Just WOW Ford....

[machine4321]

I'm not sure where to start with them. I will say that it is unfortunate that my first dealings with Ford as well as my first new car have been so bad. I was eyeing up a new Ford Edge sport not long ago but after my latest dealing with Ford, i'm done.

I have paint flying of the front edge of my hod (a walk through any mall parking lot with a few explores shows the very same issue) Paint grinding off the lower doors, A front bumper with peeling clear coat and I rather large rust spot on the tail gate I presume is from rail or brake dust. 20" wheels that have corroded around the center caps (all 4) and constant rear brake issues(one of which cause a wheel bearing to go due to the heat). I had 400km left on my Maintenance plan and the dealer refuses to replace the (other side now)brake as it was cause be rust/seized caliper.

Its to bad really as they do make a good looking SUV but I would own a kia before I buy another ford product. I don't mind issues, they happen, but stand behind your product. I'm amazed that they are OK with a bunch of "newish" vehicles running around with paint falling off of them. I've had to fight them every step of the way from the turn signal that was so stiff you almost want to give up using it altogether, chrome trim on front vents falling off and now cracking leather seats at 100 000km. I took such good care of this car, regular conditioning of the leather to keep it soft, regular vaccuming to keep dirt from the stitches/seams on the seats. Regular washing and waxing ect. I cant believe this passes as OK for a company.

I have been in touch with ford directly about paint and they refuse to fix as it is a perforation warranty......it needs to be a hole before they will do anything. This is what nearly 50k gets you these days....

Forgive my attitude but i'm at my end here, I've been in customer service for over 18 years and always own up to issues when it is clearly not the customers fault.

 

[reserved50]

sounds about right, most of it sounds like a learning experience for Ford but the weird thing is they didn't make any changes to future productions, not sure if they are fixed in the latest models.

Hood paint bubbling is bad prep
The lower door edge rust from rubbing is bad design
The wheel corrosion is something that happens to polished and chrome wheels
The tail gate rust from vibration under the trim is a bad design
The corroded caliper brackets should have had anti seize under the clips

It can all be fixed but most of it requires sand blasting, applying rust neutralizer and partial repainting

 

[Sgt1411]

I'm not sure where to start with them. I will say that it is unfortunate that my first dealings with Ford as well as my first new car have been so bad. I was eyeing up a new Ford Edge sport not long ago but after my latest dealing with Ford, i'm done.

I have paint flying of the front edge of my hod (a walk through any mall parking lot with a few explores shows the very same issue) Paint grinding off the lower doors, A front bumper with peeling clear coat and I rather large rust spot on the tail gate I presume is from rail or brake dust. 20" wheels that have corroded around the center caps (all 4) and constant rear brake issues(one of which cause a wheel bearing to go due to the heat). I had 400km left on my Maintenance plan and the dealer refuses to replace the (other side now)brake as it was cause be rust/seized caliper.

Its to bad really as they do make a good looking SUV but I would own a kia before I buy another ford product. I don't mind issues, they happen, but stand behind your product. I'm amazed that they are OK with a bunch of "newish" vehicles running around with paint falling off of them. I've had to fight them every step of the way from the turn signal that was so stiff you almost want to give up using it altogether, chrome trim on front vents falling off and now cracking leather seats at 100 000km. I took such good care of this car, regular conditioning of the leather to keep it soft, regular vaccuming to keep dirt from the stitches/seams on the seats. Regular washing and waxing ect. I cant believe this passes as OK for a company.

I have been in touch with ford directly about paint and they refuse to fix as it is a perforation warranty......it needs to be a hole before they will do anything. This is what nearly 50k gets you these days....

Forgive my attitude but i'm at my end here, I've been in customer service for over 18 years and always own up to issues when it is clearly not the customers fault.

Get the reps on here involved to see if anything can happen with their assistance.

 

[613GT500]

Unfortunate, but there's simply not "enough" owners complaining about the same issue.
Being the best selling vehicle in it's segment, Ford won't bat an eye until the masses speak up and that's with their wallets.

This is my first Ford product and while I've discovered many minor flaws, I'm still giving Ford a chance for the long run and will see if it leads to more Ford vehicles.

 

[cwescapexlt4x4]

[MENTION=157968]FordService[/MENTION] - please see owner issue above.

 

[Tech By Trade]

Welcome to the club. Quality is still Job 2.

 

[peterk9]

[MENTION=157968]FordService[/MENTION] - please see owner issue above.

FordService has previously requested that they be contacted via PM and not by 'tags' or whatever you call it.

