Bottom Door Edge Issue?? | Page 3 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

Bottom Door Edge Issue??

Poor/cheap design execution of having the sheetmetal edge meet up to the plastic surface.
It is actually a rubber strip that the bottom edge of the door closes against.

Peter
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





I totally forgot to report back. My ex has been in the body shop all week. Dealer took pictures last week to get approval...less than 15 minutes after I left Ford had approved the work.

He had an interesting comment. It was both doors on the drivers side...he was blaming the rocker panel more than the door adjustment. Either way, dealer and Ford responded fast and how I hoped. The renal sucks...but I can suffer to get my ex how it is supposed to be.

Uniquename, so what was the fix? just repaint? If they only repainted, then it's bound to happen again, or what else did they do?
I ask because I took my vehicle in last week for the same exact issue, they said they are "waiting to hear back form Ford" on how to proceed.

Any information is appreciated.
Thanks,
 






I just checked and I have the same issue. Is Ford covering this under warranty then? Once they do, i would probably apply duct tape to cover it up. My only concern would be that duct tape would hold water in and promote rust....any thoughts?!
 






I just checked and I have the same issue. Is Ford covering this under warranty then? Once they do, i would probably apply duct tape to cover it up. My only concern would be that duct tape would hold water in and promote rust....any thoughts?!

Not really sure if that duct tape is the answer. It actually tends to separate when it gets wet. By that I mean that the top coloured layer will separate from the actual sticky side. I have used it outside and where it is exposed to moisture, the separation is only a matter of time. I would likely try a clear coat spray or something similar. I'm not sure why this is happening with some Explorers. The door actually seals against a rubber strip.

Peter
 






Not really sure if that duct tape is the answer. It actually tends to separate when it gets wet. By that I mean that the top coloured layer will separate from the actual sticky side. I have used it outside and where it is exposed to moisture, the separation is only a matter of time. I would likely try a clear coat spray or something similar. I'm not sure why this is happening with some Explorers. The door actually seals against a rubber strip.

Peter

Peter, a clear coat will still wear thru. A 3M clear tape might have a better chance of surviving.

In regards to why it's happening, it's obvious there is misalignment between the door edge and rubber seal, causing the door edge to rest with to much pressure against the rubber strip, add dirt and salt and you have a perfect combination for rusted lower doors in a couple years! :thumbdwn:
You may not be experiencing this issue since you just don't drive your explorer enough!:D
 






Peter, a clear coat will still wear thru. A 3M clear tape might have a better chance of surviving.

In regards to why it's happening, it's obvious there is misalignment between the door edge and rubber seal, causing the door edge to rest with to much pressure against the rubber strip, add dirt and salt and you have a perfect combination for rusted lower doors in a couple years! :thumbdwn:
You may not be experiencing this issue since you just don't drive your explorer enough!:D
Point taken.:D I do open and close the door many times though while it is parked in the garage. This is mainly to get answers to forum questions and verify some answers. I realize that clear coat will eventually wear through but if you keep an eye on it you can just re apply it. Whatever works seems to be better than leaving the bare metal exposed. :)
 






I just checked and I have the same issue. Is Ford covering this under warranty then? Once they do, i would probably apply duct tape to cover it up. My only concern would be that duct tape would hold water in and promote rust....any thoughts?!

Mine was covered under warranty. I hope they take as good of care of you.

Uniquename, so what was the fix? just repaint? If they only repainted, then it's bound to happen again, or what else did they do?
I ask because I took my vehicle in last week for the same exact issue, they said they are "waiting to hear back form Ford" on how to proceed.

Any information is appreciated.
Thanks,

I have no idea honestly. I do know it got repainted, and they had it four days. They may have adjusted the rocker itself. Won't matter to me, I am on my way to the dealer to trade in as soon as they meet my numbers. I'll miss the explorer...

Edit...I looked, and I am betting it just got fresh paint. I can see it wearing away already. Makes me feel less bad about getting rid of it.
 






Edit...I looked, and I am betting it just got fresh paint. I can see it wearing away already. Makes me feel less bad about getting rid of it.

Thanks for looking into the fix... It's a bummer if all they do is re-paint it and hope the customer goes away...:thumbdwn:They should at least in addition to painting add a strip of 3M protective film
 






Thanks for looking into the fix... It's a bummer if all they do is re-paint it and hope the customer goes away...:thumbdwn:They should at least in addition to painting add a strip of 3M protective film

Bad news. When I was cleaning the stuff out of the ex to get traded in tomorrow I found the reciept. I saw that all that is listed is paint on both doors, and it was farmed out somewhere else. So it is not my imagination to see wear again. It does help me care less that it is going away, I feel bad for the next owner who gets rust this winter and might not get backing from Ford.
 






Our ex had this issue, took it into the dealership, it appears all they did was use touch up paint to cover the exposed steel :mad: No 3M clear tape.
I'll talk to the body shop and find out what they did, prior to looking into it, they mentioned they would try to adjust the rocker panel so it's not rubbing against the door edge, but they were unsure how much adjustment does the rocker panel allow for...

If no adjustments were done to the rocker panel, the paint is bound to rub down to bare steel once again, but at that point I will probably be out of warranty due to miles.
Hats off to FORD for deflecting proper warranty and let the customer deal with this sub-par design :thumbdwn:
A ~ $7.00 touch-up paint pen is not considered proper fix for this issue!
 






Our ex had this issue, took it into the dealership, it appears all they did was use touch up paint to cover the exposed steel :mad: No 3M clear tape.
I'll talk to the body shop and find out what they did, prior to looking into it, they mentioned they would try to adjust the rocker panel so it's not rubbing against the door edge, but they were unsure how much adjustment does the rocker panel allow for...

