My bother came over yesterday and was upset because he had noticed a crack in the rear hatch just below the window (just right of the Ford symbol). We both looked at my Explorer and there was no sign of a crack. I went out to my Explorer today (26 degrees currently) and guess what.. SAME CRACK! This has to be a manufacturers defect.
Based on the previous referenced $250 estimate, I would say something has to be done.
Has anyone been successful in getting Ford to do something about this?
There's been a couple of TSBs on the subject that I can recall but I believe both only dealt with replacement technique. FWIW, TSBs never offer any warranty extensions and are designed simply to make the techs job a little easier or quicker.
If enough people complained, I imagine Ford may or may not offer a customer satisfaction program but I certainly wouldn't hold my breath since this is not a safety issue.
Good luck...
What year are we talking? I have an '04 and '98 and can't imagine what would crack.
IIRC, this centres around the 02 model year... can't remember if it's job 1 cars, job 2 cars or both affected. There is a plastic panel that attaches to the botttom of the liftgate glass that cracks vertically through the middle.
I have had the panel replaced twice on our '02. Cracked the 1st time, and it was replaced the 2nd time because when it was replaced the 1st time it was done improperly (rain water would collect behind the panel an would only drain out when you opened the window to the open/up position.
wth
If it's an '02 and you are the origional owner, I would be at the dealership wanting ford to replace it n/c.
wth
Mine is an '02 and I am not the original owner. They replaced the cracked panel when they did the rear window hinges under the recall.
My vehicle is faaaar out of warranty. I have 85k miles and they did it all for free. Mine happened at a car wash when it was 10 degrees outside and they put hot water on my tailgate to wash it with the mop thing to remove the salt buildup.
pickarw wrote:
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