Rear Window Issue

[GrayStrider]

Does anyone else have this with their rear window on the 2013 FFH? I noticed that the glass isn't smooth optically in a couple of spots - you get a distortion in the glass when looking through the window via the rear view mirror. It happens between a couple of the defrost wires. I don't remember seeing anything like that on the only other car I've owned that had the defrost wires in the window (a 1993 Saturn SL2).

[hermans]

edit

Edited March 26, 2013 by hermans

[lmp180psu]

I have the issue you are describing. For me it is pretty much dead center in the rear window. It is a bit annoying but not sure if its worth even mentioning to the dealer.

[GrayStrider]

It doesn't seem to bother my husband (he's the primary driver of our '13 FFH), but it does bug me. We had an issue with our 2005 Saturn VUE's front windshield, a blurry patch, so they replaced it. Not as much of an issue being the back window, but I wish it weren't there.

[Charrua]

I have the issue as well (11/3/2012 build date). It bothers me every time I look in the rear view mirror. Full disclosure: I have been accused of being a perfectionist. I'm quite sure that if I brought it up to the dealer they'd tell me to get lost.

[hybridbear]

Bring it up anyway. But you'll probably have more success at your selling dealer than any other dealer

[dmt1971]

Has anyone gotten this fixed yet? It is driving me nuts but I'm afraid to have them take my car apart only to put in another defective back window and end up with new creaks and rattles. Unfortunately, I really want to tint my windows and cannot do it until I know I have a rear window I'm going to keep!

[acdii]

I was in a regular Ti last night, the back glass in that one was also distorted. I think it has a lot to do with the curvature and angles, and probably will be very difficult to get it absolutely distortion free. Compound curves are a pain, just imagine what it will be like trying to tint it if you try to do it yourself.

[neod192]

47 minutes had his window replaced and the new window has the same distorsion. Stick with the window you have, because replacing it will only cause more problems.

[corncobs]

Is this also noticeable if the rear window is tinted?

I can definitely see a distortion that makes a car / object look skinny in the rear view mirror. Is that what everyone is talking about?

[47Minutes]

I had the hardest time convincing the service advisor of the issue. He tried twice to take photos for submission to Ford for warranty replacement. Ford finally gave approval, I think to just shut me up about it.

 

In order to replace the rear glass they have to pull down the headliner and remove rear interior panels.

 

After my reassembly there was a corner of the headliner at the top where a small ridge developed. You could only see a shadow of it but could feel it pretty well. After a little pressing the dealer said it would have to be replaced in full. They did something with it before showing it to me once more. I could no longer see anything and to the touch the ridge was all but gone. I decided to leave well enough alone and not get the headliner replaced. I'm already worried about future noises developing from it having been taken apart and I really didn't feel it was necessary after seeing and feeling what they were able to do. You wouldn't know there is an issue unless I mention it.

 

To top it all off, the replacement window also has distortion. I want to say that it is less than the original glass. But since I've had my car a total of 48 hours in the past 4 weeks, it is hard to remember the original glass and its look.

 

My advice, if you can live with it, do so. I've yet to get my windows tinted so I don't yet know how that will affect the look of the glass.

[acdii]

Is this also noticeable if the rear window is tinted?

I can definitely see a distortion that makes a car / object look skinny in the rear view mirror. Is that what everyone is talking about?

Yes. At a certain point across the glass about midway down, it squishes the view. Some are more noticeable than others, but I believe its because of all the compound curves in the glass.

[Terps]

Is this also noticeable if the rear window is tinted?

I can definitely see a distortion that makes a car / object look skinny in the rear view mirror. Is that what everyone is talking about?

 

Mine is definitely less noticible after tint, thankfully I got a fairly good window to begin with, from where I sit it is about a 4"x1" horizontal section that distorts. Anyone tried seat height adjustments to see if it makes it better/worse depending on the angle you look through? Being 6'7" the only seat height for me is all the way down but maybe sitting closer to the headliner if you are shorter will help?

[Hamin' X]

Definitely a problem in my rear window. Almost imposible to make out what type of vehicle is following you. Sometimes you think that a vehicle is gain rapidly on you, because it suddenly grew larger due to the distortion. Especially dangerous at night. I think it is a safety issue.

