2018 Subaru Impreza 250 miles 5 days old window cracked!

[DevenW]

I wish I could post a picture but I don't see an option is it because I'm a new member? Anyways it looks like an impact crack but I'm still baffled I was a solid 300 feet behind anyone and I hear a loud 'explosive' pop and I see a crack starting from the driver side edge about 6 inches across. I've never seen a window do this! Anyone else heard of the new imprezas having weak windows? It's either that or I got hit by a dang boulder. I have the eyesight technology too sounds like this will cost a pretty penny. I've only driven this car maybe 5 times...

[forester2002s]

Take it back to the dealer.

Sounds like a manufacturing defect.

[DevenW]

Take it back to the dealer.

Sounds like a manufacturing defect.

I was going to try that. Is it possible a defect would have like an indention right in the middle of the crack straight across? It's like a perfect line with an indention smack dab in the middle of the hairline crack.

[forester2002s]

2. Take it to an Auto-Glass shop, & ask for advice.

Edited December 2, 2017 by forester2002s

[GeneralDisorder]

See the thing is - glass breaks when you hit it with things like huge rocks. It's funny like that.

 

GD

[DevenW]

See the thing is - glass breaks when you hit it with things like huge rocks. It's funny like that.

 

GD

Obviously. But I wasn't close enough behind anybody for a rock to hit me like that unless it fell out of the sky. I've also been hit by hundreds of rocks in multiple vehicles in my lifetime and never had one immediately put a straight hairline crack across my window. I've even been hit by a large sheet of ice at 70mph that blew off the top of a semi and it left a tiny pit. Windows are designed to withstand rocks to some degree. I was going 45 mph and didn't even see the "rock" so it had to be pretty tiny and it must have fallen from the sky.

[Fairtax4me]

There's a reason you have insurance.

[DevenW]

 

There's a reason you have insurance.

My Insurance won't cover an oem subaru window nor will they pay the price to calibrate it for the eyesight. Edited December 2, 2017 by DevenW

[GeneralDisorder]

So you are saying that because you didn't see it, and because, in your opinion you were too far for an "object" of unknown size and unknown velocity (because you didn't see it) to have broken a (hypothetically non-subaru) windshield, therefore the Subaru windshield was either exceptionally weak, or improperly installed by the robots at the assembly plant.... despite there being clear evidence of a high velocity (I have a hard time seeing bullets whizzing by also) impact to the glass.....riigghhht.

 

It is not a conspiracy against you. Trust me it's just an unfortunate rock damage incident. It happens to everyone.

 

Complicated, late model electronics, when they get broken by acts of god, are expensive to fix. This is one of the many reasons I don't personally own anything newer than 99. Too much foolishness and ridiculous electronics to needlessly complicate my life. Thanks but no. Its enough that I have to fix this junk on a daily at my shop.

 

GD

Edited December 2, 2017 by GeneralDisorder

[DevenW]

So you are saying that because you didn't see it, and because, in your opinion you were too far for an "object" of unknown size and unknown velocity (because you didn't see it) to have broken a (hypothetically non-subaru) windshield, therefore the Subaru windshield was either exceptionally weak, or improperly installed by the robots at the assembly plant.... despite there being clear evidence of a high velocity (I have a hard time seeing bullets whizzing by also) impact to the glass.....riigghhht.

 

GD

You must not be able to read sir. No vehicles were anywhere near in front of me so exactly how did a rock fly into my window to cause a crack, which by the way has now expanded to roughly 10 inches just sitting in my garage, at 45 miles per hr. You must be one of those Subarus are the almighty king kinda guys but if you took 5 minutes to google 'Subaru weak windshields' you'd see a long list of links where it's clear I'm not the first one who's thought this or said this. Sorry that I'm a first time Subaru buyer who is not use to seeing cracks happen at such a large scale from a rock that seemingly came out of nowhere at 45 mph. I've traveled all over the country and have had windshields hit by massive rocks and various things at much higher speeds and never have I seen this happen. So yes naturally being 1 week into my first Subaru and having this occur leads me to think the windshields suck. Make sense? I can think of times in my travels across country driving through Utah at 85-90 miles an hr and seeing the highway littered with large rocks during a busy holiday travel week. I probably got pummeled a dozen times by large rocks in 20 minutes just passing by semis but my windshields have always had no more then pits put in them. Since 2012 I've probably owned 7 different types of brand new vehicles. Kinda weird how I get a Subaru fresh off delivery from the factory with 5 miles on it and 250 miles later my windshield is essentially ruined.

 

My point is. Even if a rock hit my window. At the rate of speed I was at and where the possible impact zone is doesn't explain why it created a straight hairline crack starting from the edge of the window 6 inches across then an hr later I check on it again and it's literally expanded another 4 inches but is now starting to curve and make its way downward as it's parked. One could only assume the window must be pretty weak, yeah?

Edited December 2, 2017 by DevenW

[forester2002s]

Can you tell whether the crack is on the outside or inside of the (laminated) glass?

 

If on the inside, then it wouldn't have been caused by an external flying object.

[GeneralDisorder]

It could have come from oncomming traffic as well.

