The windshields on the 2003 honda element's are faulty, they crack with litte or no impact, many people are complaining. A pebble, and I mean "pebble" tapped my windshield on august 24th and instantly I had an eleven inch crack. I've had 6 cars do date in my life, and with all 6 I've had rocks strike the windshield at on toime or another leaving nothing, or at most a star that can be fixed by a rock chip repair facility. The windshield appears to be under undo stress and that is exactly what these cracks appear to be,.. Stress fractures. Honda addmits to having a "tsb" issued for the windshields claiming an "uneaven flange surface" causing the cracks, however honda claims if it is evedent that something has struck your windshield leaving a "impact point" regardless of that impacts size you are at fault. The problem with this is anything that hits this glass can cause it to break regardless of it's size because of this "uneaven flange surface" ! Honda has a known issue with their vehicle and they aren't owning up to this !
2003 Honda Element visibility complaints
Page 9 of 9: complaints 221 to 226 of 226, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Cracked windshield by small pebbles. Windshield has to much stress.
Cracked windshield: I bought 6 days ago a brand new 2003 honda element ex 2wd SUV. It still hs less than 400 miles on it. Today it developed a spontanesous 5 inch crack on the windshield. The crack starts at the windoshield edge on the driver side and extends towards the center at about eye level. Tthis is a persistent ongoing problem with the 2003 honda element windshields. There are many posts with similar complaint to mine especially at the http://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/index.php "exterior" website. A class-action lawsuit against honda is beimg considered.
My windshield has a tiny 1mm spot where a tiny pebble must have hit it and from that I now have a 18" crack stretching from the lower left hand corner to the center of the windshield. I'm certain that the tiny spot would not have spread into that size of a crack if there wasn't so much stress placed on the windshield by the "uneven windshield flange surface" that honda itself admits to on their service bulletin 03-028. My element VIN #falls into the range on the service bulletin but honda will not cover it because of the impact that started the crack. I've had rocks hit other vehicles I've owned and they have never spread into a crack, much less one this size. If honda element owners have to replace their windshield everytime a pebble hits it, our insurance companies will end up raising our rates. Honda needs to come to a resolution to this problem.
This is a 2003 honda element, purchased may 22nd, 2003. The mileage is now 752 miles.I am currently in the process of having the windshield replaced for the second time. The first replacement was at 150 miles on the odometer. Both were because of damage from small stone chips that would not normally damage the glass on most other vehicles. The 733 miles I have driven this car was on paved urban local roads at speeds between 35 and 50 MPH. It appears to me that one of, or both of, the following, could be responsible factors: a) the windshield glass is possibly thinner and mor fragile than others. B) the aerodynamics of this vehicle possibly causes a higher rate of debris hits to the windshield area than other vehicles. Whatever the cause, I would consider it a safety issue warranting investigation. Additionally, if the trend were to continue, requiring windshield replacements, who could afford the maintenance on this vehicle?
Defective windshield is now cracking. The dealer, classic honda, refuses to correct the problem, stating that the manufacturer, honda, does not warranty glass. I have filed a complaint with the manufacturer, american honda, case # n01200-06-0401190. The vehicle is a new 2003 honda element. The odometer reading is 147 miles.
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