2003 Ford Explorer body problems

Filed Aug 1, 2022 · Body · NY

There is a crack down the middle section of the liftgate for quite some time. The liftgate has been unlocking and opening automatically by itself. On only rare occasions has the liftgate opened all the way while driving. On the morning of 7/28/2022 while the vehicle was parked in my driveway the liftgate was discovered to have again unlocked by itself and opened slightly and now with one of the two hinges holding the glass sheared leaving the liftgate glass hanging by only one hinge. With the glass now hanging without having both hinge supports functioning and the inability to close and lock the liftgate, 1) the glass could fall out while driving and 2) with the liftgate unable to now close and lock, contents of the back storage area could fall out of the vehicle while driving. On 8/1/2022 the vehicle was inspected by the foreman of the Service Dept. at Healy Ford, Goshen, N.Y. I was told to take it to a body shop for realignment repair. Apparently a recall on 9/13/2022 # 04V442000 did not include my Vin. However, In driving around I do see many 2003 explorers with the identical crack on the liftgate.

Filed Aug 2, 2018 · Body · 120,000 miles · TX

Rear window lower panel plastic cracking up, replaced three times, still cracking due to no support and bending too much, I called ford does not care if continues cracking up, it looks ugly also panels can cause an accident to other cars getting into their windshields loose parts. They know about the problem and not fixing it.

Filed Jun 14, 2018 · Body, Visibility · 133,000 miles · NC

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford explorer. When attempting to close the rear window, the contact noticed that the rear liftgate window hinges were cracking and were tilted on one side. The contact, a certified master technician, stated that the window needed to be replaced. The contact called fort mill ford at (866) 680-5276 (located at 801 gold hill rd, fort mill, sc 29708) and was informed that the VIN was not included in any recalls. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency. The approximate failure mileage was 133,000.

Filed May 10, 2017 · Body · 118,018 miles · MT

Awoke the morning of may 10, 2017 to find the entire back liftgate and window exploded outwards and inwards of our ford explorer. The vehicle was parked in front of our home, we are rural, so no evidence of someone purposely breaking it. Our sheriff in cascade county, montana, stated it appears to be something internal probably the lift struts exploding. This seems to be a problem as stated on many online sites, and many ford explorers have this problem. This particlar model VIN number did not show up as recalled, although we sit here looking at the damage caused by this problem. We would appreciate someone looking into this, as it could happen to anyone and prove to be very dangerous if this vehicle were being driven when this explosion occured. Please check into this asap.

Filed May 8, 2017 · Body · 70,000 miles · CA

The back lift gate has a crack. I have noticed this on practically every other exploer of this year. I contacted ford several years ago and they said since it was a defect that was not a danger they would not recall or repair it.

Filed Feb 13, 2017 · Body, Seat belts · 250,000 miles · TX

Chat conversation start 5:57pm greetings, I saw you commentary about the ford explorer exhaust fumes inside the cabin, well I have a 2004 ford explorer with the same problem, I am a mechanic I figured may be the filter was clogged well it was no filter, what I found the vent door fell off from the place where it suppose to open and close laying down on the fan, so I reinstalled back and the problem was fixed, it is a poor design from the ford company. I was loosing heat during winter and not be cool at the summer loosing the thru vent out place. Ford needs to fix all this problems along with seat belts, rear window quarter panel cracked no one is getting ford to do recalls on this items very poor construction.

Filed Jan 8, 2017 · Body · 109,000 miles · TX

The rear panel of my 2003 explorer cracked today for no reason. Not sure if this is a safety concern. When I "googled" the problem, it seems this is a common problem that ford once addressed.

Filed Sep 23, 2016 · Body, Visibility · 40,000 miles · CA

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford explorer. When operating the vehicle, the rear hatch door and the rear hatch window became unsecured and opened due to a crack near the rear window wiper. The cause of the failure was not diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 40,000.

Filed Jul 25, 2016 · Body · 106,000 miles · MO

The rear lift-gate has a cracked panel.

Filed May 13, 2016 · Body · 133,000 miles · IL

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford explorer. The contact stated that the rear lift gate hinge fractured which caused the lift gate to remain unlocked. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was not included in the federal safety agency campaign number: 04v442000 (structure). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 133,000.