Peter

 

[machine4321]

Appreciate the replies, I have my doubts about CS as well a I have already been in contact with them last year for the paint issues. I was contacted by phone and told I was SOL as there is no holes.

As far as the brakes go, I blame dealer/Ford policy. the supposed seized caliper took me a whole 15min to fix (one sticking slider and the caliper appeared to not sit on the pad correctly causeing it to bind (the pin on the back of the pad needs to line up with the tapered slot on the piston) I descaled, greased clips ect, as both sides of pads were frozen. this is just to get me by until the weekend. turns out the side that locked up and was smoking last weekend was the good side lol. The passenger side was in worse shape but I had no idea.

I am also pretty sad about the amount if rust under the car( I have had it Krowned. lots of bubbling paint on flat areas. Has me worried about long term.

 

[AFKNinja]

Yeah this seems to be the main problem with the Explorer. This vehicle could easily be the best in it's class, but it's B grade quality/not enough design in some places..

 

[reserved50]

the actual vehicle is decent but the materials and assembly of the paint/trim are very very poor. It would have hardly cost that much more to improve those areas on the assembly line. The only word that comes to mind for me is pathetic

 

[pup5581]

Since i changed jobs and drive 85 miles a day on the highway..the front of my black SUV now looks white..the paint chips VERY easily and is pretty soft IMO. Now i need to get it re painted because it looks awful..same with front of the hood...once i get it painted i guess i will get a permanent clear bra but year the paint is pretty weak

 

[edino]

I have also concerns with the quality of our 15' Explorer. Its not only the build quality, fit and finish, but I also have the impression the car is designed without any margin of engineering; just to be at the absolute minimum of being acceptable. Here in this climate (Dubai), the explorer suffers and has build a reputation as not being durable, weak AC, rattle box, and has a high depreciation. We bought 30 years long nothing but Ford, but my wife plans now to switch to an other brand after the summer, probably Toyota. Our last 3 Fords have not been a good experience at all....

 

[1995E]

I have also concerns with the quality of our 15' Explorer. Its not only the build quality, fit and finish, but I also have the impression the car is designed without any margin of engineering; just to be at the absolute minimum of being acceptable. Here in this climate (Dubai), the explorer suffers and has build a reputation as not being durable, weak AC, rattle box, and has a high depreciation. We bought 30 years long nothing but Ford, but my wife plans now to switch to an other brand after the summer, probably Toyota. Our last 3 Fords have not been a good experience at all....

Same here. Not one of the 3 Ford purchases that I've had in the last 5 years (brand new cars btw) have been flawless. So many dealership visits... 10+ times for the Explorer. 10+ times for the Fusion.

Heck, the Platinum I test drove had a panel coming off. Like wtf is this?

I also believe it's because Ford has been attracting a market where the customer expects a higher quality than what Ford has been used to building. Ford hasn't had this many people buy the higher trims like before so there will be more complaints. It's just so hard to believe a manufacturer like Ford can't do a decent job. It also has a lot to do with supplier problems and people not putting the cars together correctly from factory.

I personally like my Explorer a lot. It never failed me from going from A to B so I'm content with it. It's just that now I'm out of warranty, I'll either have to pay out of pocket or deal with the issues I have.

That's why my next car is probably going to be a Tesla Model S or Model 3. I was thinking the new Lincoln MKZ or Explorer Platinum but after two bad experiences, I'm kind of shying away.

 

[613GT500]

Same here. Not one of the 3 Ford purchases that I've had in the last 5 years (brand new cars btw) have been flawless. So many dealership visits... 10+ times for the Explorer. 10+ times for the Fusion.

Heck, the Platinum I test drove had a panel coming off. Like wtf is this?

I also believe it's because Ford has been attracting a market where the customer expects a higher quality than what Ford has been used to building. Ford hasn't had this many people buy the higher trims like before so there will be more complaints. It's just so hard to believe a manufacturer like Ford can't do a decent job. It also has a lot to do with supplier problems and people not putting the cars together correctly from factory.

I personally like my Explorer a lot. It never failed me from going from A to B so I'm content with it. It's just that now I'm out of warranty, I'll either have to pay out of pocket or deal with the issues I have.

That's why my next car is probably going to be a Tesla Model S or Model 3. I was thinking the new Lincoln MKZ or Explorer Platinum but after two bad experiences, I'm kind of shying away.

Nothing is going to change, as your next vehicle has it's own set of problems and you can definitely expect issues with the model 3; being a first production.

 

[TheBigYahi]

Same complaints on mine as well but add on a leaky rear differential and leaky timing cover to the list in the first 30k miles. No single issue has left us stranded, so it's hard to get motivated to buy a new vehicle (especially since the wife loves it). Unfortunately when looking back at the whole experience, I predict we won't be back to Ford next time.

