2015 Subaru Outback visibility/wiper problems

“Around 8 am on 1/4/2022, driving the car on I85 in Durham County, NC, at a normal highway speed, the sunroof glass shattered suddenly and without warning. The sunroof was fully closed at the time, but the inside cover was open. Shards of glass were sprayed within the cabin. This was a dangerous distraction to the driver, and could have been much more serious if he had gotten glass in his eyes from looking up to see what had happened. There was no apparent impact to the sunroof glass from a rock or other object outside the car, and the sunroof was not being opened or closed at the time. We contacted Subaru of America and our local dealer. The car is no longer under warranty, and Subaru refused to cover the cost of repair (though I see online we are not the only ones to have this problem). The local dealer could not perform the repair for another week, so we bought a new sunroof glass and installed it ourselves. There was no apparent damage to the surrounding metal frame or roof. The car and shattered sunroof were not examined by anyone else. I have the damaged sunroof, but was planning to discard it. I am attaching an email we received from Subaru of America,…”

“Subaru Outback windshield cracks again within 2 months after warranty replacement pursuant to windshield settlement agreement. The claimed enhanced windshield from Subaru is exposed to the issue reported from the windshield settlement agreement, and Subaru refused to provide warranty replacement to fix this issue. Carter Subaru replaced my windshield on 02/15/2022. The new windshield placed by Carter Subaru crack on 4/24/2022 while I stop at a restaurant and there is no obvious external influence in my windshield.”

“The windshield spontaneously cracked at the deicer area. The windshield is available for inspection. The crack has grown and is interfering with visibility. The crack in the deicer part of the windshield is easy to see. I have called and left messages about the cracked windshield for the Subaru service manager at the dealership where we bought the car. The service manager has not returned my calls. I drove the car to the Subaru dealer and showed the crack to the substitute service manager (Brian from Kia). Brian took my name and number and said he would contact the Subaru rep for me. To date, I have not heard from the Subaru rep about the spontaneously cracked windshield. There was no warning that the windshield would crack. I was driving the car on Saturday June 5th when I heard a pop. There was no other traffic on the paved road I was driving on. Noticed a crack low on the windshield starting at the deicer area.”

“CAR DEVELOPED A 20" CRACK IN THE WINDSHIELD ALL BY ITSELF. THE CRACK STARTS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PASSENGER SIDE BY THE WIPER BLADE AND RUNS UP AND OVER TOWARDS THE DRIVERS SIDE. I DROVE THE CAR ONE DAY AND THE CRACK WAS NOT THERE. A WEEK LATER I DROVE IT AGAIN AND THE CRACK WAS THERE WHEN I GOT INTO THE CAR TO START IT UP. FROM WHAT I READ ONLINE IT IS DUE TO SOMETHING WITH THE DEICER MAKING THE WINDSHIELD VERY LIKELY TO CRACK IN THAT AREA. I HAVE NEVER HAD A WINDSHIELD CRACK BY ITSELF AND I'VE OWNED OR TAKEN CARE OF A DOZEN CARS FOR MY FAMILY OVER 40 YEARS. SUBARU SHOULD DO THE RIGHT THING AND ISSUE A RECALL, AS THERE ARE A TON OF REPORTS OF THIS HAPPENING TO PEOPLE.”

“I PARKED MY CAR IN A PARKING GARAGE ONE MORNING, AND WHEN I RETURNED TO MY CAR LATER THAT DAY, A CRACK DEVELOPED FROM AN UNKNOWN SOURCE ACROSS THE WINDSHIELD ON THE PASSENGER SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. THE CRACK BEGINS CLOSE TO THE BASE OF THE WINDSHIELD, CURVES UP AND AROUND TO THE MIDDLE OF THE WINDSHIELD. THE WINDSHIELD WAS NOT HIT BY ANYTHING, NOR WAS THE VEHICLE IN ANY TYPE OF ACCIDENT. THE CRACK ESSENTIALLY DEVELOPED ON ITS OWN.”

“A CRACK APPEARED STARTING AT THE BOTTOM OF MY PASSENGER SIDE WINDSHIELD AND I WATCHED IT MOVE ACROSS TO THE DRIVERS SIDE. IT WAS FAST MOVING. I WAS DRIVING OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY.”