2022 Subaru Outback

The windshield cracked during a severe weather incident where outside temperature was -24 degrees. There were no stone chips or any other issues with the windshield. I drove the car for approximately 20 minutes with the defroster on, when I got home I pulled the car into the garage, when I got back into the vehicle the windshield was cracked from the bottom left of the driver’s side across the windshield toward the middle. I took the vehicle to safelite first, they said the sandwich piece of glass between the exterior section and interior section of the windshield had suffered a failure to to extreme temperature differential. They had seen a number of similar failures since from the prior weekend. They said it is a manufacture issue and said to take it to the dealer for a warranty issue. I took it the the Subaru dealer where I purchased the vehicle, they inspected the windshield and took a number of photographs to submit to Subaru. I was told their windshield experts would examine the photos and get back to them with an answer, that will be four weeks ago tomorrow, Friday the 27th. Meanwhile I’m driving a vehicle with a broken windshield which is not safe. I called Subaru customer care and they are trying to contact the dealership about the claim submission but haven’t been successful. I can certainly pay to replace the windshield, however, if it is a manufactured error I believe Subaru should honor the claim and replace it. I searched the Subaru Outback owners portal and found numerous similar incidents where owners claimed the windshield failed under similar circumstances. According to safelite, Subaru windshields are softer than most manufacturers in an effort to save weight and expense.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated the vehicle was parked outside his driveway for four days; however, while approaching the vehicle, he noticed that the front windshield was cracked. The contact stated that no object had struck the windshield to cause the crack. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and photos were taken and sent to the manufacturer. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the complaint was reviewed and the replacement might not be covered under warranty. The failure mileage was 7,000. The contact stated that both the glass shop and the Subaru dealer said that there was a microscopic chip that may have caused the crack.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while reversing out of his residence garage at approximately 2 MPH, he had noticed a long crack in the front windshield which had started on the passenger’s side of the windshield and extended across, moving upwards and stopped underneath the rearview mirror. The contact had not noticed any strike marks on the windshield that could have caused the failure. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer where it was determined that the windshield needed to be replaced. The contact was directed to a third-party windshield repair shop. The vehicle had been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, she heard an abnormal noise and noticed a crack on the front passenger’s side bottom corner of the windshield. The contact stated that no object had struck the windshield to cause the crack. The contact stated that she was awaiting an appointment for the replacement. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 6,000.

My first complaint was filed on 8/2/2022 @2,807 miles. Here we are again, not even 6 weeks later and it happened again. The dealer did replace my windshield. It took me driving there three different times to finally catch the manager so he could take pictures and file a claim with Subaru. Subaru did accept the claim and replaced the windshield. I was without my car for three days while this repair was done. Driving home last night, My 19 year old so was in the passenger seat. He says look mom, the windshield is cracking. Sure enough, no impact was heard or seen, it just started cracking in the same spot as the first time. It was such a hassle to get the first repair done and now I have to do it again!!! Ugh...I now wish I had never bought this car.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, a horizontal crack formed on the middle driver’s side edge of the windshield. Within thirty minutes, the contact stated that the crack had expanded vertically and horizontally across the windshield to approximately 22-inches horizontally and 2.5-inches vertically. The contact stated that the crack obstructed her vision while driving. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure and neither offered any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 3,550.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, a small rock struck the windshield and immediately caused a crack. The windshield was replaced by the insurance company and the dealer. The contact stated that while driving a cracking sound was heard and the windshield cracked with glass pieces falling off. The contact stated that no injuries were sustained. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that a rock had struck the windshield causing the damage. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that she was informed that she should contact NHTSA as there was an issue with the OEM windshields. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 3,800.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, a horizontal crack developed on the middle edge of the passenger’s side windshield. The contact stated that the crack formed without impact and slowly spread towards the middle of the windshield. The contact stated that the crack obstructed her vision while driving. The dealer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.

The contact owns a 2022 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle overnight, the next morning it was discovered that the front windshield had developed a ten-inch-long crack. The contact indicated that no object had struck the windshield to cause the windshield to crack. The local dealer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 6,500. THE CONSUMER STATED THAT THE VEHICLE REPAIRED UNDER WARRANTY AND THE CONSUMER WOULD LIKE TO WITHDRAW THE COMPLAINT.