On christmas eve 2012 we drove to our parents house we heard something rubbing against the rear driver side tire. When we investigated what was going on we found the 3rd row seat latch had almost detached but was rubbing against the tire it eventually fell off as we tried to get it to reconnect. We received a recall letter in April but was unaware of the potential danger that driving like this for 3 months had caused. At repair shop vehicle would not pass insp due to rotted wheel well and springs also rotted we called local dealer for appt on recall. To my dismay a couple of things that are very concerning to me occurred I received a call later that day from the dealer stating that they where having problems with Ford company itself the latch had fallen off and they had the parts to replace it but they could not attach it to the rear well because it was rotted and not only that they also told us the springs could fall out and collapse the rear suspension if it was driven again when they told the Ford representative this they said just weld a metal piece over the well wheel and just attach it on their dealer declined because this would still be a dangerous situation to drive because of the rear springs if driven could drop the whole rear suspension while driving Ford rep said not our problem you need to complete the recall and the customer has to pay for the springs to be repaired. This is totally unacceptable to me it obvious that the latch situation and corrosion has caused this whole problem to have them try to have the dealer put in effect a bandage on the situation and let my family risk there life driving this van is corrupt to the core. The dealer was able to get the area Ford rep to come out and look at the vehicle in the next couple of days. But I cannot emphasis more what they tried to do today was without question unethical.

- Watertown , NY, USA

The latch on the rear of the van has rusted closed on three separate occassions. It is presently rusted shut and the back hatch doesnt open as a result. There is a recall on the third row seat due to water leakage from the rear tire well. This has to be related as the carpet throughout the van gets wet. Even the front drivers seat where it attaches to the floor is soaked, posibly leaking from front tire well.and all the way down the interior of the car to the third row. There is also a short in the dash lights due to water leaking into the dash area. The car radio stays on when it feel like it and you have to hit the drivers window button for the radio to shut off otherwise it drains the battery and the car will not start. The car was at the electrical shop a year ago and could not find the problem.

- Wyandotte, MI, USA

2004 Ford Freestar ses I changed the rear brakes on 1/20/2013 noticed the left rear wheel was rusting out. Today 2/24/2013 went to install a car sear & noticed the bench seat in the back was rocking slightly. The anchor point on the left rear is rusted out and moving. Upon inspection I noticed that I can see down to the ground where the anchor point has rusted out. I have had to replace numerous parts on this van over the last two years. To date I have replaced: 3 ignition coils, (this is the main problem whenever heavy rain or snow has happened and I start to throw misfire codes), 3 camshaft position sensors, 2 driver side window controls & motors, (the window doesn't want to work half the time so we leave it cracked open with the rain guards), an egr valve, and a clockspring. I have never had so many problems with this vehicle in such a short amount of time.

- Prairie Village, KS, USA

Severe rust issues plague the frame, jack points, and rear frame (spare tire storage area). The spare tire wheel looks as if it has never had paint on it there is so much rust. We just purchased the vehicle a few days ago and are currently working with the Ford dealer to hopefully get the problem corrected. We did not realize the severe rust issues prior to purchase.

- Strasburg, PA, USA

As stated with other 2004 Ford Freestars, rear rust on driverside rear, rear seat will not lock because the safety lock is rusted away, not safe to any passenger to sit there.

- Chesterton, IN, USA

The contact owns a 2004 Freestar. The contact stated that while driving approximately 25 mph, a loud grinding sound was heard coming from the rear tires. The contact also stated that the wheel mount and wheel well were rusted. In addition, the third row latch failed and the seats were unable to stay folded. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostics. The technician stated that the wheel well and latches needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not offer any further assistance due to the vehicle not being included in any recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage and current mileage was 140,000.

- Levittown, PA, USA

Back seat wouldn't latch. Found rotten wheel well due to rust and corrosion and latch fell out along with a piece of the wheel well. Now, there is a hole where the latch was and the rear seat is unsafe due to the fact that there is no latch to hold it in place. I have three kids so now their life is in jeopardy and the van isn't even 10 years old. We've had so many issues with this van. Also, the computer had to be replaced due to water damage. We were told Chevy had the same problem of water coming right down onto the computer and they designed a part for it, but not Ford.

