I was driving on the freeway friday night and heard a loud CLACK! I didn't notice anything because it was late at night, but the day after I noticed that my windshield is now cracked. :( I did a search and was shocked at how many people had cracked windshields too. (mostly WRX owners it seems) I'm guessing it's a manufacturing defect if so many people have the same problem.

On to some questions: Is there any sort of thicker/stronger aftermarket glass to get? Do rally cars have some sort of special glass? What kind of sealant can I use to stop the crack from spreading? I hope the crack doesn't grow because I'm probably going to be driving around with it for a long time..

Mike

mine cracked too:mad:


I guess its lightweight glass:rolleyes:

MY wife, after owing her brand new OBS for only 10 days, had her windshiled cracked by a stone.

She is having it replaced on Tuesday because it spread right over the field of vision area. Hopefully, that will be only thing to go wrong!!

I got a little "star" from a small rock hitting my winshield. Within a month, it had a 8 inch long crack growing from it. Really poor glass.

I've had several "stars" on my RS (I count on at least one per winter in Vermont), and they have never cracked. Try to have them fixed quickly, so they don't get dirt in them.

I got a 'star' crack off to the side on my windsheild about 2 weeks after i got my car, and in the next 7 months it involved into a crack that extended 3/4 of the way across my windshield -_-

I lived with that for 2 years until i got in my car wreck this past May and got that windshield included in the claim for my accident and got that replaced with a new one (finally)

but yeah i agree, Subaru seems to install some pretty poor glass on their windshields :confused:

Ed

take it to the dealer or any glass place as soon as it is cracked/chipped

most places do or know someone that will fill and repair it before it gets too bad

caino

I had mine get hit by a rock ad crack about 1/4 way across the windshield from a side. So I had to have it replaced because it would have spread in the winter. I was highly annoyed...

my hella long battle scar :

http://www.geocities.com/b534202/wrx_battlescar.jpg

I cracked mine about 1 week after I bought it. I was told that it could take at least 3 months!! to get a new one. Thank god it only took 3 weeks. What stinks is that my new gladd got hit by a rick and is chipped!!!! So I will probably be in the hunt for a new, new windshield again!!!

I don't think it's just a subaru problem. One friend's 2001 Passat and another friend's 1999 Civic both have their shares of star cracks. I was able to repair one friend's "bull's eye" crack with one of those windshield repair kits. It came out pretty well.

None of my star cracks have spread though. As for inspections, just make sure your windshield is dirty, and they'll never notice the cracks.

Link didn't work.

Yup I got a crack in mine too. The only thing is I have no idea where it came from. There was no big impact or anything like that. Craziness. They should recall em all. :lol:

Garret

From my search it seems like people have had a lot of problems from Subaru windshields in very short amounts of time and haven't had problems with windshields for years in other cars.

Mike

Originally posted by MagicMT
Link didn't work.

Welcome to geocities. remove the http:// in order to view the picture.

~Loki

You should come out to Colorado.
When it snows, the plows with drop sand to fight the ice, but since it is do dry up here, the roads clear in about a day. What's left is sandy roads. I bet 50 percent of the cars here have windshield cracks.

From my search it seems like people have had a lot of problems from Subaru windshields in very short amounts of time and haven't had problems with windshields for years in other cars.

I don't know, Mike. Yes, there are several people on the board who have cracks as a result of an impact of some sort. I'm on my 7th Subaru, my g/f, her second. We both have had small dings and chips, but luckily, no cracks. I had one large star that I didn't have fixed, thinking it would crack and I'd replace it. Never happened!

People here (justifiably) are very detail-oriented, and quick to pass on their negative experiences. I think, in the grand scheme, this problem is no greater than other makes.

Ed

My friend's brother has a super-charged Cobra with full-rollcage etc etc... He had all the glass treated with this stuff that makes it litterally bullet proof. The glass seems a bit hazy, but it super strong. I am considering gettingthis done. Would be a great security measure too because you can't break this windows. (good luck if you need to be pulled out of a wreck though!)