 

Look - I get that people have no real clue how products are made, but you have to realize two things. First - Subaru, along with every other car maker on earth, DOES NOT MAKE GLASS. They order it from a glass manufacturer- same as everyone else. Second - automotive windshield glass is essentially so highly regulated due to crash test standards, as to be virtually out of the hands of vehicle manufacturers. It's neither made BY Subaru, nor is it made FOR Subaru. It's made to meet mandated standards and simply shaped and cut to the dimensions each manufacturer requires.

 

Windshields break - it happens. It doesn't have to be anyone's fault. It may seem like the rock came out of nowhere, but that is highly unlikely. I've never seen a Subaru of any vintage have a windshield crack for no reason at all.

 

Rocks are highly irregular in shape, and glass will break easily if enough pressure is concentrated on a small enough point. The right rock with the right mass, speed, and a small enough point of contact will make short work of doing the cracking.

 

GD

Edited December 2, 2017 by GeneralDisorder

[golucky66]

I always have full glass coverage on my cars. For crap like this.

Road caused or factory caused. Doesn't matter. Insurance covers it on a full glass plan.

 

And your insurance probably knows your car has eyesight because they ask for the Vin and other info.

So if you have full glass, the insurance Should be covering the recalibration because that is part of the "replace windshield" job

[Stevo F]

My 2014 Impreza windshield cracked from the lower edge the first winter I had it when I ran the defroster on a very cold morning. I did see a small chip in the middle of it so I assume it was impacted earlier by something (I've had those rocks come from nowhere too- just the other day again,likely kicked up by somebody ahead of me). the heat applied to the cold glass stressed it enough to form the crack. Luckily insurance covered the entire thing (I have $0 deductible comprehensive) which i believe was $800, but I didn't have Eyesight to worry about. In general, windshields are lot weaker on the edges- I've seen rocks smack the center but no issues.

[Fairtax4me]

My Insurance won't cover an oem subaru window nor will they pay the price to calibrate it for the eyesight.

Might consider a new insurance company as well.

 

Ive had many rocks hit the windshields of my vehicles. Very rarely do I see them coming.

Probably the only one I remember actually seeing was a chunk of gravel about the size of a baseball and it hit the hood first then rolled up the windshield and left three marks on the glass as it went up.

[Mike104]

I have heard of a number of Subaru windshields cracking on other boards.  Seems the EyeSight system prefers the windshields supplied through Subaru (made by their glass supplier).  Calibration takes some skill/tooling/software to be done right (according to my son who works at a Subaru dealer).  

 

http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/138-gen-5-2015-present/301657-windshield-crack-phenomenon-solved.html

 

http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulletin/f88/windshield-cracks-there-issues-these-windshields-703113/

 

http://www.impreza5.com/forum/11-exterior/2194-weak-windshield.html

[heartless]

Obviously. But I wasn't close enough behind anybody for a rock to hit me like that unless it fell out of the sky. I've also been hit by hundreds of rocks in multiple vehicles in my lifetime and never had one immediately put a straight hairline crack across my window. I've even been hit by a large sheet of ice at 70mph that blew off the top of a semi and it left a tiny pit. Windows are designed to withstand rocks to some degree. I was going 45 mph and didn't even see the "rock" so it had to be pretty tiny and it must have fallen from the sky.

 

Sorry, but unless there were NO other vehicles within sight on the road at the time, and, you were not going under a bridge, it is very probable it was a stone kicked up by another vehicle that caused the crack.

 

Stones fly off of and get kicked up by other vehicles all the time - depending on the size of the stone & how it started moving, they can, and do, travel great distances before either settling down again, or striking something else. It is one of the more common hazards of driving.

 

300 ft is not that far, all things considered - it only takes about 4.5 seconds to cover that distance at 45mph - plenty fast enough for a stone to do some damage.

 

Yes, it sucks that this is on a brand new car, but I sincerely doubt it is the manufacturers fault. Especially since you say there is an impact spot in the middle of the crack.

[keith3267]

Could have been a kid with a pellet gun.  That happened to me once.

[BB's93LegacyL]

Your comment from 12-01-17 is telling. An indentation in the crack suggests impact from a projectile rather than a defective windshield.

Every so often but rarely, when I am in the horse barn that has a metal roof, I hear something hit the roof and roll down. When I check it out, nothing. Every so often things do fall out of the sky. Maybe natural, as a small meteorite fragment, maybe space junk, pellet gun as has been suggested, or a spent round fired by a hunter far away. Birds will carry things and drop them, like dropping a small turtle on a hard surface trying to break open the shell. There are many impact possibilities.

Since it sounds like impact damage, I would go the insurance route after having an auto glass place examine the damage. If the insurance company will not pay for an OEM replacement, check your state's insurance laws. Your insurance should restore full functionality to EyeSight.

Thanks for posting here. This is one of the few auto forums where members try to help each other instead of posting insults. Welcome! It's pretty easy to post images here as the OP. It takes an extra click when replying (look for the "more reply options" button in the lower right.)

Edited December 8, 2017 by BB's93LegacyL