Every year, before you can renew the registration on a North Carolina car, it has to pass a safety inspection. Drivers with a cracked windshield in Raleigh often book a glass appointment right before that inspection, worried the crack will stop them. Here is what the law actually says the inspection looks at, at the front of the car.
The nine items on the list
The inspection is set out in G.S. 20-183.3. It covers nine items: brakes, lights, horn, steering, windshield wipers, directional signals, tires, mirrors, and exhaust and emissions devices. NCDOT’s own list of what is inspected matches it: headlights, accessory lights, directional signals, foot brake, parking brake, steering, tires, horn, rear-view mirror, windshield wipers, exhaust system and emission control components.
NCDOT says a North Carolina registered vehicle must pass the annual safety inspection before its owner can renew its registration. Vehicles more than thirty years old are exempt, and an emissions inspection also applies in 19 counties.
The wipers: what the rule says
At the windshield, the item on the list is the wipers. G.S. 20-127(a) says a vehicle with a windshield ‘shall have a windshield wiper to clear rain or other substances from the windshield in front of the driver’ and that it ‘shall be in good working order’.
The inspection rule, 19A NCAC 03D .0536, spells out when wipers ‘shall not be approved’:
- The vehicle has a windshield but no wiper.
- The wipers ‘do not operate freely’.
- The driver cannot reach the controls.
- They are ‘not adequate to clean rain, snow and other matter from the windshield’.
- ‘Parts of blades or arms are missing or show evidence of damage.’
So before an inspection, check the wipers. Run them on the washer: they should sweep without juddering, leave the glass clear rather than smeared, and park properly. Look at the rubber edge of each blade for splits and at the arms for bends. Blades are a small part and are worth replacing when they smear.
The glass itself is not on the list
Nothing in G.S. 20-183.3, in G.S. 20-127, in G.S. 20-135 or in the wiper rule mentions windshield cracks, chips or a size limit. North Carolina has no statute or inspection rule that sets a crack size for a windshield. The inspection checks your wipers, not the glass.
That does not make a crack something to ignore. The Auto Glass Safety Council describes the windshield as part of the passenger restraint system, and a crack in your line of sight is a safety problem whatever the inspection says. G.S. 20-135 separately requires safety glass in the windshields of vehicles made on or after January 1, 1936. And a crack in front of the driver can also make the wipers less effective, which is the one thing the inspection does look at.
Tint came off the list in 2025
Window tint used to be checked at inspection. Section 22 of S.L. 2025-47 (Senate Bill 391) removed tint from the safety inspection, effective December 1, 2025. The tint limits in G.S. 20-127 still apply on the road. On the windshield, tint is allowed only along the top, not more than five inches down or below the AS1 line, whichever is longer, and that rule has no exceptions. A clear UV-blocking film that does not obstruct vision is allowed.
What to do about a crack before inspection
Treat it as a safety question rather than an inspection question. If it is a small chip or a short crack away from the edge, a repair may stop it where it is; our page on rock chip repair in Raleigh NC explains which chips can be filled. If it is long, at the edge or in front of the driver, read windshield repair vs replacement in Raleigh to see why a new windshield is usually the answer. Impex Auto Glass does both at your car in north-east Raleigh.
If the windshield is replaced, the urethane needs time to cure before the car is driven, and newer cars may need the camera behind the glass calibrated. Leave a little room in the schedule before the inspection appointment.
Request a quote
Three short steps: the damage, your vehicle and how to reach you. Impex comes back to you with a quote.
Questions drivers ask
Does a cracked windshield stop a car passing inspection in NC?
The NC safety inspection checks the wipers, not the glass, and no NC statute sets a crack size. A crack in your line of sight is still a safety problem and worth fixing.
Are window tint levels still checked at NC inspection?
No. S.L. 2025-47 removed tint from the safety inspection from December 1, 2025. The tint limits in G.S. 20-127 still apply on the road.
What wiper problems does the NC inspection look for?
Missing wipers, wipers that do not move freely, controls the driver cannot reach, wipers that do not clean the glass, and blades or arms that are missing parts or damaged.
Get a quote
Send the quote form or call, and Impex Auto Glass will set a time for your windshield.