List of Useful Threads Hood Paint bubble issue only

[Adrian Gitch]

All the hood protector is going to do is to mask the problem so that you can't see it. It won't prevent the problem from happening

I don't have the hood paint problem with mine, just confirming the hood protector looks good.

 

[BerndM]

I had some time today so I took mine in the the local Ford dealership a mile from my house and 20 minutes later, the body shop had ordered my new hood and they will call me when they have it fully painted and ready to install.
I will probably get a smoky bug deflector once I get the car back and let the paint fully harden for a couple of weeks.
I asked the body shop foreman if the new hood will do the same thing in a couple of years. His response was that they are being treated with better corrosion primer yada yada yada yada
Time will tell.
I wonder what this new hood / painting / installation would cost retail.

 

[DarderSauce]

Sorry if this has already been addressed and I missed it in an earlier post.... But could a 2018 (sport if trim level matters) model year explorer suffer from the paint bubble issue? Tried finding a list of years affected but might have missed it throughout the 60+ pages this thread. Thanks in advance, much appreciated!

 

[Sgt1411]

Sorry if this has already been addressed and I missed it in an earlier post.... But could a 2018 (sport if trim level matters) model year explorer suffer from the paint bubble issue? Tried finding a list of years affected but might have missed it throughout the 60+ pages this thread. Thanks in advance, much appreciated!

Yes

 

[BerndM]

I love my new shiny bubble free hood.
The dealer looked at it for about 2 minutes, took some pics of the front edge bubbles and told me he'd call me when they get the replacement hood in and painted and ready to install on my 17 Platinum.
It was about a week and a half later that I got the call. I took the car to the dealer the next morning and by noon I had it back.
They get the hoods from Ford already primered and the dealer does the actual painting to match the car. It turned out perfectly.
I asked what's to prevent this hood from doing the same thing in 2 years. He said that Ford is preparing and priming the hoods differently and this should never happen again, but he said it doesn't matter any because they, the dealership, not Ford, provide a lifetime guaranty on any paint issues as long as I own the car.
I am happy.

 

[Stephen Cannon]

Darker Sauce.....YES.....ask me how I know.

here is the problem the correction is treat the hoods with the same corroion prevention that should have been installed at the factory to begin with. They are playing the odds and getting caught. For the ones that do get caught there are many more vehicles that get by due to either trade in, not inspecting properly, waiting until rust through warranty expires etc. Mine was in shop as part of collision repair and I had a second vehicle for the time. The problem is two actually.

1: Dealer even though they knew it was going into the body shop as part of already scheduled repair, still wanted me to take to dealer, get warranty approval then take back to body shop at separate visit. I fought tooth and nail on that one told them to have dealer rep visit body shop take whatever photos needdd to get the warranty approval and call me when both the collision repair and body work was done. I was successful on that and the hood R/R and paint, blend to match was part of the already scheduled visit for the collision repair.

2: Even though the hood was Removed and Replaced due to FMC NEGLIGENCE the dealer would not cover the required replacement of the ClearBra: The ClearBra was a Ford authorized accessory, from a certified Ford Dealer and only had to be removed and replaced due to the negligence of FMC. The ClearBra for the fender and bumper was covered as part of the collision repair process. I was not successful on that and the dealer didn’t seem to care about me leaving a bad review for their dealershop. Their reply...not my department the Body shop is a separate part of AutoNation and basically I don’t care about their bad surveys only mine! Her dismissive attitude about the problem was one of the major reasons for the bad review but she didn’t care.

This situations is probably the final nail
In the coffin for my FMC purchases and definitely the final purchase from this dealership. Yes it was a $225 lesson learned. They are losing a future customer, bad review over $225 which they even admit themselves is wrong but won’t cover since they are afraid of not getting reimbursed from Ford corporate.

Note to others: some major dealer networks may have body shop that say the dealer groups name but when it comes to actual service especially bad service they are quick to play the separate entity card.

 

[blwnsmoke]

I love my new shiny bubble free hood.
The dealer looked at it for about 2 minutes, took some pics of the front edge bubbles and told me he'd call me when they get the replacement hood in and painted and ready to install on my 17 Platinum.
It was about a week and a half later that I got the call. I took the car to the dealer the next morning and by noon I had it back.
They get the hoods from Ford already primered and the dealer does the actual painting to match the car. It turned out perfectly.
I asked what's to prevent this hood from doing the same thing in 2 years. He said that Ford is preparing and priming the hoods differently and this should never happen again, but he said it doesn't matter any because they, the dealership, not Ford, provide a lifetime guaranty on any paint issues as long as I own the car.
I am happy.

