2022 Expedition - Cracked Roof Panel; Cracked Lift gate Spoiler

[5280tunage]

Even with the factory bumper to bumper warranty, Ford will say go through yoir insurance... slimeballs

show these things to your insurance adjusters. May not help you but over time the qty's will help. Give the info to the top 3-4 insurance companies and at some point they will see the constant here.

 

[SyndicateZ]

show these things to your insurance adjusters. May not help you but over time the qty's will help. Give the info to the top 3-4 insurance companies and at some point they will see the constant here.

True - The insurance companies are also slimeballs and will do anything in their power not to pay out so they might help fight this on your behalf against Ford haha

 

[days4days]

I just checked, and it is true, Special Service Message 51346 has been removed from Ford's Professional Technician System (PTS) website.

It's unclear when or why it was removed, however, we still have the screen capture of the original PTS release of SSM 51346 on February 7, 2023.

For new Forum member @raemae -- and anyone else in need of this documentation, please print the below-attached PDF file and provide it to your dealership's Service representative...

I wonder why they removed it

 

[TimberExpy]

I wonder why they removed it

Embarrassment?

 

[Soliyou]

Honestly, I can’t imagine how Ford can deny coverage under new car warranty (or extended full warranty) for something like this! This is obviously their fault. Insurance has nothing to do with this. This is a manufacturing/assembly problem.

What are the appropriate customer protection channels in this case??

 

[SyndicateZ]

I wonder why they removed i

Ya! Definitely an attempt to save the company money and make the out of touch owners go through insurance or out of their own pockets to fix. Definitely a slimey move on Fords part and another reason I will never own a Ford again after this one. Same goes with cam phasers, which SHOULD be covered even without any warranty! And dont get me started with the annoying rattling turbo wastegates that they say is "normal" noise. /endrant

 

[HazBeen]

Per Ford, this is the causal part...

 

[samalray]

I am having the same issue with the tailgate. Ford does not want to cover it and said it was due to negligence!!! Has anyone had this issue and please share what was done to get this issue resolved

 

[1775SS]

I had this happen in Dec of 23. Major roof and spoiler damage. It took a few back and forth's with the Ford dealer, but they assured me from the beginning that Ford would cover this and with a free loner. Ford definitely paid for this. It took about 5 weeks to repair. Whole new roof, spoiler, windshield and paint. Pretty good job by the collision shop. I didn't have to contact my insurance company either.
I think if your Ford dealer is telling you that Ford won't cover this, then they just don't want to do the job.

 

[Ray D]

Excellent news! My case with Ford was kicked back to the dealership. Hopefully that leads to the same outcome. Did they say what they thought the root cause was?

Glad to hear you got this resolved. I just joined the group looking for someone with similar issues, lo and behold! I have the exact same problem after opening the tailgate. What was said that finally convinced them to fix it under warranty? Would really appreciate the feedback... Thanks a bunch in advance!

 

[Ray D]

Okay, after looking at previous posts, looks like a hit and miss for coverage under warranty from dealer/ford. I'm taking mine in tomorrow and arming myself with the SSM and this 210+ string of posts. We shall see what happens.

 

[SyndicateZ]

Okay, after looking at previous posts, looks like a hit and miss for coverage under warranty from dealer/ford. I'm taking mine in tomorrow and arming myself with the SSM and this 210+ string of posts. We shall see what happens.

Let us know how it goes. Jist bring in a copy of the Ford TSB. The TSB well just help with the fact that Ford knows about this and is a very common issue. With a fix.

(Which should be a RECALL IMO)

 

[markb]

We had a bit of snow and ice in NY over the MLK weekend. When opening the liftgate on Monday morning to grab our snow brush, we heard a cracking sound. We assumed it was just some ice cracking, but once the ice melted, we realized we had a big tear in the roof panel, and now the plastic spoiler is loose and rattling at highway speeds, so we are keeping it local until we get this fixed.

Not realizing this was a known issue with 2022 Expeditions, I went to a local body shop for an estimate. A bondo and fiberglass repair of the roof will cost $1,800! I asked what it would cost if I used my auto insurance, and they said they might choose to replace the entire roof panel which would cost $6k - $8k. Needless to say, I was shocked.

This chain here has been a big help. I went to visit my Ford dealership today, and the service desk person told me that my vehicle has no recalls, so they won't fix the roof. When I explained to him this is a known issue and called out the SSM, he said this was 'above his pay grade' and that I need to come back next week and speak with the Service Desk Manager. Obviously, I'm going to pull together all of this information and get ready to argue this out with the manager next week.

Quick question for you guys - what's the argument that won over the Ford Dealers, in your experience?

Also, when doing a web search, I can find SSM-51346 online at NHTSA (https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2023/MC-10232405-0001.pdf), but the new SSM-53301 issued on 1/16/2025 is not showing up on the NHTSA website. For the new SSM, all I can find are the pictures in this forum. Any help for a government source of this new SSM-53301 would be appreciated.

 

[HazBeen]

You are correct that SSM 53301 is not among Ford's Manufacturer Communications for the 2022 Expedition on the NHTSA website, however, Ford dealership Service personnel can retrieve SSM 53301 by performing a document search for '53301' using Ford's Professional Technician (PTS) website...







Good luck!

 

[Alev4233]

We recently bought a lightly used 2022 Ford Expedition. During the month of December after having the vehicle parked outside during heavy snow and ice weather events and using the lift gate we heard a loud pop. Very consistent with all other complaints in this thread.

