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Ford has issued a recall on 1.9 million Ford Explorer SUVs due to an unsecured trim piece. Find out more here!
Ford’s First Big Recall of 2024
Ford has seen some quality issues in recent years, and this unfortunately continues into 2024. This time however, the resulting recall concerns other drivers’ safety rather than that of the Ford vehicle owners. 1.9 million Ford Explorers from 2011 to 2019 model years are being issued a recall. Exterior trim pieces located on the A-pillars near the front windshield aren’t properly secured and can become detached while driving. Should this trim piece involuntarily detach while driving, it could create a hazard in the roadway for other drivers that can result in damage or heighten the risk of an accident.
This production issue on the Ford Explorer is the result of applique trim clips not being properly engaged during the assembly process or after a repair. Should these trim clips not engage, the A-pillar trim on either side of the front windshield is no longer secured and can be involuntarily removed from the vehicle when air catches under the trim pieces. This issue had originally been known about as far back as 2018 with Ford investigating the issue themselves in 2021, but it was considered a low-risk problem and remained virtually unaddressed. The NHTSA performed their own investigation early last year and continued to keep in contact with Ford’s team concerning the potential causes that created this issue until recommending that they proactively inspect and replace the affected Ford Explorer models.
How Are These Ford Explorers Being Fixed?
Ford has stated that they estimate as low as 5% of the 1.9 million Ford Explorers are affected. They’re encouraging owners to contact their local Ford dealerships to inspect the affected trim pieces as replacement parts become available to correct the issue. Letters concerning the recall event are expected to be mailed to affected owners beginning as early as March 13th. There are currently no known reports of accidents or injuries resulting from this defect, but owners may notice loose A-pillar trim with visible gaps as well as added vibration noise while driving.
