Ford recalls 38,000 Mach-Es for windshields, sunroofs that could fall off

[Harley Lover]

Well, the good news is that the cars don't spontaneously combust like the Bolt. The bad news is that Ford cannot blame this on a supplier (Bronco roof), this goes right to the heart of manufacturing competence:

Ford Motor Co. is recalling 38,714 Mustang Mach-E crossovers in North America and Europe for improperly bonded windshields and sunroofs that could fall off.

All of the vehicles have a faulty windshield, while 27,318 of them also have a faulty sunroof, Ford says. The automaker said it is unaware of any accidents or injuries related to the defect.

The affected Mach-Es were built between Feb. 24 and June 18, according to a Ford spokesman. Dealers will replace and properly attach the windshields and sunroofs.

https://www.autonews.com/regulation-safety/ford-recalls-38000-mach-es-windshields-sunroofs-could-fall?utm_source=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20210924&utm_content=article3-headline

 

[jpd80]

14 hours ago, Harley Lover said:

Well, the good news is that the cars don't spontaneously combust like the Bolt. The bad news is that Ford cannot blame this on a supplier (Bronco roof), this goes right to the heart of manufacturing competence:

Could still be a supplier issue being a seal issue…….let’s not beat up manufacturing before getting all the facts.

[Harley Lover]

6 hours ago, jpd80 said:

Could still be a supplier issue being a seal issue…….let’s not beat up manufacturing before getting all the facts.

 

Did the respective suppliers install those faulty windshields and sunroofs for 4 months before discovering the quality issue?

[sullynd]

The Mach-E launch had been one of the cleaner launches too. Don’t like the idea of the dealer removing and reinstalling my windshield or gooping up my roof.  How likely is it they remove the existing windshield without damaging it somehow, or reinstall it without getting goop somewhere, or stressing it somehow that it breaks down the road. There have been a lot of complaints on forums of the windshields being fragile. I also worry about squeaks/rattles as a result. 

[akirby]

1 hour ago, sullynd said:

The Mach-E launch had been one of the cleaner launches too. Don’t like the idea of the dealer removing and reinstalling my windshield or gooping up my roof.  How likely is it they remove the existing windshield without damaging it somehow, or reinstall it without getting goop somewhere, or stressing it somehow that it breaks down the road. There have been a lot of complaints on forums of the windshields being fragile. I also worry about squeaks/rattles as a result. 

Dealers probably won’t do it they almost always use a glass company who does this every day.

[paintguy]

Windshield and glass retention are dependent on several factors including paint process, surface preparation and bonding sealers. There are many required quality checks for the materials and processes involved. 38,000 vehicles  sounds like a condition or process was non compliant for more than a month. Certain a detailed root cause analysis is underway and revised and tightened monitoring will be done in the future.

 

Just talking from my experience, not necessarily the view of Ford Motor Company.

 

BTW: the 1948 Tucker had as a safety feature, a windshield that would "pop out" in the event of an accident. Thinking has changed and windshield retention is a part of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. These known as FMVSS or "delta" items to autoworkers. 

[ice-capades]

25 minutes ago, paintguy said:

Windshield and glass retention are dependent on several factors including paint process, surface preparation and bonding sealers. There are many required quality checks for the materials and processes involved. 38,000 vehicles sounds like a condition or process was non compliant for more than a month. Certain a detailed root cause analysis is underway and revised and tightened monitoring will be done in the future.

 

With 38,000 vehicles affected, it sounds like it's pretty much all or close to all of the 2021MY Mach-E units produced to date. Windshield and glass retention aren't exactly high-tech issues making one wonder why it's taken so long to discover this issue. As such, it certainly seems like another quality control issue and another tarnished vehicle introduction. When is Ford going to get quality issues under control and address the related warranty costs?   

 

[sullynd]

4 hours ago, akirby said:

Dealers probably won’t do it they almost always use a glass company who does this every day.

Still a significant “fix” on an otherwise unmolested car.  And if that fix does not go well I’m not looking forward to jumping through hoops to get it fixed.  I can dump it at three years if I’m not happy with it, but did options just as a hedge. 

[akirby]

8 minutes ago, sullynd said:

Still a significant “fix” on an otherwise unmolested car.  And if that fix does not go well I’m not looking forward to jumping through hoops to get it fixed.  I can dump it at three years if I’m not happy with it, but did options just as a hedge. 

I understand.  Just pointing out that thousands of windshields get replaced every day, some in parking lots or driveways, with no issues.

[sullynd]

10 minutes ago, akirby said:

I understand.  Just pointing out that thousands of windshields get replaced every day, some in parking lots or driveways, with no issues.

Agreed.  How many use the same windshield?

[lufafo]

reminds me of what happened last spring with the f150

 https://fordauthority.com/2021/02/2020-2021-ford-f-series-recalled-over-inadequate-windshield-adhesion/

[FordBuyer]

1 hour ago, ice-capades said:

 

With 38,000 vehicles affected, it sounds like it's pretty much all or close to all of the 2021MY Mach-E units produced to date. Windshield and glass retention aren't exactly high-tech issues making one wonder why it's taken so long to discover this issue. As such, it certainly seems like another quality control issue and another tarnished vehicle introduction. When is Ford going to get quality issues under control and address the related warranty costs?   

 

 

Shit happens. The Koreans supposedly have to replace whole engines on certain vehicles. And another nameless auto company just reported faulty body welds. So what else is new? Building vehicles with over 13,000 individual parts is very difficult process. 

