Experts explain why those black dots on your windshield serve an important purpose

If you’ve ever taken a proper look at your car’s windshield, you’ve probably noticed some small black dots around the edge, but you’ve also probably given them little thought. 

Well, it turns out that not only do they have their own name – flits – and an important job.

When it comes to our cars, it’s easy for some things to slip past our attention, like the small plastic plugs on the seatbelts, or the mystery button a man found inside his Ram truck. 

But, of course, each element does have its own purpose, and when it comes to flits, it’s pretty vital.

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Here’s what those black dots actually do

The small black dots are easy enough to miss, particularly if you’re not actually looking for them, but whether you’ve noticed them or not, they’ve been serving an important role.

Each frit is a painted black enamel that is then ‘baked’ into the edges of the windshield when it’s being made. 

Usually, the area appears as a solid black band that then fades into smaller dots.

Although they look tiny, they serve several purposes, according to Autoglaze. 

Firstly, the black dots create a rough surface, which helps the adhesive between the glass and the car’s frame to stick better. 

Similarly, the frits help protect the sealant that is used to bond the glass to the frame and block UV rays that could damage the glue. 

Alongside that, the dots also help to evenly distribute the temperature, which prevents optical distortion known as ‘lensing’. 

If the black band heated up faster than the rest of the glass, it could make straight lines appear to be bending, which could be dangerous for the driver. 

However, the small dots help to stop this by spreading the heat more evenly and stopping lensing.

There’s actually four reasons the dots are on your windshield

Who knew that a small bunch of black dots could be so useful?

And that’s not all, as well as making driving safer, Autoglaze says carmakers also include them to make cars look better. 

To avoid a stark contrast between the dark bands and the clear glass, the neat smattering of little dots gives a much more subtle look.

So there you have it, they might not look like much, but it turns out those little frits are doing a lot of work.

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