How My Rear Windshield Exploded Into a Million Pieces

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Abstract

ecting to see damage to the garage door. Instead, I saw a huge hole where my rear windshield used to be. The garage door was resting on top of the back of my car. The windshield itself had exploded into what seemed a million pieces, none larger than a small pebble.I lifted the garage door while my wife pulled the car back into the garage. I’d pulled the emergency release cord to allow the door to operate manually, but it wouldn’t stay in the open position, so I lowered the door to the ground.I ran through my mind the possible ways the door could have slammed down. I have a remote control attached to the driver-side sun visor, which would have required me to reach my hand up high to activate it. I’m sure I didn’t do that, especially because my wife would have noticed it, too. The car itself is wirelessly connected to the garage door opener. The button for that is almost next to the remote. Even if I didn’t remember activating it, my wife would have seen me as I would have seen her. If either remote had been used, the telltale noise of the opener starting and the door slowly moving down would have been heard. Neither of us recalls the sound.There’s the possibility a random signal was emitted from another remote on the same setting. Amazon, for example, has our code for delive

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ries, but it was before 7 am, and there was no sign of their trucks. If they or anyone else had a remote with the same code, we still would have heard it when triggered.What I’ve decided is, most likely, that the handle of the emergency release cord of the garage door opener got caught on my SUV when backing out, releasing the door, which will not stay open when in manual use. My hypothesis is bolstered by the fact the red handle is no longer attached to the cord. I can’t find it anywhere, though it should have ended up on the garage floor or perhaps in the car. My vehicle is a lot higher than my wife’s, which is why it never happened to her.I learned it pays to call around and get quotes in addition to calling your insurance company. My repairs out of pocket were $372, while my insurance company would have directed me to the same provider, after collecting a$ 500 deductible and possibly raising my rates.My car is fixed, and my wife got her tire and is back on the road. We’re awaiting repairs to the garage door, which might provide more answers and possibly more questions. An Internet search suggests I may be on the right track, though I didn’t find a situation quite like mine. I’d be curious if anyone else has experienced or heard of something similar.</article></body>

What had happened was. . .

Photo by William Spivey

I keep playing the scene over in my mind, trying to identify what caused my garage door to suddenly slam down on my rear windshield as I exited my garage. I don’t usually park in the garage. My wife does. She had a flat tire on her car, and none of the nearby tire stores had her tire in stock. I picked up my wife and brought her home after her car was towed to a safe location, not on the side of I-95.

The following morning, we got into my car to go deal with hers. I opened the garage door with the button on the wall just inside the garage when entering from the house. Given the time it took for us to enter the car and load some bags, the garage door had been open a minute or two before I began backing out.

I’d moved a few feet, observing what was in the back of me as there was another car to avoid in the driveway. The next thing I knew, there was a crazy loud crash/explosion, and I immediately hit the brakes. I put my car in Park, got out, and walked to the back of the car. I was expecting to see damage to the garage door. Instead, I saw a huge hole where my rear windshield used to be. The garage door was resting on top of the back of my car. The windshield itself had exploded into what seemed a million pieces, none larger than a small pebble.

I lifted the garage door while my wife pulled the car back into the garage. I’d pulled the emergency release cord to allow the door to operate manually, but it wouldn’t stay in the open position, so I lowered the door to the ground.

I ran through my mind the possible ways the door could have slammed down. I have a remote control attached to the driver-side sun visor, which would have required me to reach my hand up high to activate it. I’m sure I didn’t do that, especially because my wife would have noticed it, too. The car itself is wirelessly connected to the garage door opener. The button for that is almost next to the remote. Even if I didn’t remember activating it, my wife would have seen me as I would have seen her. If either remote had been used, the telltale noise of the opener starting and the door slowly moving down would have been heard. Neither of us recalls the sound.

There’s the possibility a random signal was emitted from another remote on the same setting. Amazon, for example, has our code for deliveries, but it was before 7 am, and there was no sign of their trucks. If they or anyone else had a remote with the same code, we still would have heard it when triggered.

What I’ve decided is, most likely, that the handle of the emergency release cord of the garage door opener got caught on my SUV when backing out, releasing the door, which will not stay open when in manual use. My hypothesis is bolstered by the fact the red handle is no longer attached to the cord. I can’t find it anywhere, though it should have ended up on the garage floor or perhaps in the car. My vehicle is a lot higher than my wife’s, which is why it never happened to her.

I learned it pays to call around and get quotes in addition to calling your insurance company. My repairs out of pocket were $372, while my insurance company would have directed me to the same provider, after collecting a $500 deductible and possibly raising my rates.

My car is fixed, and my wife got her tire and is back on the road. We’re awaiting repairs to the garage door, which might provide more answers and possibly more questions. An Internet search suggests I may be on the right track, though I didn’t find a situation quite like mine. I’d be curious if anyone else has experienced or heard of something similar.