If no adjustments were done to the rocker panel, the paint is bound to rub down to bare steel once again, but at that point I will probably be out of warranty due to miles.
Hats off to FORD for deflecting proper warranty and let the customer deal with this sub-par design :thumbdwn:
A ~ $7.00 touch-up paint pen is not considered proper fix for this issue!
The problem I see with the adjustment is that if there is no rubbing then there is no seal between the door and the body. This would allow for water and dirt/dust to get into that area.
After 1 1/2 years I have a very small spot, less than a 1/4 inch. I'll keep an eye on it and treat is as part of my general upkeep maintenance the same as any stone chip.
I have 2 1/2 years left on my 'test drive' (lease) and if I'm not happy then I can simply walk away instead of having to keep making payments on a vehicle I don't like. That is one advantage of leasing, especially a first year model. So far, so good though.

Peter
 






I have 2 1/2 years left on my 'test drive' (lease) and if I'm not happy then I can simply walk away instead of having to keep making payments on a vehicle I don't like. That is one advantage of leasing, especially a first year model. So far, so good though.

Peter

Peter, Great that you can walk away at the end of your lease.

I, however bought the ex for the long haul and I expect it to last at least as much as the '99 VW passat wagon with 200K miles it replaced last year.
I just don't see the lower door edge lasting anywhere close to that age with such a poor design.
 






The problem I see with the adjustment is that if there is no rubbing then there is no seal between the door and the body. This would allow for water and dirt/dust to get into that area.

The problem area is actually the bottom edge of the door- there is no seal issue as the sealing occurs higher up on the door, at the weatherstripping. The lack of lower edge weatherstripping is why the lower portion of the doors and corresponding body get dirty/dusty. Another "detail" that was a disappointment to me.

And yes, mine is wearing/rubbing too.
 






My door too!!

You are absolutely correct BruceF. Because it blended in with the rocker panel's black plastic, I did not notice it. It shows as a light coloured strip in photo #2. The bottom of the door seems to close against the curved edge of this strip. However it does not seem to provide the same seal as the actual door seal in the first picture. I have seen the rocker panel above this strip getting wet when driving on rainy days as spitfisher has also noticed.
The problem as 1995E pointed out, may be due to alignment and the result of too tight of a fit thereby causing rubbing of the paint. It is a very hard rubber compound. I would still recommend taking it to the dealer and have them check it out. Do any of the other doors exhibit the same problem?

Peter

When I took my Exp LTD in for 3 of my doors paint coming off.. Ford told me I did not wash the car enough!! 40k for an all black truck and I don't wash it.. cmon man! The dealer stepped up and took the hit for the repair..
 






When I took my Exp LTD in for 3 of my doors paint coming off.. Ford told me I did not wash the car enough!! 40k for an all black truck and I don't wash it.. cmon man! The dealer stepped up and took the hit for the repair..
Welcome to the Forum sbcanadian.:wavey:
Just keep an eye on it. If all they did was repaint it, chances are it will rub off again.

Peter
 












Just curious. Anyone do anything like clear tape to fix this issue? I noticed this starting on my 14'. I would like to stop it before it really rubs down the paint. I might try a thick vinyl black they use for decals.
 






My doors do not touch the body seal plastic at bottom of door. There is about 1/16 to 1/8 inch gap. I found out the first winter that all the salt water and mud filled the whole inner door assembly. To prevent this I bought some D gasket and ran it along the plastic edge where the door is suppose to contact. Now the bottom of the door seals up against the D gasket and the inside of my doors stay clean most of the time. So with that said I wish my doors did fit tight enough to the body so all the road grime doesn’t get all over the inside of the doors, then all I would have to do is spray it ever 6 months to keep it from rusting! I am saying this because before I bought this limited I checked to see if they corrected the problem that I had on my2002 door gap, because I was tired of cleaning the inside of the doors covered with road grime. Guess I was wrong. Oh well, I will get it right next time.
 






Would running boards help this at all?
I have seen a few that seem to cover the entire bottom below the door area with no noticeable gap and thought that that might be good to have, especially in winter.
...along with mud flaps...
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





My doors do not touch the body seal plastic at bottom of door. There is about 1/16 to 1/8 inch gap. I found out the first winter that all the salt water and mud filled the whole inner door assembly. To prevent this I bought some D gasket and ran it along the plastic edge where the door is suppose to contact. Now the bottom of the door seals up against the D gasket and the inside of my doors stay clean most of the time. So with that said I wish my doors did fit tight enough to the body so all the road grime doesn’t get all over the inside of the doors, then all I would have to do is spray it ever 6 months to keep it from rusting! I am saying this because before I bought this limited I checked to see if they corrected the problem that I had on my2002 door gap, because I was tired of cleaning the inside of the doors covered with road grime. Guess I was wrong. Oh well, I will get it right next time.
I'm not sure why the strip is being called 'plastic'. It is RUBBER and it is flexible. The bottom of the door wraps around it and forms a seal against the bottom of it. The seal, however, is not as tight as the one further up with the thicker rubber. I jammed a piece of paper in the door so that the only the bottom seal would come in contact with it. I was able to pull the paper sheet out but there was some resistance indicating that there is a seal there on mine. I also have no paint issues there.
If you want a tighter seal there, I would try using that self adhesive foam tape that they use for weather stripping and run that along the bottom edge of the door and see how that works.

Peter
 

Attachments

  • P9300135_1.JPG
    P9300135_1.JPG
    97.8 KB · Views: 541






Back
Top