date of manufacture, as well as homologation marks (improving the product to meet its accepted quality standards).

Nuances. The rules of critical thinking, aimed at identifying the smallest defects of the product by the method “by contradiction”, are the best assistant in making any choice. Look closely at the edges of the windshield for delamination, burrs, chipping, or cracking. If there are none, estimate the thickness of the triplex: using this parameter, you can determine how hard this or that option is. Accordingly, a large thickness indicates the ability of glass to resist large impact loads, and therefore it will be much more difficult to break it. Improved noise insulation also speaks in favor of such options, since the organic 'package' provides better absorption (and reflection) of sound waves. The main thing is that the thickness of the glass is the same over the entire area of ​​the product.

Rating of the best windshield manufacturers

Nomination	a place	Name of product	rating
The best manufacturers of inexpensive windshields	1	XYG	4.8
	2	StarGlass	4.7
	3	CSG	4.6
	4	FYG	4.5
The best manufacturers of windshields in terms of price-quality ratio	1	Guardian	4.9
	2	Jaan	4.8
	3	NordGlass	4.7
The best manufacturers of premium windshields	1	Pilkington	4.9
	2	Saint-Gobain Sekurit	4.8
	3	Asahi Glass Company	4.8

The best manufacturers of inexpensive windshields

XYG

Rating: 4.8

The stereotypical representative of the Chinese windshield segment, whose products demonstrate average quality in the long term. In the recent past, this aspect was the weakest point of the company's products, but thanks to the gradual modernization of manufacturing technologies, the situation was brought to normal. Otherwise, initially there was a complete order: the percentage of marriage in retail barely reached 3% of the total, and there were no rough surface defects (such as chips, microcracks and irregularities) as such.

According to experts, an equally important property of XYG products is the absence of a lens effect and a strict adjustment of the dimensions of the windshields to standard sizes, which is often not observed in a number of competitive companies in this segment. From the point of view of statistics, this manufacturer is the main supplier of windshields to the domestic market with an indicator of 70%, which is due to the low cost and abundance of assortment.

Advantages

• widespread use in the secondary market;
• extremely low prices for the assortment;
• low marriage rate;
• observance of the dimensions of the original glass.

disadvantages

• exposure of products to abrasive wear.

StarGlass

Rating: 4.7

The only representative of the European side in the budget segment, which has established itself as a very solid supplier of windshields to the domestic market. The main feature of the Spanish company is that it managed to establish collaborative relationships with a large number of car manufacturers and distribute its products to manufacturers from all over the world. Actually, this situation is also true in the case of Russia: domestic divisions of companies Ford, Chevrolet, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Renault, as well as 'VAZ' take on the conveyor windshields, side and rear windows from StarGlass.

As consumers note, the products of this company are distinguished by high manufacturing accuracy, the practical absence of the fish-eye effect, which distorts the actual image, but is subject to transient wear and tear. The durability of windshields with standard use leaves much to be desired, however, with proper care and a lucky coincidence, they can last for 10-15 years.

Advantages

• a wide range of products for various types of cars;
• low cost;
• support for VAZ cars;
• lack of critical defects in the form of a fish-eye effect and inaccuracies in fitting sizes.

disadvantages

• very low abrasion resistance of glass.

CSG

Rating: 4.6

China Southern Glass is the largest Chinese holding, one of the 'big three' windshield manufacturers, along with XYG and FYG. It was founded in 1984 under the influence of large Western investors, who are strongly interested in obtaining a high-quality and cheap product for delivery to car assembly lines and the secondary market. Initially, manufacturing plants were opened in three Chinese towns located near Hong Kong. However, later, when the products were ready to enter the world market, a wave of representations swept over European countries.

If we talk about the quality of the provided windshields, then in this component the CSG performs well enough. In individual cases, users, of course, note a number of shortcomings, mainly related to inaccuracies in keeping the basic dimensions, which requires fine-tuning by locksmiths. On the secondary, sometimes there is a defect (its amount reaches 5-7% of the total volume) with defects such as chips, a small stack of cracks and thickness differences, fortunately, it is quite easy to track it. In general, not without complaints, but quite confidently CSG is included in the rating of the best, albeit not pushing out any of the main competitors.

