TiHabanero

I know windshields must meet a specified federal spec, so I assume all the glass must meet a specified federal spec. I have seen the rear glass break from bike racks on Ford, Honda, Chevy, and Volvo. Oddly enough I have not seen it happen on a Toyota, yet. I doubt the Tesla has "cheap" glass, rather suspect something occurred to enable the glass to break. In the day, rack manufacturers specifically warned about mounting racks directly on the rear glass. Today they specify the bottom feet must not be on the glass, but perched on metal and not plastic. The bottom feet carry the load.
One thing to note is that traditional strap down racks do not cling to the glass, they compress down on the glass with the upper rest by use of the hold down straps that are hooked to the metal frame of the rear hatch or deck lid. The suction cup models put all load requirements on the glass. The rear wheel rests on the bumper, but the glass is alone doing the job that several straps and the door/deck lid normally do. Not a good plan from where I sit.
As previously suggested, get a hitch installed and use a hitch mounted rack, or get a truck. Got my first pickup in 30+ years this past December just for the purpose of hauling bikes. A used 09 Ford Ranger, so it is not so damned big. Tired of taking the rack on and off the car. Why didn't I do this years and years ago?

speedevil 

I just built fork-mount racks for the bed of my Dakota pickup. A 12' 2x8 and 4 fork mounts lets me easily carry 4 bikes. A cable with 2 locks fastened to the tiedowns in the bed gives some security that they'll be there after a restaurant stop on the way home. All in, about $75 and I can always reuse the mounts with a different truck by redoing the base board dimensions.

Humpy

Auto glass is also thinned as much as possible these days to save weight/increase fuel mileage.

Attaching a bike rack to it just defies common sense.

Wcollins00

phughes

Once again, the back glass of a car is not designed to support weight. Looking at the picture of the bike on the rack, I can only shake my head. What a bad idea. Sorry, but if anyone, other than the person deciding to buy this type of rack, is at fault, it is the maker of the rack, not the manufacturer of the car.

mstateglfr 

whaaaa?

a bike was placed on a nearly horizontal piece of glass that was never designed to hold a bike, and when it breaks you place blame on the thing that was never supposed to hold the bike?

go back to incorrectly ranting about unemployment checks- while wrong, you somehow made more sense in that thread.

livedarklions

Pretty sure that glass wouldn't stand up to getting hit with a hammer either. That's just not a reasonable way to mount a bike, and I would have no problem with them telling you that you voided the warranty.

Not sure there is a safe way to mount a bike carrier on that car.

Shimagnolo

^This.
If the bike won't fit inside the vehicle, then the only sensible alternative is the receiver and hitch mount rack.

The Golden Boy 

Whoa.

The colors man... the colors...

tagaproject6

That is some weak glass!

Vista101

That had to have sucked with the glass broken

Happy Feet

Whoa... that is some crazy failed mounting idea there. Unbelievable.

The Golden Boy 

What would be the purpose of using ballistic glass on a consumer grade civilian vehicle?

Shimagnolo

They can make steel bullet proof.
So I should be able to shoot at the fender on my car, and if it doesn't stop the bullet, then it must be poor quality, right?
Do you know how thick glass must be to make it bulletproof?

"Bulletproof glass varies in thickness from 3⁄4 to 3 1⁄2 inches (19 to 89 mm)."
Source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulletproof_glass

Bluechip

I have seen other Tesla's (Model S's with the all glass roof) use a SeaSucker with good results so I asked them about using one on our Model S with an aluminum roof and was told it was fine. Tesla on the other hand advised against it. I was concerned with the aluminum being too thin for this purpose and possibly being deformed by the suction so I decided against it. I would have thought the all glass roof would have been fine. Is it possible to over pump the suction? Did it break while pumping the cups or later on during use? Did it crack in just one spot or in multiple cup locations?

Sorry you had this problem with your Model 3 but other than this how are you liking the car? Not having to stop at gas stations is pretty sweet isn't it.

speedevil 

Nope. The manufacturer didn't select the roof glass for the 0.0001 % of owners that *might* use a suction cup bike mount on it. This is *not* a manufacturer problem in any way, shape, or form.

Take the wheels off, put them in a bag, and put the whole bike in the back of the car. Or, use a different vehicle to transport the bike.

I don't understand why some people are determined to use the wrong tool for the job - and then invariably blame the tool when it doesn't work - instead of accepting the responsibility for selecting the wrong tool and the consequences.

DrIsotope

That's not a windshield, that's a rear glass. Auto glass is tempered, windshields are laminated. I don't think anyone designing the car, or spec'ing for the glass, assumed someone would stick a suction cup bike rack on it.

I drive a cheap car with a glass roof, and it never occured to me to stick a suction cup bike rack on it. I put a tower and bar Yakima rack on it like everyone else.

OBoile

This. If you use something for a purpose it wasn't intended for, you have to expect the potential for problems.

livedarklions

I don't give a damn about Tesla, I wouldn't recognize one of their cars if I saw one, but I do know that I wouldn't expect any window on a car to support 20 pounds of bike bouncing around on top of it every time I went over a bump. It's just not designed to be a weight-bearing part, and it's silly to expect Tesla or any other manufacture to over-build the windows when doing so would add a lot to the vehicle weight.

BTW, from the Tesla 3 manual:
Roof Racks Model 3 supports the use of Tesla-approved roof racks using a Tesla mounting accessory. To install roof racks, you must use this accessory and you must use only roof rack systems that have been approved by Tesla Failure to do so can cause significant damage. Note: Mounting accessories and roof rack systems may not be available at time of vehicle purchase.

mstateglfr 

No, im not a fanboy of Tesla. Dont own one, have never looked at em online, and dont plan to own one.

I am a fan of laughing at absurd conclusions though and yours was fantastically funny.

I like that you now claim Tesla's glass is for sure low quality. It simply wasnt designed to hold weight or be suctioned under dynamic stress.

tagaproject6

I have that same warning on my R8 and so far it hasn't cracked.

livedarklions

And some people smoke without getting cancer, doesn't make it a good idea. Count yourself lucky if bouncing a bike on your back window doesn't result in cracking--so far.

tagaproject6

I actually use the Seasucker on my other cars with glass backs. Tesla just has weak ass glass. It's a good idea for some, not for others. If it breaks it breaks. They can be replaced. I don't get too worked up about it.

livedarklions

Serious question--do you have any other reason to believe that Tesla glass is especially weak? I really wouldn't know, but the OP is pretty lousy proof--maybe the roads are just bumpier where he lives.

Also, OP is complaining about it--your "if it breaks, it breaks" attitude actually seems more reasonable. You know you're taking a risk, so if it goes bad, it's on you..

tagaproject6

Just that particular glass on that particular car, which happens to be on a Tesla. I had a chance to drive a Tesla for a few months and I did not like it. Even though the glass did not break when I used a sea sucker on it. Others love it. Such is the human condition, it is very dynamic. Life is a risk. Nobody makes it out alive. Internet handwringing is a waste.