I was driving home tonight and my windshield started cracking. Nothing hit it, it just started to crack and now it is about nine inches long and goes from the middle of my windshield wiper over to the side.

It is have been about 12 degrees here in Oklahoma the past few days and I have been running the heater and defrost, which I was doing when the crack appeared. I thought I read in a previous forum that someone had some windshield problems, please let me know if you read this.

This is just bizarre, 24 years of driving and I have been hit by plenty of rocks and garbage and NEVER did my windshield crack... and yes, I have the air deflector.

Is it okay to drive????
:?:

I have seen quite a few people driving about in cracked windshields, so one could quickly assume it's safe. Reality is that the windshield's structural integrity is compromised. That is say that the job is supposed to do should you have a crash simply can't be done properly any longer.

Most insurance companies do not count windshield breakage against you, and deductibles tend to be low. That being said. a chat with your dealer is probably in order.

Good luck!

Iskie

I was reading a thread over at our sister site http://www.HondaElement.org/ that dealt with this exact issue. Without an impact (rock, bat, small bird, etc.) at the beginning of the crack, it could be a stress crack. Stress cracks are a manufacturer defect, and are covered by Honda's warantee. Have your dealer check it out, and push them in the stress crack direction. You just might get them to cave and replace it for free.

Here's that link:
http://www.hondaelement.org/showthread.php?s=d328c1828b6d7490f0979a355b6eb4fc&threadid=833

thanks for the info, I will go to the dealership with those emails in hand. I never thought I would be buying a new windshield before I paid my first car payment.

but don't get me wrong, I still love my E!

There was someone on this board who mentioned that their windshield cracked from a stone, but not one has mentioned that their windshield cracked on its own before on this board.

That being said, I have had my Mercedes for some time. My wife was driving back in the snow a few weeks ago, and a crack suddenly apeared. She was running the defroster on a really cold day. Perhaps there is something to that? She said that she did not get hit by anything, so it may be almost anything that causes the crack. Speak to your dealer, let them replace it. They should without too much of a problem

I've lived in Reno, in Alaska and in the Sierra Nevada, always turning the defroster on full blast when I start the car. That way, the windshield warms up gradually, as the engine warms up and the air out of the defroster becomes progressively hotter. I've never had a cracked windshield. My brother-in-law, who lives in Denver, does it the other way. He lets the engine warm up and then turns on the defroster. He's got a cracked windshield.

[quote:d3c50fb560="OkieBug"]I was driving home tonight and my windshield started cracking. Nothing hit it, it just started to crack and now it is about nine inches long and goes from the middle of my windshield wiper over to the side.

It is have been about 12 degrees here in Oklahoma the past few days and I have been running the heater and defrost, which I was doing when the crack appeared. I thought I read in a previous forum that someone had some windshield problems, please let me know if you read this.

This is just bizarre, 24 years of driving and I have been hit by plenty of rocks and garbage and NEVER did my windshield crack... and yes, I have the air deflector.

Is it okay to drive????
:?:[/quote:d3c50fb560]


mine cracked today as well but it was from a stone or something. Had two previous hits which resulted in only chips. but today an object struck very bottom of windshield and crack spread about 18" already. Maybe it's Aliens ? in any case it sucks

Some people have cracking windshields on their E's - no contact.

But many have been getting hit with rocks possibly due to the windshield angle. I really don't know, but I know it's happening to a lot of E owners !

The thermal shock of putting heat on a very cold peice of glass can very definitely crack it. If there are any defects in the glass (either from impacts or manufacturing), it is much more likely to happen (the defects concentrate the stress).

There are a couple of ways to minimize the chance of this happening. The first is what the poster above suggested. Turn on the defrost right after starting the vehicle. The temperature of the air blowing on the windshield will start at ambient and gradually rise as the engine warms up. Gradual heating of the glass will reduce the shock. The second is to only heat the vehicle enough to keep the windows clear. If it is very cold, wear a winter coat, hat, and gloves so you do not need to crank the heat. If you run the defrost and heat at full bore you increase the stress on the glass.

