A Calgary mom of two younger kids is talking out after the sunroof on her new Mercedes exploded, spraying tempered glass all over the place.
Jessica Cheung instructed International Information it was a terrifying ordeal for herself and her kids – aged 5 months and two years – who have been within the again seat on the time.
“Terrifying. It was completely horrible. It was a nightmare,” she mentioned.
The household simply bought their 2022 GLE 450 from an area seller this previous January. Shortly after March 23, Cheung mentioned she was driving down Deerfoot Path when she heard a loud bang.
“We have been driving after which abruptly there was an enormous loud explosion – nearly like a gunshot went off proper subsequent to me,” she described.
“We felt chilly air after which simply showered with tons of of items of shards of glass.”
Cheung mentioned her two-year-old daughter’s neck and again have been minimize by the glass and the youngsters had shards of glass of their automotive seats. She additionally suffered scratches on her face and fingers.
Images of exploded sunroof.
Courtesy: Jessica Cheung
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Calgary driver scared and pissed off by exploding sunroof
Cheung instantly contacted her native Mercedes seller, in addition to Mercedes-Benz Canada, however mentioned she was instructed the explosion was resulting from an “outdoors affect.”
“They declare {that a} stone chip hit us,” she mentioned. “There was no rock chip.”
The e-mail from Mercedes, which she confirmed to International Information, additionally states: “Sadly, exterior influences equivalent to street stones can break the tempered glass after which it tends to blow up or break when there may be elevated stress within the automobile. ..
“…even closing the door can improve the stress inflicting the glass to interrupt.”
Cheung mentioned she maintains there was no impression or trauma to the sunroof at any time earlier than the explosion, including the household solely drove it 1K and principally residential areas.
Shards of tempered glass in automotive.
Courtesy: Jessica Cheung
The automaker really helpful that the household submit a declare by their insurance coverage, which it has. Fortuitously, it had complete protection that included glass.
However Cheung questioned what occurs to drivers who are usually not coated.
Rob de Pruis on the Insurance coverage Bureau of Canada instructed International Information many Albertans haven’t got glass protection. de Pruis mentioned it is because it’s typically costlier than paying out of pocket.
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De Pruis prompt that drivers, particularly with newer and extra superior windshields and sunroofs, look to get them.
“A whole lot of the newer autos are very costly for windshields and sunroofs and moonroofs,” he identified. “A few of that’s due to the built-in know-how and a few of it’s due to the sheer dimension and the price of manufacturing.”
De Pruis mentioned many drivers do not understand they will get glass cowl with out getting the costlier complete cowl at a less expensive value and with out it affecting their claims.
“If you happen to purchase complete protection and add that tumbler protection is just too costly, there are stand-alone glass insurance policies out there.” de Pruis mentioned.
Shattered glass from an exploded sunroof.
Courtesy: Jessica Cheung
Transport Canada instructed International Information there was a steadily rising variety of sunroofs and moonroofs through the years, with 907 documented complaints since 2000. These numbers contain quite a lot of totally different automakers and automobile makes and fashions.
It additionally identified that this can be a comparatively small quantity in comparison with the variety of autos on the street in Canada.
Cheung questions why this nonetheless occurs, with any make or mannequin.
“Why did this occur? It is a model new automobile,” she identified. “And nowhere was I hit by a chip of rock.
“How delicate is a automotive if a chip of rock tears your entire roof off?”
International Information independently reached out to Mercedes-Benz Canada and offered the household’s data. The automaker is now wanting into it.
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