Swiss-based specialty chemicals company Sika held Malaysia’s first automotive windscreen crash test evaluation, certified by the Malaysia Book of Records, at the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) PC3 laboratory in Melaka earlier today.
The test, the firm said, was aimed at showcasing its windscreen adhesive and how a structurally bonded windscreen strengthens a car’s cabin and protects its occupants. To demonstrate this, a Sika-certified auto glass installer performed a live windscreen install on a Perodua Ativa, before the car was subjected to a full-frontal collision at 48 km/h.
According to the company, a correctly-bonded windscreen holds itself in place, supports the airbags as they inflate, and ensures the ‘bags and crash structure work as designed, in addition to making sure occupants don’t get ejected from the vehicle (although you should, of course, still wear a seat belt). It also reinforces the roof in case of a rollover.
Conversely, a windscreen installed poorly, either by using the wrong adhesive or letting the vehicle drive off before proper curing, can detach in a collision. Sika added that our hot and humid climate also shortens the adhesive’s working time (i.e. how long the windscreen can be positioned and adjusted before the adhesive starts to set), making expertise in fitting auto glass that much more critical.
“A windscreen is a safety component, yet it is often replaced on price and speed alone. What matters just as much is the adhesive used and the standard of the installation, because those are what keep the glass in place when it is needed most,” said Sika Malaysia head of automotive and industry Daphne Wong. “We chose to show this in a live crash rather than explain it on paper, so there is no doubt about how much the quality of a replacement matters.”
The live install used Sika’s latest adhesive, SikaTack Drive, which is claimed to offer a minimum drive away time (MDAT, i.e. how long the vehicle needs to be stationary for the adhesive to cure) of just one hour, compared to about three hours for a conventional adhesive. This is said to enable workshops to get cars in and out faster, boosting productivity.
As a demonstration, the company set a 60-minute countdown timer once the windscreen was installed, and when the clock struck zero the Ativa was immediately subjected to the frontal collision. The windscreen cracked at the base as a result of the impact but was otherwise intact, as was most of the body structure – allowing all four doors to open (this was a five-star ASEAN NCAP-rated car, after all).
Sika says SikaTack Drive has been crash tested as part of the US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 212, which determines how well a windscreen stays in place in an accident, using 95th-percentile crash test dummies. It added that over 400,000 vehicles in Malaysia get windscreens installed with Sika adhesives every year.
Concurrently, the company is holding a monthly lucky draw for customers getting their windscreens replaced at a certified workshop from September 15 to December 31. Those who submit a photo of their workshop’s Sika-branded signboard together with their receipt will stand a chance to win a petrol card worth RM100.
