I'm on my 3rd windshield in under 12 months. I have not changed my driving habits and have been in typical weather for my area. The vehicle is garage kept. First windshield had a center driver's side ding that lasted all winter. We had some unseasonable spring weather changes that caused it to crack and spiderweb replaced 4/10/23, 24K miles. 2nd windshield, cracked 5/15/23, got dinged at the bottom and spiderwebbed immediately, again on driver's side. 3rd windshield, 12 inch line center passenger side from the edge, no ding or chip, no obvious cause for crack, occurred 1/28/24.
2021 Subaru Outback visibility complaints
Page 2 of 5: complaints 11 to 40 of 108, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Windshield randomly developed a crack for no apparent reason. No rocks flying in, no extreme conditions, we were in 40-60 degrees temperatures in California on normal freeways and streets, not in any off-road conditions.
The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that upon approaching the vehicle, she became aware that the front windshield had suddenly cracked, extending from the center of the windshield to the passenger’s side bezel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the crack was the result of the impact of a small, unknown object. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V712000 (Visibility), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 23,000.
Windshield developed a 10" crack overnight, parked while it was snowing in Boulder, CO. There was no damage prior to this past night. This problem is widely reported on [XXX] . INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Just purchased this vehicle certified pre-owned 2 months ago. Car was parked and spontaneous windshield crack started on drivers' side and has now advanced up through drivers visual field. A simple google search shows this to be a chronic, documented issue with MANY Subaru vehicles. Driving is limited and this is a costly fix for a fault not on the consumers end. I have contacted warranty and consumer protection before I call to schedule a replacement. ZERO problems or damage to vehicle before this, car wasn't in motion and as evidenced by photos it had no physical compromise causing this.
I have has to replace the windshield 3 times in less than 3 years in my 2021 Outback. Only once was there a definite impact from a rock. In that case, the glass broke in 5 directions across the entire windshield. The other two times, I simply woke up to a huge crack. It seems that this is an extremely common problem with this model, and my insurance says they will drop me if I continue to make claims at this rate.
Window cracked when hitting by a small chip on the high way
Went out to car and windshield had a 6 inch horizontal crack in the beginning at the center of the frame the passenger side extending towards the driver side. There was no chip or point of impact noted. Appears faulty placement of windshield like on prior model class action.
When driving on Interstate Highway 44 at approximately 45mph the windshield suddenly cracked on the lower passenger side of the vehicle. There was minimal traffic at the time of the incident and the roadway ahead was clear.
Windshield spontaneously cracked. There is no obvious sign of impact from an external object, verified by location replacing the glass. This is the second windshield that has spontaneously cracked in less than a year's time.
Have owned the vehicle less than a year and it has already acquired 2 chips. One of the chips spread out to a larger crack immediately.
My windshield has cracked 3 times since vehicle was purchased, the last time within 2 months of replacement. The first 2 times the windshield was replaced by the dealership with OEM glass. There was no visible crack from rocks, etc in the last two incidences...went out in the morning to find that the windshield was cracked across half the windshield after it had been parked and no visible damage had occured beforehand in both cases. ( I have taken pictures of this last incident... insurance notified, but no inspections took place. no warning lights, etc appeared pryor to cracks)
Faulty windshield cracking rapidly - without impact
When there is an alert for “low windshield” washer fluid. I receive multiple audible alerts from the car while driving. The alert will go away and then come back. I think the fluid level sloshes while driving, going above and then below the sensor repeatedly. The multiple alerts are distracting and cause alarm fatigue. I think one alert per driving session would suffice.
The contact owns a 2021 Subaru Outback. The contact stated that on three separate occasions the windshield cracked without impact. The vehicle was taken to the same dealer after each failure and was informed each time that a rock chip might have caused the failure. The contact purchased a carbon steel film after which he was informed would prevent the windshield from breaking in the event of another cracked windshield, with the purchase of this protective film, he could have a total of 4 windshield replacements free of charge. The contact stated that each failure obstructed his vision while driving. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 6,000.
The front windshield spontaneously cracked sometime overnight, while my car was parked in my garage. I noticed it when I got into my car one morning, and a roughly 6 inch horizontal crack had appeared, originating from the driver's side edge about halfway up the glass. I immediately got out and inspected the crack to find a point of impact, but it was a perfectly smooth crack line w/ zero points of impact. I drove the short distance to my destination, and an hour or two later when I got back in the car, it had continued to grow to maybe double the previous size (now 15-20" wide). The crack was directly in my line of sight from my eyes to the road ahead. The next day, I took it to my Subaru dealer, where they took photos and said they'd contact Subaru corporate to determine if they'd pay for the replacement. I just got news today that they'll replace it, but I'm responsible for a hefty "deductible" to replace their faulty glass.
