Sunroof track issues
 

Good day folks,

Wanted to ask a question regarding the roof in my 2011 Ex. I was opening it the other day and heard a lot of cracking sounds, and it eventually opened but would not close. Eventually through some assistance from me, I was able to get it closed. Took is over to Ford, and of course, they said my track was broken and I would need to replace the entire unit to the tune of $2,500.

So now I am looking to my options. I have found a sunroof repair guy who will do the job for $300.

My conundrum comes from the parts. He recommends getting a used unite (or regulator he called it) to replace the broken one. However, I see online there is a repair kit for around $120, which is for repairing the track. Ford does not sell the track parts separate from the assembly (which is $1200). Wondering if you all may have any words of wisdom on this. I am a little leary of the unknown of getting a used part on what my research shows to be not an "uncommon" issue. So I would prefer new.

Thanks

Had th3e same issue Fri night. After coaxing it it closed on it's on. Now researching for fix. One little piece of black plastic did fall into my wife's lap.

I just finished fixing mine. Its a bear to say the least. (I'm not the most patient person.) I have a 2011 F350 CC. The headliner has to come down. What it amounts to is replacing the track system. Its 3 parts per side. Mine were broken into a half dozen pieces per side. This is the kit I used to fix mine. Ford F150 F250 F350 Sunroof Repair Kit

This is the video I used as a reference.

The F150 and F250/350 are similar but there are some differences. In the video you had to remove a brace from the back of the sunroof mount. That is not applicable in the 250/350 Crew Cab. The passenger side C pillar seat belt shoulder attachment point has to come out. As well as the trim panel. There is a connector behind it the needs to be disconnected. Lay both driver and passenger seats as flat as possible. The sunroof will rotate back down towards your back seat, (I had to fold up my back seat.) The rear brace mount screw holes are still there, just not used. Once you get it to a vertical position, you have to shimmy it out your back door.

DO NOT just yank the visor connector out to gain access to disconnect it. Its glued to the head liner. Once you get the A pillar trim panel off, the visor screws removed and the weather stripping out of the way, pull the headliner down a bit so you can access the connector. Mine were covered in a foam pad glued to everything.

Also, in the crew cab versions, you do not need to remove the rear light above the back see. Its attached to the headliner. Just disconnect the wiring and save a small headache trying to reinstall it.

These headliners flex an amazing amount. A few times I thought I pushed mine a bit too far. But after I got it back up, and secured in place, it looked good. Just like it used to. Just take your time and be more methodical than I was.

Don't buy a used part. Just get the kit from Sunroof doc. Best 120 bucks I've spent on that truck in a while. It has everything you need to fix the track system. Down to the grease and applicator. The instructions are a little lacking in my opinion. I'm a visual guy. I have to see it. Reference the video. Take your time. I had to get my wife to help me get my sunroof down and out of the truck. Its an awkward piece.

Sunroof Track Defective on F150s - Water Leak Affects Airbag & Safety
 

It's not a rare occurrence... Ford has had this issue w/ F150s for over 10 years. Mine cracked from changing temps and Germain Ford and Mathews Ford in Central Ohio both knew of the issue and both quoted me $1,100 - 1,200 for parts (new track) and 4-6 hours of labor. It's a $1,900 + fix at a Ford dealership at a minimum. 1 in 6 F150 trucks have this issue. That is A LOT for the most sold automobile in the US. Amazing that Ford hasn't stepped up, OR that there isn't a class action lawsuit here. The water leaking on the passenger side actually drains down into the dash airbag. It will eventually ruin the airbag. It will take a death or two for Ford to step up.

Here's the pièce de ré·sis·tance... I take my Ford 2012 F150 to Germain Ford w/ the sunroof leaking issue (a common Ford defect of the cracked sunroof track) that leads to LEAKING into the truck's dash airbags.... I get my $2,000 quote for the replacement parts and labor. And they bring my truck around fresh out of the car wash. Oy vey! How about putting more water into my dash airbags so they fail in an accident?!

Class Action Lawsuit - Ford Sunroofs
 

Speaking to a number of dealers, Ford has engineered defective sunroofs for a number of years. Not only do the tracks break, but sometimes the roof explodes from the motors pulling against the defective track. Sign up to get class action lawsuit updates on this site.

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FORD SHATTERING SUNROOF CLASS ACTION CLAIMS SHAVED

By Christina Davis
January 19, 2018
4
FOLLOW ARTICLE


https://s11284.pcdn.co/wp-content/up...ar-sunroof.jpgA federal judge trimmed some claims in a class action lawsuit alleging sunroofs in certain Ford vehicles are defective and can shatter unexpectedly.

Lead plaintiff, Jessica Beaty, alleged in her class action lawsuit that the sunroof in her Ford Escape shattered suddenly.

The plaintiff alleged that a manufacturing defect in the panoramic sunroofs of various Ford models are susceptible to sudden shattering.

The Ford class action lawsuit pointed out that if a sunroof shatters at high speed, it could distract the driver, as well as rain glass on passengers, presenting a very dangerous situation.

According to the Ford class action lawsuit, more than a dozen models of Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles with panoramic sunroofs are susceptible to shattering because of the manufacturing defect. The plaintiff pointed out numerous consumer complaints that have been submitted to Ford over the allegedly defective sunroofs.