As long as lifetime guarantee means bumper to bumper 3yr/36k lol.

 

[blwnsmoke]

@Stephen Cannon - can you direct or link us to the clear bra accessory listed by Ford? To my knowledge, this is not a Ford accessory (factory option). Anything done aftermarket is not a Ford authorized accessory and would not be covered under a warranty by Ford (regardless if you bought it through a dealer). What I believe happened (correct me if I ak wrong) is the dealer had this put on from a 3rd party vendor prior to the sale.

The only exception to this is typically the RAV or LL process.. usually but not always manufacturers have to reimburse you for accessories you bought for the vehicle (oem or aftermarket).

 

[BerndM]

As long as lifetime guarantee means bumper to bumper 3yr/36k lol.

This "as long as I own it" lifetime guarantee is for the work they did on the hood only.

 

[peterk9]

Sorry if this has already been addressed and I missed it in an earlier post.... But could a 2018 (sport if trim level matters) model year explorer suffer from the paint bubble issue? Tried finding a list of years affected but might have missed it throughout the 60+ pages this thread. Thanks in advance, much appreciated!

Welcome to the Forum.
As indicated in prior posts, yes, it can still happen to a 2018. In any case, as per the Warranty Guide, you are covered for 5 years, unlimited mileage.

Peter

 

[blwnsmoke]

This "as long as I own it" lifetime guarantee is for the work they did on the hood only.

Must be a body shop guarantee thing then because Ford does not offer any type of lifetime work on anything. It is only covered for the remainder of the b2b or 1yr/12k, whichever is longer.

 

[BerndM]

That's correct. This lifetime guarantee is directly from this particular dealer that I have bought 4 cars from over the last 26 years. It's so convenient for me since I live only 1 mile away.

 

[DarderSauce]

@Stephen Cannon - Appreciate the info!

Welcome to the Forum.
As indicated in prior posts, yes, it can still happen to a 2018. In any case, as per the Warranty Guide, you are covered for 5 years, unlimited mileage.

Peter

Thanks @peterk9, checking the Corrosion Perforation warranty was going to be my next step. Will likely wait to get the hood checked until all the salt has washed off the roads (MN). The bubbles on the hood were the first thing I noticed when looking at the car. I wondered how a vehicle with 15,000 miles had so many imperfections in the same place on the hood but chalked it up to tailgating from the previous owner.

We bought it from a Buick dealership so now I just need to find a Ford dealership for the claim and I'll be all set. Thanks again for all the info and for answering my questions that were likely already answered!

 

[ncsuengineer256]

Man I'm jealous of you guys. Ford was still telling the dealerships to just repaint the hood back when they fixed mine under warranty. Fast forward 2 years later and the bubbles are back and now Ford tells me I'm SOL.

 

[chartquist]

My replacement hood just came in, after being on backorder for about a month. The dealer doesn't have its own bodyshop, so they send it out to a 3rd party for painting. They are setting me up with a loaner car and want my current car for the process, saying they will need to blend the new paint with the front bumper and fenders (Ruby Red three-stage paint). I have a Sport, so I reminded the service guy to make sure the "EXPLORER" letters get replaced on the front and any decals get replaced on the inside too. Fingers crossed... everything seems pretty smooth so far.

Just as an update, I got my Sport with the new hood back just before Christmas and I'm generally pleased. The service rep let me connect directly with the 3rd party body shop who was doing the work, and they let me come inspect before sending back to the dealer. Other than some minor dust particles I found, it looked pretty good, and I did have them do one more round of polishing to get rid of some minor issues. Overall I'm pleased that Ford covered it under warranty, provided a loaner car during the process, and the work seems to be fine. Fingers crossed this doesn't happen again in another 2-3 years, and I'm considering putting a clear film on the front of the hood now that it's pristine with no nicks or stone chips and has had a month or so to cure. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread for background and advice on how best to approach the situation and confirming what a widespread problem this is.

