Moonroof noise - seal

[Josh0017]

Good morning everyone,

So I purchased the 2020 ford explorer ST last year. I used to drive a coupe and then a sedan but when I drove the explorer I swear I could hear wind noise above what is to be expected especially at highway speeds. I took it to the dealer and told them the noise sounds like it's coming from the center/back of the moonroof. They gave me the line we could not duplicate the noise. So I thought maybe I'm loosing my mind and suvs just make that noise.

Well let's arrive to last month I now have about 21k miles on it. I parked on the road was talking to some friends on a hill so I could see the roof line Clearly and noticed the seal is not attached in the back of the moonroof and is depressed (photos attached). I took it to the dealer again and said hey I brought this in last year you told me you couldn't dublicate the noise but it's obvious the seal is bad so I need this fixed. They told me at the end of the day it was fixed and they heard and resolved the noise. Well I go to pick it up and nothing was done to the seal and I tell them. They say oh we adjusted the moonroof since it wasn't flush and you shouldn't hear the noise anymore. I'm pissed it was a long day and said whatever I have warranty I'll be back. I took it to my mechanic and another Ford dealer and they told me they were lazy and didn't want to fix it and even they weren't sure how much work would need to go into fixing that... I took it back to my dealer this week and told them they are going to do a thorough job fixing it or I'm not taking it back.

My question is does anyone know how much/what they need to do to fix it and what I should double check when they are done?

Thanks everyone,

Josh

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Josh.

Peter

 

[Josh0017]

Welcome to the Forum Josh.

Peter

Thanks Peter,

Hope your weekend is going well

Regards,

Josh

 

[steweod]

The one on our Aviator had issues and a lengthy repair had to be done.

 

[Josh0017]

The one on our Aviator had issues and a lengthy repair had to be done.

They told me they ordered new glass for the roof but it's not in yet, so I'll see how they proceed I guess. Did it get quieter in the cabin after your fix?

Regards,

Josh

 

[Lhymes]

My 2020 had crazy bubbling noises during/after rain. Didn’t ever see any water, but was told it was a bad seal and leak.

 

[Josh0017]

My 2020 had crazy bubbling noises during/after rain. Didn’t ever see any water, but was told it was a bad seal and leak.

I'm glad they figured it out, have you had any issues since they fixed it?

Thanks,

Josh

 

[steweod]

They told me they ordered new glass for the roof but it's not in yet, so I'll see how they proceed I guess. Did it get quieter in the cabin after your fix?

Regards,

Josh

I do not know if it got quieter but it stopped having a constant stream of water pour into it... sooo yeah that is better but I wonder why we get random electrical grimlims now?

 

[Josh0017]

Here's an update to my service at ourisman of Alexandria, va.

Dropped the vehicle off on June 3rd and got a loaner which I have to raise hell to get everytime. Service manager seems genuinely apologetic after pointing out this is my 3rd time there for the same issue.

The issue is now they never call me to update me. They are practically ignoring me at this point. They told me the glass would be in on the 10th after I called and asked on on the 5th how they were going to fix it.

I call on the 11th after no feedback from the dealer and after leaving 2 voicemails one at 8am and one after 2 pm they call back saying glass won't arrive until the 15th now. I tell them I get it delays happen just update me.

Nothing from the service manager so I call again on the 16th and had to leave voicemails around 8am and 2pm to confirm the glass made it in on the 15th. The service manager Chris says it did and they will work on it the 16th/17th...

Again no update from the dealer so I call all day the 18th with no pickup or call back. I call the general line and get the assistant manager and ask if the service Manager is there to talk and she states he is in his office and transfers me. Well you guessed it he doesn't pick up. I call right back get the service manager to update me and guess what the glass guys canceled and they can't even give me a date when they will work on it. I say ok but just give me an update when you get a date...

Well three more days go by its now the 21st and no call with an update and the service manager won't call me back.

They have had my vehicle there sitting so long it went into deep sleep mode and today I get this warning on my app "malfunction indicator lamp the powertrain control module has detected the power relay de-energized earlier than expected"

The sad thing is my car has other issues I told them to address and God knows how long that will take them at this rate. This is my first ford vehicle and am extremely dissapointed with their service department.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Here's an update to my service at ourisman of Alexandria, va.

Dropped the vehicle off on June 3rd and got a loaner which I have to raise hell to get everytime. Service manager seems genuinely apologetic after pointing out this is my 3rd time there for the same issue.

The issue is now they never call me to update me. They are practically ignoring me at this point. They told me the glass would be in on the 10th after I called and asked on on the 5th how they were going to fix it.

I call on the 11th after no feedback from the dealer and after leaving 2 voicemails one at 8am and one after 2 pm they call back saying glass won't arrive until the 15th now. I tell them I get it delays happen just update me.

Nothing from the service manager so I call again on the 16th and had to leave voicemails around 8am and 2pm to confirm the glass made it in on the 15th. The service manager Chris says it did and they will work on it the 16th/17th...