Ford asked U.S. District Court Judge Ronald B. Leighton to dismiss the case for the other models because they argued the plaintiff only owned a Ford Escape; however, the judge disagreed finding that the plaintiff had established that the other vehicles potentially had the same defect.

“Beaty can and has sufficiently pled that the sunroof defects are similar across the lines, vehicles, and model years, and that the manufacturing or design defect is the same regardless of the manufacturer,” stated the judge in his order.

The judge did trim class action claims that Ford breached its warranty to consumers by refusing to fix the defect. The Ford class action lawsuit alleged that Ford only offered similarly defective sunroofs to replace the shattered ones. Ford pointed out, however, that the plaintiff’s Ford Escape was outside of the warranty period when she tried to get her sunroof fixed.

“If the plaintiff had made a claim during the express warranty period (or if the complaint can be amended to assert such a claim on behalf a class of such plaintiffs) the court would […] hold that the claim can survive a motion to dismiss,” noted the judge’s order. “In the absence of such an allegation, Beaty has not plausibly [pled] that Ford’s express warranty is unconscionable and the motion to dismiss the express warranty claim is granted.”

Ford also dodged class action claims that it breached implied warranties to consumers. The judge noted that the plaintiff’s claims were based on a relationship she had with her car dealer, not the can manufacturer.

The plaintiff was given a chance to amend the Ford class action lawsuit to fix the problems with the breach of warranty claims.

Beaty is represented by Beth E. Terrell, Amanda M. Steiner and Brittany A. Madderra of Terrell Marshall Law Group PLLC, Gregory F. Coleman, Mark E. Silvey, Adam A. Edwards and Lisa A. White of Greg Coleman Law PC and Paul J. Hanly Jr. and Mitchell M. Breit of Simmons Hanly Conroy LLC.

The Ford Shattering Sunroof Class Action Lawsuit is Beaty, et al. v. Ford Motor Co., Case No. 3:17-*cv-*05201, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

I just did this repair this weekend. It took me 5 hours to do including a little vacuum/detail job to clean up all of the mess I made in it. I got the Sunroof Doctor part for $120 shipped. I followed the video above for the sunroof part. You kinda have to just figure it out to take the headliner down out of the Expedition. Some random thoughts for the Expy headliner that I just did.
- you'll need a 6mm socket for the Oh **** handles on the A-pillar. In a pinch a 7/32" works. (ask me how I know)
- Torx T20 for the visor screws
- Torx T50 for the seatbelt bolts. In my case I only dropped the rear seatbelt pulleys. The front ones pull through the slot that the seat belt pulley rides in.
- Plastic Interior trim removal tools are nice but not absolutely necessary
- 8 and 10mm sockets for the B- and C-pillar trims (the Right Rear C-pillar trim is the only one that needed at 10mm...odd.
- you don't have to pull the headliner entirely out of the truck, just drop it enough to gain access to the 8 or 9 bolts that hold in the sunroof.
- Somehow I forgot what size the sunroof bolts they are...maybe 12 or 13 mm? easy to figure out once you get in there. They do have blue loctite on them if you're super particular. I wasn't. Sorry not sorry.
- You will need a pair or two of hands to get the sunroof out of the truck. I had some helpers help me slide the sunroof out the back over the top of the dropped headliner. Awkward but not too tough. Use them again to get it back in and held in place till you can get 3-4 bolts started.
- the video is really nice for the actual repair. Two things I'll point out from the vid:
- he mentions using a 5/16" to drill out the rivets. I think he misspoke as it takes a 3/16"
- he mentions how you need to pound flat the locking tabs in the track that appear to keep the sunroof from sliding out the back side of the track. You have to do this to get the plasticy bits out of there. Then he mentions how you have to beat them back up into place. Well, my truck has an aluminum plate mounted to the back side of the track that I think is there for the DVD player. It is riveted in with 6 or 9 rivets - not pop rivets. That plate blocks access to the back side of the tabs so I simply drilled it out with a 1/2" drill bit. It got me close enough to pound those tabs back up so they can do their thing. I'm not 100% sure that the tabs are necessary, but I decided that I was not going to spend 2.5 hours getting the sunroof and headliner back in only to have to take it all back apart when the sunroof slid out the back end of the track.
- everything should go back together about as easily as it came apart. Just make sure you get all the connectors connected. I only missed getting one fully reconnected - for me it was the driver's side sun visor. Quick 3 minute fix and then 13 minutes to try unsuccessfully to locate one of the 4 T-20 screws that hold the visor that I dropped.
- in the rear cargo area there are two plastic T-caps that friction fit into holes in the roof structure. I pretty much destroyed them getting them out as is their design I think. I just happened to be at Lowe's the next day looking for some other screws in their specialty fastener section and they did have two such plugs in their "automotive fasteners" drawer. Your luck my vary.

All in all it is not a hard, or particularly tough job; just time consuming. Be methodical working front to back getting the headliner out. Watch the video in full before doing the repair, then follow along with the video to make sure you have the parts oriented right. Then reinstall back to front. Pretty straight forward.