Range Rover Evoque panoramic roof cracked when we manually closed the boot - is this normal?
My girlfriend closed the boot of our Range rover Evoque manually, without using the auto button. I was sitting in the driver seat at the time and it made a strange noise that I hadn't heard before. I later noticed a crack on the roof about 6-inch in length. I assume that it was the torsion that cracked the roof as the crack was not directional in shape like waves. Outside the car, the crack went all the way to the end of the roof and, beneath the seal around the glass, you could see a physical crack. However, the main crack could not be felt to the touch. There is no clear impact area apart from a sliver of glass missing on the crack, which I'm told was caused when the outer layer cracked. Ranger Rover customer service has to be the worst I have ever encountered. Ranger Rover garages just take a picture and can't confirm how they can prove that it was an impact area. The panoramic roof isn't covered under glass cover on car insurance and Range Rover want around £3000 to fix the issue.
The glass in hatchbacks of cars can crack and shatter if they are closed from a side rather from the centre. Happened to me years ago with a 205GTI and regularly happens to readers. I guess the same could happen with a glass panoramic roof if closing from one side imposed excess stress on the hinge at the top of the hatchback, but it's our first report of this received on an Evoque. If your only option is to spend £3000 (and you can't claim on insurance), it might be worth investigating having the pan roof replaced with an electric sliding canvas roof. Talk to Kahn Design or Bristol Sunroofs.
Answered by Honest John on
