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Side curtain airbag recall left Maverick dead

jolkowsk

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My side airbag recall took 3 days as an electrical pin in the headliner got pinched/ popped apart and they needed to take the whole thing apart re-do everything. It looks like there is a GREAT opportunity for training the techs on procedure with this recall and how to replace the parts.
I wanted to thank everyone for the information that has been shared with me. I passed it along to the dealership this morning and got the "we tried that response" They are now looking into a "module", but the person that I talked too was not sure which one.

I did open a CASE last night with Ford after three attempts. The personal talked too was very nice, but I struggled getting her to understand what the problem is. She proceeded to tell me that hybrid and electric vehicles are handled by a special customer service group, but they were unavailable and she would have to pass along the information. I have also sent a private message to the Ford rep that monitors this site, but have yet to receive a response.

I started looking into the Lemon Law statute in my state. Unfortunately, the standard terms of my states Lemon Law are up to one year and 12K miles. My Maverick turned one in February and it just reached 13K miles. I did speak to a friend that is a lawyer and he did indicate that I may still be able to pursue a Lemon Law claim as this was NHTSA mandated safety recall, not a normal break/fix situation.

I really hope someone from Ford is out there listening. Our Maverick has become our "go to vehicle" even though my wife has a brand new Lexus. The flexibility is awesome and it is easy and fun to drive. The thought of not getting it back is concerning and if that becomes reality, this may be my last Ford product. I currently own a 2018 F250 (certified), 2017 Focus (certified) and my 2022 Maverick (bought new). I also own a 2021 Lexus NX 300h and outside of oil changes, it has NEVER been in the shop for either a recall or a repair.

Sorry for the rant, just wanted to share my current thought process for those that will be in a similar situation. Thanks again to everyone sharing the root cause of their issue.
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jolkowsk

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I wanted to thank everyone for the information that has been shared with me. I passed it along to the dealership this morning and got the "we tried that response" They are now looking into a "module", but the person that I talked too was not sure which one.

I did open a CASE last night with Ford after three attempts. The personal talked too was very nice, but I struggled getting her to understand what the problem is. She proceeded to tell me that hybrid and electric vehicles are handled by a special customer service group, but they were unavailable and she would have to pass along the information. I have also sent a private message to the Ford rep that monitors this site, but have yet to receive a response.

I started looking into the Lemon Law statute in my state. Unfortunately, the standard terms of my states Lemon Law are up to one year and 12K miles. My Maverick turned one in February and it just reached 13K miles. I did speak to a friend that is a lawyer and he did indicate that I may still be able to pursue a Lemon Law claim as this was NHTSA mandated safety recall, not a normal break/fix situation.

I really hope someone from Ford is out there listening. Our Maverick has become our "go to vehicle" even though my wife has a brand new Lexus. The flexibility is awesome and it is easy and fun to drive. The thought of not getting it back is concerning and if that becomes reality, this may be my last Ford product. I currently own a 2018 F250 (certified), 2017 Focus (certified) and my 2022 Maverick (bought new). I also own a 2021 Lexus NX 300h and outside of oil changes, it has NEVER been in the shop for either a recall or a repair.

Sorry for the rant, just wanted to share my current thought process for those that will be in a similar situation. Thanks again to everyone sharing the root cause of their issue.
So folks, wanted to provide everyone with a recent update. The dealer called me this afternoon to inform me that they got the vehicle started again. To use their exact words "the wiring in the driver's door sill was a mess". They found several pinched wires and were checking them one by one and repairing them along the way.

So, this begs many questions. How headliner airbag replacements leads to pinched wires in the door sill is a head scratcher. I know the Maverick is supposed to be "economical" but come on Ford, you can't spare a few mm of wire? I also question the quality control during manufacturing. Does Ford not have enough oversight in Mexico where they are built?

I wanted to call out another observation. I private messaged the Ford social media person that monitors this sight to see if he could help. He was initially very responsive, but the end result is that I was pointed back to my dealer. One would "hope" that Ford would want to learn from these incidents so that they can share that knowledge and ultimately make their products better.

For as much as I love my Maverick, the next time around it may be worth looking at some of the yet to be released competitors from Toyota and Ram? I got notification (talk about irony) of yet another recall on my Maverick regarding false brake lights. This would be number six in the number of recalls. I asked my dealer to make sure my Maverick is 100% recall free before he returns it to me (he chuckled).

Kudos to Solmon Ford in Brownsville Pa! These guys are the absolute best and they are one of the main reasons I keep buying Fords.

I will update everyone once I have keys in hand!!!!
 

