Suzuki S-Cross Rear Window Shattering for No Apparent Reason

RiCoops

The rear window on my S-Cross shattered after parking the car and I cannot fathom the reason for it to fail. The boot door was shut and with a loud bang the window collapsed in at either end where the glass curves over the door, and then most of the rest of the window fell in. The bang was so loud it brought people out of the school where I was dropping my children – the children were frozen with fear as they were in the car. I wondered if any others have experienced the same issue as there was no damage that I was aware of to the window and it was bizarre that the window shattering appeared to simultaneously start at the same instant at both ends. Suzuki UK have refused to repair the window under warranty as they do not believe it was faulty. The car is 1.5 years old.

molerat

RiCoops said:

The rear window on my S-Cross shattered after parking the car and I cannot fathom the reason for it to fail. The boot door was shut and with a loud bang the window collapsed in at either end where the glass curves over the door, and then most of the rest of the window fell in. The bang was so loud it brought people out of the school where I was dropping my children – the children were frozen with fear as they were in the car. I wondered if any others have experienced the same issue as there was no damage that I was aware of to the window and it was bizarre that the window shattering appeared to simultaneously start at the same instant at both ends. Suzuki UK have refused to repair the window under warranty as they do not believe it was faulty. The car is 1.5 years old.

Maybe there was some damage you were not aware of.  These things happen.  Nothing comes up on a search so it seems it is not a common known problem. I am surprised more don't shatter with the amount of slamming they get. Getting it replaced on your insurance will not be that expensive.

RiCoops

Thanks for the reply, The weird thing is it shattered before I had even touched the car to open the boot. I would have been less surprised it the boot had been closed hard and then it shattered, or the car was moving. Makes me think it was faulty but Suzuki say that it would have failed earlier. Sounds like Suzuki ducking the issue and an insurance claim is required.  

Homer_home

could be difficult to prove either way, have you searched the forums to see if anybody else has had the same issue ? much harder to duck out of it if it has happened to lots of people

sweetsand

Are you sure the children did not hit the window?
These are toughed screens and the slight damage other than a slight scratch will get them in to a million bits.
Was there anyhting in your boot the kids pushed?
Just trying to make you think of everything

Another possibly an air gun pellet hit your car as that does that.
Finally, if you've looked at, considered everything, then it is a manufacturing falt, poss a one off where heat interacts with glass and shatters it - difficult to prove

Scrapit

I've had similar, but a side window. No reason for it, no damage and made me jump out of my skin

walwyn1978

I had a similar thing years ago when a stone had chipped the back glass when I went past a gritter. I should have fixed it but didn’t. 

A few weeks later I parked up and the back window went in. No touch no slam just shattered. The man from the glass company said it was likely the chip had just weakened the glass and it chose that moment to let go. 

Could it be as simple as that?

onlyfoolsandparking

Having worked in the glass industry for 20+ years (retired from it now) what I can tell you is ALL toughened glass runs the risk of 'just' shattering due to the manufacturing process. The way the glass is toughened is by sending it through a heat treatment process (big oven in effect) and heating it to a certain temperature to remove the nickel sulphide resulting in tempered glass.

The problem with this process is tiny particles of nickel sulphide still remain in the glass and these can be stress points, in other words a weakness in the glass which can just blow anytime, It's rare but it happens. There is of course a difference between toughened glass in houses and toughened glass in vehicles, the glass in vehicles goes through more heat treatment (higher temperature) than domestic glazing, It's called 'double heat soaking' and this is supposed to remove even more of the nickel sulphide but end result can be similar. ALL heat treated glass is permanently 'under stress' a bit like pre stressed concrete, strong but has it's weaknesses and can on a rare occasion just 'go bang'. Nobodies fault It's just the way it's made as in reality toughened glass is a SAFETY glass NOT security glass, it shatters into lots of tiny pieces to avoid injury. 

Hope this helps, get the window replaced, job done.



  

MinuteNoodles

My Focus did the same at just over a year old...just driving down the road at 3am in February 5 miles into my journey home and there was an almighty bang and the hatchback glass had shattered. I originally thought someone must have thrown something at it but at that time there was nobody about. The Autoglass guy pointed out where it had gone pop, a couple of inches in from the side and up from the bottom going by the pattern of the cracks.

Years ago I had a MK1 Astra at the time before they had laminated windscreens do the same with the front windscreen in the wee hours of the morning one winter driving to work. It just went.

Goudy

I've had a couple go not long ago, rear screen and a side rear quarter panel window in the space of a couple of weeks.
As Onlyfoolsandparking writes, it's a manufacturing flaw in the glass and the glass is under a sort of molecular tension.
As they are bonded in these days and not fitted into rubber seals anymore, there's not much room for the glass to flex so can go bang without warning.