BenKohnen Posted June 15 Share Posted June 15 One aluminum panel on the whole truck, and it's doing the "Explorer hood" thing. 🙃 As part of my pretty frequent checking of the front end paint - hose off the bugs, check for chips, touch up chips - I came across some bubbling. Naturally, my first reaction was to absolutely freak out. I've seen tons of Explorers, and a few Edges, doing this, but not so much on Mavericks. Prowling some of the Facebook groups, I'm seeing posts just within the last 6 months, and many of them are 2024 units.  The good news is the Ford warranty that addresses this: "COVERAGE TYPE:Corrosion Perforation COVERAGE DESCRIPTION:5 years / Unlimited miles ADDITIONAL INFO: No perforation req.on Aluminum Panels" That last line is the important part in this case. It used to be that there had to be actual perforation. That's a fairly recent change.  So, if you get paint bubbling on your Maverick hood, take it in and get it taken care of! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherminator98 Posted June 21 Share Posted June 21 Isn't this caused by contamination of the Aluminum with steel or something? I know this was a thing on Mustangs-I had an accident with mine when it was 2 years old and don't recall it being an issue after having it for almost 12 years.  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenKohnen Posted June 22 Author Share Posted June 22 On 6/21/2026 at 7:45 AM, Sherminator98 said: Isn't this caused by contamination of the Aluminum with steel or something? I know this was a thing on Mustangs-I had an accident with mine when it was 2 years old and don't recall it being an issue after having it for almost 12 years.   That's the claim. I've started to suspect it's in how the hoods, being the only aluminum panel on the vehicles, are being prepped for paint. I should really talk to a body shop guy about that. It's not an aluminum issue, or we'd see it on the F-150 and Super Duty. If aluminum has a different need as far as primer goes, but they run the same stuff on all the panels, that would sure cause an issue. It's super weird that it seems to happen in the same places on all these different models, and across so many years. Like really, guys, figure it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted June 22 Share Posted June 22 Causes of Aluminum Corrosion Iron Contamination: Microscopic iron particles can become embedded in the aluminum panel prior to painting. Over time, these particles cause the aluminum to corrode beneath the paint, leading to bubbling. [1, 2] Galvanic Corrosion: When exposed aluminum makes contact with steel parts (such as steel nuts, bolts, or an inner steel frame) moisture can act as a bridge, accelerating the corrosion process. [1, 2, 3] Paint Compromise: Stone chips and scratches that breach the factory paint layer expose the raw aluminum to the elements, allowing white aluminum oxide (corrosion) to spread underneath the paint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenKohnen Posted June 23 Author Share Posted June 23 Interesting. Of those, actual galvanic corrosion seems least likely unless there's a tiny steel strip at the very tip of the hoods. Which I'm going to go check with a magnet right meow. Â Aaand, I'm disappointed, I was really hoping for a steel strip in the leading edge. Â Magnet didn't catch on anything on the front lip at all. Â Back to iron and/or paint contamination. Little micro-particles makes sense, in a factory setting, in THESE factories, it makes total sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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