2010 Escape, Rear liftgate won't open ?

Dealer Dis

Company car so I am hesitant but capable of repairing myself. Just want to pass along what I have been told the past few weeks by the local Ford dealer service dept.
Gasket for hatch window leaks and is a Ford issue they are dealing with. Repair gasket is available and on order. So is the switch. Unfortunately, the leak corroded the hatch latch wire harness, which the repair replacement is not manufactered yet but on backorder for the many Escape owners with the same problem. Sure it sounds bogus but what's a guy in my position to do?
I was forwarded this post by my boss and I think I will be giving my rep the link

FreeRide4Me said:

Company car so I am hesitant but capable of repairing myself. Just want to pass along what I have been told the past few weeks by the local Ford dealer service dept.
Gasket for hatch window leaks and is a Ford issue they are dealing with. Repair gasket is available and on order. So is the switch. Unfortunately, the leak corroded the hatch latch wire harness, which the repair replacement is not manufactered yet but on backorder for the many Escape owners with the same problem. Sure it sounds bogus but what's a guy in my position to do?
I was forwarded this post by my boss and I think I will be giving my rep the link

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I was surprised too that no one mentioned the molding around the hatch window because it seems to be a common problem. Recently I purchased a 2010 Escape XLT from a neighbor. He told me that the car needed a new actuator for the liftgate because the window molding was allowing water to drip onto the actuator and ruining it. There is a step by step video on YouTube showing exactly how to do it. Not that difficult. I also had to have the molding for the window replaced- about $50.00+ installed at the dealer. It is MUCH thicker than the one that was there and the water does NOT come pouring in anymore at the high pressure car wash!

I swapped mine on my 2012. Got the new actuator and thicker moulding. But I've still seen water streaks on the inside. Time will tell.

2TimingTom said:

I swapped mine on my 2012. Got the new actuator and thicker moulding. But I've still seen water streaks on the inside. Time will tell.

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Mmm...Do you ever open just the glass part? I never open mine. I just open the hatch. Maybe if you open and close the glass the molding "changes"?

The glass gets opened all the time. I've had SUVs where the glass doesn't open and I thought it was the worst lack of feature ever.

2TimingTom said:

The glass gets opened all the time. I've had SUVs where the glass doesn't open and I thought it was the worst lack of feature ever.

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:scratch:

Liftgate latch problem

I went through a lot of threads and posts on different sites and just wasn't willing to spend CAN$150 - CAN$190/-for a tailgate latch for my Escape 2010. I disassembled the latch unit and got the actuator out. The actuator part # is PA6 GF30 and is manufactured by Kiekert Germany. Tried lubricating it but after putting it back, I saw that the motor had simply lost its strength in pulling the mechanism.
So I got the 12V motor out from inside the actuator and it read FC-280SC. Searched for it on eBay and got a good bargain on 2 motors with the same specification from a seller from China (for CAN1$12/-) with free shipping.
You just have to pull out the gear wheel from the spindle from the old motor and hook it on to the new motor.
Now I have a excellent working tailgate latch and it just cost me $12/-!!!!!

Just wanted to share with you guys over here and the rest of the people looking for a solution to all this.

Latch assembly is now up to $200 plus tax for a known flaw. I tried the $5 Chinese motor but it was backward, fixed that and it turns out the motor works but does not draw enough current to properly actuate the time delay in the lift gate open circuit so it stays powered open until the lights (on timer) go off. Really weird. Lights off, it shuts fine but you have to body check it closed. Bought a new latch assembly off ebay for ~$100 installed in less than 10 minute and it is now better than new. On a 2012, no water infiltration just junk design. That and the escape air con dumped its desiccant into the system a month after the warranty was up ($2500 for another known flaw) and all the front bearings on my EXP bit the dust at 120,000km ($1800 known problem) and the exhaust manifold warps and shears bolts on the passenger side ($1200+ known problem). What a joke, quality may be job 1 but as an engineer, Ford engineering is kindergarten level. Quality is nothing if good engineering practice is not at its foundation. You just have quality junk!

2008explorer4x4 said:

Just a heads up if this happens to you. On my wifes 2010 Escape, I could not open rear liftgate, I locked and unlocked it several times, still would not open. Rear glass would open fine, but not the liftgate.

I called dealer and made service appt. Searched around and found someone who said he put the key back in the ignition and turned it on and then it worked.

