Not to rain on your parade, but as avid fans of the mustang and consumers, we must really consider the lack of build quality and quality control as it relates to the mustang or any Ford vehicle for the sake of argument. Now, I have owned a mustang since I can remember. Today, I was informed the reason my mustang (01 not 05) has been leaking profusely is due to a defect in the metal seams that meet (under the quarter passenger side molding/panel, by rear corner window). I do not know how I should pursue this matter. I believe that this problem should have never occurred on a newer car that has never been in an accident. I am terribly dissatisfied and angry with Ford at this point due to all of the problems that I have had with my car. I have been looking forward to buying an SE S197, but after all of this, I am having second thoughts about buying another FORD. Sure, they look great and perform well, but the problems and poor build quality anger me. Do you have any suggestions in terms of Ford being responsible for a seam defect (could this be a design flaw). I am going to call cust. service, but I already know how worthless that is. THis is to remind you that although your car is new and nice, just like mine was, you may encounter similar problems since, after all, it is a FORD. I still love my car, but my patience is growing thin at this point.

 

More likely a misssed weld than a design defect. I would find out if this is the issue and if so have somebody hit it with a mig.

It would be nice if things like this did not happen, but having worked in a factory filled with Pana-robo welders I can tell you that welds getting missed on a car is a fact of life. It could just as easily happen to lexus as a Mustang.

ideally, if it is a defect Ford should fix it. but, if your warranty is up then it's up to their good nature.

 

Why is this in the 05 section?

Comparing the sn95 to an s197 has no bearing whatsoever, they don't share the any design, it was designed by different technologies, different engineers, and built in different plants with different tooling. I have owned 3 sn95s and beat the tar out of them with no problems whatsoever. I would think its more of a fluke. It may of also been repaired improperly at some point if it was wrecked. Being out of warranty(unless you have an extended one that covers it), most likley a good body shop would be able to fix it.

 

Is this an isolated incident?
Do all '01's have this problem?
If it is one of kind, take it to the dealer and see what they will do.
I'm sure they will listen if you start talking '05.

 

I hate to hear about missed welds, but as other's have suggested contacting Ford and asking for assistance would be a good idea. If not, maybe a competent body shop could fix the problem. I too have had problems in this area. My 96 TA had a structural creek in the roof area, that was annoying. My 99 GT had to have the torque box welded within 1 week of ownership due to a bad squeek. The Sn95 car was based on old technology, and built in an old facility. The Sn197, is a totally modern design, and built with state of the art automation, and in a new facility. I would think the chances of the same types of problems appearing in a 2005 would be quite a bit lower.

 

Having seen the precision measuring equipment and the robotics installed in the Mustang body shop at AAI, I would find it less likely that serious body integrity issues would occur. It is not to say they could never occur - equipment breaks down, manual procedures are sometimes not executed as expected.

Members of the Mach 1 Registry noted problems with welds in some 2003 Mach 1s a few months into the run. While we never conclusively heard the reason, it was repaired under warranty with additional welds by a Ford contractor.

I toured Dearborn Assembly just before they closed last year. When comparing it to AAI, the difference in the condition of the body construction equipment was obvious - old vs. new.

 

Not a problem for me, I don't :drive: them when the roads are wet.