The rear windshields on certain Nissan Rogues are prone to randomly shattering, a recently filed lawsuit alleges.
New York residents Nicole Delucia-Roitman and Darren Chang filed the proposed class action suit on Jan. 6. The suit alleges that the backlites of 2021-2025 Nissan Rogue vehicles have a defect that causes them to “spontaneously explode.” The plaintiffs claim that Nissan was aware of the defect but hid it from consumers and failed to cover the damage under its warranty policy.
What Happened to the Plaintiffs?
According to the filing, the rear windshield of Delucia-Roitman’s new 2025 Nissan Rogue shattered while she was driving on Dec. 27, 2025.
“[The plaintiff] and her husband were driving back home when they heard a loud pop
that sounded like broken glass,” the document says. “[She] discovered that the rear windshield had shattered … spreading shattered glass across the rear interior of the vehicle.”
The lawsuit alleges that Nissan wouldn’t cover the damage to Delucia-Roitman’s car under warranty because it was “normal wear and tear” and Delucia-Roitman’s rear windshield had still not been replaced by the time the lawsuit was filed.
The lawsuit included this photo of plaintiff Darren Chang’s Nissan Rogue. It shows glass from the rear windshield covering his child’s stroller.
The filing alleges that Chang’s backlite also broke on Dec. 27 after a little more than a year and a half of use. Chang heard a shattering sound when he closed the door after fastening his baby into a car seat, but initially thought the sound came from ice falling off his vehicle and began his drive to a local pet store.
“[When Chang arrived at the store] he discovered that his rear windshield was shattered,” the filing says. “[He saw] that much of the glass had fallen into the trunk of his vehicle, [including] the open spaces of [his baby’s] stroller.”
The Alleged Defect
The filing details the manufacturing process for tempered glass and alleges the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) backlites on the affected vehicles contain too much nickel sulfide and were too thin.
“Excessive nickel sulfide inclusions will eventually lead to catastrophic failure,” the document says. “…Nissan’s use of thin, tempered soda-lime glass, containing manufacturing defects, to produce the rear windshields is substandard, dangerous and inadequate.”
Reports from Consumers
The lawsuit claims Nissan knew about the alleged defect because of frequent consumer complaints. The NHTSA received 45 complaints about Nissan Rogue rear windshields that spontaneously exploded, the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit included numerous screenshots of consumer complaints on public forums, including Reddit, Facebook and a website dedicated to Nissan owners.
“All vehicle manufacturers, including Nissan, routinely monitor and analyze NHTSA complaints … [so] Nissan [knows about] the NHTSA complaints,” the filing says.
The lawsuit document includes screenshots of around 18 of the NHTSA complaints, plus numerous screenshots of complaints on public forums.
Alleged Danger and Costs
Due to the volume of consumer complaints, the plaintiffs propose a class action lawsuit and ask the court to certify the class. The lawsuit also asks the court to “enjoin Nissan from continuing the [alleged] unlawful, deceptive, fraudulent and unfair business practices;” to grant injunctive and equitable relief; to grant “costs, restitution, damages, including punitive damages, penalties and disgorgement” and to order Nissan “to pay both pre- and post-judgment interest on any amounts awarded.”
The lawsuit also requests a jury trial, for which a date has not been set.
Observations from the Auto Glass Industry
Larry Diesbach of North Carolina-based Impex Auto Glass says he’s seen more than 50 Nissan Rogues with shattered backlites, most of them over the past seven months.
“There’s no rhyme or reason to it,” he says. “I tend to get a bunch of them with shattered backlites at once. There will be nothing for weeks then, boom, there’s another batch of them. It’s just bizarre.”
Diesbach adds that it’s become hard to find replacement parts for the Rogue’s rear windshields, especially aftermarket glass.
Good example of the higher quality of OE glass verses aftermarket glass. I don’t know if aftermarket glass spontaneously explodes. Aftermarket glass usually needs help from some external source like, a tree limb, an ex-girlfriend or a bullet (depending on where you live). Deer season in Arkansas is hard on rear glass. Arkansas hunters will shoot at anything that moves.
Whats a rear windshield?
Sounds like during the winter, more than likely heat leads shorting out
Don’t use your rear defroster in freezing temps. I know it sounds stupid but…. Think of all the variables freezing temps, tempered glass and an electrical current.