An investigation has been launched by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration due to complaints from drivers about spontaneously shattering sunroofs in their Hyundai Veloster models. So far there are fifteen complaints on file in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration database. Apparently drivers will hear a loud bang and then experience a downpour of glass as their shattered sunroof “explodes”. One report states that a woman was driving home from getting her very first oil change and tire rotation on her new Veloster.
“All of the sudden there was a loud bang like a gunshot, and I heard something raining down on my car,” reads the complaint, which is listed without any identifying information in the NHTSA database. “I looked in the mirror and saw glass flying everywhere… The glass was in my hair, down the back of my shirt and my pants.”
While no extensive injuries or deaths have been reported, we have to imagine that shattering glass, especially if you are in the midst of driving could be potentially dangerous. So far these complaints are only coming in about the new Hyundai Veloster models. Two reports that the sunroof shattered while their vehicles were parked and another person said that he was washing his car when the glass shattered while he was hosing it down. He said the glass flew as far as six feet away from the car due to the explosion.
Jim Trainor, a spokesman for Hyundai, said the company is working with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to look into the problem. “Our evaluation is in the very early stages and Hyundai is in the process of examining each report,” Trainor said. “As always, we will work closely with NHTSA on this evaluation.”
No recalls have been mentioned at this point, but if you are a new Hyundai Veloster owner you might want to keep an eye out for additional information about your sunroof.
Source National Highway Traffic Safety Administration