Poll: How many have experienced a "rear axle bolt fracture" (POLL CLOSED 6-4-22)

So I read all 7 pages of posts and don’t see anyone saying the best option for us one bolsters to do? I seen a post saying get the woosh diff brace but if it brakes goes might say that’s why it broke. If ford is not fixing shouldn’t we be allowed to try anything to make our minds at ease? I have zero clue how any of these braces work or if they do but I’d love some guidance of what brace will help best and if it will even help at all? I’m brand new to ST like 3 days so my knowledge is small at the monument. This seems serious if tuning and I want to tune.

Just install the AWR brace from Whoosh. Took me 30 minutes and now I have peace of mind. Waiting on manufacturers to fix an issue will take forever. I would much rather go with "track" proven then by some dweeb saying it "should" work.

No one is 100% certain what the best option is yet because both the problem and the possible solutions are so new.
It's true that if someone adds a non Ford part to their vehicle and something that's associated with it breaks, FORD could say (right or wrong) that it was the cause.
Theoretically, braces are supposed to work by handling some of the stress placed upon the single rear bolt. Makes 100% sense, but still a guess at this point.
And yes, until either FORD offers a permanent solution or a brace has proven effective, a tune on a single rear bolt car is logically problematic.

Hope that helps.

Don't get me wrong, I really like the Whoosh design.

But where exactly has it been track proven over any substantial length of time?

I can't determine whether this post is a Debbie Downer or Chicken Little post.

There have been several less than positive posts about this product and I get the concern. We probably all should be concerned to some extent but seriously, how many aftermarket parts have real track-proven results before they hit the market? These type of devices are run on many different performance vehicles without issue.

As far as a previous comment regarding why a 4 bolt owner would use this, why not? Lots of things we do to our vehicles are simply for a little bit extra, whether it be peace of mind, comfort, looks, or whatever. It looks like a good idea to me, to others maybe not.

Whether or not Ford would deny a warranty, who knows? I think it would be difficult for Ford to even show that every owner had knowledge of and understood what this recall entails or the purpose of the recall. Can they prove that putting the brake on every time it's in park stops bolt breakage or can they just show that once a bolt breaks they won't kill someone because the vehicle rolled over them"

I haven't seen where people are actually getting diff covers and bolts replaced. I've heard talk of it but who has had this done? How does what Ford is doing in this recall, as we've discussed in this thread prevent breakage? Lot's of unanswered questions in my opinion.

Having the parking brake enabled every time my vehicle was placed in park would drive me nuts, much akin to the auto-stop feature. I resolved that the day I got the vehicle. For others that simply isn't an issue. I don't understand all the negativity about a product one has never laid hands on. To each their own. Stepping down from that very large soapbox.

You're wrong on both counts. It is neither.
I was just responding to Tommyc's post, guess you missed that.

Because it is a 4 bolter. Not all that complicated.

My point exactly, you don't know.

It doesn't prevent breakage, everyone here is already aware of that. Fact, not opinion.

Seriously? "Drive you nuts"?
Oh, I guess you are serious.

You answered your own question ("a product no one has ever laid hands on").

I don't think it's as large as you believe it is.

I sell Ford Parts for a living in a high volume Ford warehouse , I have only seen , got parts for one failure and it was on a Police vehicle.

Your report speaks volumes. Thanks for the eye opening data.

Listen up people, his statement substantiates our poll result of 0.8% bolt shear and FORD's data of an even lower .094%

1-127

Okay, it's been a month since the Poll began. Numbers pretty much speak for themselves.

I have a 2021 with 3 bolts, towing package. Should I tow a travel trailer?

I'm no engineer, but FORD is telling you "yes" (within specified towing limits) as their recall for retail vehicles does not provide structural reinforcement.

Common sense tells me if you have a 3 bolter and you don't have a tune or regularly drag race your ST, you should be good to go.

But remember, my 2 cents is worth exactly that. No more, no less!

someone just posted a video braking his bolt at the drag strip. ford fixed with same single bolt. here is the link to thread

https://www.explorerst.org/threads/video-of-diff-bolt-failure-and-fords-response.3886/#post-50141

Right- the poster added over 100 lb/ft of torque via tuning and mods and broke the bolt at the dragstrip. Then bitched because Ford fixed it- for free. What a victim!

I get what you’re saying but he has every right. Ford f’d up and I hope this costs them a lot. It’s one thing to remove features in a car but this is ultimately a safety issue they cheaper out on. I still am not sure if we know the true reason. Cost cutting? Chain supply issue? Either way, this car was designed for 4. None of those have broke. Then they went to 3. Now they’re breaking. Even non tuned stock vehicles.

Im not really worried as the odds are quite low and I’m guessing like this guy who modded the hell out of his ST and probably drives like he’s at the drag strip all the time. I’m absolutely nowhere near that. This goes with anything built. If the manufacturer is going to take short cuts, they better get ready to pay the price.

At the end of the day, the extra support from the add on brace kept the entire assembly from catastrophic damage.

How do you know that? Did you see the pics of that "brace"? It probably moved 2". I'm probably going to get flamed for this, but a few yards of duct tape (placed appropriately) would probably have been just as effective. Truly, the AWR brace is much better, although I'd like to see a third mounting bolt at say the 2:00 position.

I know what I say causes a lot of emotion, but why, given the limited info released would leave you to believe that Ford f'd up? And you "hope this costs them a lot"? Perhaps they should just go out of business because some supplier didn't heat treat bolts correctly?

Perhaps even though you haven't had a problem, you think they should be punished because a handful of products failed- for whatever reason? Maybe the entire Volkswagen-Audi-Porsche group should also go out of business because some engineers did something far worse? Hey, why stop there, let's just put everyone out of business not to mention the hundreds of thousands of workers who didn't have anything to do with a small number of failures.

As far as "non-tuned stock vehicles" breaking. Where is your evidence? Do you honestly think that a complex mechanical vehicle with hundreds of vendors, thousands of workers doesn't have a flaw? Look, this is my first Ford, so I am absolutely not trying to hold their water, but for God's sake, be reasonable.

Is there not a missing bolt? Ford knowingly rolled explorers off the assembly line without a 4th bolt like the ford was designed to have. That’s unacceptable. End of story.

As for my proof, I don’t have actually have physical evidence but if every single rear bolt fracture was on a tuned vehicle, do you really think ford would of issued a recall? Hell I could totally see them just saying well it’s because of a tuned vehicle. I would think it would of had to of happened to a stock ST to justify a recall. That’s just my opinion.

Ford can correct this. They know the fix. They’re doing it for the interceptors. If they do it for everyone else than I’ll be content. Until then, it’s just unacceptable.

Your anecdotal evidence is is not proof. Have you even thought about this critically? If you had, you would see that not only did they "leave the assembly line without a 4th bolt like ford was designed to have", you'd have done enough research to be taken seriously. Did you notice that the isolator is completely different in the later models? That alone tells me that Ford did some research into the matter prior to making the change. Have you thought about the actual cost? Probably about $20 between the 1 bolt and 2 bolt models. I guess your argument is that Ford purposely saved $20 per car so they could spend $2k fixing it while staring into a possible class action lawsuit and the NHTSA. If that were the case, I wouldn't buy another Ford again- and neither should you. As far as a recall, have you considered that Ford is trying to stay proactive in spite of a handful of failures, during difficult times to try to make sure their customers are safe? I know it's easy to buy into conspiracy theories, especially if they suit our own narrative, but try, try to think about this situation analytically and critically. Otherwise, you strain credulity and your own credibility.