So I restarted the vehicle and sure enough the liftgate now works fine. This all happened when my wife returned from the store and I went to open the liftgate as she shut off the vehicle, the doors where still unlocked, the liftgate clicked once but that was it. It must have tried to lock itself when the vehicle was shut down and would not reset till I restarted it. Some sort of glitch.

Just thought I would mention it and maybe help someone if this happens to you.

Ed

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I found that if I opened it more than twice in a row the door wouldn't work, but when I went back 5 minutes later it opened,lol.I think the motor is going.My back window does not open at all.

fastdriver said:

I was surprised too that no one mentioned the molding around the hatch window because it seems to be a common problem. Recently I purchased a 2010 Escape XLT from a neighbor. He told me that the car needed a new actuator for the liftgate because the window molding was allowing water to drip onto the actuator and ruining it. There is a step by step video on YouTube showing exactly how to do it. Not that difficult. I also had to have the molding for the window replaced- about $50.00+ installed at the dealer. It is MUCH thicker than the one that was there and the water does NOT come pouring in anymore at the high pressure car wash!

Click to expand...

This also happens on my GF's '06 Expedition. I went to the dealer & asked if they had a thicker molding for the Expy & was told they don't, so I bought a new stock molding. Guess what, it still leaks, just not quite as bad. Maybe I will ask for thicker molding at a different dealer.
It also started doing it on my '03 Aviator, so I took the trim cover off the back gate to see exactly where it's coming in at and NOW it won't leak! Been driving around for about six weeks with a bare rear hatch and no leaks. I guess I shouldn't complain, but...

Just popping in to say that I am NOT mechanically inclined at all, but was able to buy the new assembly off Amazon and change it out myself with the instructions earlier in this thread. Works like new!

2008explorer4x4 said:

Just a heads up if this happens to you. On my wifes 2010 Escape, I could not open rear liftgate, I locked and unlocked it several times, still would not open. Rear glass would open fine, but not the liftgate.

I called dealer and made service appt. Searched around and found someone who said he put the key back in the ignition and turned it on and then it worked.

So I restarted the vehicle and sure enough the liftgate now works fine. This all happened when my wife returned from the store and I went to open the liftgate as she shut off the vehicle, the doors where still unlocked, the liftgate clicked once but that was it. It must have tried to lock itself when the vehicle was shut down and would not reset till I restarted it. Some sort of glitch.

Just thought I would mention it and maybe help someone if this happens to you.

Ed

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I tried that and true enough it opened, but after opening and closing 3 times it again refused to open. Time to replace the motor before it would not work at all! Went online and found a motor for $100 and replaced it. Anyone with any mechanical skills can do this easily. Works great every time! My back tailgate window button will not open the glass,but I can open it with my fob on the 2x button. So that is good enough for me,lol.

Hi! New member here too. Just made an account to thank all you for the help. I have a 2010 ford escape and last month the back door stopped opening but the glass lift still worked. When I pressed the button I usually would hear a click but nothing else. I purchased a $5 motor on ebay (with the link provided) and followed the guide. It worked great! I didn't take off the L-connector before prying the motor off and almost broke it. So as a word of advice, when you're ready to pry the old motor out make sure you take off the L-shaped piece on the side because it has electrical prongs in it that can bend and break.

Also, after I got the gear off the old motor (yes it was hard) I placed it on the ground and put the new motor pointing down onto the gear. I tapped the back of the motor with a hammer and the gear slid on fairly easily. Once it was on I put a nut underneath (as mentioned in another post) and tapped it a few more times again to get the gear into the right place.

Good luck and thanks again!

2008explorer4x4 said:

Just a heads up if this happens to you. On my wifes 2010 Escape, I could not open rear liftgate, I locked and unlocked it several times, still would not open. Rear glass would open fine, but not the liftgate.

I called dealer and made service appt. Searched around and found someone who said he put the key back in the ignition and turned it on and then it worked.

So I restarted the vehicle and sure enough the liftgate now works fine. This all happened when my wife returned from the store and I went to open the liftgate as she shut off the vehicle, the doors where still unlocked, the liftgate clicked once but that was it. It must have tried to lock itself when the vehicle was shut down and would not reset till I restarted it. Some sort of glitch.

Just thought I would mention it and maybe help someone if this happens to you.

Ed

Click to expand...

Thank you I am going to try that and hope it works as I can not locate the lever to release it!