Lawsuit says Acura RDX rear window can shatter without needing

Imagine you’re driving and hear something like a gunshot. You look around and realize your car’s rear window wasn’t shot, but shattered unexpectedly and spontaneously. This could happen to owners of defective 2019-2023 Acura RDX models, a U.S. lawsuit claims.

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The class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Western District) alleges that due to a problem with the defrost system, the rear windows of RDX models can shatter without any external impact. Owners say the sound when the windows explode is like a gunshot.

Read: 2025 Acura RDX facelift starts at $44,700, just $350 more than last year

News of the RDX’s shattered rear window won’t come as a shock to Acura dealers. In June 2022, the automaker sent a service bulletin to dealers, disclosing that the rear window could shatter without an external impact due to incorrect specifications related to the rear defroster grid. Dealers were told to inspect and replace the rear window.

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While that change was supposed to fix the problem, the lawsuit claims the replacement windows are just as susceptible to shattering.

The legal battle between Acura and the plaintiffs has been going on for quite some time. In December 2023, Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett almost dismissed the case for lack of prosecution and for not meeting the prescribed deadline. Although modifications were made, in July, Judge Garnett dismissed 19 separate charges against Honda/Acura, while leaving some charges in place.

CarComplaints reports that the class action lawsuit has been refiled following the changes. The lawsuit is led by four plaintiffs, all of whom own 2019, 2020, or 2023 Acura RDX vehicles that had their rear windows accidentally shattered.

In the case of plaintiff Franklin McIntyre, his wife parked the couple’s 2023 RDX at work in May 2023 and returned to find the rear window shattered, with no evidence of an external impact. Acura said the rear window was not covered under warranty, forcing her to pay $588.50 for repairs. On April 10, 2023, plaintiff Christian Regnier had a similar experience, except the rear window of her 2020 RDX shattered while she was driving at highway speeds, again with no evidence of an external impact.

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