[paintguy]

1 hour ago, ice-capades said:

 

With 38,000 vehicles affected, it sounds like it's pretty much all or close to all of the 2021MY Mach-E units produced to date. Windshield and glass retention aren't exactly high-tech issues making one wonder why it's taken so long to discover this issue. As such, it certainly seems like another quality control issue and another tarnished vehicle introduction. When is Ford going to get quality issues under control and address the related warranty costs?   

 

I would say complex, but well understood. I do not know what went wrong, and I assume those in the know are not talking. Preproduction prototypes should pick up any systemic issues. Monitoring of conditions is on an ongoing basis. 

[jpd80]

6 hours ago, Harley Lover said:

 

Did the respective suppliers install those faulty windshields and sunroofs for 4 months before discovering the quality issue?

The seals could be faulty as supplied, workers would not necessarily pick up the fault on the production line.

 

but you’re right, how does Ford check that components are installed correctly and are sealing properly?

 

 Taking  four months to discover a problem is very disappointing 

Edited September 26, 2021 by jpd80

[paintguy]

34 minutes ago, jpd80 said:

The seals could be faulty as supplied, workers would not necessarily pick up the fault on the production line.

 

but you’re right, how does Ford check that components are installed correctly and are sealing properly?

 

 Taking  four months to discover a problem is very disappointing 

Not familiar with the Mach E facility, but I highly doubt a supplier is installing windshield and glass roof. "Seals" used are normally a robotically applied liquid sealant. Inspection of applied sealant done on a "frequent" basis. Air leakage and water leakage tests are also done. 

[coupe3w]

1 hour ago, paintguy said:

I would say complex, but well understood. I do not know what went wrong, and I assume those in the know are not talking. Preproduction prototypes should pick up any systemic issues. Monitoring of conditions is on an ongoing basis. 

They had this or a similar problem on the F-150 and Super Duty pick up trucks. So I guess they didn't learn from that. Ford really does have quality issues.

https://www.consumerreports.org/car-recalls-defects/ford-recalls-f-150-and-super-duty-trucks-because-windshield-can-pop-out-a7932880450/

[rmc523]

On 9/26/2021 at 4:10 PM, akirby said:

I understand.  Just pointing out that thousands of windshields get replaced every day, some in parking lots or driveways, with no issues.

 

I had mine replaced a couple weeks ago because of a chip - very interesting to watch the process.

[akirby]

48 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

 

I had mine replaced a couple weeks ago because of a chip - very interesting to watch the process.

In the middle of a chip shortage.  Go figure…. ???

[FordBuyer]

17 hours ago, rmc523 said:

 

I had mine replaced a couple weeks ago because of a chip - very interesting to watch the process.

 

If the stone chip is less than the size of a quarter, then they can fill in the chip and blend it in. My last 2 stone chips were fixed this way. I prefer that fix if possible.

[FordBuyer]

On 9/26/2021 at 5:49 PM, coupe3w said:

They had this or a similar problem on the F-150 and Super Duty pick up trucks. So I guess they didn't learn from that. Ford really does have quality issues.

https://www.consumerreports.org/car-recalls-defects/ford-recalls-f-150-and-super-duty-trucks-because-windshield-can-pop-out-a7932880450/

 

So tell me, who doesn't have quality issues? Rav 4 has had quality issues with its fuel tank and suspension. Now Hyundai has fire problem with its Tuscon hybrid. The list goes on and on. Recalls are never ending. My last 2 Fords covering 18 years have had 2 recalls. My wife's RAV had over 10 recalls in 6 years. Kind of tired hearing about Ford's recalls as if theirs is an outlier of some sort.

[coupe3w]

13 minutes ago, FordBuyer said:

 

So tell me, who doesn't have quality issues? Rav 4 has had quality issues with its fuel tank and suspension. Now Hyundai has fire problem with its Tuscon hybrid. The list goes on and on. Recalls are never ending. My last 2 Fords covering 18 years have had 2 recalls. My wife's RAV had over 10 recalls in 6 years. Kind of tired hearing about Ford's recalls as if theirs is an outlier of some sort.

True, but having the same or similar issues with windshields on the F-150 and now the Mach-E is telling me that they don't have a handle on the problem and there is no excuse for that. Someone should be fired.

[FordBuyer]

41 minutes ago, coupe3w said:

True, but having the same or similar issues with windshields on the F-150 and now the Mach-E is telling me that they don't have a handle on the problem and there is no excuse for that. Someone should be fired.

 

How many times has Ford had door latch problems? Pretty common part. Hard to say why these problems keep cropping up. I'm sure it will take time to figure if it's a design problem, supplier problem, engineering problem, durability problem, assembly problem, and so on. 

 

 

 

[rmc523]

4 hours ago, FordBuyer said:

 

If the stone chip is less than the size of a quarter, then they can fill in the chip and blend it in. My last 2 stone chips were fixed this way. I prefer that fix if possible.

 

This one took a big chunk out when it it hit and had cracking starting, as well as being low on the windshield - still not sure what it was that did it.

[SoonerLS]

On 9/26/2021 at 4:48 PM, paintguy said:

Not familiar with the Mach E facility, but I highly doubt a supplier is installing windshield and glass roof. "Seals" used are normally a robotically applied liquid sealant. Inspection of applied sealant done on a "frequent" basis. Air leakage and water leakage tests are also done. 

So, that sounds like the problem could be a misformulated sealant, which would be both a supplier issue and something that wouldn't necessarily be detectable during assembly. It could pass the initial QC processes, but begin degrading once exposed to the elements. 

[coupe3w]

Ford should use the same supplier that GM uses. They haven't had any recalls on windshields that I could find. Just a thought.