It won't happen to us. No need to.

 

I was thinking about doing it just for the heck of it. I think it would look kinda cool with my P-51 theme. The hood vents being silver still, would bother me though.

 

Wont help. The corrosion always starts under the crimp. I still say the whole problem is failing to deburr the top skin stamping- if youve ever sheared a piece of metal, the bottom side always gets a razor edge burr from the shearing action... Fold that burred piece tight against a smooth flat piece, what do you get? The sharp edge will lightly cut into the flat piece, and the flat piece in return flattens the razor edge by folding it one way or the other...either out of the junction, or fold under the edge...

You cant get paint in there. Any ecoat done prior to assembly crimp has been compromised. No sealant is applied to prevent moisture access to the edge.

The hood is aluminum, aluminum grows a lot more than steel with temperature swings... the bottom is corrugated shaped compared to the smooth flat top panel, hoods get hot... The flat top cant expand into curved areas like the bottom can, it has to expand only outward... If it moves even .001" the paint film is broken. Exposed to moisture(even just humidity in the air) aluminum corrodes far faster than steel. It will corrode thru with moisture/salt exposure just like steel, look at a old semi trailer or box truck... Only difference from steel is aluminum oxidation turns white instead of red, both are chemical processes of pure metals becoming metal oxides.

Once that paint film has ANY breaks, it begins to oxidize, and it starts right at/ right under that sharp crimped top panel folded edge...cannot be stopped once it starts.

Ford owned mazda, the miata was all aluminum, a guy at work has a miata DD from the late 90s with over 200k on it, looked at his hood, its still mint. Why? My guess is one or two possibilities:

1) top panel was deburred prior to ecoat so folding against underside didnt cut the ecoat or fold the burr.
2) a tape or sealer of some type was put over the ecoated bottom panel before crimp to cushion the joint and allow thermal shifting a few thou without scuffing.

Whatever, Ford KNEW how to assemble an aluminum panel 20 yrs ago, but conveniently forgot 10 yrs ago and have been ignoring customers problems ever since.

This aint rocket science, its saving them a few pennies on the line at our expense, and they deserve every customer they lose over ignoring this so long.

And houtex- remember my 09 has never ever hit a bump, and was only exposed to water at two washings the last 6 yrs. only 'abuse' its had has been from engine heat when warming it up every couple weeks... I dont drop the hood even, so its never been slammed either, sits on the safety catch so i can hook/ unhook battery. It failed right at the bubbled spots that were there 6 yrs ago when it was flat bedded home from michigan. Had 3.4 miles then, has 4.9 miles now, just from moving around to keep things lubed up the last 6 years... Never ever been on the road. Its 100% fords f'd up process that ruined this hood before they even painted it. Had they just caulked the edge before paint, moisture would have never got in, it would still look good as a 15 yr old hyundai... But sealing that edge would probably cost ford as much as a buck a hood... Screw Ford.

 

I was told by the body shop who replaced my hood, it is due to poor preparation before painting. I also heard that virgin aluminum does not corrode but is very expensive. Therefore most manufacturers use recycled aluminum which requires special preparation before painting.

 

Tim, good point on the expansion properties. That's just another piece of the puzzle. Gravity and poor adhesion will take over that way too.

I'll add that to the diatribe I occasionally spit out on this problem.

 

I went to a local car show yesterday, 12 Mustangs there with aluminum hoods:

10 had bubbling paint. 3 of those had already been "fixed" before by Ford. 1 had been "fixed" twice before. 2 of them had warranty and will be contacting Ford shortly.

1 had an after market hood since his original hood had issue. Never contacted Ford

1 had no signs of bubbling paint but owner was aware of issue and checks hood every chance he gets.

Can't wait to get rid of mine, I couldn't find any flaws on the Camaro's that were there. I did have 2 Camaro owners warn me about an issue on convertible tops. Both had an issue of excessive wear on the top, but both were replaced under warranty without any issue.

 

good you made two aware. I'm afraid the only way Fords ever going to do anything to fix the problem on those not yet built will be to get everyone possible screaming at them. I havent seen a '15 yet of course, but expecting more of the same... the hood has changed 4 times since 04, hasnt been adressed yet- so why expect the 15 hood built by the same folks on the same line from the same material should be any different. hoping but not holding my breath.


have you sat in one of the camaros? seating position/visibility is horrid compared to mustang, engine sound is sickly compared to mustang, not for me.

the mustang is a great car, no regrets on the 06,07,and 09s currently and hopefully for a long time to come here in my driveway...love these cars. no way id jump ship to a camaro, no matter how fed up with Ford... glad the camaro came back, competition makes them all better in the end- but IMHO camaro has too many basic flaws to make it as enjoyable to drive as a mustang...

will say again though the sweeping under the rug of this issue by ford, seeing all these 13/14s still having the same problems has me fed up with ford enough that the last mustangs are my last new fords. I didnt want or expect mine fixed, but have been a squeaky wheel long enough to know they are very well aware of problems they have caused and simply didnt care enough to fix...

i'll always be a 'ford guy' but part of that needs to include speaking up/insuring their managers do their freaking job and put out a decent product to hang their badge on...
someone at Ford/AAI needs to lose their position- along with their boss for not doing his- not for the mistakes made on these hoods, but for refusing to correct known issues and expecting customers to just eat it.
Shame on Ford for not policing themselves better- they have turned one of the best cars to roll out of a US plant in decades, into a eventual issue for almost everyone that bought one.

I may not be buying any ford products again, but you couldnt even give me a camaro.
if that aluminum F150 is built like the aluminum mustang hood, it could be the end of the F150s reign as a bread and butter product...

look what the stupid design issues / cheaping out on sealing/painting cost for on the windstars- wasnt that near a billion dollar recall by the time all the totals rolled in on the repairs/buybacks/rental fees...all because of inadequate corrosion prevention? surely woulda been cheaper to have added a couple drains to the stampings, used some better sealing/paint... pennies a vehicle is all it woulda cost, yet they waited for a few wrecks from busted axles blowing both rear tires before addressing it. how many years did the plastic intakes go before they finally recalled the crown vics? how many 5.4 trucks blew spark plugs out/ruined heads before they redesigned the idiotic 3 thread head?

sure seems unless a lot of bad press or a expensive response to a NHTSA is required, ford seems to ignore things. ten years of bubbling/peeling hoods on the otherwise great mustang is simply unacceptable. I want to see ford succeed, but not on their past brand recognition- they need to get their quality at least as good as hyundai...
I dare anyone to find a new hyundai with a bad hood prep/seam/paint. of all the cars i nit-picked at the auto shows the last ten years, hyundai consistently had the most consistently perfect panel fit and finish of all there.

if hyundai can do it in alabama, ford can at flatrock.

 

I have test driven many Camaro's, love the car. Visability is poor though, but to me car felt much better built and higher quality. I'm a vert guy, so as an extra "fun" car visability isn't quite the issue for me since it is not a daily driver and I won't be sitting in rush hour traffic with it.

Not sure if I love the Camaro because of the Camaro, or my complete hatred for my Mustang and Ford. I can't stand to look at it in the driveway, and I shake my head every time I walk past the hood. Knowing the extent and longevity of the issue, I will never spend my hard earned money on another Ford product. I have an Excursion that I tow with that needs replacing soon, I won't even consider a Ford product.