That $30 phone mount that nearly killed my drive in Dallas

My buddy Tom swore by this suction cup mount he picked up at a gas station. Said it held his phone through a whole cross country trip. I got the same one for like 30 bucks and on day three the cup popped off my windshield on I-35. Phone went flying into the back seat while I was trying to merge. I slammed the brakes, car behind me honked like crazy. Turns out the plastic lever that locks the suction cup was cracked straight out of the package. Tom said I must've installed it wrong, but I checked the base and it was visibly cheaper than his. Has anyone else had a phone mount fail at the worst possible time? I'm back to using my old vent clip, which works fine, but I want something that can actually take the Texas heat sun beating on it all summer.