This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
A few days ago, a crack suddenly appeared in the windshield. It appeared when the car was parked in the garage. I reached out to SUbaru and they wanted me to take it to dealtership and get pictures taken. So, i complied and pictures were taken. The cause was given as a less than a mm speckk hitting about 1 inch or so above from dash. Area where glass is supposed to be strongest. I repeat, the cause was less than a mm sized dust particle. The vehicle was driven on paved roads, within city at a max speed of 60 miles per hour. MY concen is that when such a small speck can cause a crack, what is to say a 5 mm particle will not blow the windshield on my face. This is a serious quality concern and I am afraid to drive Subaru with Subaru parts in it. ALl while it is advertised as rugged off road vehicle. After reading through forums, it was found that a lot of folks have had this issue and SUbaru has had recalls on some vehicles for the same quality of windshield issue. The response from Subaru was that they make thin glass because of eyesight technology. Either ways, Subaru has compromised on quality to add a piece of technology. Compromise that could shatter the windshield while driving on highways causing accident or worse. I will be happy to provide pictures and communication with Subaru if needed.
We are on our 4th windshield with this vehicle and just got a crack overnight on it, nothing that we could tell hit it. 1 other time this has happened where it randomly cracked. The first two were rock strikes but nothing out of the ordinary, I've had much harder hits to my 2011 WRX with no issue, not even a chip. A smaller than golf ball sized rock hit the passenger side of the windshield the 2nd break and glass CAME INTO THE VEHICLE ALL OVER THE DASH. Glass repair place said they see Subarus with the eyeSight the most of any vehicle type.
Went out in the morning to get in my car and noticed the windshield was a crack that starts close to bottom of windshield on passengers side and goes up and across about half of the windshield. I have not noticed anything else wrong with the windshield. It literally cracked while sitting in the driveway. There were no rock pecks or anything that I had observed prior to this happening.
2018 Forester: front windshield. Second crack in windshield in 14 months. First crack: A minor rock strike caused small crack in windshield, within several days, spider web of cracks evolved from initial small impact. Windshield was examined and replaced at Subaru dealership: cost: $1674. (02/25/22). (including eye sight system as needed) Second strike: 03/31/2023: Same scenario, small impact on highway, crack is now 17" across middle of windshield.
Windshield crack developed in July of 2022 on the passenger side of the vehicle. The small crack grew large within a day, covering half the windshield. This crack developed out of nowhere - no items had hit the windshield. In January of 2023, less than a year later, a crack developed again in the exact same location. The crack again spread across half the windshield.
- Weaverville, NC, USA
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Unanticipated Windshield Crack: While attempting to replace the right wiper blade, I lost handling it, with the old blade still in place. No obvious damage was noticed at the time. I took the car to the local Subaru dealership to successfully replace the wiper blades. Returning home I noticed the beginning of the crack. In disgust, I didn-€™t return to that shop, but waited until the next oil change to have the original dealership examine. No responsibility was assessed but an estimate of $1,333 was offered for replacement and recalibration of EyeSight. I don-€™t have windshield replacement coverage. I-€™m looking for other replacement options. The damaged windshield is available for professional inspection at this time.
The windshield cracks after being struck by minor objects. The windshield does not chip when struck with objects. One crack appeared without being struck by an object. It showed up from the bottom of the windshield is growing.
My 2018 Subaru Forester Limited has a cracked windshield from a minor impact from a pebble. The crack has grown and I had to replace the windshield at my own expense. The crack was on the passenger side but interfered with visibility.
My wife's 2018 Subaru Forester was sitting in our driveway and the windshield cracked on its own. Little while later, the crack got bigger. The crack alone should be a safety issue but it also affects the safety features with the camera system and eyesight technology. I'm told this is a common issue Subaru is aware of but they tell me it is not covered.
On January 15, 2020, a very cold morning, I discovered a crack in my 2018 Subaru Forester windshield. Upon further research, I also discovered this issue with spontaneous windshield cracking was an ongoing problem, found in Subaru's in the 2016 thru 2020 issue years. I took my Forester to my local Subaru dealer to inquire about the process to have Subaru repair my windshield under warranty. I was told by the service manager that there were no technical bulletins regarding the repair of windshields under warranty. This is a safety issue because this crack has now increased in size to half way across the windshield.
