This problem may be covered under warranty. Ask your Lincoln dealer.
7.0
pretty badTypical Repair Cost:
no data
Average Mileage:
29,438 miles
Total Complaints:
14 complaints
Most common solutions:
- not sure (8 reports)
- replace panel / fill with epoxy (6 reports)
body / paint problem
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2006Mar 06
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 10,000 miles
Again, a stress fracture. Same Spot. No real fix. Spoke to Lincoln corporate.
2007Jul 02
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 14,000 miles
Again #5 for same issue and so sick of no car and rental fee. No real fix
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
2007Feb 05
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 12,000 miles
4th time and cost me for rental again and 5 days no car!
2009Jul 06
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 24,000 miles
This is such a freakin' pain in the ass. They expect you to accept this as just a small problem. Well 6 times is not a problem it is a manufacture defect.
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2008Aug 04
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 18,000 miles
Lincoln says this is not a recall. Then what is???
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
2011Apr 07
Aviator LX V8
- Automatic transmission
- 54,000 miles
This has been repaired under warranty one time in 2009 but when taking back to the dealer they would not own up to responsibility.
2010Jun 08
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 30,000 miles
Rear window/door panel on my 2004 Lincold Avaitor has a stress crack in it that eminates int he narrow protion of the panel at the Lincoln emblem.
2011Feb 02
Aviator
- Automatic transmission
- 34,000 miles
click to see larger images
Garaged kept for years. 36k miles and tranny grinding and banging into both foward and reverse. My 2005 Caravans ride puts this expensive clunker to shame. Just recently due to the snow storms we have had here in the Northeast I left it out to place my snow thrower in the garage on standby. After all was thawed out and snow cleared I noticed this lovely gift that Ford engineered. At first it looked like a thick black string. No such luck! Body shop wants $850 to repair. Ford is obviously aware of this problem and not even the courtesy of acknowledgement or compensation.
So long Ford. Thanks for making the phrase "Buy American" questionable.
2010Dec 02
Aviator V6
- Automatic transmission
- 21,000 miles
I have 21,000 plus miles on my 2004 Lincoln Aviator. Recently noticed a crack on the liftgate. It seems to have happened when the weather got colder. I have a picture but cannot seem to download on this website. This is an obvious defect in the design since many other Aviator owners are experiencing the same problem. There should be a recall and free repair.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
2009Jul 15
Aviator V6
- Automatic transmission
- 35,000 miles
Et tu, Brutus. Yes, I have been scarred like many Aviator and Explorer Drivers out there. I have seen at least 10-15 similar breaks in the panel beneath the rear window. This is a defect in design and engineering....one that Ford should repair. Has anyone been successful in getting them to do so?
2009Nov 24
Aviator 4.6L V8
- Automatic transmission
- 50,126 miles
Everyone else in the FMC family seems to be experiencing similar failures to the liftgate applique, as now I count myself a member of this distinguished group. I had heard other horror stories from others about problems with the transmissions and stuff. For the most part I have been reasonably happy with my Aviator. Maybe it has been that I was lulled to sleep by the thought that I spent so much moola on a car and that it should perform flawlessly for a good amount of time. Ok, so I am an idiot believing the impossible from a car company. I did it in good faith.
On to the cracked liftgate applique. I noticed the crack in November, to the left of the emblem. The emblem on that side has never seemed to look right, as if it was lifted or something away from the base. After going out to the Aviator to retrieve some bags after returning from our Marina, I noticed a small crack next to the left side of the emblem. Shocked and horrified, I could smell the blood in the water of the dealership getting ready to eat me alive. The car being just out of warranty of course.
Now it is a full blown crack and separated quite a bit. Ok, I suppose I will go get the super glue and glue it back together and hope for the best. I noticed the same kind of separation on the center hubs of the wheels along with a growing oxidation on the aluminum beneath that makes it look like it was scraped across the floor.
Added to that, is the back up parking assist that allowed me to back into a wall in a parking garage at Myrtle Beach last summer. Of course there is this loud grinding sound that one hears when shifting into reverse occasionally or even when cranking the car. Maybe it was the headlights going dim everytime you step on the brakes. Not sure what that is all about. Maybe you don't need to see as good while you are slowing down.
I did notice an improved ride when the Aviator was loaded down to the hilt while traveling. It did not feel like I was driving an old ARMY deuce and a half as it usually does. I bought it to commute back and forth between home and the marina on the weekends. I wish now that I had purchased the suburban instead. What a difference in rides there is. For a lincoln product, (alias) Explorer, it rides like a brick outhouse.
One would think that Ford would at least make the part easily available. Why would I spend $800.00 to repair this when it will likely happen again. Replacing the part will not solve the root cause, which in my unlearned opinion is due to faulty design in materials. They could have designed a thin metal skin for that applique that would have been just as inexpensive to produce as the all mixed plastic one now in place. I read someone trying a carbon fiber underlayment to hold the thing together as it is much stronger than the cheap plastic they now use.
Clearly non automotive laymen have better ideas than Ford. I know it is about money and how they can make it and help use relieve ourselves of it in their favor. Otherwise know as profits and shareholder value. I know this; I will not buy another Ford product.
I loved my old towncar. It was a great automobile. I got the Aviator to replace that. What a dumb move that was. After 267,000 miles, it is still running. If the Aviator makes it to 100,000 miles, I will be amazed.
We bought a Nissan Maxima a year later, instead of a Towncar which was what we wanted to buy. After test driving a new one, there was a marked difference between my old one and what they were trying to pass off as a towncar in the new offering. The Maxima now has almost 100,000 miles and hardly anything of note has gone wrong. It needed a new thermostat and had a loose door locking pin, both easy fixes.
I do like the Aviator paint color.even though the gray finish on the leather seats seems to peel off quite easily. The Aviator had the potential of being a great automobile, but instead it finds itself on the mediocre heap as well. Selling it would cause me to lose too much money as it is hardly worth what I have in it. I'll just drive it into the ground and wait until the wheels fall off, which according to some complaints, could very well happen.
2009Jun 11
Aviator 4.6L
- Automatic transmission
- 50,000 miles
guess what...... my liftgate under window is cracked... I see ALL aviator and explorer owners have this problem. I also own a 2002 explorer and im sure its a matter of time. I was a dodge guy til I had about 4 transmissions replaced in 4 different chrysler products. I have now switched to ford. Maybe my next car needs to be a Toyota or maybe a Honda. Its doesn't matter what you buy or how much you spend. You can spend $5,000 or $50,000. They are all JUNK. drive the junk in the ground and go give some more of your hard earned money away. I hope all the dealers go out of business. They have been STEALING the hard working Americans money for YEARS no we should all feel bad for them??? :( YA RIGHT I guess they should have saved some of the money they SToled from me. LOSERS
2008Dec 01
Aviator V6
- Automatic transmission
- 40,000 miles
I have the same problem as everyone else. My Lincoln Aviator (Ford Explorer) has developed a stress fracture on the lift gate below the glass. I called Ford and they will not accept respon. Therefore, anyone up for a class action lawsuit? I also see I will most likely have transmission problems in the future. No wonder the Big 3 need a bailout. They put cars on the road and in the hands of customers that are known to have future defects!
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
2008Sep 01
Aviator V8
I AM PISSED OFF ALSO, PAID ABOUT 48000 DOLLARS & INTEREST
Ben M.
Bayonne, N.J, USA
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