Advantages

• very low price for the entire range;
• related production (the company is developing other products);
• (mostly) good workmanship;
• strict quality control at all stages of production: from quartz processing to the final operation.

disadvantages

• up to 5-7% of rejects in the secondary market;
• periodically there is a discrepancy between the nominal sizes.

FYG

Rating: 4.5

Another Chinese corporation for the manufacture of a large range of glass, which was founded in 1987. Unlike direct competitors, FYG's production facilities are fully focused on the production of glass, not only for the automotive niche, but also for industrial construction. The beauty of this approach lies in the introduction of a special quality control regime, which has significantly improved the state of affairs in the company as of the current period of time. The number of rejects was significantly reduced, and an agreement was signed with a number of large European and American companies to supply windshields, side and rear windows directly to the assembly line.

As noted by users, the main advantage of FYG is the integration of an additional body kit into the design of glasses supplied to the secondary. For a very specific car model, the manufacturer has provided a full set of the corresponding part, such as moldings, mounts for the rear-view mirror, heaters and much more. Due to the low cost and acceptable quality, this company simply could not pass by the rating of the best.

Advantages

• high quality production due to multi-stage control;
• very low price;
• production of glass with an individual set of factory body kit for each car brand;
• direct deliveries of the product to the assembly line of most European and American car manufacturers.

disadvantages

• not detected.

The best manufacturers of windshields in terms of price-quality ratio

Guardian

Rating: 4.9

The world leader in the production of glass for cars does not shy away from the canons, constantly throwing technological and, to some extent, even revolutionary things into the market. The Guardian's latest trend is the integration of technology from the SunGuard division, which is magnetron sputtering on the top layer of glass. The positive effect of this step is increased protection against ultraviolet rays, giving the material high resistance to mechanical stress and chemical factors of the environment. In addition, there is a certain effect of the color of the glass, which is used to the full by the in-house designers of the automakers cooperating with this company.

According to experts, Guardian windshields are the best the market has to offer at the moment. The highest quality control both at the enterprise and during delivery, sophisticated logistics, caring for the image – all this and much more creates the unique style of the European grandee, which deserves a leading line in the ranking of the best.

Advantages

• a huge range of windshields (for 240 models of various car brands);
• ensuring full control over operations;
• the highest quality of glass production;
• commitment to new technologies;
• extremely low marriage rate (less than 1%).

disadvantages

• not detected.

Jaan

Rating: 4.8

A relatively young manufacturer of windshields for cars, which entered the market in 1991. Jaan is a typical representative of companies that prefer canonical manufacturing to the constant search for new trends in the field of technology. Nevertheless, even in such a 'squeezed' state, this representative of the segment continues to interest automakers who conclude contracts for the supply of front, side and rear windows straight to the conveyor.

Naturally, it is simply not possible to ensure the centralized production of the entire range of products at the scale taken, which forced the Polish company to open several representative offices at once with factories in other countries. As a result – high, but not ideally stable product quality from plant to plant. This was the opinion of the experts, but users differ significantly with them on these issues. Delivered to the domestic market, Jaan windshields have an extremely low rejection rate (about 2%), which is the second best indicator after the well-known Guardian. By definition, the results are commendable, but there is still a lot of room for growth.

Advantages

• focus on canonical production technologies;
• virtually no marriage (2%);
• very durable triplex with a film coating;
• relatively low price of the product.

disadvantages

• fluctuations in product quality from plant to plant.

NordGlass

Rating: 4.7

The NordGlass trademark is a subsidiary project of the aforementioned Polish company Jaan, which operates mainly in the Russian and Northern European market segments. It is engaged in the development of windshields of excellent quality, but, like all similar enterprises, it 'suffers' a little from the lack of a greater degree of autonomy. Their product does not belong to the category of original, and therefore does not go to conveyors. However, it 'handles' secondary markets very well, being almost the sales leader in the middle segment.