Hi, I came home. Parked in my carport on a moderately cool morning. Three hours later I came out and there was a huge crack up the center of my windshield around 10-€ long
I bought my 2018 Subaru Forester in may of 2020 it is now January of 2022 and I have replaced the entire windshield THREE TIMES. If requested, my vehicle can be inspected. It is clear that this windshield is too fragile and poses a safety risk for myself and those passengers that enter my vehicle. It is also costing me a lot of money to repair multiple windshields and causing my insurance to go up for something out of my control. I can only imagine what would happen if I were ever to get into an accident with the windshield being that fragile. I am not a dangerous driver nor have I ever been in an accident, I have a clean record. A class action lawsuit filed in 2017 stating that -€œThe cracks were allegedly due to the deicer creating a condition that makes the glass susceptible to cracking after a minor strike to the glass, such as the stone's impact-€œ it also stated that the lawsuit included 2.5 million Subaru models between the years of 2017-2020. -€œ[XXX], represented by Attorneys [XXX] Law Group, Moon Law APC, and [XXX], contends the Subaru models have "defective and dangerous" windshields that are prone to "cracking, chipping and otherwise breaking."-€ After the first windshield crack in June of 2020 (1 month after I purchased the vehicle) I called my authorized Subaru dealership and asked if there was a common problem or known safety issue with the windshields, I was told there was not and my issue was singular. This is a SEVERE safety concern. A minor crack went through both panes of the windshield and rapidly become in my line of vision. I feel as though this is an unfair and unjust safety concern that is costing Subaru drivers like myself their safety and money. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Temperature dropped to -20 and large crack randomly appeared on driver side windshield. This crack has caused the eyesight safety feature to not work meaning I don-€™t have lane departure warning or forward collision warning. Informed my warranty does not cover the windshield repair or required camera recalibration.
Hello, I am writing to report an incident of a cracked windshield while driving on highway 5 in Los Angeles, CA. I have owned this vehicle for about 6 months. The vehicle is available for inspection and I have attached the photos for review. The windshield has been inspected by a Subaru dealership who states they cannot repair or replace the windshield. The dealership suggested filing a claim with NHTSA and visiting their partner, Safelite AutoGlass. A Subaru dealer and partner, Safelite AutoGlass, both confirmed that Subaru's defective or weak/brittle windshield is a known and common issue. The windshield malfunction appears to be a recurring problem across several models nation-wide with a lawsuit pending: https://bergermontague.com/cases/subaru-windshield-cracking/. Furthermore, this commonly known issue was not prefaced during contract reviews and Subaru warranty does not cover the damages. The windshield issues was not highlighted or recommended for coverage when purchasing insurance. Safelite AutoGlass offered to replace the windshield with the original glass and confirms we do not have the option of choosing stronger or better quality windshield options. Continuously replacing a poor product with the same poor product could be dangerous if this continues to occur especially in the event it blocks visibility. Additionally the frequency of the problem will be burdensome especially since this car was purchased specifically to drive in harsh weather conditions. There was no warning, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to this occurring. If Subaru produces weak windshields it should be a service covered under all warranties and/or offer better repair/replacement options.
On 10/9/2021the front windshield was hit by a small rock on the lower left driver's side and a crack developed within a few minutes. The crack grew and obstructed the driver's field of vision. This required the entire windshield being replaced. This was done by Safelite AutoGlass on 9/13/2021 at my residence. It was paid by my insurance and I paid a $100 deductible. In addition the replacement windshield was damaged by another small rock hitting it on I71 north near Louisville KY. This time the damage was limited to a bulls eye fracture. This was repaired by myself using a Rainx windshield repair kit. The windshield seems very fragile and prone to be damaged easily as both "rock his" did not seem that bad and should not have caused damage. I found after this repair that there are additional complaints and a class action lawsuit for similar problems with this vehicle.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Columbia, MO, USA