Scout

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I’m having similar wiring issues, been to dealer 3 times..
Was told yes a pinched wire behind the dash, they need to pull the dash and replace the harness… Very nervous about it all going back together
 

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So folks, wanted to provide everyone with a recent update. The dealer called me this afternoon to inform me that they got the vehicle started again. To use their exact words "the wiring in the driver's door sill was a mess". They found several pinched wires and were checking them one by one and repairing them along the way.

So, this begs many questions. How headliner airbag replacements leads to pinched wires in the door sill is a head scratcher. I know the Maverick is supposed to be "economical" but come on Ford, you can't spare a few mm of wire? I also question the quality control during manufacturing. Does Ford not have enough oversight in Mexico where they are built?

I wanted to call out another observation. I private messaged the Ford social media person that monitors this sight to see if he could help. He was initially very responsive, but the end result is that I was pointed back to my dealer. One would "hope" that Ford would want to learn from these incidents so that they can share that knowledge and ultimately make their products better.

For as much as I love my Maverick, the next time around it may be worth looking at some of the yet to be released competitors from Toyota and Ram? I got notification (talk about irony) of yet another recall on my Maverick regarding false brake lights. This would be number six in the number of recalls. I asked my dealer to make sure my Maverick is 100% recall free before he returns it to me (he chuckled).

Kudos to Solmon Ford in Brownsville Pa! These guys are the absolute best and they are one of the main reasons I keep buying Fords.

I will update everyone once I have keys in hand!!!!
So the "mess of wires" in the door sill was work done during assembly in Mexico ?
 

bgn

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Am I the only one that's a bit sketched out about these airbags not going off at all if I'm in an accident? Or would the truck throw a fault code if it senses something wrong?
 

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jolkowsk

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I just talked to the dealer a few minutes ago and he indicated that my Maverick is running again and had been put back together. They are shaking it down now and say that I should be able to pick it up tomorrow. He did say that a piece of trim got damaged in the process, it is on expedited order but shows as being on back order.

The explanation that I was given (I will know more tomorrow) is the wiring for the airbags goes under the door sill plates. He said that there is zero flex in the wires, so any movement on either end, could cause the wires to either pinch or break. I don't know how many were affected in my case, but he said there was multiple, which resulted in the "mess" comment.

Clearly, Ford has at a minimum, cheapened out on the wiring for the Maverick. Seems like a few more mm and some clips would have prevented all of this.

Interestingly enough, besides multiple attempts, I have not received any feedback or inquiry from Ford after my initial contacts. The dealer informed me that he has a "stack" of paperwork to send to Ford to simply get reimbursed for the repairs. It is a small dealership with only a few mechanics, so I know they put a lot of time into troubleshooting this. The same mechanic has worked on my F250 for years and I know he knows what he is doing.

I would encourage everyone that has yet to get their airbags replaced to share as much information from this forum so that they can be prepared for the unexpected.

I too share concern that the airbags will even work after all of this. One would hope and assume that the ongoing Class Action Lawsuit and NTSB would take all of this under consideration.

I knew that I was taking a risk buying a first year car and I accepted that. I hope in the long term that we won't find that beauty is only skin deep with the Maverick. All of this makes me glad that I was suckered into the extended warranty.

I will post an update tomorrow once I have keys in hand and have had a chance to talk with the mechanic.
 
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Joesann

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We have no choice but to get the extended warranty. After waiting a year to get it, who knows what to happen next. Disappointed Ford retire.
 

jolkowsk

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Everyone, I am happy to announce that my Maverick is once again amongst the living. I picked her up today and so far so good, she drove fine on the 25 mile ride home from the dealer.

So I spent some time with the service advisor and mechanic to get a better understanding of what happened. It is important to note that the supplemental restraint system wiring harness runs directly under the front passenger door sill (see pic). The airbag replacement requires removal of the sill plate so that the side trim can be removed (the panel with the seat belt). With the door sill plate removed it leaves the wires exposed and susceptible to damage and that is exactly what is happening. The mechanics are then required to lean/kneel on the sill (per Ford instruction) to remove the headliner. In the case of my truck, a single wire got pinched and that rendered the vehicle dead.

A couple of other notes that the dealer shared. When the wiring harness is installed at the factory the slack is sloppily taped together with electrical tape. Instead of leaving some slack the wiring is put under unnecessary stress leaving it susceptible to pinching and fraying.

The bottom line, for anyone that has not had their airbags replaced, tell your dealership to not kneel on the door sills. My dealer has passed along all of this information to Ford, so the hope is that the installation instructions will get modified. What is your bet we will see yet another recall for the sloppy wiring?

A big shout out to Solomon Ford in Brownsville PA. Good luck to those next in line!! Feel free to message me with any questions or advice.