I had a pebble smack into mine, cracked it from the bottom to about half way up the windscreen. Cost me around $125 to replace it

Aren't any of you insured against glass breakage? :confused:

isn't this the truth. I think they are made of sugar or something. I got a new one in my Legacy GT cause it had big star right in my view and then a few weeks later get another chip in the next windshield.

Any windshield I have seen that has had a chip, will always turn into a crack because of thermal expansion. That is why they say if you get a chip to bring it in as soon as possible to avoid it ruining the windshield. The the glass heats up and cools down it causes the glass to flex and that places stress on the chip...

boom cracked windshield...

I am glad I cannot agree with this post... Friday night I thought I would be another victem. I was whacked hard by a stone from a gravel truck that I passed going the other direction. By the sound I though I had wasted the glass... but there is nothing. Lucky me I suppose.

I've been using a product called Clear Star for about 20 years now. It fills the star/bullseye chips with what I believe is glass resin. If you get to it quick, before your wipers push too much dirt into the crack, the repair will be almost invisible(you might see a tiny nick at the center of the bullseye). This stuff comes with a syringe and base that peels and sticks to your windshield. you inject two premeasued chemicals into the syringe, pump the plunger a few times( you gotta follow the directions precisely....not hard though), and maybe 30-40 minutes later, you're done. I have never had any cracks radiate after doing these rapairs. Water will not get into the crack and freeze during the winter...blowing your windshield. I believe it costs about $8 dollars for the kit, which will fix 1 bullseye. You can pick it up from Aid Auto or the like, and if I remember correctly, you can mail order it from JC Whitney.

Andy

Dang! We can send a man to the moon and have nothing we can treat windshields with to prevent cracks? Boy, sounds like some kind of racket doesn't it?

Originally posted by WRX Sport Driver My friend's brother has a super-charged Cobra... had all the glass treated with this stuff that makes it litterally bullet proof. The glass seems a bit hazy, but it super strong. I am considering gettingthis done. Would be a great security measure too because you can't break this windows. (good luck if you need to be pulled out of a wreck though!)

WRX Sport Driver, do you have any more info on that? Price? Brand? Sounds interesting but I don't know about that "hazy" part. I know that some luxo cars have bulletproof glass.

http://a1060.g.akamai.net/f/1060/5672/30m/www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid26/pcdb4c1a5990af3ce7536bae128b772f5/fe47ecd5.jpg

Well, here it is. Passenger side, maybe a foot long. Should I fix it now or not? The crack didn't go through the glass, it's only on the outside. It's also on the passenger side so it's not that annoying. I'm going to be transfering to a real college soon and will be doing a lot more freeway driving. Something like 3-4 hours every weeekend or every other for 2 years (hopefully!). I know I should fix it but maybe I should wait till I graduate. It would suck to fix it, then fix it again and again...

Does anyone know the answer to my original questions: Is there any sort of thicker/stronger aftermarket glass to get? Do rally cars have some sort of special glass?

Mike

Magic,
I'm going to go "against the grain" here, and suggest that you (and others) are victims of bad luck. I don't think Subaru glass is fragile. I've had many chips that didn't turn to cracks, and rocks that didn't end up chipping.

Fix the glass.

Ed

I think it is possible to fix small starbursts but one a crack starts inching its way across the windshield it is most likely the best time buy a new one...

MikeyG

I remember reading a while back about an Australian company that was making a film that went on the outside of the window. Their advertising was talking about it making the glass impervious to breakins/carjackings using a tire iron, baseball bat, etc... I tried to locate it for you but can't find it.

What I did find is...do a Google search on "window film break in", you will find films that hold the glass together after they are shattered. This stuff is sold for use where windows are subject to hurricanes, bombs, and burglaries, etc...

Hope this helps.

Andy