2003 ford explorer cracked rear hatch

[kushmj]

I have a 2003 Ford Explorer that I bought used three months ago with 40K miles. The tempature yesterday was 55 degrees and sunny so I took the car through the car wash. I noticed today that there is about a 2 inch crack in the rear hatch right below the window. I am seeing all of the other complaints and apparently Ford is doing nothing about this. If anyone has any information that may help please email me at [email protected]. This is very disapointing since we now own two Ford Explorers.

[kushmj]

I just talked to the dealership and the manager said that if the vehicle was under warranty that they would replace it. They have seen quite a few. My vehicle has 40k miles on it so I am just out of luck. He said it would cost $330 to fix. I said I hope Ford knows the imapct thsi will have on loyal customers as I have two Explorers and apparently this will be my last.

[Samk330]

I also have a 2003 Ford Explorer with a cracked rear hatch. Took it to my dealer and was told the part would cost me $400.00 plus the Ford logo. Installation and painting would be billed at $65.00 per hour. This is rediculous when it seems obvious that Ford has a problem, not us.

[traveler2006]

OK...no body is allowed to blame the wife for the cracked panel...

We travel all over the US and our hobby over the past year is to see how many Ford/Mercury SUVs we can find with the cracked panels.

The numbers are staggering. We have a 02 Mountaineer and it too is cracked. They still only have a service bulletin out, but several body shops tell me this is a common Ford flaw.

We are trying to hold out and not fix it hoping that there will be a recall.

[alexzgz]

no no no

[wingnutMarine]

I just noticed that my wifes 2004 Exploder is cracked right at the FORD decal on the smaller hatch with the window. 22K and always garaged. It seems it appeared when we had a cold snap. I am very interested in what the dealers are saying on who is going to fix this!

[shorod]

Typically, a recall will only be issued if there is a safety or health hazard associated with the flaw. I don't have a current generation Explorer or Mountaineer, so I'm not sure what exactly the crack is like. From the descriptions though, I don't think it would fall into a safety or health risk category.

Don't hold your breath for a recall, but a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) or class action lawsuit may happen.

-Rod

[bhoyer]

I have an 02 XLT and just last week saw the cracks in mine. I thought someone hit it in the parking lot but I couldn't find any other dents or evidence of an accident. I went to the local Ford dealer and they said it would not be covered under warranty because I have 60K on it. I then took it to a local body shop and they told me they have repaired a bunch of Explorers with the same problem. If you have this repaired, what keeps this from happening again the next time it gets cold out. I assume the replacement part is made of the same material. Is it not?

[Judith Seeholzer]

My 2003 mercury mountaineer also has a crack in the same place as everyone elses. It was about 22 degrees out when I noticed the crack. Please let me know if anyone gets any action going from ford.

[VPARSONS]

Actually, I have a 2002 Ford Explorer. I bought it new. A couple of months after I had it, I noticed a vertical crack in the rear hatch that runs from the bottom of the window all the way down to the horizontal seam. I just figured that someone may have backed into me in a parking lot and that was that, until I started noticing other Ford Explorers (amazingly many of them the same dark green as mine) driving around town with the same crack. About a year or so later, another crack appeared, about 8 inches from the initial crack. Same vertical crack, from just underneath the window down to the seam. Has anyone had any luck in pursuing this with Ford? I've not contacted my dealer or anyone about it, since I've had the vehicle for 5 years! Other than that, it's been great. It was a little disheartening, though.

[swhird1]

I had my 2002 Explorer fixed under warrenty. Now it is cracked again. I assumed when they fixed it they would replace it with a new and improved part but seemingly, no.

[gg43]

Originally Posted by swhird1

I had my 2002 Explorer fixed under warrenty. Now it is cracked again. I assumed when they fixed it they would replace it with a new and improved part but seemingly, no.

I have the same thing going on with my 2004 Mountaineer. I was told it was a "known defect" by the dealer the first time it happened and this time the dealer basically says "Too Bad So Sad" you're our of warranty. They said they would check with Ford to see if they're willing to do anything but they were kind of like "Don't hold your breath".

[robbiev]

Ok so today I noticed the same issue with my trunk-hatch clean vertical crack just to the right of the from emblem, also in NM we commonly get 75-85 degree weather during the day and 40-50 during the night. too bad it just cracked. Shouldabaddachevy instead

[tlinetrader]

'02 XLS from Buffalo, N.Y. with same problem. Dealer was no help. The two cracks on mine have opened up into a gaop about 1/8" wide. Anyone know how to remove the plastic panel? I'd at least like to patch it from behind to close the gap.

[brazzle]

this just happened in my 2002 Explorer. I love my Explorer but I'm sick of paying for defective parts. Anyone had any luck having Ford cover this for them?

Also, on carcomplaints.com, people have said they've had it fixed and it happened again... so does that mean that the TSB does not actually fix the problem?

thanks

EDIT: I found 3 TSBs on this issue:

Make : FORD Model : EXPLORER Year : 2002
Manufacturer : FORD MOTOR COMPANY
Service Bulletin Num : 03126 Date of Bulletin: JUN 23, 2003
NHTSA Item Number: 10002687
Component: STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE
Summary:
LIFTGATE GLASS APPLIQUE DAMAGED/CRACKED - SERVICE PROCEDURE. *TT


Make : FORD Model : EXPLORER Year : 2002
Manufacturer : FORD MOTOR COMPANY
Service Bulletin Num : 0485 Date of Bulletin: JAN 01, 2005
NHTSA Item Number: 10008546
Component: STRUCTURE:BODY
Summary:
LIFTGATE GLASS APPLIQUE DAMAGED/CRACKED. SERVICE PROCEDURE. *TT


Make : FORD Model : EXPLORER Year : 2002
Manufacturer : FORD MOTOR COMPANY
Service Bulletin Num : 15892 Date of Bulletin: MAY 01, 2002
NHTSA Item Number: 637771
Component: STRUCTURE:BODY
Summary:
SUBJECT REGARDING REAR LIFTGATE APPLIQUE (TRIM PANEL) CRACKS. *TT