[rickaren]

09/06/2013

Saw an interesting article concerning vehicles that enter a water filled subdivision retention pond or lake and can not open their doors or kick out their drivers door window side glass. Several here in central Indiana have lost their lives here recently. Most of us know you just need to use a sharp object and hit the window and it will shatter into small pieces, right? NOT ANY MORE! Many auto manufacturers are now using AS-1 laminated glass that requires a special saw to cut into instead of the past AS-2 tempered glass that will when broken, crumble into small granular chunks.

Living in a Subdivision with a large retention pond and several others nearby, let alone a large lake we both have an object to break the drivers glass, just in case. I checked the glass markings on my 2007 Nitro and found AS-2 on the side windows (AS-1 on windshield) and AS-3 on the sunroof glass (?) so I'm O.K. Not the same for my Wife's 2010 Ford Taurus that uses AS-1 laminated Acoustic front door glass! Told here to say clear of driving into ponds and that tool is not going to work anyway!

Every year, there are 10,000 accidents in this country that result in vehicles ending up in the water,” Kidwell said. “And, there are 400 deaths.

“I think it’s imperative that drivers know what type of glass [is on their car],” said Al Vangura, founder of Pittsburgh-based We Cut Glass, which manufactures and markets to first responders a specialized drill designed to quickly cut through laminated glass. “Knowing what your options are can make all the difference in those critical first seconds.”

You can do that simply by looking at the markings on the window itself.

Most car windows include a label in the lower right corner that will say either “tempered” or “laminated.” Sometimes the glass type will be represented by markings. “AS-1” means the glass is laminated, “AS-2” means the glass is tempered.

You can also roll the window down partially and look at it from above. Laminated glass will have a ridge at the top, while tempered glass will be smooth.

Click here for the latest list of current models with standard laminated side windows.

“You need to ask those questions,” said Voight. “Find out when you buy a new vehicle what kind of glass you’ve got in your car. That simple piece of information could help you get out.”

Click on the below Local TV LINK to see video:
Car window type crucial when sinking

AS stands for American Standard. The number indicates the position in the vehicle where the glass may be used, based on its optical quality. AS1 is the clearest glass (at least 70% light transmission), is laminated, and can be used anywhere in a motor vehicle (typically just the windshield). AS2 is tempered with at least 70% light transmissions, and can be used anywhere except the windshield, and AS3 can be used in certain locations in certain vehicles (and can be laminated or tempered, and has less than 70% light transmission).

SOURCE

Toughened or tempered glass is a type of safety glass processed by controlled thermal or chemical treatments to increase its strength compared with normal glass. Tempering creates imbalanced internal stresses which cause the glass, when broken, to crumble into small granular chunks instead of splintering into jagged shards. The granular chunks are less likely to cause injury.

As a result of its safety and strength, tempered glass is used in a variety of demanding applications, including passenger vehicle windows, shower doors, architectural glass doors and tables, refrigerator trays, as a component of bulletproof glass, for diving masks, and various types of plates and cookware. In the United States, federal safety laws require that window glass be tempered if each of the following criteria are met: sill height within 18 in (0.457 m) of the floor, top edge greater than 36 in (0.914 m) from the floor, area greater than 9 ft² (0.836 m²), and horizontal distance to nearest walking surface of less than 36 in (0.914 m).

SOURCE