Here, a cracked windshild is replaced by the insurance at no charge. And without any claim impact on rates.
(FL does not have a mudflap required law, I am told that is the reason for the free "windshield only" repair).

I just got a crack on my Toyota Tacoma and nothing hit it. Just woke up in the morning warmed up the truck like I always do and then got in it to go to work and what did I see a big huge crack all along the bottom. It is very cold here ( near buffalo ) and I think the constant re heating of the windshield must cause some sort of stress that allows the window to crack if your unlucky like some of us..

Okiebug- You're right, it has been colder than a well diggers lunch box here in OKC. After reading the other responses here are my possible scenarios: 1)Latent defect in windshield installation - this would clearly be covered under warranty because Honda would be at fault. 2)Thermal shock - if you are driving down the road and then switch the heater from let's say the floor mode to defrost mode, this could cause cause the glass to crack due to the delta between outside and inside air temperatures. Proving that this is a fault of honda could be difficult - you might have to hire a lawyer for this one. 3)Structural defect of the chassis. Due to our E's not having a "B" piller, the chassis had to be severely reinforced (that's why the E is so heavy for its size) to prevent twisting and flexing of the body. Again, this would be the fault of Honda and should be covered under warranty. 4)Ultra stiff suspension. When its cold our E's ride a bit firmer. This is due to the oil in the shocks being cold and the rubber suspension bushings getting harder. In the racing world, I have seen cars with suspensions so firm that they would crack windshields. I would think that this too would be covered by warranty because it could be considered a latent defect. Good luck with your repair and if you run into a real hassle, I would go to Steve Bailey Honda because they have the best techs.

On cracks. I come from a history of off roading and windshields cracking are a strange thing. The angle of the windshield has a lot to do with it. If a stone hits at a 90 deg angle to the glass then all the force must be absorbed by the glass. As the angle decreases the impact becomes less until at 0 deg the stone just grazes on by. I have gone for years without cracks and then had one truck where I cracked the windshield 3 times in a 5 year period. Partly just the luck of the draw and partly that windshield stood up straighter.

You can sometimes get hit my something hard that chips a windshield but you don’t notice it because its raining or snowing and it just blends in with the weather. Next day something happens and boom, a crack starts growing (it’s happened to me). If the windshield is compromised either by a defect or a chip then heating it up slowly might help it to last but eventually it will go unless you live down south. Up north if it’s 20 deg outside even if you warmed the windshield slowly at highway speeds that outside piece of glass will be very cold. That’s how my last crack grew. I lived in Texas with a chip for years, came up here and when I got on the highway, after the car had warmed up, I got up to about 70mph and watched the crack just spread across the window. Hopefully Honda will cover it for you.

After I turned off the defrost the crack quit running. It is warming up now and I can't get the crack to continue running, so that leads me to believe that the outside temp in relation to the hot defrost blowing on the ding is the culprit. I am very curious about what's going to happen next winter when everyone turns on their defrosters. The dings they took all spring, summer and fall will heat up and there will be cracking all over the place. Maybe we could have races.

Oh well, if thats the worst that can happen I'm doing pretty good. At least I don't have those bouncy seats!

Okiebug - I would still highly recommend going to Honda and see if they fix it on their nickle. Since the crack started at an edge, maybe they'll accept the fact that there could possibly be a latent defect such as burr or sharp edge on the body structure.

Got a chip out of my windshield on my first road trip :(

Insurance Co says they will repair it @ no charge.

Hope this is the only problem I have with it......

:cry: I was driving from Frazier Park to Burbank and I had a crack start on the bottom of my windshield and work it's way up, it was 4 inches and now is closer to 12. I went from temp in the 30's to in the 70's in a relativly quick period of time. Would that also cause a stress fracture? I am taking it to Honda on Monday to see 2what their position is, it seems to me like it has to be a structural flaw.

