“Even a hammer can’t break a window in a flood” ... One in four cars comes standard with laminated glass

[Financial News] When doors cannot be opened after a car is flooded or involved in a rollover, occupants must break a window to escape. But laminated glass, which is increasingly being used in the side windows of newer cars, has proved difficult to break even with commercially available emergency escape hammers. With laminated glass standard in the side windows of the first and second rows in roughly one in four cars sold in Korea, caution is warranted.
According to the Korea Consumer Agency on the 4th, a survey of 47 models sold by six domestic automakers found that 36 models, or 76.6%, could be equipped with laminated glass in the first-row side windows as either standard or optional equipment. Laminated glass could be fitted in both the first and second rows in 25 models (53.2%); of these, 12 (25.5%) came with it as standard across all trim levels.
The Kia K9 and Genesis G90 were found to come standard with laminated glass in the windshield, the side windows in the first and second rows, and even the rear window, making it virtually impossible to escape by breaking a window in an emergency.
Laminated glass consists of two sheets of glass bonded together with a polymer film between them, making it more impact-resistant than tempered glass. In tests by the Korea Consumer Agency, a 2.26 kg steel ball dropped from a height of 5 m broke and penetrated tempered glass. Laminated glass cracked at 5 m but was not penetrated; it broke and was penetrated only when the ball was dropped from 10 m.
The difference was also clear in tests using four commercially available emergency escape hammers. All four products—including hammer-type, center-punch-type and card-style tools—could break tempered glass, but they only cracked the laminated glass at the point of impact and did not break it. The Korea Consumer Agency said laminated glass may also be difficult to break with items such as the metal rods in a headrest.
However, many consumers were not well informed about these characteristics. A survey of 1,000 consumers found that 76.5% did not know laminated glass could be used in side windows. Asked what was needed to help people escape in an emergency, 73.2% cited guidance on how to escape from a vehicle, followed by instructions on using emergency escape tools (65.3%) and information about side windows (58.9%).
The survey also found that automakers were not providing enough information. Most manufacturers promoted laminated glass as “double-laminated acoustic glass” and emphasized its ability to reduce outside noise, but they did not do enough to help consumers easily determine that it is harder to break than tempered glass or identify exactly where it is used.
The Korea Consumer Agency recommended that automakers improve safety labeling for windows, offer laminated side windows as an option, and provide emergency escape hammers in new vehicles at delivery. It also urged relevant government ministries to develop vehicle escape guidelines that take the characteristics of laminated glass into account.
The Korea Consumer Agency urged drivers to “keep an emergency escape tool inside the vehicle and check in advance which windows in their vehicle are tempered glass that can be broken, in preparation for an emergency.”

[email protected] Kim Hyun-ji Reporter