 

Service manager at my dealer took pictures of the distortion and sent the to the factory guys. Answer? This is normal in all 2013 Fusions.

 

I've got news for you Ford. If this is now your new normal, then your standards are junk. What else am I going to find that is substandard? Just because it is normal, doesn't make it right. This is unacceptable!

[hybridbear]

Definitely a problem in my rear window. Almost imposible to make out what type of vehicle is following you. Sometimes you think that a vehicle is gain rapidly on you, because it suddenly grew larger due to the distortion. Especially dangerous at night. I think it is a safety issue.

 

Service manager at my dealer took pictures of the distortion and sent the to the factory guys. Answer? This is normal in all 2013 Fusions.

 

I've got news for you Ford. If this is now your new normal, then your standards are junk. What else am I going to find that is substandard? Just because it is normal, doesn't make it right. This is unacceptable!

It's definitely not normal. Not all cars have it. We have zero distortion in our car. Ford likely got some bad glass from their glass manufacturer. I work in the glass industry and my company used to supply Ford's windshields back before selling off the automotive branch of the company. There are many issues that can happen during production to cause these kinds of issues with the glass and it's possible that there's a batch of bad windows that didn't get caught during the QA inspection at receiving time from the supplier. Your dealer should have no issues getting approval to replace it under warranty.

[acdii]

Mine has a very slight distortion midway up the glass, only reason I can see it is because of this thread, otherwise I wouldnt have seen it.

[47Minutes]

Think carefully of whether or not you can live with it. To replace that back glass you have to pull down the headliner and remove some interior trim pieces. Ultimately, the replacement glass I got has the exact same issue. So in the end it was not worth the slight wrinkles I got on the back edge of the headliner. Had I known the replacement would be the same, I'd never have done it.

 

I would say I'm noticing it less and hopefully if I ever can get the car tinted that I'll forget all about it.

[hybridbear]

Think carefully of whether or not you can live with it. To replace that back glass you have to pull down the headliner and remove some interior trim pieces. Ultimately, the replacement glass I got has the exact same issue. So in the end it was not worth the slight wrinkles I got on the back edge of the headliner. Had I known the replacement would be the same, I'd never have done it.

 

I would say I'm noticing it less and hopefully if I ever can get the car tinted that I'll forget all about it.

What has the dealer done to fix the headliner? When the dealer took apart our headliner to fix the broken clip that was rattling they got a stain on it and scratched the sunglasses case so now they've ordered a new sunglasses case to replace the one they damaged. They also washed the stain out but said that if they couldn't they would have replaced the headliner. Your dealer should either fix the wrinklers or put in a new headliner at their expense since they damaged it.

[Riggo]

I just noitced the distortion on my way to work, after almost 3 months with the car. Weird. I can really see it when I look at the white lines on the road through the rear view mirror. I guess it doens't bother me that much but it's definitely there.

[mattyd]

i have had my for about a month and a half i haven't noticed anything yet

[hermans]

Look in your rear view mirror and move your head up and down. You will see it. It's the price you pay for a swept rear roof line. It doesn't bother me at all, but then over the years I have had many cars with the swept rear roof line.

Edited August 21, 2013 by hermans

[Sleddog]

I've seen it and it doesn't bother me.

[corncobs]

Makes the " what car is driving behind me " game much more interesting. ;-)

[GrayStrider]

Makes the " what car is driving behind me " game much more interesting. ;-)

LOL. Been there, done that! I'll live with my glass imperfection, but I really think at this kind of price for a vehicle, this shouldn't be an issue. Just saying.

[aschulz261]

Basic physics says it's impossible to have an optically pure image with a compound curve. It's not a flaw with the glass. I believe the manufacturer Ford uses has done all that is possible to minimize that distortion, but there is no way around the fact that it's impossible. I'm sure that some are worse than others though.

 

Anybody have a 3rd or 4th Gen F Body from GM? Same distortion....same problem. Compound curves in the glass. I think the lines from the rear defroster make the distortion much more visible.

 

Just be thankful that glass can follow a compound curve, otherwise we would all be stuck with flat pieces of glass for windows.