Verified government source

NHTSA complaint #11308079

This page summarizes an official U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration owner complaint. Use the verification links below to confirm the record directly with NHTSA.

Vehicle

2019 SUBARU FORESTER

Manufacturer

Subaru of America, Inc.

Components

VISIBILITY/WIPER

Dates

Incident: 02/07/2020
Filed: 02/09/2020

Owner complaint summary

PARKED MY VEHICLE IN MY DRIVEWAY WITH NO OVERHEAD COVER AFTER I RETURNED HOME FROM WORK AT APPROXIMATELY 1430 HOURS ON 2/7/20. THE AMBIENT TEMPERATURE AT THIS TIME WAS APPROXIMATELY 25 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. THE VEHICLES WINDSHIELD DID NOT HAVE A CRACK AT THIS TIME. NOTHING HIT MY WINDSHIELD ON MY WAY HOME FROM WORK. I STARTED MY VEHICLE WITH MY REMOTE START LEAVING MY RESIDENCE AT APPROXIMATELY 1800 HOURS ON THE SAME DATE. AS I SAT IN THE OPERATORS SEAT OF MY VEHICLE APPROXIMATELY 1 MINUTE AFTER I INITIATED THE REMOTE START, I OBSERVED A LARGE CRACK IN MY WINDSHIELD. THE CRACK STARTS BELOW MY WINDSHIELD WIPER UNDER THE PLASTIC PIECE WHERE THE EDGE OF THE WINDSHIELD GLASS IS COVERED. UPON CLOSER INSPECTION FROM OUTSIDE OF THE VEHICLE I DISCOVERED ZERO EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT AN OBJECT HAD STRUCK MY VEHICLES WINDSHIELD. THE CRACK APPEARS TO HAVE SPONTANEOUSLY OCCURRED. I PERFORMED SOME RESEARCH ONLINE AND DISCOVERED SPONTANEOUS WINDSHIELD CRACKS ON MY PARTICULAR VEHICLE IS A KNOWN ISSUE DUE TO SUBPAR DEFECTIVE GLASS AND THAT CRACKS ARE CAUSED BY THE HEAT FROM THE WINDSHIELD WIPER HEATER USED IN COMBINATION WITH THE WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER. WHICH IS THE EXACT CIRCUMSTANCE MY WINDSHIELD CRACKED IN. RESEARCH ALSO ADVISED THAT THIS A KNOWN ISSUE THAT HAS NOT BEEN ADDRESSED BY SUBARU NOR DO THEY COVER REPAIR/REPLACEMENT COSTS. WINDSHIELD REPAIR/REPLACEMENT IS VERY EXPENSIVE BECAUSE OF THE SPECIAL OEM SUBARU GLASS THAT IS REQUIRED IN ORDER FOR THE SUBARU EYESIGHT SENSORS TO FUNCTION PROPERLY WHICH MY VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH. SUBARU ALSO REFUSES TO COVER THE COSTLY RECALIBRATION OF THE SUBARU EYESIGHT SENSORS WHICH IS REQUIRED WHEN THE WINDSHIELD IS REPLACED. RECALIBRATION ALONE COSTS APPROXIMATELY $1000-$2000 USD IN ADDITION TO THE COST OF THE WINDSHIELD AND WINDSHIELD INSTALLATION. I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS FOR A MANUFACTURING DEFECT THAT SUBARU APPEARS TO IGNORE

This is an owner complaint filed with NHTSA (ODI #11308079). It is not automatically an official recall, investigation outcome, or manufacturer admission unless the complaint text itself describes one.

Official record ID (ODI): 11308079. This page is the human-readable source link used across afterwarranty. The raw JSON link proxies NHTSA's public API for machine verification; prefer this page when reading the complaint.