Cars That Just Might Save Your Skin

By Bill McLauchlan

As I write this it’s snowing heavily outside. Yet another in a seemingly endless run of storms this winter. So you can appreciate the irony involved in having you think about sun exposure in your car.

Normally, when we think of overexposure to old Sol, it involves warmer weather, beaches or having fun outdoors. But millions of us get a big portion of our sun exposure when we don’t even realize it – in our cars. Yes, even at this time of year we can’t escape it as we drive during crisp, cold but bright sunny days.

Photo: Dunlop/Newscom

That’s why, if you’re checking out the latest vehicles at an auto show or dealer showroom, you should pay close attention to their glass areas.

Automakers and car buyers alike have trusted in the use of laminated glass in windshields for more than 70 years, mainly for its high-impact safety and layered construction that effectively prevents fragments from scattering during breakage and objects from entering the vehicle’s interior. But laminated glass, a layer of film between two layers of glass, has another positive benefit. It blocks up to 99 percent of the sun’s damaging UV rays.
This radiation reaches the earth as UVA and UVB rays. Glass blocks UVB and the film in laminated windshields blocks the UVA rays as well. But in many cars side and rear windows allow UVA to penetrate.

Research has shown that skin exposed to sun shining through untreated window glass can, over time, lead to significant skin damage. The UV exposure we get while driving especially adds up – especially as traffic congestion and our hectic lives keep us in our cars longer, whether during the daily commute or handling family driving duties. So, it’s no surprise then to find that according to the Skin Cancer Foundation, more than 3.5 million cases of skin cancer in more than two million people are diagnosed annually in North America.

One interesting wrinkle in that picture is that dermatologists have noticed many patients have more sun damage on the left side of their faces than on the right. Why? UVA rays coming through the side windows. The more time we spend driving our cars the more severe the damage on the left side of our face.

As an antidote you’ll find more and more vehicles these days that offer laminated and/or advanced solar control glass in applications beyond the windshield. At recent auto shows in Detroit, Montreal, Chicago and about-to-open Toronto, those window positions include driver and passenger side windows, rear windows and roof glass. Since about 2000, we’ve seen more and more side/roof glass use by car makers as a way to minimize exposure to cancer-causing UV rays. Apart from easing life for your epidermis, other benefits of such laminated glass use includes reduced interior noise, weight saving of 12 percent over conventional tempered glass (helping fuel efficiency) plus enhanced security and safety.

Here are some current vehicles with laminated glass you might want to check out: Acura (MDX and RLX), Buick (LaCrosse and Enclave), Cadillac (ATS, CTS, SRX, XTS and Escalade), Chevrolet (Impala and Equinox), Chrysler (200, 300C and 300S, Dodge Charger and Durango, Jeep Grand Cherokee), Ford (Explorer and Flex), GMC (Terrain and Yukon), Hyundai (Equus and Genesis), Jaguar (XJR), Kia (Optima and K900), Land Rover (Range Rover and Range Rover Sport), Lincoln (MKC, MKS, MKT, MKX and MKZ), Lexus (LX, ES, IS, RX, LS and GS), Mercedes-Benz (S Class and GL), Porsche (Panamera, Panamera Turbo S and Macan) and Toyota (Avalon and Venza).