‘I’m a car expert - this is what black dots on car windscreens are really for’

A leading motoring expert has explained the importance of the small black dots fitted on every petrol, diesel and electric car windscreens in the UK. The dots are not just there for aesthetics, with the pattern and black band crucial for keeping the glass screen in one piece.

A specialist at supercar dealership GVE London explained the dots help “absorb and distribute heat” evenly across the glass. This generally helps to protect the windscreen from shattering, keeping road users safe behind the wheel.

Speaking on TikTok, GVE London explained: “Do you ever wonder why you’ve got these small black dots on your windscreen? Let me explain. The black line here is there to hide the sealing behind the windscreen. When it’s hot, what does black do, it absorbs all the heat.

“So when it absorbs all the heat, you don’t want the heat to just be there on the black liner because it will cause the windscreen to crack. These dots are there to distribute the heat evenly on the windscreen to prevent the glass from cracking or shattering. Also, when you buy a non genuine windscreen they might not have these dots which can cause your windscreen to crack. Make sure you get a genuine windscreen.”

Social media users were left stunned by the revelation, with many admitting they didn’t understand what the purpose of the dots were until now.

TikTok user @rossy230 said: “I thought it was just for looks / style.” @meee7861 added: “Wow you learn something every day.”

@wul7672 reacted: “I [used] to wonder what they were for, thanks for explaining.”

However, an expert even suggested that mechanics would never fit a windscreen without black dots due to “safety” issues. TikTok user @connorsmith286 explained: “As a windscreen fitter, we would never ever fit a screen without them.”

Experts at AutoGlaze have previously explained the importance of ‘frits’ in distributing heat around the windscreen.

They commented: “The black dots, or ‘dot matrix’ actually help distribute temperature evenly to lessen optical distortion or ‘lensing’. This happens when the frit band (the solid black one) heats up much faster than the windscreen’s glass, creating an optical distortion that makes either straight lines look curved or bowed inwards toward the centre.

“Those ‘gradually sinking’ black dots help lessen this phenomenon by dissipating the heat and spreading it out evenly.”