Ford Maverick Side curtain airbag recall left Maverick dead Mavis_1


Ford Maverick Side curtain airbag recall left Maverick dead Mavis_2
 
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skyhawk

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Thanks for the update and the info. Maybe it will spare someone a similar adventure
 

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Everyone, I am happy to announce that my Maverick is once again amongst the living. I picked her up today and so far so good, she drove fine on the 25 mile ride home from the dealer.

So I spent some time with the service advisor and mechanic to get a better understanding of what happened. It is important to note that the supplemental restraint system wiring harness runs directly under the front passenger door sill (see pic). The airbag replacement requires removal of the sill plate so that the side trim can be removed (the panel with the seat belt). With the door sill plate removed it leaves the wires exposed and susceptible to damage and that is exactly what is happening. The mechanics are then required to lean/knell on the sill (per Ford instruction to remove the headliner. In the case of my truck, a single wire got pinched and that rendered the vehicle dead.

A couple of other notes that the dealer shared. When the wiring harness is installed at the factory the slack is sloppily taped together with electrical tape. Instead of leaving some slack the wiring is put under unnecessary stress leaving it susceptible to pinching and fraying.

The bottom line, for anyone that has not had their airbags replaced, tell your dealership to not knell on the door sills. My dealer has passed along all of this information to Ford, so the hope is that the installation instructions will get modified. What is your bet we will see yet another recall for the sloppy wiring?

A big shout out to Solomon Ford in Brownsville PA. Good luck to those next in line!! Feel free to message me with any questions or advice.


Mavis_1.jpg


Mavis_2.jpg
Good Info- This whole airbag recall seems to be turning into the Gong show- As of last night I was told that one of the headliner clips was broken and I am being told these clips are on backorder- So we are now down a vehicle and trying to secure a loaner and this is all over a plastic clip ? Anyone know the PN for the headliner "clips" ? I mean can we fire up a 3d printer and help folks out ? Yowsa-
 
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Darnon

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Am I the only one that's a bit sketched out about these airbags not going off at all if I'm in an accident? Or would the truck throw a fault code if it senses something wrong?
The airbag system typically checks and monitors continuity of the airbag circuits, yes.
 
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jolkowsk

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Gotta love this one! Ford customer service just called me exactly four hours after I picked up my truck and asked if they could close my CASE? They also asked me to fill out a survey. How out of touch with their customers are they? No were sorry, no here is a few service points or a free oil change coupon. Can't make this stuff up..

I really hope the Ford person that monitors this forum is taking all this back to management. I don't blame the customer service team, they are just trying to do their job.

Mavis is back (that is what we call her) so that is what matters.
 

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Add my vehicle to this list.

Went in for airbag recall.

I had actually pulled some of the interior out myself prior (due to a paintless dent repair on the roof) - and I carefully pulled each panel out according to the motorcraft instructions. The techs literally only had to pull the upper b pillar off and the visors to drop the headliner down. The truck ran fine when i dropped it off.

Now the shop foreman (nice/smart guy) spent time with me today going over his early diagnosis - that there is a short in the wiring - he was inquiring whether or not I had removed the dash before (which i have not).

Ill make sure to give him this info tomorrow - as he's planning on digging into it deeper.

"If it was working - and now its not - what changed?"

Thank you so much for posting this - I will answer back with my own experience as well.
 
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jolkowsk

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Got my survey from Ford today on my recent service experience. I was very careful when I responded as to not detriment my dealer. There were several questions with my overall satisfaction with Ford and my likelihood to purchase another Ford vehicle. I did respond to those questions critically and indicated that until quality improves and customer service is given a priority, it would be hard to do so.

We are glad to have our truck back and wishing the best of luck to those still waiting on their air bag recall service.
 

jolkowsk

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Got my survey from Ford today on my recent service experience. I was very careful when I responded as to not detriment my dealer. There were several questions with my overall satisfaction with Ford and my likelihood to purchase another Ford vehicle. I did respond to those questions critically and indicated that until quality improves and customer service is given a priority, it would be hard to do so.

We are glad to have our truck back and wishing the best of luck to those still waiting on their air bag recall service.
I wanted to update everyone on an interesting exchange I had with Ford customer service management. After filling out several negative reviews, I received a personal email from a customer service supervisor. She was very engaging and asked me for my candid feedback. I believe I gave a fair assessment of my situation and where I feel Ford is at these days. I shared with her that while Ford has some of the best designs in the automotive world, their quality and customer service fall short. She indicated that the messaging is not going without notice and my feedback would be shared up the chain.

I want to make sure I give credit where credit is due. While it should not take three negative surveys to receive attention, it was a pleasant surprise to receive a direct inquiry.
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