Heat Waves Can Cause Shattered Car Windows and Cracked Roads

Who doesn’t love summertime? The sun is shining, there’s no snow to shovel, kids get a few months off from school, and there is more time to hang by the pool or the beach. But with every upside, there can be a dowside. That is the case when very intense heat can take its toll on our cars and roads.

In a report by CBS, extreme cases of heat, wind, and air pressure can cause your car’s windows to break. It can cause materials like glass to expand, and it is even worse when there is moist air inside the car. The more it builds, the more that air will put pressure on tempered glass. Even if there is a small crack or chip in the glass, that is all it needs to do some damage.

Parking indoors, in parking garages, or in the shade can help avoid possible damage to your windows, as well as prevent your car’s paint to fade. Slightly cracking your window open can help air move in and out of the cabin. Plus, you won’t feel like you are stepping into an oven when you re-enter your vehicle.

Products like car covers, sunshades, and car seat covers can also help avoid any heat-related damage.

Another side effect of extreme heat conditions is causing cracks and buckles in the streets. According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation, there were many reported cases of cracks seen in concrete roads and sidewalks. Due to the road slabs expanding from the extreme heat, if they keep pressing into each other, they will find themselves cracking upwards.

Perhaps all of those off-roading Jeep drivers with the removable doors and windows were really onto something.