The front windshield has a rapidly growing crack that now spans almost half of the glass. Our car was parked in our garage overnight, like it always is, and one morning we got in to drive, and there was a 6-8 inch horizontal crack that started at the far edge of the driver's side, in the middle of the windshield (right in the line of sight between my eyes and the road). I immediately got out and inspected the crack to find absolutely zero point of impact. I took it to the Subaru dealer the next day, and by the time they looked at it, it had grown to at least 20+ inches across the glass. They contacted Subaru corporate, who just called me back today to tell me that I need to pay them a deductible to have the glass replaced.
Hit a pothole while driving at highway speeds, that resulted in a large crack in the windshield. there are no visible chips in the windshield, just a large (approx. 5") crack that has since expanded. We have gotten a quote to replace it from a few repair shops and each one quoted roughly $1500.
Windshield cracked for second time, no warning given.
This is the second time in the two years I have owned this car that the windshield has cracked on the passenger side. The car was parked and had not been driven in three days.
Crack appeared when I entered car in parking lot. Large crack Originated from where the windshield needs the frame on the passenger side of the front window. Crack originates about in the middle of the windshield on the Passenger side and travels 5 inches horizontally and then travels north at a 90° angle for another 4 inches. When I inspected car there was no trauma no impact and no chips on the windshield near on or around the craft area. No trauma to the frame correct accent paint or chips as well near on or around the crack
Cracked front windshield. Replaced November 2021 & cracked again November 2022 in same spot. First incident parked in garage over night & next morning hairline crack on passenger side that continued across the window. 2nd incident, drove to work, parked & came out at lunch with a hairline crack lower left passenger side.
Spontaneous windshield crack developed beginning on drivers side edge of windshield. dealer confirmed that there was no sign of impact to cause the crack and agreed to replace windshield free of charge.
Crack in windshield rapidly developed into line of driver sight.
Windshield crack developed and requires replacement for the third time in 18 months on a new car.
The headlights on this vehicle are obnoxiously bright! I get flashed by oncoming drivers constantly at night. I even get flashed by pickup trucks. I'm not sure if it's the main headlamps or the fog lights. It does seem like the fog lights have really poor beam control. When driving on a country road at night I can tell the fog lights are lighting up the tops of trees by toggling them on and off. I passed an oncoming car just like mine a while back and I could finally understand why I get flashed all the time. They ARE really blinding. I tried to bring it up with Subaru of America and the guy on the phone literally laughed at me and just told me to not use the fog lights. They don't seem to care at all about all the safety issues the current generation Outback has. Very unprofessional. Subaru doesn't appear to welcome feedback at all.
I had a rock hit my windshield and it instantly cracked and kept cracking in multiple directions looking like a spider. Had it repaired and same thing happens like 1 month later. And it seems when it rains there is some water that is getting through. I do not feel like Subaru has fixed the windshields since the recall on previous models. Pictures make it hard to really see severity.
Hey the federal safety agency! This needs to be looked into ASAP!! My windshield has broken twice now after getting hit with debris so small I couldn't even hear it hit. I've been driving for 24 years and I've never broke a windshield. The windshield on these is hilariously weak. After they get chipped the crack spreads to the whole windshield in a matter of a couple days. The cracks are also delaminating and letting water in. This needs to be addressed ASAP. It's scary how thin and weak the windscreen is on these. This is a huge safety issue.
The front windshield developed a crack. It was not struck or damaged in any way - it appeared out of nowhere. The crack spreads quickly and the windshield must be replaced. This has happened to countless other Subaru Outback owners. The volume of broken windshields must be caused by some defect on the manufacturer’s side.
Windshield spontaneously cracked while parked. I parked the vehicle around 3pm and at that time, no crack was present. I left the house at 5:30pm and in that 2.5 hours, a 12-18 inch crack appeared. There’s no visible impact point and it starts from the bottom edge of the glass on the passenger side. I have not brought it to the dealer yet as I’m working through a claim center for windshield coverage. This is the third time since I purchased the vehicle (May of 2021) that the windshield has cracked.
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