2023 Honda HR-V VISIBILITY/WIPER
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
Vehicle was parked, not in use and the rear window exploded.
Question (Q): What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Answer (A): My rear windshield spontaneously shattered while I was driving on local roads. I was driving around 30mph during a clear night with good visibility, weather was around 57F on [XXX] around 8:07pm. Yes, I would like to have this inspected if requested. I will call Honda tomorrow to schedule a repair and request for them to keep the damaged item so it can be inspected. I have photo and video documentation of the entire event. On the website both on computer and cellphone, the Upload button is not working anywhere for me to submit this information. Please let me know where I can submit my photos and videos to. I have attached a Google Drive link where the dashcam, photos, and videos of the damage can be viewed and downloaded for the investigation. [XXX] Q: How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? A: The rear windshield spontaneously exploded and made the vehicle unsafe to travel in under any capacity. The shattered glass is a safety hazard for myself and anyone near the vehicle. Q: Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? A: The rear windshield is permanently shattered and I will request that the dealership service center holds onto the windshield for inspection. Q: Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? A: At the time of answering this, the vehicle has not been inspected by anyone yet since it is around 9pm on [XXX]. I will take the vehicle in for service tomorrow at the Honda Service Center. No, there was no warning lights or anything to indicate that the rear windshield would randomly make a popping sound and spontaneously shatter such as the way it did on [XXX]. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Back windshield shattered. Parked in driveway and had not been taken out that day.
As I see in the news now, my rear window blew out on the expressway on 1/17/2024 on the way to work at 5:30 a.m. With the very cold day below zero it sounded like an explosion and then it crumbled. Luckily I was close to work and my team was able to help me shrink wrap the window to be able to get home. On 1/20/24 I took the car to Safelite for replacement which was done under my insurance. I have no idea this was a problem for my model vehicle.
The back window blow up
My rear windshield on my brand new car shattered in January 2024. This caused a giant hole to form in the window and almost removed all the glass from it. I took the car into the dealership and the service technicians there determined it was caused by a manufacturing defect when they installed the windshield. They taped some garbage bags to cover it up and said that I would be on a loaner waitlist and have a rush order put on my parts. They also claimed the car is still drivable even though it is winter, and driving without a windshield is torturous, and also the bags could easily fly off and cause an accident to someone behind me. The dealership then came back and said they will not be providing a loaner and will only provide me a rental when the parts come in as they can not justify the expense of giving me a rental/ loaner beforehand. It has been a month and still no parts or other solution has been provided. The dealership and corporate office for the brand is saying that I have to drive around without a rear windshield and bags taped over it or find another solution on my own. This all seems insanely unethical and and a terrible example of customer service. They have not helped me with my safety issue of my rear windshield and are refusing to take on any expense to help me in the slightest, besides the actual repair itself whenever that may occur. It has been over a month since the windshield broke, and the parts keep getting pushed out further.
Rear windshield shattered when wife was driving to work, took to dealer and they have ordered window but it is back ordered for 4 weeks
While my car was sitting in our garage, not driven for two days, our back windshield shattered out of nowhere. We just heard a loud bang and found a hole in the glass and could see it was separating from the sides of the window. We took our vehicle to the dealership and it’s been over a week with no estimated date it will be fixed and still no loaner vehicle has been offered.
After getting into the driver seat and closing the car door, the rear windshield shattered for no apparent reason.
Rear windshield shattered while driving with rear defroster on
Defrosted the rear window, later in the day my rear window shattered randomly. Nothing hit my rear window, it just randomly shattered! I can’t see out of my rear window, This needs to be addressed!
The rear window of my HRV shattered for no reason in a snow storm. I was unable to get it to my dealer to fix the issue as I am a [XXX] and it was the middle of a snow storm in Utah. I had to get it fixed at the closest glass dealer to my location. The component was reviewed by the glass company as they were fixing it. This is a safety issue is when the glass shattered it rained down in the back seat where I have my nieces and nephews ride. It also put me at risk as it startled me and I was driving in the snow. In doing research, I found that there have been numerous incidents of these windows shattering. I attempted to get a goodwill repair for Honda as it is a "Known" problem, but they refused. I am submitting this information to help others and possible get a recall going on this defective material. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Rear window shattered when rear defroster on
Back glass shattered while driving. 2023 Honda HR-V
The back glass shattered for no reason. Was sitting in driveway and had not moved for several days before the glass shattered.
The rear window suddenly shattered while moving forward from apartment parking lot.
Rear window self-shattered parked in my job garage.
The back windshield completely shattered. No object hit the car. This is not safe for driving. The problem has been reproduced and confirmed by a service center (Scott Robinson Honda in Torrance, CA). I am taking the vehicle to be inspected by a service center and will get insurance involved if needed. There were no warning lamps or other symptoms prior to the problem.
Today, 23 Jan 2023, while driving on local Las Vegas freeway the rear window in our 2023 HR-V shattered with an explosive sound with no obvious reason. There was no cargo in the back end of vehicle. At first we thought it had been a gunshot but nothing evident. We were surrounded by traffic in the middle lane of multi-lane freeway when this occurred. Glass pieces fell into the rear interior of vehicle, not able to stop to determine if any fell to the outside rear of vehicle. Weather conditions at the time were light rain/drizzle and we were using the rear window defroster as windows were fogging up. Luckily there was no one in the back seat at the time and no one sustained any injuries. We immediately drove car to the dealer and they informed us they are aware of HR-Vs having this issue. Service Tech helping us said he will be contacting corporate offices first then let us know how they will proceed with repairs. We are not sure yet how long we will be without our vehicle. Damage has not been inspected by anyone other than our local Honda dealer as of this time. There were no warning lights or alarms to indicate a fault with anything. We have not spoken with our insurance yet.
Rear window exploded/shattered while driving. There was no impact from any other source to cause the issue.
My rear windshield blew apart out of the blue, with nothing near it or happening. It completely shattered and glass is everywhere.
While our vehicle was parked inside our garage, the rear windshield completely shattered outward, without any impact or object hitting it. The vehicle was parked and off. It was like it exploded. It seems like the glass was manufactured poorly or of an inferior quality than what should be deemed safe for vehicles on the road. It was very scary and unsettling and could have been incredibly dangerous/life threatening if I had been driving with my young child anywhere. The glass would have likely impacted my child or gotten on a car behind me. Incredibly scary!
It was cold in the morning so I turned the back defrost on and my back windshield shattered 10 minutes later while I was driving down the highway
On December 11, 2023, my wife and I drove 4 miles to a local restaurant with friends. We used the rear defroster as the outside air temperature was 50 degrees and humid. Upon leaving the restaurant 1.5 hours later, we discovered the whole back window was shattered. We reviewed the restaurant's security camera footage for the complete duration of our meal and it was very clear no one or anything went near the HRV. Honda is refusing to pay for repairs, so we had Safelite fix the back window. As of January 17th, 2024, Honda has not reimbursed us for the defective window even though the vehicle is still under original warranty.
I used the rear defrost on a cold drive and then put the car in my heated garage. I woke up the next day to the back window having a massive hole in it. We called the Honda dealer and they have another 2023 HRV with the exact exact same problem this morning. We looked online and other people are reporting the exact same issue with this make and model. It was -7° when we were driving the car last night, so if this window had busted while we were driving that would have meant driving at very dangerous temperatures. The police did not inspect the vehicle, nor the insurance company at this point. We have taken photos.
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Quick Summary
The 2023 Honda HR-V has 254 VISIBILITY/WIPER complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.