Body problems of the 2003 Ford Explorer - part 2

Crack in rear panel of my 2003 Ford Explorer.

The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that she noticed a fracture on the lift gate window. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where they advised her that she would have to have the panel replaced. The manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 39,000. Updated 04/26/lj the consumer also stated the rear differential was replaced.

Rear hatch cracked near the Ford logo.

The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the rear lift gate panel was cracked due to defective material. The dealer denied assistance with the repair because the warranty expired. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 56,543 and the current mileage was 60,000.

I have 2003 Ford Explorer and after 7years a crack has formed from the rear window down to the Ford logo on the rear panel or trunk door.

The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. While the vehicle was parked the contact noticed that there was a cracked panel below the rear window. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the technician stated that the panel needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 105,000. Updated 02/23/11 the consumer stated the panel has since been replaced. Updated 04/28/11.

The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that there was a crack on the frame of the vehicle starting from the bottom of the rear glass going down toward the manufacturers emblem. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure but denied any assistance with repairs to the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 86,000 and the current mileage was 96,000.

Crack developed in the panel below the rear hatch window.

The back panel on my Explorer cracked by just closing the glass. The temperature was only 65 so considering the more extreme temperatures we have seen in north carolina was did it crack on that day?.

Crack in panel below rear glass of 2003 Ford Explorer. Panel just cracked from one day to the next. Went to trade in for new Explorer and dealer even complained about damage.

My 2003 Explorer cracked from the back window to the Ford emblem. Ford told me its not their problem and there is no recall initiated. I have 3 other friends who also have this problem. This needs to be recalled as it is by no fault of the owner and apparently is a factory defect.

The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact noticed a crack at the rear hatch back under the rear window. The contact stated that the crack was becoming wider when the hatch back was opened and closed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 30,000 and the current mileage was 40,000.

The upper panel on the back lift gate, cracked for no apparent reason. It has 2 cracks starting from one single one. It happened during the winter, so water must be able to get in under the seal and freeze and crack the panel. I have seen other Explorers with this same condition. There has to be some kind of defect in the panel itself to allow this to happen.

Tl- the contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the power steering and transmission lines failed due to corrosion. The contact also stated that the brakes lines, fuel tank cover, door locks and the running boards were also corroded. The brake lines were replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 110,000 and the current mileage was 157,372. Rk.

2003 Ford Explorer , 70,000 miles rear lift gate cracked in middle splitting off in "y" shape there was no impact done to make this happen. Heard loud pop told that Ford will not do anything & I will have to pay out of pocket.

I have a 2003 Ford Explorer XLT with the crack in the back panel next to the emblem. I came out to my car and it was cracked all the way from the window seal to the bottom of the hatch. I called the 800 number that Ford gave me to call and they told me there is no recall and the part. There are several thousand people with this same complaint. The local body shop told me that the problem is in Fords design of the panel. They have zero reinforcement next to the emblem to close the door which is right in the middle of the door, where normal people push to close it. This manufacturing defect in the Explorers from 02-03 is very well known and quite possible over time could cause a weakening in the rear window of the vehicle and eventually lose it's support and fall.

I own a 2003 Ford Explorer. I just noticed a crack in the panel underneath the rear window of my Explorer. I have no idea what caused it. I noticed other Explorers with the same exact problem. Ford needs to fix this. Didn't they get bail out money from uncle sam?!.

I just noticed a crack in the panel underneath the rear window of my 2003 Ford Explorer. I searched online to see if there is a recall & there is not. . Read more...

On 5-14-09 at about 7:15am I got my children's diaper bag out of the back of my 2003 Ford Explorer my hatch door was fine. I then went to work and it was a warm day but not hot. At about 6:10pm the same day I went out to get something out of the back and I saw it. There is 2 cracks the upper part of the hatch in to the left of the Ford emblem. One starts at the window and goes down the other starts at the bottom and goes up. At that point I contacted the Toyota dealership that I purchased the vehicle from and took the vehicle to them to look at. The service guy said he had no idea what could have made this happen. He stated he could tell it had not been hit or anything and that it wasn't a flex point. He told me to contact the local Ford dealership. I contacted apple Ford (lynchburg va) on 5-15-09 and was instructed they had seen many cases of this but they can't do anything until Ford puts out a recall. I then contacted Ford motor company and was instructed they will not fix it but to have a dealer look at it. My concern is if the window falls out because of this what is it going to do to my 1 year old and 3 year old in the back seat or the people in the care behind me on the road. I have done nothing to make this happen. It is a default from the company that could potentially cause harm. I have also researched it on the internet and found via google there are lots of people like me. If water gets down through the crack it could very well rust the latching mechanism and make it fail to work properly.