Other than this (knock wood) I have been loving my Black EX 4wd. It's a very fun vehicle. :)

In my last vehicle the windshield cracked and I just took it to the glass place. The insurance covered the whole thing except the deductable of 50 dollars. The glass guy waved the 50 dollars and did it for free. I dont know if he did it because I am such a knockout, or if he does it for everyone. I do get a lot of free stuff just for being so good looking..its Great!

I'm still waiting for those photos, Nikki...

Nikki - get over yourself already. Or at least wake up!

I was driving at night in a mild temperature, without the heat on and heard a very loud poping sound. From the way it sounded, I thought a very large rock had hit the windwhield but I saw nothing (it was dark). After I got home I inspected the windshield and found a crack running from the upper edge of the windshield on the drivers side down about six inches. I assumed it was a rock because it looked a little like there was a chip right at the edge of the glass where it joins the roof of the car. I didn't have much hope, but took it to my local Honda dealer anyway. He pulled out a book of "memos" from Honda listing things that should be reported to them and seemed surprised to find a page that said any cracks in windshields on 2003 Elements that are not obviously caused by objects hitting the windshield should be reported. He said this was the "first one of these I've had" and took a look at it. He said it appeared to be some type of "stress crack" that appeared to form from the "inside". I'm not sure what he meant by that, but after talking to Honda on the phone for about 10 min. he told me that someone from the Honda factory may have to inspect it. He said something about the windshield being too inflexible for the frame around it causing it to crack from stress and they would want to inspect it to help them find out why this happens. Now I don't know if he was repeating what someone told him on the phone, or if that was his personal opinion, but the end result is that he said I will probably get a new windshield from Honda.

The moral of this story is that unless you acually saw a rock hit, don't assume that it did. If your crack runs from the edge of the windshield, it could have cracked from stress and just sounded like something hit it.

I will let you know how this turns out. They are supposed to get back with me in a day or two. If it wasn't for this forum keeping me well informed, I would have just replaced it myself because it sounded like a rock hitting it, and I wasn't defrosting my window. :!:

I have a 86 Saab, with a very slanted windshield, I have gotten very few chips and never have I got a crack. My Toyota truck, chips all the time. I think the slant has a lot to do with the chips.

Thermal shock BY ITSELF is unlikely to cause winshield cracks. You need a combination of thermal shock, and bad winshield manufacture that leaves stresses in the glass, a mounting that transmits excessive shock or too large an unsupported span of glass for the application.

I've been driving in the Midwest, with winters that dip to -25 at times, for 30+ years, and I have never seen a winshield crack from applying the defroster on my cars, and I always warm up the heater before directing it to the winsheild to avoid fogging or icing up on very cold days. In fact, the only winshield cracks I've ever had have been from impact. Auto glass is flexible, and formulated to take heavy thermal shocks.

Some vehicles have been notorious for this sort of crack- the GM van sold as the Chevy Venture was plagued by winshield cracks. GM eventually fixed this, but not before replacing a lot of winshields under warranty. I'll bet Honda either had a run of defective (inadequately tempered) glass or had to redesign the mounting.

Flaime, good info.

I live in Tulsa and had 2 service departments check my crack (windshield that is) and neither would fix it on their dime. I figured if I wait a little longer more E owners will be experiecning this oddity and Honda will have to take action. What dealership in Arkansas did you take it to?? I might be ready for a roadtrip and have them take a looksy.

I took it to University Honda in Jonesboro, AR. I haven't heard back from them yet, though. I'll be calling him Monday if I don't hear something this weekend.

