New Ford Explorer Rear Frame Repair Should Help Cut Down On Totaled SUVs

In recent years, much ado has been made about the Ford Explorer and its rear axle mounting bolts, which have a tendency to fracture - oftentimes, during hard acceleration - and potentially cause the driveshaft/half shafts to become disconnected. Ford has issued more than one recall over this matter, though it has still faced lawsuits over the same problem, too. However, it seems as if there's another problem in the rear of the modern-day Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator, which has now been addressed by The Blue Oval, too.

According to Repairer Driven News, that problem pertains to the fact that previously, The Blue Oval didn't offer a sectioning option for the rear frame rails of the Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator. This means that damage to the rear portion of the frame oftentimes resulted in these SUVs simply being totaled out, rather than repaired, given the fact that the entire unit had to be replaced - which was quite expensive and labor intensive.

However, in its most recent edition of On Target magazine, Ford revealed that it is now offering a precise, OEM procedure, enabling them to section the rear frame rail. This new procedure is the direct result of requests from collision repair technicians, and is outlined in a video below showing the process being completed at the Ford Paint and Body Technology Center (PBTC) in Inkster, Michigan.

"A number of Explorers were getting totaled due to the fact that we did not have a sectioning option for the rear rail,” said Gerry Bonanni, Ford PBTC senior engineer. “In doing the complete rail, we’re looking at a very invasive procedure if you’re doing it all the way forward to the torque box area. Particularly, the joints where the torque box attached to the inner rocker, right in front of the wheel, were quite difficult… A lot of technicians voiced their opinions and said, ‘Look, we really need some kind of a sectioning procedure for this vehicle.'”

“Generally speaking, most of the damage on these is usually within the first inch or two of the rear rail,” Bonanni said. “A vehicle takes a tag to the rear, it’s crunched only for a couple of inches. So, the ability to section here is a very strong one, and you’ll hear me say that a couple times in the video.”