22 problems related to visibility have been reported for the 2004 Ford Explorer. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2004 Ford Explorer based on all problems reported for the 2004 Explorer.
My 13 yr old was loading groceries while the window was popped up it fell w/o warning severely hurting her head rt bracket on upper window broke can cause serious injury.
After a day of shopping I pulled into my driveway and parked my SUV. I went to open the rear window hatch when the left side came apart from the vehicle and landed on top of me. Fortunately the right side of the window was able to stay intact while my husband was able to run to my aid to lift the door up. I am four months pregnant and my three year old son was standing by my side. I have read that many complaints about this issue have been made to the Ford corporation regarding this problem but they continue not to rectify the issue at hand; while leaving vehicle owners helpless when this situation occurs. I read that this was a good avenue to report this issue since Ford continues to ignore the problem and wonder if my husband would not have been in shouting distance what would've happen to my son, unborn child and myself!!!!!.
This issue involves the driver side sun visor. The plastic piece on the left side of the visor that holds it in place on the ceiling has broken off. When you hit a bump or dip in the road the visor falls down and blocks your view to see what is going on in front of you. This is a real safety concern to me. I don't want to hit someone or something because of this. I am asking for a recall to be issued. Thanks.
On 19 Apr 2012 while opening the back hatch window, the passenger side hinge of the window failed. When this occurred the driver side hinge was bent and the hydrulic lifts popped open the window rather rapidly which could have severely injured me if it hit me. I was unable to close the window myself so I could drive again. A bystander helped me out to close it. After reading other reports and complaints online, this is not an isolated incident for 2004 Ford Explorers.
The hinges that hold on the rear window are failing and I cannot open the rear window because I am afraid that it will fall off. Other year Explorers were recalled for this very reason and I cannot understand why the 2004 model was not recalled. The parts are the same as they were in other years.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the sun visor came off of the mount causing it to obstruct the drivers visibility. He also stated that as a result of the heat in the vehicle the plastic mount started disintegrating. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who made advised him that there were no recalls related to the failure and stated that the visor assembly needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure and current miles were 115,000.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the rear window on the hatch shattered. The contact looked at the hatch and found a crack on the metal piece of the hatch directly underneath the window. The contacts insurance company inspected the vehicle and said it was a defect. The manufacturer told the contact that this was an isolated incident and the rear window was not under warranty or recall. The failure and current mileage was unknown.
Defective clip/hinge in sunvisor assembly of 2004 Ford Explorers, breaks and cracks with normal use due to faulty design. Safety hazard due to the fact that once it breaks to a certain point the sunvisor will hang in drivers view and impede vision. A large amount of people are having the same problem I am having. . Read more...
While attempting to close the window on hatchback, the window hinges broke.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Explorer. The contact placed the gear shifter into reverse to drive and noticed that the transmission would hesitate before engaging. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technicians replaced the solenoid in the transmission. After the repairs were performed, the contact continued to experience the failure. There was also an abnormal grinding from the rear of the vehicle. The dealer replaced the rear end bearing, three rear axles, the pinion bar and seals and a shaft kit was installed. The dealer also advised that the failure was caused by an over torque by the manufacturer. In addition, the contact stated that the driver and passenger side sun visor joints were failing sporadically and causing the visors to obstruct the contact's vision of the roadway. The sun visors were not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 49,000.
Rear window hinges on 2004 Ford Explorer broke.
Sun visor anchor based of 2004 Ford Explorer cracked and fell out, causing plastic pieces to fall on face, and making visor fall in front of line of sight while driving on highway . Using sun visor is now not possible.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Explorer. The rear window panel had developed cracks. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealership . The current and failure mileages were 53000.
Plastic pin securing blend door actuator breaks, freezing blend door in position. (cool) unable to get heat from vehicle hvac system. Can not defrost/defog windows in cold/wet weather. Visibility is limited during cold/wet weather. The reduced visibility caused me to veer off of pavement in a rural area near my home because I could not see the lane markers. Research on the internet shows this is a recurring, common problem. Ford motor CO. Is aware of the issue but has not taken steps to resolve this dangerous situation.
Blend door actuator pin is defective. I have researched this problem online and it is a widespread issue. Heat / defrost will not work. In the wintertime this makes driving extremely hazardous.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Explorer. The contact stated the driver and passenger sun visors were fractured. The dealer advised replacing the visors at her expense. The driver side sun visor was replaced. The contact stated the failure recurred on the driver side sun visor. The passenger side sun visor was never replaced. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure and current mileages were 96,607.
Driver side sun visor fell off while driving, almost ran into another car. Cheap plastic part only dealer has for $116. 43 without installation.
Driving on interstate,while I grabbed sun visor to turn to side it fell off and I went off road but got safely back on. No injuries to me or wife.
2004 Ford Explorers have a ton of problems, but one of the worst is that the sun visor hinges break causing the visor to dangle by it's electrical cord that powers the vanity mirror on it. Every morning I have a 7 mile drive headed south on a main thoroughfare and I can't see to change lanes because I have lost the use of my sun visor because Ford has not been held responsible for the cheap garbage they produced in 2004! the dangerous transmission problem is bad enough, but to have a visor dangling in your face while you are trying to drive is incredibly unsafe! and they are asking us for money for a bailout?! as far as I am concerned, they should be worried about getting bailed out of jail for stealing from people and then endangering their lives! please hold Ford accountable for the cheap garbage they sold to people for $30. 000 plus in 2004. What happens when I have a wreck because I can't see? are we to consider a sun visor a luxury item now? please help. Thank you lisa hayes.
Back plastic panel just below the back window? there is crack from the bottom of my 2004 Ford Explorer. There is a crack in the plastic panel from the window down to the Ford emblem. Ford and my dealership want me to pay for it and yet I have spoke with others that have had the same problem in 2002, 2003 and was fixed under warranty. I just purchased the Explorer from gibbson Ford, dickson city, PA last October. It only has 35, 000 miles and I have the extended warranty but they said it is not covered. . Read more...
Visor hinge broke - passenger side.
The visors on 2004 Ford Explorers are made of cheap plastic that are a definite safety issue. When the plastic that holds the visors up cracks, the visors will fall into the vision of the driver. There is no easy way to take the visor down and it will continue to obstruct vision until it is take to the dealer for repair. Both visors on our vehicle have had the same issue, and a simple web search shows that many other have the same complaint.