Cracked Main Screen = Bad Time

[astrowunder]

I have an AO tempered glass screen protector sitting in the box for months....so afraid of trying to put it on because it's so big and I HATE particles being trapped!!!

It was definitely challenging for me to get all the darned dust spots off, but it comes with little adhesive pads that remove it really well- the trick is being ready to drop before any more of the little buggers get on there! Mine came out perfectly, but it took a lot longer than I was expecting because of keeping up with the dust particles

 

[whatthe2]

As promised, here are some pics of the AO Matte.

In the top one, you can see fingerprints when the sun is on it, but they are far less noticeable than before. And this is after several days without wiping screen clean.

 

[kbecks13]

You broken it but you want Tesla to pay for it??

Uh..yes, i barely made contact with the screen and it cracks. That is pretty much a failure under normal usage and is very likely due to manufacturing defects in the glass itself making it easy to crack from residual internal stresses.

Most screens can take direct impact from objects falling multiple feet and this screen cracked from a phone, in my hand, being placed into the charging cradle. I don't move my arm at 10 ft/s, so i'm pretty darn sure the impact wasn't very severe.

 

[kbecks13]

Seems like Tesla is once again going to cover what would normally not be covered under warranty.
I wouldn’t say they owe you due to how easily it broke or claiming it was under stress. I think when you hit glass just the right way, it just breaks. It’s happened to my iPhone a number of times.

You're right that they don't have to do this, but they basically do this as "goodwill" towards the customer. Since this is my 2nd Model 3 and my last one was in this same service center for a month getting a battery replacement after the service tech spilled coolant in it doing a factory bulletin part replacement, i think i will be able to get the shop to cover this in part to make up for previous incidents.

Also on the phone front, i've NEVER had a phone screen crack without dropping it from multiple feet. If i ever had a screen crack from normal usage (i.e picking up or putting down) i would definitely push for the manufacturer to cover it.

 

[xcat]

I still have the original screen protector that came with delivery.

 

[iaonbb]

This sounds like exactly what happened when I DID try to install a screen protector on it. Had to remove it and go "naked."

Mine did this as well but a quick reboot fix the problem and it is never returned. I think the suggestion of doing it in clean screen mode is the way to go, plus you can see if there's any dust on there. Somehow I miraculously got mine perfect the first time centered and with no dust particles

 

[BenR]

Mine did this as well but a quick reboot fix the problem and it is never returned. I think the suggestion of doing it in clean screen mode is the way to go, plus you can see if there's any dust on there. Somehow I miraculously got mine perfect the first time centered and with no dust particles

I did do it in screen-clean mode, and the phantom-touching promptly brought it out of screen-clean and then did all sorts of wacky stuff. Rebooted to get it to come back, phantom-touching started up again maybe 15 seconds after reboot. Removed screen protector, reboot again and back to screen-clean mode to try to reinstall a bit more "lightly." It didn't work - exact same thing happened again once it was on.

It was the RPM screen protector so that may have something to do with it (ordered several products from them and had issues with all of them; someone else's might work better) but the experience definitely made me appreciate the benefits of not using a screen protector...

 

[Jaywlker]

I did do it in screen-clean mode, and the phantom-touching promptly brought it out of screen-clean and then did all sorts of wacky stuff. Rebooted to get it to come back, phantom-touching started up again maybe 15 seconds after reboot. Removed screen protector, reboot again and back to screen-clean mode to try to reinstall a bit more "lightly." It didn't work - exact same thing happened again once it was on.

It was the RPM screen protector so that may have something to do with it (ordered several products from them and had issues with all of them; someone else's might work better) but the experience definitely made me appreciate the benefits of not using a screen protector...

I did do it in screen-clean mode, and the phantom-touching promptly brought it out of screen-clean and then did all sorts of wacky stuff. Rebooted to get it to come back, phantom-touching started up again maybe 15 seconds after reboot. Removed screen protector, reboot again and back to screen-clean mode to try to reinstall a bit more "lightly." It didn't work - exact same thing happened again once it was on.

It was the RPM screen protector so that may have something to do with it (ordered several products from them and had issues with all of them; someone else's might work better) but the experience definitely made me appreciate the benefits of not using a screen protector...

This is the manufacture & style that I used. Not the cheapest, but I’ve had excellent results with it.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07FF17DFQ

 

[Vines]

Sucks to hear your screen broke with such little force, sounds like you got unlucky and hit the glass just right on the edge.
While a manufacturing defect is possible, any tempered glass is very delicate to edge damage, and will easily shatter even to very light impacts. I'll bet you could hit your phone quite hard on the face of the class and have no damage.
Does your phone have a case itself? What kind of phone is it? Does it have a metal or plastic frame?
If this starts being a thing that happens more often I could see a redesign of the plastic bezel of the TM3 so its slightly proud of the glass face.
I have the AO protector and am super happy with it. Barely notice its there, rarely see glare.

