Road salt inside the doors

[toolman4]

So here is the pic of road salt inside my 2020 Platinum door after driving it. This is the driver side passanger door. Tell me this isnt normal? Doesn't look like anything is missing. Just a great design.

 

[Mbrooks420]

It’s normal. There’s nothing to seal it out....

 

[quickfix]

That's weird. Mine's as clean as a whistle...and I've been through plenty of snow, slush, and also wet salty roads in the past month.
Almost looks like someone may have driven the car with the door ajar, in spite of the red warning. Have a look at that seatbelt for salt and muck.

 

[toolman4]

That's weird. Mine's as clean as a whistle...and I've been through plenty of snow, slush, and also wet salty roads in the past month.
Almost looks like someone may have driven the car with the door ajar, in spite of the red warning. Have a look at that seatbelt for salt and muck.

Nope, no seal at the bottom 1/4 of the door so a nice sized crack for everything to spray up into. It's not from driving on gravel roads either. Check the passenger door on the drivers side. Saw a 21 with the same issue. Nothing like washing the inside of the doors too after every car wash. Makes no sense especially for the cost of this vehicle

 

[Mbrooks420]

I’ve never seen a car that wouldn’t get dirt and road salt behind the door to where the seals start.

 

[4wdExplr]

From looking at your photos, I think you are missing some seals around the wheel well and lower body. unless this is new to the 2021 models. I just checked on mine and there is a seal around the wheel well and along the bottom of the rocker panel.

You can see that there is just a small amount of splash toward the front of the door from the gap between the doors, but the rest of the area is clean and protected by the seals I circled.

 

[toolman4]

That is a good heads up. That would make a lot more sense to me. Is there away to look at a parts chart. I looked at a 21 and there was no seal on the rocker there either. Hard to believe some of the quality control with missing parts on these. Have a chip off the corner of my windshield too. Tech said it looked like when they installed it.

 

[toolman4]

Does anybody else have these seals?

 

[quickfix]

Does anybody else have these seals?

Yes. Just had another look at my doglegs and lower door jams. All seals in place. 2020 XLT 202A, Feb 2020 build.

They're very tastefully done. Quite unobtrusive. So much so that I missed them at first glance when the OP first posted.

 

[toolman4]

Yes. Just had another look at my doglegs and lower door jams. All seals in place. 2020 XLT 202A, Feb 2020 build.

They're very tastefully done. Quite unobtrusive. So much so that I missed them at first glance when the OP first posted.

So does that mean the platinum should have them? I tried looking it up in parts place, but didn't find a good site.

 

[Cincykz]

That's my single biggest biggest disappointment with my 17 XLT. It has developed rust on the inner doors due to the terrible design. Car is otherwise mint. I'm about to buy a 21' but would be adamant it didn't have the same design flaw...

OP, if seals should be there or are available, I would make sure you got them. My 17 has been waxed many times and is kept as clean as possible during our long winter, but I'm going to have to paint the inner doors due to bubbling from this problem. Otherwise very happy with the 17. (Keeping it and adding the 21)

 

[4wdExplr]

So does that mean the platinum should have them? I tried looking it up in parts place, but didn't find a good site.

I cannot imagine them de-contenting a Platinum. Take it back to the dealer and show them pretty much any other explorer on the lot. you should get them installed under warranty.

 

[CDW6212R]

That's my single biggest biggest disappointment with my 17 XLT. It has developed rust on the inner doors due to the terrible design. Car is otherwise mint. I'm about to buy a 21' but would be adamant it didn't have the same design flaw...

OP, if seals should be there or are available, I would make sure you got them. My 17 has been waxed many times and is kept as clean as possible during our long winter, but I'm going to have to paint the inner doors due to bubbling from this problem. Otherwise very happy with the 17. (Keeping it and adding the 21)

Rust starts at any bare steel, which is usually a rock chip outside, or a seam of the paint elsewhere. Keep any road salts away from those inner door paint seams. The seams you find there typically have a flexible seam sealer underneath, under the truck it's just paint in the seams. When normal body flexing breaks the paint at any seam, the crack allows moisture and air inside, thus rust begins there first.

In any rust prone locations, I'd treat all paint body seams with something that would be flexible and last. Simple wax isn't going to work, help yes short term, but long term find something better. I like under coating for unseen areas, but a visible area like the door jambs, that's tougher. I'd use Ultra Black RTV everywhere that's easy to apply but not visible much. A clear RTV might be worth the trouble in visible areas, but note that stuff does get hard and crack after it gets old or sees high heat. You might get away with doing that and R&Ring it again every few years. Ultra Black RTV will survive the life of the car if you don't physically remove it.

 

[toolman4]

I cannot imagine them de-contenting a Platinum. Take it back to the dealer and show them pretty much any other explorer on the lot. you should get them installed under warranty.

Yeah, had ford where I bought it look it up and there is supposed to be an extra seal in front of the tire for sure. Don't have any of those seals at the very bottom of any of the doors either. Where is a good spot to look at the door seal parts? Can somebody post it?

 

[Spacey]

Shouldn't the dealer be installing those under warranty? I checked my 2020 ST and it has the seals. Frankly it's pretty shocking how poorly some of these vehicles were built / QC'd. I don't think you can call something like this a "first year of a new model" issue. It's just really poor manufacturing. Ford should be ashamed to let something like that out.

 

[hbalek]

Shouldn't the dealer be installing those under warranty? I checked my 2020 ST and it has the seals. Frankly it's pretty shocking how poorly some of these vehicles were built / QC'd. I don't think you can call something like this a "first year of a new model" issue. It's just really poor manufacturing. Ford should be ashamed to let something like that out.

They must be smoking crack at the Chicago plant!

 

[toolman4]

They must be smoking crack at the Chicago plant!

I am hoping all this stuff is put on through warranty or am going to have a lot to say!! Ford should have made all the dealers aware of all this crap. I shouldnt have to be going back and saying this and that part is supposed to be there. I don't like taking my time to research and fix all this stuff after what I paid....and how a company like this can let stuff like roll out of their factory at this day and age with that many problems to pad their bottom line is sad.

 

[Adam58]

I have a 2020 ST built in 6/19 and it has the seals that 4wdExplr circled in his picture.

 

[FrankG+]

Look at the photo's in post 1 a 2020 and post 6 a 2021, there are two completely different trim pieces. It is hard to tell from the angle of the photo in post #1 if it contains any seals, the trim pieces are there. If we are looking at painted metal body parts the OP should let us know, looks like the c-Pillar is covered with a plastic trim.

BTW this is why we moved from the salt belt to sunny Florida, 72 deg today! Here ya all having some kind of wintery weather up there. Do miss the Ford 1520 with loader and pusher to clear the driveway.

 

[Ken2012limited]

So here is the pic of road salt inside my 2020 Platinum door after driving it. This is the driver side passanger door. Tell me this isnt normal? Doesn't look like anything is missing. Just a great design.

View attachment 327058

View attachment 327059

Have a 14 explorer and a 12 edge and they get the salt up there too. So does my 4runner. Luckily the car wash underbody wash squirts there too. I still hose it out after a heavy coating because the underbody doesn't get 100% of it. .