Well, they called and told me to bring it in for a new windshield at Honda's expense. Nothing more was said about someone from the factory inspecting it. :)

[quote:3463db1b36="Nikki"]In my last vehicle the windshield cracked and I just took it to the glass place. The insurance covered the whole thing except the deductable of 50 dollars. The glass guy waved the 50 dollars and did it for free. I dont know if he did it because I am such a knockout, or if he does it for everyone. I do get a lot of free stuff just for being so good looking..its Great![/quote:3463db1b36]

I'm glad to see you have such good self-esteem. Maybe you should sign up for "Am I Hot or Not?". :wink:

Well, after waiting for Honda to get a windshield (two weeks), they replaced it for free and did a very nice job! A week later I noticed a small (2 inch) vertical crack with no chiped spot on the windshield about a third of the way down from the top a little to the right of center (looking from the inside). I was going to take it to the dealer tomorrow just to see what he thought about it. It's not even as deep as the thickness of the glass, and you can only feel it from the outside.

But anyway, I wasn't going to bother replacing it for that little crack, but now I have to because while driving home today a rock (I saw it this time) about 1 inch in diameter hit near the bottom on the passenger side and almost punched a hole in it! :evil: It made a circular cracked/smashed spot about 5 inches in diameter. I took pics but don't have a way to post them.

I find it really hard to believe that a 1 inch rock should be able to do that. It looks more like someone hit it with a baseball bat! I'm really starting to get worried about this because I have never loved a car so much, and have had no other problems, but I can't keep replacing the windshield every month. And now, I'm afraid something is going to hit it and it will shatter all over me while I'm driving.

I'm going back to the dealer tomorrow to have him look at it. One way or the other, I guess I have to get another windshield.

I'll let you know what they say.

If you do a search on this site, you will see quite a few threads with issues regarding the windshield cracks. Seems to be an issue with the windshield flange.

Honda has issued a service bulletin about the windshield. Be sure to take that to your Honda service desk when you go in with your cracked windshield.

Here is the link to the service bulletin:

http://www.arothman.com/temp/03-028.PDF

Good luck,
-k00k

I've read the other posts, and posted my story here and elsewhere. (I'm interested in all the windshield threads because that seems to be my only problem!) :? I just got back from my Honda dealer. He found the small vertical crack interesting, but said Honda wouldn't do anything with it because the smashed spot was obviously caused by a rock (which it was). And while he's telling me that they won't replace it because it was a rock hit, he's saying things like "Wow! I've NEVER seen a windshield do that before!" I asked him about the latest service bulletin and he told me he gets a lot of mail about stuff like that every day, and hasn't seen anything like that. Then he tells me that after I replace this one myself, if I get anymore spontaneous cracks like the small one, be sure and show him.

I realize I'm going to pay for this windshield myself, but I wonder if Honda might like to see pics of it. I hope I am just having a series of bad coincidences, but I'm getting a bad feeling about this.

[quote:9d4ac5b791="Flaime"]I've read the other posts, and posted my story here and elsewhere. (I'm interested in all the windshield threads because that seems to be my only problem!) :? I just got back from my Honda dealer. He found the small vertical crack interesting, but said Honda wouldn't do anything with it because the smashed spot was obviously caused by a rock (which it was). And while he's telling me that they won't replace it because it was a rock hit, he's saying things like "Wow! I've NEVER seen a windshield do that before!" I asked him about the latest service bulletin and he told me he gets a lot of mail about stuff like that every day, and hasn't seen anything like that. Then he tells me that after I replace this one myself, if I get anymore spontaneous cracks like the small one, be sure and show him.

I realize I'm going to pay for this windshield myself, but I wonder if Honda might like to see pics of it. I hope I am just having a series of bad coincidences, but I'm getting a bad feeling about this.[/quote:9d4ac5b791]

Instead of paying for your windshield - why not just print out the service bulletin and bring it to your dealer as proof that a problem exists?!?

Thanks, I will take the service bulletin to him, since he apparently didn't get a copy. If he still won't take me seriously, I'll contact the dealer in Chicago where I bought it, or Honda directly. I was about ready to give in, but I think I'll fight a little harder. Even if I had to pay, I'd want someone to check the mounting flange and fix it properly if needed so maybe I won't break another windshield next month. My VIN does fall within the group mentioned in the SB.