 

[edino]

Nothing is going to change, as your next vehicle has it's own set of problems and you can definitely expect issues with the model 3; being a first production.

From my personal experience I would disagree that Ford quality is just like an other vehicle; it perceive that it has declined a lot. The last 3 Ford's my wife owned (Edge, MKX, Explorer) where substandard to any other car we owned that we compare with. From the day we took delivery we have had issues with build quality, rattles, weak AC, strange sounds (Fan etc), tire vibration, panel alignment issues, black panel near the windshield coming loose, weatherstrip curling up at the corners and randomly not recognizing the key fob. Some of it is not resolved yet after several visits.

I switched earlier from an problematic Expedition. Now I bought a Land Cruiser 3 months ago which is flawless when I picked it up from the dealer, and so far during ownership. And from a build quality point of view / quality perception, it is a world of a difference apart from the explorer. The Land Cruiser I bought is in the same price bracket as my 57k$ Explorer, and in all aspects is a better buy.

I do not want to be perceived as a Ford hater, I am not. I have had 30 years of great times with Ford cars, but as customer I feel my loyalty to Ford has been severely tested and affected by the decline of engineering and quality. I feel that the accountants are in charge at Ford, and their engineers are limited to do product improvement. I made the step to other brands, and can confirm to my self that there are way better products out there for my money.

 

[machine4321]

I really do like the EX. Ibfact im so upset as there isnt anytbing else out there that we like (edge sport would be my pick) but im so concerned about dealing with Ford. I know all new cars have issues but dealer/company support trumps issues anyday. Im really not bother as long as the issues are delt with.

I was fixing back brakes yesterday and all the paint in behinde the wheel is starting to bubble up. It looks like this thing is going to explode with rust any day. Having a hard time deciding if its time to get rid of it but i was hoping to not make 5 more years of payments. Could use that money for somthing else.

 

[Iceracer]

The people that say that you will have problems with any car you acquire are simply - wrong!!
As an outside sales rep driving company vehicles for many years (mostly Fords) I have had numerous cars that never, ever, had to go back to the dealer.
The Explorer, that's another story.
Never again.

 

[Sixonemale]

The people that say that you will have problems with any car you acquire are simply - wrong!!
As an outside sales rep driving company vehicles for many years (mostly Fords) I have had numerous cars that never, ever, had to go back to the dealer.
The Explorer, that's another story.
Never again.

There are a grocery list of items wrong with the current generation of Explorers. When I spoke recently to a service manager at Ford and mentioned Toyota/Lexus he says I'm comparing Apples to Oranges and that Toyota/Lexus are superior automobiles and trucks over Fords. What I don't quite understand is that Honda and Toyota have been building vehicles with quiet cabins, solid suspensions and highly reliable cars and trucks for how many years? Not to be critical, but perhaps Ford's business model is entirely different and its revenues rely much more on service than Honda and Toyota.

I personally think the best Explorer built, from a QA/QC standpoint, not aesthetics, was from 2002 to 2005 when it was truck. Better made than the current generation, with the exception of the transmission, both are less than average, and it was easy and economical to repair. The $40 water pump wasn't built inside the engine block and did not cost over $2,000 to repair it, etc. And overall far less problems until high mileage was reached.

 

[peterk9]

There are a grocery list of items wrong with the current generation of Explorers. When I spoke recently to a service manager at Ford and mentioned Toyota/Lexus he says I'm comparing Apples to Oranges and that Toyota/Lexus are superior automobiles and trucks over Fords. What I don't quite understand is that Honda and Toyota have been building vehicles with quiet cabins, solid suspensions and highly reliable cars and trucks for how many years? Not to be critical, but perhaps Ford's business model is entirely different and its revenues rely much more on service than Honda and Toyota.

I personally think the best Explorer built, from a QA/QC standpoint, not aesthetics, was from 2002 to 2005 when it was truck. Better made than the current generation, with the exception of the transmission, both are less than average, and it was easy and economical to repair. The $40 water pump wasn't built inside the engine block and did not cost over $2,000 to repair it, etc. And overall far less problems until high mileage was reached.

Despite what Iceracer posted, all cars do have their problems. This includes ones like 'Rolls and Bentley. The only difference is how frequently?
I had 3 Highlanders over a 10 year period and had very few issues with them but then I can say the same for my previous 2011 Explorer and my current MKT. I'm seriously looking at a 2017/18 Platinum when my current lease is up next year. Looking at the Toyota Forum it seems that they are also far from being trouble free.

Peter