The main feature of NordGlass is full glass maintenance at the time of production. In saying this, we mean the factory installation of moldings, fasteners and other useful body kit, which is typical for specific car brands. However, completely custom options are also not uncommon, but, as practice shows, they are aimed at the amateur. Such things are done mainly in China (and not in Poland), however, they do not experience quality problems in principle.

Advantages

• very good assortment of windshields for the aftermarket;
• low price even by the standards of the middle segment;
• the presence of all the necessary pre-installed body kits;
• an abundance of original solutions for installation on a car.

disadvantages

• low degree of control over the subsidiary.

The best manufacturers of premium windshields

Pilkington

Rating: 4.9

A premium British manufacturer that only the Guardian brand can rival. He is a veteran of the windshield market, continuing to master the craftsmanship (but according to the rules dictated by technology) since 1826. During this time, Pilkington managed to establish many mutually beneficial sales channels, which, subsequently, led the company to an unconditional leadership in the number of deliveries of products to conveyor lines.

Despite its considerable age, Pilkington always strives for innovation, investing (moreover, quite generously) in new and original developments. So, from the latest innovations, it is necessary to highlight the painstaking work on the creation of special thermal sensors that automatically calibrate the temperature of glass heating in order to increase the efficiency of vehicles. In addition, the release of certainly expensive, but revolutionary glass with a self-cleaning function is planned soon. Yes, for ordinary users, the products of this company seem too expensive, but in a larger perspective it is simply impossible to imagine a market without this supplier.

Advantages

• a large number of trade relations with car manufacturers;
• the highest quality products in all forms;
• controls more than a third of the market for the supply of glass to assembly lines;
• emphasis on manufacturability and innovation.

disadvantages

• not identified.

Saint-Gobain Sekurit

Rating: 4.8

The French grandee of glass production for vehicles is not so much a market asset as a full-fledged element of historical culture. According to some reports, the company was founded in the 1660s, and its founder was none other than the then king of France. At that time, a small workshop had not yet been profiled in such a specific industry (since cars, as such, did not exist), but was already accumulating experience for the development of further activities.

In modern realities, Sekurit Saint-Gobain is a major supplier of raw materials for other companies, including the Jaan company mentioned in the rating. Like its perennial segment rival (Pilkington), the brand spends a lot of money on research. In particular, the company has as many as 5 research centers providing new technologies to more than 38 of its plants around the world. In addition to everything, the French work very closely with German car brands, having a preventive agreement on the supply of glass to assembly centers Audi, BMW, Mercedes and the largest concern VAG- Group.

Advantages

• oldest representative of the industry;
• significant contribution to innovative development, commitment to technology;
• high-level organization of control processes;
• high quality in all aspects of production.

disadvantages

• not detected.

Asahi Glass Company

Rating: 4.8

The Japanese manufacturing company, founded in 1900, is one of the most popular auto glass manufacturers in Russia. More than a century of experience in the industry has taught AGC that it is imperative to give your best for profit and competitiveness in the busy segment. Based on these considerations, the bosses of the form decided to ship products not only to the conveyors of famous Japanese automakers (including Nissan, Toyota, Honda, etc.) , but also to the secondary market.

By chance, the preventive choice of equipment fell on Russia, where one of the AGC factories was subsequently located, which, among other things, is engaged in the creation of glasses that are quite moderate in terms of price for Russian brands of cars. If you take the world, then the network of subsidiaries, combined with factories, has more than 350 locations, which is the greatest result among all the competitors presented. Of course, the question of the quality of the manufactured products is not even raised – the Japanese value their honest name, guaranteeing consumers the best deals for the purchase or replacement of glass.

Advantages

• the most user-loyal premium segment manufacturer;
• a wide range of finished products;
• the presence of a special department for the development of glasses for Russian cars;
• the largest network of production lines.

disadvantages

• the quality at subsidiaries can vary greatly from the main one.

---

Attention! This rating is subjective and does not constitute an advertisement and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.