Cowl braces and windshield support assemblies with cowl braces

A windshield support assembly, comprising:

• a windshield extending in a vehicle widthwise direction;
• a cowl upper extending in the vehicle widthwise direction and comprising a windshield support section connected to the windshield;
• a cowl lower extending in the vehicle widthwise direction and comprising a cowl upper support section connected to the cowl upper and a dash support section connected to a dash;
• and
• a cowl brace comprising an upper portion comprising a plurality of upper legs connected to the cowl upper, a lower portion comprising a plurality of lower legs connected to the cowl lower and a continuous body portion connecting the upper portion and the lower portion wherein the cowl brace is configured to bend under an impact to the windshield such that the cowl upper moves toward the cowl lower.

A windshield support assembly comprising:

• a cowl upper that extends in a vehicle widthwise direction and is configured to connect to a windshield;
• a cowl lower that extends in the vehicle widthwise direction and is configured to connect to the cowl upper;
• and
• a cowl brace that comprises an upper portion, a lower portion and a continuous body portion connecting the upper portion and the lower portion wherein at least one of the upper portion and the lower portion includes a plurality of legs, each leg of the plurality of legs being connected to the cowl upper or the cowl lower at spaced-apart locations along the vehicle widthwise direction, wherein the plurality of legs comprises beads.