Again no update from the dealer so I call all day the 18th with no pickup or call back. I call the general line and get the assistant manager and ask if the service Manager is there to talk and she states he is in his office and transfers me. Well you guessed it he doesn't pick up. I call right back get the service manager to update me and guess what the glass guys canceled and they can't even give me a date when they will work on it. I say ok but just give me an update when you get a date...

Well three more days go by its now the 21st and no call with an update and the service manager won't call me back.

They have had my vehicle there sitting so long it went into deep sleep mode and today I get this warning on my app "malfunction indicator lamp the powertrain control module has detected the power relay de-energized earlier than expected"

The sad thing is my car has other issues I told them to address and God knows how long that will take them at this rate. This is my first ford vehicle and am extremely dissapointed with their service department.

Why aren’t you having the other issues addressed as it fits there?

 

[Josh0017]

Why aren’t you having the other issues addressed as it fits there?

Oh i told them but I they are on the tech side and I didn't want to go off topic from this post about the seal. I don't think they've even looked at those tech issues yet since they said they wanted to wait until the work was done on the moonroof.

Regards,

Josh

 

[peterk9]

Going by the few experiences I've had with other dealers, they will only call you once the vehicle is ready. I doubt that most dealers have a person that updates all the owners of those vehicles in their shop that are being worked on. Not picking up a call though is inexcusable.

Peter

 

[Josh0017]

Going by the few experiences I've had with other dealers, they will only call you once the vehicle is ready. I doubt that most dealers have a person that updates all the owners of those vehicles in their shop that are being worked on. Not picking up a call though is inexcusable.

Peter

I understand if work began but they can't even tell me dates or estimates of how they will fix it, when work is beginning/ending or let me know when there are delays. I don't want daily updates just milestones eg: hey work will take place this date, work was unfortunately delayed but we rescheduled for this date :/ it's been about 3 weeks now after there failures the first 2 times which is causing the frustration.

 

[EXFAN]

Loss of use of your vehicle, it’s value or safety are criteria to lemon law your vehicle. At least in CA.

 

[Josh0017]

Loss of use of your vehicle, it’s value or safety are criteria to lemon law your vehicle. At least in CA.

If they had done there job properly the first time and identified the issue I would say yes but the issue was not identified until I had 20,000 miles and Maryland it says within 18,000 miles. I was finally informed yesterday that they have been working on the vehicle for 2 days and they should finish up today but it turns out they have to remove the whole headliner to swap the glass :/ I don't know how it takes more than 1 day and now I'm concerned about the headliner quality work since my vehicle data shows its at a shop that's not even the dealer.

Regards,

Josh

 

[Mbrooks420]

I’d much rather an interior shop, or stereo shop work on my cars interior than the dealer techs.

What kind of shop is it?

 

[Josh0017]

I’d much rather an interior shop, or stereo shop work on my cars interior than the dealer techs.

What kind of shop is it?

Looks like an Upholstery shop. Key upholstery

 

[Mbrooks420]

If it’s the one in Alexandria they have great reviews. I’ll take a mom and pop shop in business for 40 years over a dealership any day of the week.

 

[EXFAN]

If they had done there job properly the first time and identified the issue I would say yes but the issue was not identified until I had 20,000 miles and Maryland it says within 18,000 miles. I was finally informed yesterday that they have been working on the vehicle for 2 days and they should finish up today but it turns out they have to remove the whole headliner to swap the glass :/ I don't know how it takes more than 1 day and now I'm concerned about the headliner quality work since my vehicle data shows its at a shop that's not even the dealer.

Regards,

Josh

I agree an upholstery shop would be the way to go. The Ford techs would "Ham-hand" it. I recently had the dealer replace the antenna on the '18 Explorer I just traded for my '21. After the job, it looked like the headliner had been removed which was required to do the job (wrinkled and dirty). They only dropped the rear section. I can only imagine what it would have looked like if they had to remove the whole thing.

I quickly read your earlier posts and the "cannot duplicate" are repair attempts (at least in CA) so it shows the problem existed before 18k miles. CA may be very different than Maryland but I would speak to a MD Lemon Law attorney and show him/her your service records. I'm not saying to "knee jerk" and initiate a buy back but rather thoroughly know your options if things get worse or it can't be fixed. I Lemon Lawed my first two Explorers so I know what you're going through with the poor service from the dealers and areas of poor build quality. However, I just bought my 5th Explorer and really feel Ford makes good vehicles. Poor dealer service is often the trigger causing a buyback. Ultimately, the component defects, loss of use and number of repair attempts qualify a buyback or cash settlement (I did both) but the poor service and attitudes from multiple dealers put me over the edge.

 

[cwescapexlt4x4]

Not sure if this should go here or a new thread as I suspect mine is at the FRONT of the moonroof - Wind noise from the front of the moonroof area... just started and REALLY annoying and will have to have the dealer look at. Have you heard of this being common?