I took the vehicle to Coughlin Ford in Pataskala, OH and they were able to locate the SSM through ford and are going to fix the spoiler under warranty. I hope everyone else gets the same treatment. Good luck.

 

[SyndicateZ]

We recently bought a lightly used 2022 Ford Expedition. During the month of December after having the vehicle parked outside during heavy snow and ice weather events and using the lift gate we heard a loud pop. Very consistent with all other complaints in this thread.

I took the vehicle to Coughlin Ford in Pataskala, OH and they were able to locate the SSM through ford and are going to fix the spoiler under warranty. I hope everyone else gets the same treatment. Good luck.

Are they going to fix the damaged roof too?

 

[markb]

Hello All,

I appreciate the feedback. I have been pursuing this issue with my local Ford dealer. As HazBeen said, your Ford dealer can look up the special service message, but I can tell you they won't look for it until you escalate with the service manager. Now that I am direct contact with the service manager, I sent him pictures of the damage, gave him SSM-53301 number, vehicle mileage and a picture of my door sticker showing the vehicle manufacture date. He has acknowledged the problem and said this will be covered under warranty. At this point, I am scheduled to visit the dealer this week so he can take photographs for a repair estimate with their recommended body shop. I'll keep this group posted as I (hopefully) continue to make progress getting my roof and spoiler fixed.

Regarding the service manager, he said to me as long as he can convince Ford (the manufacturer) to pay for the repair under warranty, I am happy to help you out. The SSM and the photos of the damage appeared to be sufficient. Regarding Ford (the manufacturer), I guess they think enough Expeditions are sold in warm climates that they are better off handling this problem as one-off fixes via the SSM. I think that's a rude move, but I'm sure their accountants think they can ride this out until these cars are off warranty and not their problem anymore.

In the meantime, I haven't been able to drive my Expedition on the highway since MLK weekend since I am afraid my now loose spoiler will blow off at highway speeds. I'm also likely to have the car laid up in the shop for a while until they repair it. The dealer's body shop will replace the entire roof, which is a big job. I still think a general recall to adjust the roof spoiler spacing would have been smarter, but that's too late now for me.

I will also say had I gone to my local body shop for this repair, they would have likely put the liftgate and spoiler back on more or less how they found it. I don't think they would have known of the SSM stating 6.5mm of spacing at the roof, meaning my repair would be another accident waiting to happen. So, if possible, go the dealer route. If you have to pay for it yourself, make sure the body shop creates extra space up top so you can avoid this happening again during the next snowstorm or freezing temps.

 

[SyndicateZ]

Hello All,

I appreciate the feedback. I have been pursuing this issue with my local Ford dealer. As HazBeen said, your Ford dealer can look up the special service message, but I can tell you they won't look for it until you escalate with the service manager. Now that I am direct contact with the service manager, I sent him pictures of the damage, gave him SSM-53301 number, vehicle mileage and a picture of my door sticker showing the vehicle manufacture date. He has acknowledged the problem and said this will be covered under warranty. At this point, I am scheduled to visit the dealer this week so he can take photographs for a repair estimate with their recommended body shop. I'll keep this group posted as I (hopefully) continue to make progress getting my roof and spoiler fixed.

Regarding the service manager, he said to me as long as he can convince Ford (the manufacturer) to pay for the repair under warranty, I am happy to help you out. The SSM and the photos of the damage appeared to be sufficient. Regarding Ford (the manufacturer), I guess they think enough Expeditions are sold in warm climates that they are better off handling this problem as one-off fixes via the SSM. I think that's a rude move, but I'm sure their accountants think they can ride this out until these cars are off warranty and not their problem anymore.

In the meantime, I haven't been able to drive my Expedition on the highway since MLK weekend since I am afraid my now loose spoiler will blow off at highway speeds. I'm also likely to have the car laid up in the shop for a while until they repair it. The dealer's body shop will replace the entire roof, which is a big job. I still think a general recall to adjust the roof spoiler spacing would have been smarter, but that's too late now for me.

I will also say had I gone to my local body shop for this repair, they would have likely put the liftgate and spoiler back on more or less how they found it. I don't think they would have known of the SSM stating 6.5mm of spacing at the roof, meaning my repair would be another accident waiting to happen. So, if possible, go the dealer route. If you have to pay for it yourself, make sure the body shop creates extra space up top so you can avoid this happening again during the next snowstorm or freezing temps.

One big headache! Im sorry

 

[Alev4233]

Are they going to fix the damaged roof too?

Yes they are going to fix the roof as well but not a full roof replacement. Sounds like some body work lipstick type stuff which isn’t ideal but atleast it’s on the roof ‍‍.

As far as ford handling this issue on a case by case basis …. Pretty sad for those with this model year that it will eventually happen to and will be very costly when it does down the road. I guess I’m a lucky one that it happened early enough under warranty. I really hope the repair is done right and it does not become a reoccurring issue.

I called two local dealerships however and only one had a previous complaint of the same nature. I’m going to say it’s safe to assume most of these vehicles are parked in a garage during the winter months only prolonging the inevitable. This thread was EXTREMELY helpful when stating my case.

 

[HazBeen]

Perhaps in response to additional dealership Service inquiries, Ford is reinforcing this year's earlier Special Service Message...