2002 Explorer RUST Problem!!!

[newtek007]

:fire: Does anyone here have this rust problem with their 2002 or later explorer? I just bought this truck and I missed this. The dealer states they are going to fix it. We'll see. Is there any type of known knowledge where Ford will fix this like the Dog Legs of past?

Thanks.

 

[jayhawkexplorer]

Dang...where is that exactly on your truck?

 

[Bill Kemp]

Let me guess....Door hinge???

 

[newtek007]

Door Hinge

Yep. It's the door hinge-both front doors. When you open the doors and look down there is a black plastic thing that keeps the door from swinging too far. The pics are where the plastic things attach to the body.

 

[IAmTodd]

My boss's truck has the same problem. Seems the steel is weak there and flexes a great deal when you open the door. My guess it, this cracks it and allows water underneath the paint. They did fix his under the warranty. Although I do believe Fords come with a 60k mile corrosion warranty. Don't quote me on that though.

 

[MONMIX]

what Todd says makes a lot of sence but those photos are TERRIBLE !!!!!!!!!
( well the PHOTOS are good, what is IN the photo is terrible )

I have never seen rust that bad on a new ( ish ) vehicle.

Being from Newport News you are near the water. I am gonna lable that the culprate.

People think I am a dork for waxing my door jambs, but being near the salt water like you are, you might want to be a dork too

BTW the black plastic ( which is actually plastic coated metal ) thing is a " door check "

 

[newtek007]

Good to Know

A door check. Thanks. I didn't know what in the heck they called it.
The vehicle actually came from Richmond, VA. My ,91 Explorer has spent a many of days playing in the sand on the shores of the Outer Banks in North Carolina and I have never had any issues like this in that spot. I do agree though that salty air can do something like that, but I am going to have to take the stance that the sheet metal is thin, and the door opening and closing has caused the paint to crack and let moisture down behinf it.

I just wanted to know if anyone else is having the same problem so that if I have to approach Ford about it I want to be able to explain that other people are having the same problem and then maybe it can be reported to make it a possible recall or something. This could eventually be a safety hazard if you live in a hilly area and the door swings open and rips off the hinges!

 

[davidmmm69]

my 2002 i just looked in teh garage and mine are ok
you kinda had me worried there for a minute.
Hope that is just on specific explorers..
If not that is sad just 3 years old and rust,
My 1995 which lived in florida until now has less rust on it than that
wow i think my vehicles will miss the florida weather...

 

[MONMIX]

Let me assure you Newtek, I have NEVER seen rust like that on a vehicle that young.
I would say you definately have a leg to stand on.

 

[IAmTodd]

Let me assure you Newtek, I have NEVER seen rust like that on a vehicle that young.
I would say you definately have a leg to stand on.

I wouldn't wait too long though, It may rust away

 

[newtek007]

In The Morning

I'm going to the Ford Dealer in the morning to see if there is a corrosion warranty still in effect. The truck has 38,500 miles on it. I bought the vehicle from CarMax.com in Richmond. If Ford doesn't cover it CarMaxe's 30 day warranty states that it will be covered.
I'm not worried about it being covered, I'm just worried about the job being done RIGHT! You can cover cancer up with paint, but you can't keep it down after 6 months. Get my drift??? Scuff and Buff???

 

[newtek007]

CarMax is Taking Care of It

I went to my local Ford dealer and they stated that the rust would be covered under Ford's corrosion warranty, but the catch was the rust had to be all the way through! Can you beleive this! That's like Firestone saying we know our tires are defective but we're not pulling them until someone gets killed. A little extreme, but you get the point.
Anyway, I took it back to Carmax and they stated they would take care of it even if they had to send it out to an outside body shop.
Hope it comes back fixed.

 

[MONMIX]

best of luck.

Let me know what they do, I am currious as to what extent they are going to dig into that.

 

[newtek007]

Me Too

Yep...Me Too.

 

[dykzeulb]

What were ya talking about with the doglegs on the older ones? Ford is fixing that?

 

[newtek007]

91-94 Dog Legs

The first gen. explorers had a terrible skeleton in it's closet. The dog legs are where the back quarterpanel wheelwheel and backdoor is. Over time it was noticed that this area was rusting out horribly. If your truck was covered under their corrosion warranty then they replaced them. They did someting different to prevent the rust starting in the 1995 year model. I doubt there are many people with 91-94 explorers that are under 60,000 miles. I also think there was a year limit too, don't really know. The Ford Broncos and F-150's of the 80's also rusted out in the same area. It's hard to find a Ford truck from the 80's that isn't eaten up with rust in that area.

 

[newtek007]

Update

Just an update on the rust problem. The body shop found out that the drain tube got stopped up on both sides from the moonroof. They both rotted out and caused water to build up in the body. They are having to replace the entire door stop on the lower a-pillar. Here is a pic from the maual.

 

[rwmorrisonjr]

Wow, that's a good sized job to have done on a newer truck. BTW, rust/corrosion perforation warranty is 6 years/100k miles. As for the dealer, if it rusted out from the inside of the door pillar and you can see it, then I would define that as "perforated" or "all the way through". Sounds like the dealer didn't want to haev to fix it and make a warranty claim.

 

[ExplorerDMB]

Came from Richmond, VA huh? That is extremely close to me - know exactly which dealer it came from? I feel bad for you, and it makes me look bad since I'm from around Richmond. I hate downtown though. Hopefully you got it from Richmond Ford off of West Broad. Sorry to hear the bad news!

-Drew

 

[newtek007]

CarMax

I got it at CarMax on Broad St. where I-295 and I-64 are.