 

[kbecks13]

Does your phone have a case itself? What kind of phone is it? Does it have a metal or plastic frame?
If this starts being a thing that happens more often I could see a redesign of the plastic bezel of the TM3 so its slightly proud of the glass face.
I have the AO protector and am super happy with it. Barely notice its there, rarely see glare.

No case, it's a pixel 3 and i think the camera (which sits proud) hit the edge of the glass. I think having the glass sit under a protective lip that extends a few mm wouldn't be a bad idea, they have the real estate between the edge of the actual screen and the glass as it's designed currently.

 

[TexasTeslaRacing]

Soo on my way home yesterday i was going to place my phone in the charging cradle and accidentally tapped the bottom edge of the car dash screen with the top of my phone. I didn't think much of it at the moment, but then 15 minutes later my touchscreen started to freak out and was totally unresponsive to my inputs.

Turns out my car screen is cracked and this has a major impact on it's usability. I essentially cannot use the screen anymore and that means i can't access the cars sub-menus, adjust lights/windshield wipers etc. Called Tesla and they said the earliest i could get an appointment was 3 weeks from now, which kinda sucks. Really hoping they don't make me pay for this as glass fractured MUCH to easily and i suspect it had high internal stress remaining from the manufacturing process.

Wanted to post this as a PSA to everyone else, be VERY careful with your screens and really think about getting one of those glass screen protectors!

kbecks13, noooooo! Sorry to hear about your screen.

 

[Vines]

Glass on glass if the worst, as the resonance frequencies are nearly aligned, same reason why thiefs use spark plugs to break safety glass windows. Using the right frequency means only a tiny force is required to destroy the glass. Agree a 2 or 3 mm lip would probably be enough to ensure crud didn't get caught at the edges and still protect the glass from events like this.

Show us a picture of the fracture please?

 

[kbecks13]

Show us a picture of the fracture please?

See first post, it is a very thin fracture that goes from the point shown in the photo all the way to the top edge of the screen. The crack itself does not even catch a fingernail and isn't super easy to see.

 

[Vines]

Interesting, not how I would have expected that to look if it was a glass on glass edge hit, but my glass experience is more with large building size windows.
If it was glass on glass at the edge grain I'd have expected to see a pure shatter pattern. It looks like a impact at the face, but on the edge caused the half bulls eye, and that propagated to the crack.
Hope you get it replaced quick, hard to blame it on manufacturing though better factory edge preparation does lead to better resistance to these kinds of damages.
Maybe someone needs to make a silicone rectangular ring in grey or black similar to tablet protection if we see this happen more than the freak occasion. Definitely glad I got that AO Glass protector to take these hits, worth the cash.

 

[whatthe2]

Interesting, not how I would have expected that to look if it was a glass on glass edge hit, but my glass experience is more with large building size windows.
If it was glass on glass at the edge grain I'd have expected to see a pure shatter pattern. It looks like a impact at the face, but on the edge caused the half bulls eye, and that propagated to the crack.
Hope you get it replaced quick, hard to blame it on manufacturing though better factory edge preparation does lead to better resistance to these kinds of damages.
Maybe someone needs to make a silicone rectangular ring in grey or black similar to tablet protection if we see this happen more than the freak occasion. Definitely glad I got that AO Glass protector to take these hits, worth the cash.

I think a silicone or rubber ring around the edge would be great - kinda like Apple did when they had the connectivity problems.

Not sure a screen protector will help when you hit the chrome edge.

 

[ngogas]

Wow that sucks. I wonder if they would cover this under warranty.

 

[kbecks13]

Apparently Tesla does a test to check if the screen has any sub-flush damage and if so then it's your fault and you pay.

I'm most likely going to need to pay for this myself and i'm hearing that the cost to replace it will be approximately $1300, not sure if thats just parts or includes labor

 

[Vines]

Yikes...that's an expensive tap...
Hope it includes install, but looking around, I think Install is super easy and quick.

 

[Dana1]

I

@astrowunder : How much does it cut down on the sharpness of the display?

edit: I realize it's a subjective question, but is it something you noticed right away or does it become 'invisible' after awhile?

i don’t notice mine at all.

 

[Jaywlker]

Apparently Tesla does a test to check if the screen has any sub-flush damage and if so then it's your fault and you pay.

I'm most likely going to need to pay for this myself and i'm hearing that the cost to replace it will be approximately $1300, not sure if thats just parts or includes labor

I’m curious: what is ‘sub-flush damage?’