The rear lift gate on my explorer cracked on the left side of the ford emblem. The gate cracked during normal operation of the vehicle. I have a habit of looking over my vehicle. The crack was discovered when I inspected my vehicle before going into my home. On my next service visit I asked my ford dealer if there had been a recall for this defect. I was told that ford had not generated a recall for this defect. There may be thousands of explorers with this defect, I see them every day. I am very disappointed with the ford company for not taking care of this defect. I have purchased my last ford.
The worst 2004 Ford Explorer Sport problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
- Body11
- Transmission4
- Airbags2
- Visibility2
- Lights1
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Body11
- Transmission4
- Airbags2
- Visibility2
- Lights1
- Seat belts1
Recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Defect investigations
Vehicle rollaway allegations
In response to an information request (ir) letter sent by the office of defects investigation (odi), ford stated consumer reports of higher than expected efforts when shifting into and out of park could be a result of a groove being worn into the swing arm ramp of the steering column. The swing arm is a component bolted to the steering column that assists in shifting through the transmission gears.an engineering evaluation conducted by ford of returned steering columns found the groove could be created over time if consumer shift more quickly from the drive or reverse to park than the brake shift interlock (bsi) solenoid pin retracts after the brake pedal is applied. In november of 2004, ford released a redesigned bsi solenoid with a shorter pin retracting time as a serviceable component. Ford has noted the shorter retraction time significantly lessens the likelihood of bsi solenoid pin to swing arm contact even with rapid consumer shifts.ford also issued a technical service bulletin, tsb 04-22-12, to instruct service technicians on the proper diagnosis and vehicle repair. Reviewing complaints to odi and data submitted by ford, odi has identified 200 alleged incidents of unintended vehicle movement after consumers believe they have shifted the vehicle into park, resulting in 85 alleged crashes and 32 alleged injuries.in addition to the reports of alleged incidents of unintended vehicle movement, odi has also identified 883 reports of consumers alleging difficulty or the inability to shift the vehicle into park.this preliminary evaluation has been upgraded to an engineering analysis (ea09-013) to further assess the scope, frequency and risk to motor vehicle safety of the alleged defect in the subject vehicles.
PE09020
Rear liftgate glass hatch failure
This investigation was opened on june 23, 2008, based on 34 complaints involving eight injuries in which the rear liftgate glass hatch on model year 2004 ford explorers or mercury mountaineers broke off and fell, usually while individuals were operating the glass hatch or loading or unloading items from the rear of the vehicle.ford conducted recall 04v‑442 in 2004 to address similar problems on model year 2002 and certain model year 2003 ford explorers and mercury mountaineers.the information ford provided in response to odi's information request letter indicated that failures with 2004 vehicles were primarily liftgate glass hatch hinge failures related to corrosion at the hinge pin, whereas the failures that prompted the recall with the earlier models were primarily related to problems with the glass hatch's struts or fracture of a prior hinge design at the boss/bolt connection at the glass.odi's review of ford's warranty, complaint, and injury data for the 2004 vehicles indicates that these rates are significantly lower than those for the recalled population.a potential defect trend has not been identified at this time.odi will continue to monitor complaints and take appropriate action as necessary.this investigation is closed.
RQ08003
What 2004 Ford Explorer Sport owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Liftgate glass hinges both broke causing glass to fall off of rear door and now glass cannot be opened. This is the same problem as the 2002-2003 ford recall #04s20. Ref the federal safety agency campaign id number 04v442000. Ford does not include the 2004 explorer in their recall but the problem is the same.
Defective body mounts and bushings. I am the owner of a 2004 ford sport trac and was advised that the body mounts and bushings are deteriorated and crumbling. After researching the problem I discovered that this is a common problem with the sport trac years 2001-2005. This is a very serious problem as well as expensive to repair. I called a body shop and the parts are $1,695 with $720 for labor. The ford dealership wants $1,882 for parts and $400 labor to replace 6 mounts even though the vehicle has eight (8). Ford should be made to recall these vehicles and replace the parts (that should last the life of the vehicle). Evidently not enough serious injuries or death has occurred to make this happen, so they just quit production as a cheaper way out. Shame on ford to not take care of their customers.
