NHTSA Complaint #11539703 — 2015 TOYOTA RAV4

While driving on highway 394 in Minneapolis on August 19, 2023, my sunroof exploded. It was approximately 4:55 p.m., and I was driving between 60 and 70 miles per hour. It was around 90 degrees outside at the time. The highway was busy. As I was driving in the far left lane with my nearly 3 year old daughter in the backseat, I was startled by a loud bang like a gunshot or an explosion right above my head. I had no idea what had happened because the shade for my sunroof was closed. As I merged over to the nearest exit, I saw people looking at my car, including looking up toward my roof. After exiting the highway, I found a nearby street, Mt. View Avenue, and parked my car. I got out and looked at the roof, seeing that the sunroof had shattered nearly completely. I noticed immediately that most of the glass shards seem to have shot upward. There was not a large amount of broken glass laying on the sunroof shade. This indicates that the sunroof erupted from internal pressure, not an external object coming into contact with the glass. Additionally, I did not see any foreign objects in the window shade area on a visual inspection. Luckily the shade was closed, so no glass got into the interior of the cabin or hit me or my daughter. After inspecting the damage, I called a dealership that I regularly receive service from but it was closed, and I have not yet heard back. I explained the issue to a representative, who said they would notify the glass repair people and that they'd call me back ASAP. I drove the rest of the way home off of the highway. When I got home, I researched the issue and saw that this is not an isolated event. Specifically, many cars with sunroofs have had them explode, including Toyota Rav4 models dating back to 2014. There is no recall for the issue, and I have never been warned that my sunroof could randomly explode. Neither the manufacturer or insurance have inspected the damage yet. No warning light came on prior to the explosion.