The hinges on the lift gate window on my 2004 ford explorer broke causing the rear window to fall out of the window frame. Ford motor company told me that there is a recall for the problem on the 2002 and 2003 models but were not "aware" of any similar problems with the 2004 model.
2004 Ford Explorer body complaints
Page 15 of 15: complaints 401 to 426 of 426, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I own a 2004 ford explorer 4 door. On july 5, 2007 while closing the window portion of the back hatch the glass came loose from the hinges. I took the vehicle to gullo-hass ford in conroe texas to have them repair it, and I was told that the hinges and back window section were the subject of a technical service bulletin. It was apparent that ford was aware of a potential problem with the back hatch window and the hinges, since ,it sent out a tsb advising its service personnel on the best way to fix the problem. *ak research showed that the tsb was issued on 1/1/05. Ford was aware of this problem and the quickest way to fix it while my vehicle was still under warranty. Ford failed to advise me as an owner that there was a potential problem with the rear window hatch area. This concerns me as a safety issue. If the glass had been open and I was standing under the glass while loading or unloading my vehicle, I could have been seriously hurt by the falling glass or killed as well as any other person standing next to me or a child next to me. Ford advised me that because it had not been forced by the government to issue a recall they didn't have to advise vehicle owners of the problem.
On june 4 2007, I opened the hatch on my 2004 ford explorer xlt. When I shut the hatch, the whole assembly fell and the glass hatch shattered showering me and the explorer and the garage with thousands of shards. I sustained some small cuts on my face. I was lucky that my son was already in the carseat and not outside by the suvlike he usually does. Otherwise he would have been hurt by the thousands of glass shards. Later, I noted that the hinge on which the hatch was suspended, the one side broke off causing the whole hatch assembly to fall and the glass to shatter.I was also lucky I was wearing my sunglasses(which broke). I noticed that the metal part on which the hatch was hung was put on cockeyed which probably caused the problem. Hatches are meant to be opened and closed and the whole hatch assembly is not supposed to fall down on simply closing the hatch. I e mailed ford and told them about the defect but they were less than helpful. My SUV is still in the shop. I took it to a ford dealer. I have pictures of the damage and the glass shards which went over the explorer all the way to the front windshield.
On june 21, 2007 I used the keyless entry remote to open the rear window of the 2004 ford explorer for my 11 old daughter to put my son's baby bag in the back. When the glass opened the driver's side hinge fatigued and broke, twisting the glass hard enough to cause a dent in the window recess and falling on my daughter's head, bending both struts. After investigating other models I discovered that model years up to 2003 were covered under a recall ,but the 2004 was not. I contacted ford motor company and explained the situation ,and they were absolutely no help, telling me that the vehicle was not covered under any warranty at the time. The vehicle has 72,000 miles on it. The local dealership was not much more help, replacing my hinges with the 2003 recall package and informing me that 33% of the time when they replace the hinges the glass breaks and the replacement cost will be at the owner's expense. The parts were $102 and the labor $100.
I have an 2004 ford explorer with the crack in the panel below the rear window/hatch. I think that ford motor corp needs to repair these for all of the customers who have purchased these vehicles and are having issues with the crack leading to water damage.
Rear panel to the left below the back window, next to the ford emblem is cracked. The vehicle has not been involved in any accident, it just happened on it's own. After searching the internet, I have found that many 2004 ford explorers have had the same problem. I was told it would cost approx. $400 to repair. I think there should be a recall on this issue, as it seems to be a defect.
Hinge on liftgate glass fractured and broke. 2004 ford explorer. See 2003 nhsta recall 04v442000. Liftgate glass hanging off and car unusable. Metal fatigue on hinge/glass attach point on glass. Could my car have received "older" defective parts from previous year as it has a manufacture date of 08/03? Numerous previous model year problems with same part.
Crack in panel below rear window of my 2004 ford explorer.
The area on the back hatch underneath the glass cracked in a straight line. I came out of my house after a cold morning and that's what I found.
Rear panel below rear window cracked.
Tl*- the contact stated that the back of the hatch of the 2004 ford explorer with 74050 failure mileage was cracked. The contact was concerned that the hatchback glass could fall out and injure her children. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer, but they have been contacted and were aware of the problem. The current mileage was 75,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. While opening the rear glass hatch the contact heard the glass crack ,and noticed that the hinge came loose on the right hand side of the hatch. The contact can provide pictures. The current and failure mileage was 51,283.
We have experienced multiple problems with the electrical systems of our 2004 ford explorer along with other miscellaneous problems. The electrical problems have not been corrected to date. In november 2006, the rear window of the liftgate broke off the hinge. We were told there were no recalls for this problem and had to pay for this repair out of our pocket. Today, january 16, 2007 the frame of the rear liftgate cracked in the middle.
On 11/23/2006, my wife, put something in our 2004 ford explorer via the rear hatch when the drivers side glass hinge broke. The glass remained in tact, but to be able to close the hatch I had to remove the two struts. This appears to be similar to recall #04v442000 on the same model vehicle in 2002.