Driving 65 MPH, lost control of my vehicle while switching lanes to avoid a high speed vehicle approaching behind me. Ran in to a median 2 times before stopping faced traffic head on. Fortunately, I wasn't critically injured, but serious enough. Neither air bag deployed!!!! I would like to know why not????
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer sport. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, she lost control of the vehicle and crashed into the side of a church. The air bags did not deploy. The contact was the only person injured during the crash. The vehicle was towed away, but the failure was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure and current mileages were 2,000. ...updated 09/12/12 *bf updated 09/19/2012
We were driving down the street and the hatchback/liftgate fell off the hinges. I have not been able to drive this car in over two years due to the fact that I cannot afford to pay for a manufacturer's defect. I have filed numerous complaints on this vehicle over the years. It has been sitting in the garage. I know that you investigated in 2008 rq08003. I hope we get some assistance. My previous complaint file numbers are 05687908: lists the engine blowing up, mirror falling off, cruise control shutting off, etc. But I have received no assistance from the federal safety agency. I have spent over $3,000.00 on this car for manufacturing defects. (documented).
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer sport. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked when she noticed that the hinge on the rear liftgate was not properly holding onto the glass. As a result, the glass was sliding down into the lift gate panel. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and they were unable to diagnose the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.
Started in 7/2007 had vibrations in drive train, ford stated it was the drive shaft. Ford replaced the drive shaft with a high-performance balanced one. Vibration stopped. In 10/2007 the explorer was slipping during acceleration, and slamming into gear. Overdrive light would be blinking on and off. This time they had said that they had to rebuild the transmission due to a bad oriface. Later I found out they only replaced the valve body at 24072 miles. I asked about the lag time between pressing the accelerator and actually moving and was told that this was the way the vehicle drives due to no cables for the throttle it was electronic and there might be a computer update at a later date. It hesitates upon acceleration just had to learn and accept it. Vehicle had been fine until about feb 2011 when it started to slam into gear again, after scheduling for 90000 mile check told ford to please check this out. I was told that this time it was the servos for the overdrive and that the transmission had to be rebuilt or a new one purchased for about $3500. They stated it was a design problem, that the servo rods were made of steel and the trans casing was made of cast aluminum, hard metal slamming into soft metal wearing the orifice to an egg shape causing pressure loss. The new design trans has been corrected. Upon checking on a ford explorer forum on the web found out that this is an issue with the 2002-2005 5r55s and 5r55w transmissions due to the design flaws. If it's a design flaw they should correct it and not charge $3500 when you already purchased there product.
Was driving 2004 ford explorer on highway, and had sudden loss of power and excessive vibration. Brought to ford dealership and was told that the mechanic on hearing the engine start up, knew the problem was in the timing chains as he has seen that problem before. Service dealer gave three options, one was for around $3000 they would replace timing chains, guides, and tensioner, but with no guarantee as the timing chain problem could have caused other damage. The other two options were to replace the engine. This 2004 ford explorer we had bought brand new, and only had somewhere around 65k miles. If you were to goggle some key words like ( ford 2004 v6 timing chain guide tensioner) you will find that this is a common problem caused by a bad design with the timing chain tensioner which looses pressure and allow the timing chain s to jump teeth. My wife called ford headquarters today, and they treated it like this was the first time they have ever heard of that, although they assured her that they no longer make that style of engine. Ford knows very well about this bad timing chain tensioner design, and basically when that happened on the highway we could have easily got into a bad accident. This style of engine should be recalled and fixed at ford's expense, I am disappointed as we treated this explorer with tlc, and now we are told the engine is junk.
Crack in rear upper tailgate.
Compare the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport
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Questions about the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport
Is the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport reliable?
Owners have filed 18 complaints about the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport, fewer than a typical Explorer Sport model year.
What is the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport year score?
The 2004 Ford Explorer Sport scores 89 out of 100 (good). The score compares it with the other model years of the Ford Explorer Sport: 75 is a typical year, 50 means twice the usual complaints, and serious complaints and recalls lower it.
What is the most common problem with the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport?
Body and structure, with 11 complaints, typically around 51,000 miles. Next is transmission (4).
How many recalls does the 2004 Ford Explorer Sport have?
No recalls on record.
What year does the Ford Explorer Sport have the most body problems?
The Ford Explorer Sport model years with the most body complaints are 2001 (30 complaints), 2002 (28 complaints) and 2003 (25 complaints).
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