2019 Subaru Outback

2019 SUBARU OUTBACK PURCHASED 2/20/19; TOOK POSSESSION 2/22/19. ON 4/14/19 TWO VERY LARGE (18-24IN)CRACKS, RAPIDLY SPREADING APPEARED AS I STARTED UP MY VEHICLE. ONE CRACK STARTED ABOUT 2 IN ABOVE THE LOWER CORNER ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE. APPROXIMATELY 2 WEEKS BEFORE THIS CRACK APPEARED, A VERY SMALL PIECE OF GRAVEL STRUCK THE WINDSHIELD IN THIS AREA BUT NO DAMAGE/CRACKS/HOLES WERE VISIBLE ON CLOSE INSPECTION FOLLOWING THIS. THE SECOND CRACK ORIGINATED APPROX. MIDWAY BELOW THE WIPER APPARATUS ON THE DRIVERS SIDE. THERE HAD BEEN NO ROCKS HITTING IN THIS AREA PREVIOUSLY OR OTHER DAMAGE. AGAIN, BOTH CRACKS STARTED AFTER THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN IMMOBILE OVERNIGHT IN MY GARAGE; THE TEMPERATURE THAT MORNING WAS IN THE HIGH 40S (48F) AND IMMEDIATELY OCCURRED ON STARTING THE VEHICLE AND SPREAD WITHIN SECONDS TO 18-24 INCHES ARCHING ACROSS THE DRIVER'S SIDE WINDSHIELD. SINCE, THE CRACKS HAVE CONTINUED TO SPREAD APPROX 1-3 INCHES PER DAY. IN CONTACTING THE DEALERSHIP, THEY DENY ANY ISSUES WITH SUBARU OUTBACK WINDSHIELDS. THIS IS UNLIKE ANY WINDSHIELD CRACKING EXPERIENCE I HAVE HAD AND DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE DUE TO ROCK DAMAGE, OTHER EXTERNAL DAMAGE.

I WAS DRIVING FROM SACRAMENTO TO LONG BEACH - ABOUT 200 MILES INTO THE JOURNEY, AT ABOUT 6:10/6:15 ON A MILD EVENING (TEMPERATURE WAS ABOUT 75) MY SUNROOF SUDDENLY EXPLODED. THE ROAD CONDITION WERE FINE, THERE WAS NO DEBRIS IN THE ROAD THAT I COULD SEE OR WAS AWARE OF. I WAS TRAVELING WITH TRAFFIC AT ABOUT 75 MPH (SPEED LIMIT IS 70). THE SOUND WAS LIKE A SHOTGUN BLAST. IT WAS, WITHOUT EXCEPTION, ONE OF THE MOST FRIGHTENING EXPERIENCES I'VE HAD, PARTICULARLY IN A VEHICLE. I PULLED OVER AND SAW WHAT HAD OCCURRED. IT IS UNLIKELY THAT SOMETHING STRUCK THE SUNROOF - I HAD A THULE CARGO BOX ON THE VEHICLE AND NOTHING COULD HAVE STRUCK IT FROM ABOVE. IT WAS ALSO UNLIKELY FOR SOMETHING TO HAVE HIT THE WINDSHIELD FROM THE ROAD - IT WOULD HAVE HAD TO FIT IN THE SPACE BETWEEN THE HOOD AND THE CARGO BOX AND I HEARD NOTHING BEFORE THE EXPLOSION - ADDITIONALLY, THERE IS NO DAMAGE OR EVIDENCE OF ANYTHING HITTING THE ROOF ANYWHERE ELSE THAT I CAN SEE NOW. I HAVE CONTACTED SUBARU AND MADE THEM AWARE THEY HAVE BEGUN THEIR OWN INTERNAL INVESTIGATION.

MY CONCERN IS WITH THE QUALITY AND SAFETY OF THE WINDSHIELD ON THE 2019 SUBARU OUTBACK. I PURCHASED A 2019 SUBARU OUTBACK ON 12/31/18. IT NOW HAS 3200 MILES ON IT. ON 04/17/19 I NOTICED AN 8-10 INCH CRACK IN THE WINDSHIELD. THERE WAS A VERY SMALL, BARELY NOTICEABLE, CHIP WITHIN THE CRACK. AT NO TIME DID I HEAR ANYTHING HIT THE WINDSHIELD WHILE DRIVING. THEREFORE, A CRACKED WINDSHIELD WAS SHOCKING AND ENTIRELY UNEXPECTED FROM SUCH MINIMAL CONTACT WITH THE WINDSHIELD. WHEN THE CAR IS NOT IN USE IT IS GARAGE KEPT. MY COMMUTE HAS NOT CHANGED SINCE BUYING THIS CAR AND I HAVE NEVER HAD A CAR WINDSHIELD CRACK IN OVER 30 YEARS OF DRIVING. DUE TO THE SIZE OF THE CRACK, THE ENTIRE WINDSHIELD MUST BE REPLACED AND THE SUBARU "EYESIGHT" SYSTEM RE-CALIBRATED. IT IS MY OPINION THAT THE WINDSHIELD SHOULD NOT HAVE CRACKED IN THIS SITUATION. A SIMPLE GOOGLE SEARCH INDICATES THAT OTHERS HAVE CONCERNS WITH THE 2019 SUBARU OUTBACK WINDSHIELD.

ON TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS, SOMETHING WAS KICKED UP AND HIT THE WINDSHIELD OF THE VEHICLE. BOTH TIME AN IMMEDIATE CRACK WAS SENT THROUGHT THE WINDSHIELD. BOTH TIMES WERE ON AN HIGHWAY, TRAVELING ABOUT 45MPH. I HAVE HAD THINGS POP UP AND HIT MY WINDSHIELD IN OTHER VEHICLES AND MAYBE THEY JUST CHILL OR STAR . I FEEL THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE STRENGTH OF THE GLASS THAT IS USED, IN THIS VEHICLE I FEEL IT IS EXTREMELY WEAK.

THE WINDSHIELD DEVELOPED A CRACK AND SIGNIFICANT EXPANSION CRACKS WHILE DRIVING 70MPH ON A HIGHWAY ON 27MAR2019. THERE WAS NO CAR WITHIN 1-2 FOOTBALL FIELDS. THIS WAS ON A 4-LANE DIVIDED HIGHWAY. THE PEBBLE THAT MAY HAVE HIT MY WINDSHIELD SHOULD NOT HAVE CAUSED THE SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO THE WINDSHIELD SINCE NO VEHICLE WAS NEARBY. I HAVE HAD THIS CAR FOR <2 MONTHS AND HAVE DRIVEN IT ~3500 MILES. IT WAS BRAND NEW. IT APPEARS THERE IS A MANUFACTURING DEFECT THAT MAY BE SIMILAR TO THE 2015-2016 OUTBACK. I AM CONCERNED THAT THERE MAY CONTINUED CRACKS/FRACTURES OF THE WINDSHIELD WITH MINIMAL TRAUMA. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.