Our 2003 Ford Explorer has what appears to be a stress crack on the plate below the rear hatch window, next to the Ford emblem. I've seen dozens of Explorers since this happened with the same issue, and thousands of complaints online regarding this defect, yet I am told that Ford will not pay to repair their defective part, as there is no recall on it.

The back lift gate (hatch) of my 2003 Ford Explorer has a vertical crack under the window next to the center Ford logo. I noticed on the internet that 1,000s of other people are having the exact same issue with Explorers and mountaineers.

We had cold weather the last few days (-11 below) and now there is a crack in body, just below the window on the rear hatch. It extends from the bottom of the window to the end of the hatch.

Plastic body panel below rear window on the lift gate has cracked.

The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer eddie bauer edition. While attempting to close the lift gate glass, the hinge on the passenger side failed. The manufacturer stated that the vehicle was not included in a recall; therefore, they were not liable for the repairs. The dealer has not been notified. The vehicle has not been repaired. The current and failure mileages were 98,773.

Applique underneath the rear window cracked next to emblem with no impact.

I was driving on the highway before dawn and heard a very loud noise (it was the sound of an explosion). I thought that a tire may have blowout, which was strange since the car has a set of new tires and I did not notice any changes in the driving of the vehicle. I stopped on the side of the highway and checked the car using a flash light. I saw nothing. Later that day when I went to get gasoline, I saw a crack in the panel that contained the Ford logo, about 2 inches to the right of the logo that extended from the top of the panel to the bottom. It was just a clean crack on the panel below the rear window. This happened on a cold night (19 deg. F). From what I have seen and read it sounds like a design flaw with the fact that a plastic part is glue to a metal part with a different coefficient of expansion. The car is a Ford Explorer XLT 2003. Although the cracked panel does not seem to be a safety defect, the distraction caused by the loud bang noise while driving the car in heavy traffic and stopping in the highway at night to determine the cause of the noise clearly put me and my family at risk. Moreover, there is a good chance the rear window panel may separate from the vehicle at speed, being a safety issue for other motorists.

Ford Explorer rear hatch defect, crack in hatch, Ford has released a technical bulletin but says it is an owner responsibility to have it repaired. As a disabled veteran on a fixed income I cannot afford to have it repaired. There are hundreds of complaints on the internet regarding this issue with basically the same answer from Ford.

The rear panel below the window on the hatch just suddenly cracked. . . It wasn't hit or anything, it just cracked.

The back lift gate (hatch) of my 2003 Ford Explorer has a vertical crack under the window next to the center Ford logo. I noticed on the internet that 1,000s of other people to include in our city are having the exact same issue with Explorers and mountaineers. This happened in winter. I see in car stats there are complaints there too.

Plastic body part below rear window glass cracked.

Vertical crack in the back hatch of my Ford Explorer 2003 just below the glass and going down.

I was just driving along and I heard a pop noise and the panel under the back window was cracked.

My back windshield exploded last Thursday while parked in my driveway. Not only did the glass explode, but the fiberglass underneath the glass was pulled away from the backend of the truck in a bowing position. I had the back hinge replaced after the recall, it's been less than 12 months and the Ford dealership in nashua will do nothing for me, stating that they have never seen anything like that before and there are no other complaints. When I asked to speak to the area factory rep, they informed me that they didn't have one. I asked to speak to the manager, who pretty much said, here's your hat, what's your hurry, out you go. . . He then flagged me as being an "irate" customer. I am a mother of 4 young children, god forbid they had been in the car when that had happened. Ford should be ashamed of themselves. . Ford-built strong my leg! anyone interested in filing a class action lawsuit in the state of nh, please let me know, I am going to contact my lawyer today.

The back rear panel of the hatchback cracked for no apparent reason. It is a manufacturers defect which the company is unwilling to pay for.

Cracked rear panel below the windshield. I have seen several Ford Explorers with the same problem as mine. I have also noticed several complaints on line at carcomplaints. Com for the same problem. I reported the problem to Ford customer relations, but they are not doing anything to fix the problem.