 

[ncsuengineer256]

Just as an update, I got my Sport with the new hood back just before Christmas and I'm generally pleased. The service rep let me connect directly with the 3rd party body shop who was doing the work, and they let me come inspect before sending back to the dealer. Other than some minor dust particles I found, it looked pretty good, and I did have them do one more round of polishing to get rid of some minor issues. Overall I'm pleased that Ford covered it under warranty, provided a loaner car during the process, and the work seems to be fine. Fingers crossed this doesn't happen again in another 2-3 years, and I'm considering putting a clear film on the front of the hood now that it's pristine with no nicks or stone chips and has had a month or so to cure. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread for background and advice on how best to approach the situation and confirming what a widespread problem this is.

Sweet!! Since you got a completely new hood that went through the correct dipping process and priming, I don't think you'll see the issue again in the future.

 

[peterk9]

@Stephen Cannon - Appreciate the info!



Thanks @peterk9, checking the Corrosion Perforation warranty was going to be my next step. Will likely wait to get the hood checked until all the salt has washed off the roads (MN). The bubbles on the hood were the first thing I noticed when looking at the car. I wondered how a vehicle with 15,000 miles had so many imperfections in the same place on the hood but chalked it up to tailgating from the previous owner.

View attachment 177729
We bought it from a Buick dealership so now I just need to find a Ford dealership for the claim and I'll be all set. Thanks again for all the info and for answering my questions that were likely already answered!

When checking the Warranty Guide, you want to read the part about aluminum panel corrosion. Also, this issue is from the inside out and not related to chips etc from other vehicles in front of you. Good luck.

Peter

 

[Britta-S]

As said, I asked for escalation and also gave a some of the examples from the forum, plus a neat pdf presentation by Ford Motor Company (at least that's what it says: https://www.f150forum.com/attachmen...nt-defects-damage-general-service-bulleti.pdf) that aluminum parts don't need perforation to be covered.
So I hope she reconsiders or at least escalates, so I can make my case to someone else.

Update on my case!
If you remember, my claim started mid November and I'm happy to let you guys know that I got my new hood last week Wednesday. I probably hold the record of time it took to get the hood done, but at least it's covered by warranty and I didn't pay a dime.

I went to another dealer I found through some reviews (a lady that also complained about my 'old' service department not taking care of it and then going to the other dealership where they did take care of it), which was not that far of a drive. Through having a case with Ford open and my old service department *****ing around, the process took a bit longer, but in the end even a supervisor at Ford Motor Company (through the claims process) admitted that there 'seemed to have been confusion about this warranty' (not on my side ) and approved the work.
My 'new' service department even printed of a page for me where it stated for my specific VIN that the hood is replaceable within the 5 year warranty without any pre-approval necessary. So yes, needless to say, he wasn't happy with my 'old' service department either (and on top of that it's competition, so he might have been a bit happy as well ).
Through the holidays and the body shop painted the hood the wrong black the first time around, it took a bit longer, but I finally have my bubble free hood!

To top it all off, I also found out that I have an extended warranty on the Ex, which my 'old' service department claimed on multiple visits that I do not own one... I know, my fault for not understanding my paperwork (I did look and thought I had one), but that's why I asked multiple times and only always got a 'no'. It's been confirmed by FMC and the 'new' dealership that there is an extended warranty on the vehicle.

My ordeal is over and I'm grateful for that. I wish everyone who is having the problem a lot of endurance and hopefully and easier resolution than I had.

 

[Britta-S]

I had some time today so I took mine in the the local Ford dealership a mile from my house and 20 minutes later, the body shop had ordered my new hood and they will call me when they have it fully painted and ready to install.
I will probably get a smoky bug deflector once I get the car back and let the paint fully harden for a couple of weeks.
I asked the body shop foreman if the new hood will do the same thing in a couple of years. His response was that they are being treated with better corrosion primer yada yada yada yada
Time will tell.
I wonder what this new hood / painting / installation would cost retail.

To answer your retail question, I was quoted $1,600 for new hood, new paint and install.

 

[metroplex]

So I was looking at my 2018 XLT last night and saw some bubbling at the leading edge of the hood. Today I examined it closely and sure enough, looks like the aluminum hood corrosion underneath the paint. It isn't chipped or anything, so it must have been improper surface prep. I only drive the Explorer in the colder months, so it has under 10k miles.

Has anyone had success with the dealership repainting the hood for this issue?

Combined with the potential internal water pump issue, and the PTU overheating, I'm not sure if I want to buy out my lease in a year. It does a decent job in the winter with our potholes and I can lug large objects around in the back. A new SUV will be $40k+ and I'm not sure Ford will fix all the problems on the 2020 Explorer by the 2021 model year.