Dt*: the contact stated the window hinge in the rear lift gate fractured, and then the weight of the window fractured the second hinge. The vehicle was taken to a service dealer and the manufacturer was notified. The manufacturer informed the contact the vehicle was not included in recall #04v442000 regarding the structure: body: hatchback/liftgate: hinge and attachments, although the failure was the same.
The hinge on the rear tailgate window came apart unexpectedly. I had popped it open using my keyfob release button to load some bags into it and the hinge immediately failed. The window itself twisted and was hanging by the 2nd hinge that hadn't failed and the gas shocks that enable the window to stay open without holding it. I was able to fit it back together to close it. The following day, I contacted the dealership to order parts. What I was told was that there was a recall on the 2003 but no the 2004 model. I was actually able to pick up a recall pack that contained both hinges. The parts manager sold them to me @ cost because this is apparently a common problem. There were no injuries, however, if one of my children had been standing nearby it is quite possible that the would have gotten hit by the glass as it came down. Finally, I walked away about $20 poorer (because I repaired it myself) and with several scratches on the paint around the hinge and the back tailgate.
The left hinge on the glass hatch failed during a normal closing operation. The light aluminum casting failed as a result of metal fatigue causing the full weight of the hatch to fall on my wife. The ford dealer claims this failure is not covered under the federal safety agency recall campaign number 04v442000 and that my wife must have brutalized this truck. The replacement parts that I purchased from the dealer and installed are clearly much heavier castings. The issues concerning campaign number 04v442000 still exist on this 2004 model year vehicle. I have the old parts and pictures comparing them to the new ones.
Rear liftgate glass hinge failed and glass struck me in arm and chest as I lowered glass.
Dt: the contact stated there was the federal safety agency recall campaign 04v442000 regarding hatchback hinge and attachments. The vehicle has the same problems as indicated in the recall; however, it is not included in the recall due to the VIN. The contact took the vehicle to an independent repair shop but no repairs were made. *ak updated 1/25/2006 - the hinges sheared off and the hatch on the liftgate fell off when opening. The part has been replaced but fords replacement hinges have not been modified to correct the problem. Ford refused to pay for repair.
1. Opened the back hatch glass 2. The left hinge broke and the glass fell. I was able to catch the glass to keep it from falling. I pushed the glass back up and was able to get the glass closed and latched. My left shoulder has been hurting since the incident. *jb 3. I took the truck to the dealer and they replaced the hinge bracket. They replaced both the left and right hinges.
On three separate occasions my ford explorer 4door sport trac has stalled, because my teenage children have accidentally bumped/kicked the inertia control device for fuel shut off while the vehicle was moving/driving. This device has its own push start button to restart fuel operations once the vehicle stopped. I was on the beltway 495 doing 65 MPH the last time it happened. I had to make an emergency pull off and almost got hit by a tractor trailer on two occasions. On 11-18-2005 the dealer failed to cover this device saying there was nothing wrong with it. However the technician stated he has seen several cars returned for the same thing.
Dt: while driving on september 16, 2005 the ABS failed. When this occurred it caused the consumer's vehicle to almost hit another vehicle. The ABS, maintenance, and four wheel lights came on and blinked when he lost the brakes. A diagnosis test was performed, and it showed that there was a problem with the speed sensor. The dealership replaced the speed sensor in the rear which was called asy-t. The fuel gauge broke. It showed the fuel tank level was higher than what it really was. The driver's rear window motor had to be replaced. The cover over the hatchback handle had to be replaced. Also, had to replace the weather stripping. There has been a repair done to the four by four unit. There were multiple problems with the vehicle.
The consumer experienced a problem with the cruise control. The consumer would set the cruise control and then it will shut down by itself. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer who as of today, was unable to find a defect. *jb the failure resulted in a life threatening situation when the vehicle reached speeds in excess of 100 MPH on it's own while hitting the resume button in cruise control. The vehicle had been in to the dealer for the repair of the braking and tire pressure gauges, throttle control, transmission slippage, cruise control, traction control default, general computer defaults and the rear trim piece at the liftgate opening was distorted.
While driving smoke began coming from the engine compartment, the engine bogged down and the engine stalled. *nm the engine ran roughly and smoke emitted from the vehicle. Since the repair the consumer noticed a hissing noise coming from the air conditioner. Air coming through the windshield was the reason for the noise coming from the air conditioner. The winshield was removed and resealed. *tc
Paint is coming off drivers running board. I have owned this vehicle for only 3 weeks.
Othe vehicle was received on 2/16/2004, on 2/18/2004 the drivers side running board broke when I stepped onto it when entering the vehicle on the drivers side I stepped up onto the running board and it cracked at the seam causing me to fall back into the driving lane. The dealer replaced the drivers side running board on 2/24/2004. On 2/26/2004, the passenger side running board crack in the same place, this was only the second time someone entered on the passenger side of the vehicle. I am waiting for the dealer to replace this one. Should this happen while there is traffic moving near the vehicle a person could fall back and be struck by another vehicle.
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