2020 Subaru Outback

THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A ~12" CRACK VERTICAL CRACK IN THE WINDSHIELD. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AND STATIONARY WHEN THE WINDSHIELD CRACKED. NO KNOWN PEBBLE, ROCK, OR DEBRIS WAS KNOWN TO HAVE STUCK THE WINDSHIELD. THERE WAS A RELATIVELY LOUD "POP" SOUND AND THE CRACK APPEARED IN THE WINDSHIELD. THE CRACK EXTENDS FROM ABOUT HALFWAY UP THE WINDSHIELD DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THE BLACK SECTION OF GLASS THAT SUPPORTS THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS (VISIBLE BUT LESS OBVIOUS IN THE PHOTO THAN THE CRACK THROUGH THE TRANSPARENT SECTION OF THE GLASS). THE VEHICLE WAS ~4 MONTHS OLD (PURCHASED NEW) AT THE TIME THE WINDSHIELD CRACKED. OUTDOOR TEMPERATURES RANGED FROM ~15 TO 35 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT AT THE TIME THE WINDSHIELD CRACKED.

TODAY (26 DECEMBER 2020) AS I PARKED MY 2020 SUBARU OUTBACK IN A BUSINESS PARKING LOT, FOR THE THIRD TIME IN JUST FOUR MONTHS I NOTICED MY WINDSHIELD STARTING TO CRACK FOR NO APPARENT REASON. THERE WERE NO VEHICLES, ROAD DEBRIS , OR WINDS TO CAUSE THIS. THIS IS THE THIRD CRACKED WINDSHIELD ON MY NEW SUBARU IN FOUR MONTHS FOR NO APPARENT REASON. SUBARU HAS A PROBLEM! I HAVE DRIVEN OVER 1.5 MILLION MILES IN FORTY-PLUS PLUS YEARS, AND NEVER IN ALL THE DIFFERENT MANUFACTURERS AND MODELS OF VEHICLES HAVE I EVER HAD ISSUES LIKE THIS!

MY VEHICLE HAD BEEN PARKED, IN A SAFE PLACE, AT MY RESIDENCE FOR APPROXIMATELY 3 DAYS. ONE MORNING, I DISCOVERED A CRACK IN THE WINDSHIELD WHICH BEGAN ON THE PASSENGER SIDE, RUNS IN A SMOOTH LINE, MAKING A TURN UPWARD AND CONTINUES ACROSS THE WINDSHIELD AND STOPS CLOSE TO THE CENTER. THE CAR HAD NOT BEEN STRUCK BY A PROJECTILE OR ANYTHING THE LAST TIME I HAD DRIVEN IT. THERE IS NO "SPIDER-WEBBING" OR MARKS THAT WOULD BE CONSISTENT WITH IT GETTING HIT.

MY 2ND SUBARU OUTBACK IN 3.5 YEARS, AND IT IS THE 3RD TIME I HAVE TO REPLACE A WINDSHIELD (?!) THIS TIME IT IS ONLY IN 4 MONTHS OLD CAR, 2020 MODEL. I WAS NOT EVEN DRIVING WHEN I NOTICED THE WINDSHIELD CRACK POPPING UP - I WAS PARKED IN FRONT OF MY HOME, JUST STARTED THE CAR TO WARM IT UP. LOWER SECTION IN FRONT OF THE DRIVER'S SEAT, SLIGHTLY TOWARDS THE CENTER. I INSPECTED THE AREA ON THE BOTTOM OF THE WINDSHIELD WHERE IT APPEARED THE FIRST - NO APPARENT IMPACT OF THE ROCK OR SOME OTHER FLYING OBJECT. IT SEEMS LIKE THE GAP ON THE CRACK IS ABOUT 1/2 MM WIDE - LIKE THE PRESSURE FROM THE INSIDE IS TO BLAME FOR THE CRACK? (SEE THE PICTURES). OTHER PEOPLE I KNOW THAT OWN (OR HAVE OWNED) OUTBACKS ALSO HAD THEIR WINDSHIELD CRACKING. I GOOGLED IT ' I SEE THE INFORMATION ABOUT CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT ON THE WEB. HTTPS://WWW.TORQUENEWS.COM/1084/NEW-RULING-SUBARU-CRACKED-WINDSHIELD-LAWSUIT-NOW-ADDS-25M-CARS SOMETHING IS JUST NOT RIGHT HERE. SUBARU NEEDS TO STEP UP AND OWN IT, BEFORE SOMETHING HAPPENS TO ONE OF THEIR CUSTOMERS.

VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON THE HIGHWAY AND A LARGE CRACK, APPROXIMATELY 12 INCHES IN LENGTH, APPEARED FOLLOWING IMPACT WITH A VERY, VERY SMALL PIECE OF DEBRIS, 1 CM MAX DIAMETER. NEAR IMMEDIATELY A SECOND PIECE OF DEBRIS, ALSO 1 CM MAX DIAMETER, CAUSED AN 8 INCH CRACK IN LENGTH ON IMPACT WEATHER WAS WARMER THAN USUAL THAT WEEK, COMPARED TO PRECEDING DAYS. THE VEHICLE WAS CHANGING LANES WHEN THIS HAPPENED. NEVER HAD AN ISSUE LIKE THIS WITH ANY OTHER VEHICLE.

OUR WINDSHIELD CRACKED AND THE CRACK RAN IN A MATTER OF MINUTES. I EXPECT A BROKEN WINDSHIELD FROM TIME TO TIME BUT THIS SEEMED VERY ABNORMAL. THE WINDSHIELD WAS LESS THAN 6 MONTHS OLD AND THE SMALL CHIP OCCURRED AFTER A TINY, TINY ROCK HIT THE WINDSHIELD. THIS WAS WEIRD BECAUSE AFTER YEARS OF DRIVING IN COLORADO SMALL DEBRI HIT OUR WINDOWS ALL THE TIME BUT NEVER CAUSE ANY DAMAGE. THEN THE CHIP RAN ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE WINDOW IN A MATTER OF HOURS. IT WASN'T EVEN COLD OR HOT, IT JUST FREAKISHLY RAN ACROSS THE WINDOW. SOMETHING JUST DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT FOR A NEW WINDOW TO FRACTURE LIKE THIS SO QUICKLY.

TODAY 12-3-20 WE WERE DRIVING ON I-95 IN FLORIDA TO SEE MY SON FOR THE 1ST TIME IN OVER A YEAR (AIR FORCE). SMALL ROAD PARTICLES WERE STIRRED UP FROM THE ROAD, (NOT ANYTHING LARGE, YOU BARELY HEARD IT HIT THE WINDSHIELD, ALMOST LIKE SAND) AND THEN WE HEARD A CRACKING SOUND, LOOKED AT OUR WINDSHIELD AND THERE IS ABOUT A 9 INCH CRACK ALL OF THE WAY TO THE BOTTOM TOWARD WIPERS, UP TOWARDS THE TOP. I'M 40 YEARS OLD AND HAVE NEVER HAD A WINDSHIELD CRACK, MUST LESS LIKE THIS OVER SUCH ROAD SMALL PARTICLES. ABOUT 3 MONTHS AGO, I WAS DRIVING ON I85 TO WORK, AND THE SAME THING HAPPENED BUT I CHALKED IT UP TO MAYBE THE DEBRIS WAS LARGER THAN I THOUGHT. TODAY MY HUSBAND, SON, AND NIECE WERE SIN THE CAR WITH ME...AND FRANKLY I AM CONCERNED THAT IF ANYTHING LARGE EVER HITS THIS WINDSHIELD, IT WILL SHATTER, OR THE ITEM WILL COME THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD. SO I DO. IT FEEL SAFE DRIVING THE VEHICLE FOR THIS VERY REASON. A WINDSHIELD IS SUPPOSED TO PROTECT AND I AM NOT CONFIDENT OR CONVINCED AT THIS POINT AT ALL THAT THIS ONE ON MY 2020 OUTBACK WOULD STAND A CHANCE AT ANY MIDSIZE ROAD HAZARD. BEFORE UPGRADING TO THE OUTBACK, I HAD A 2016 CROSSTREK AND HAD A 'LARGE ROCK' HIT MY WINDSHIELD, WHEN IT DID IT SCARED ME IT HIT SO HARD....ALL THAT WAS LEFT AFTER THAT MASSIVE RICK HIT WAS A SMALL HALF MOON SHAPED CHIP. THIS 2020 OUTBACK COULD IN NO WAY TAKE AN IMPACT LIKE THAT ONE. IT COULD SEVERELY HURT ME OR WHOMEVER IS DRIVING, INCLUDING MY 16 YEAR OLD SON IF THE WINDSHIELD WERE TO SHATTER IF IT IS HIT AGAIN. THIS NEEDS TO BE RECALLED AND REPLACED. FOR SUBARU, ALL ABOUT SAFETY, IT IS A SERIOUS ISSUE THAT AS A LOYAL SUBARU OWNER HAS ME QUESTIONING THE MISSION STATEMENTS AND HEARTFELT COMMERCIALS THAT WE SEE DAILY. MAKE IT RIGHT SUBARU. FIX IT!!