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2004 FORD EXPLORER — STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE

1 injured · 925498 · 2012-06-29

Vehicle

Make
FORD
Model
EXPLORER
Year
2004
Manufacturer
Ford Motor Company
Component
STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE
Miles at failure
113,290

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
1
Fire
No
Crash
No
Police report
No
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

RIGHT REAR LIFTGATE WINDOW HINGE FAILED (CRACKED) CAUSING HEAVY (APPRX 40 LB) GLASS LIFTGATE GLASS PANEL TO FALL ON A PERSON CAUSING MINOR INJURY. APPEARS 02/03 MODELS RECALLED FOR SAME ISSUE (DESPITE FORD'S RESPONSE ON THE FIRST INVESTIGATION OF THIS IT IS THE SAME ISSUE AS 02/03). THE HINGE PART IS INADEQUATE TO HOLD THE HEAVY GLASS PANEL IN PLACE OVER TIME WITH USE. SINCE THE BACK GLASS IS A HEAVY SLAB OF UNFRAMED, TEMPERED GLASS IT COULD "EXPLODE" IF IT FALLS POTENTIALLY CAUSING SERIOUS INJURY OR TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS TO TRAILING VEHICLES. FORD APPARENTLY DOES A GOOD BUSINESS IN SELLING THESE REPLACEMENT HINGES AT A COST OF OVER $100 EACH FOR A SMALL PIECE OF WEAK CAST METAL. FORTY POUND SLABS OF GLASS FALLING OFF OF VEHICLES WITH NO PRIOR WARNING IS A SAFETY ISSUE! RESEARCH INDICATED MANY OTHER OWNERS WITH THE SAME COMPLAINT. *TR

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
10463506
Machine
JSON-LD · Markdown