- Rockford, MI, USA

The left rear 3rd row seat anchor plate, mounted normally to the left rear inner wheelhouse as an integrated part of the wheelhouse, has rusted around the plate edges and the entire plate is separating from the wheelhouse assembly. Currently it is rusted thru on the left, right, and bottom edges of the mounting plate, remaining attached only along its top edge. This is letting road moisture into the interior regions of the van, soiling carpet and jute, causing odor and possible mold development. The 3rd row seat can no longer be safely attached.

- Louisville, KY, USA

I own 2004 Ford Freestar. While attempting to latch the third row rear seat, the latch failed due to severe corrosion on the floor panel, side panel and attachments which holds the third seat latch bracket the third row seat latch bracket slides out and extrudes to rear driver side wheel which is very dangerous and can burst the rear driver side tire while running car. I am entering this complaint in relation to other complaints that have been filed. There is a defect investigation taking place (EA12003 and PE11039) for this issue already. I attempted to put my 3rd row seat back up and lock it into place. On the drive side I noticed that it would not lock into place. After further review, I know noticed that the whole latch had broken off because of rusted panel. The whole plate rusted thru.

- Edison, NJ, USA

During sts tire servicing, mechanic showed me a large section of structural steel hanging from the rear driver side wheel well and a Michelin tire that contained abrasive ripping caused by the section of steel that had been dangling and rubbing against the tire. The large section of steel contained an anchor at the center which was manufactured to hold the third row row in place. This steel plate with the anchor for holding the third row seat in place is no longer attached to the vehicle due to a manufacturing defect which allowed the welds holding it in place to fail creating dangers of: Unsecured seating, hole exposing passengers to exterior of vehicle and moving parts, opening for rodents or other dangers to enter vehicle, knowledge of prior may cause fear and panic of driver or passengers which may cause accident or mental anguise. I brought the vehicle to smith Ford dealership in Washington, N.J. requesting an inspection and warranty repair of the above stated structural steel. Smith Ford inspected the vehicle and said that the manufacturing defect would not be repaired by Ford and that Ford does not accept financial responsibility even though the problem was the result of a manufacturing defect. Reported this to Ford headquarters on November 30, 2012 and was informed that the dealership was correct in stating that Ford will not repair this serious problem. My wife is increasingly having terrifying visions of mice jumping on her while driving, having snakes crawling into the car, rain snow mud etc entering vehicle, or having the children put their hands or other things into the hole in the vehicle.

- Annandale, NJ, USA

The contact owns a 2004 Ford Freestar. The contact stated that there was an abnormal clicking sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. The contact later inspected the vehicle and found that a large square bolt near the rear driver's side wheel well was corroded. This bolt held the rear seat in place and the contact stated that the bracket was fractured and detached from the vehicle. As a result, the seat was unable to latch and remain in place. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 100,000.

- Kittery, ME, USA

Drivers side rear passenger seat bracket failure. The bracket is mounted through the wheel well. The weld around the bracket had severe rusting, no where similar to other parts of the car. The plate holding the bracket rusted through completely dropping the seat. The plate and bracket began rubbing against the tire. If I had not stopped and found the problem and secured the bracket, the tire could have blown causing an accident. Accident was prevented, but serious body failure occurred. This needs to be addressed. As is this seat should no longer be used until it can be fixed, there is no cost effective fix.

- Lutz, FL, USA

The 3rd row rear seat on my 2004 Freestar does not latch into seated position properly. Upon further inspection, I realized that the driver's side support ring which the 3rd row seat latches into was pushed back into the trim. I looked underneath the driver's side rear wheel well and noticed that a steel plate which the support ring is mounted has completely rusted through the body of the vehicle. Also, when it is not latched it has a tendency to interfere with the rear driver's side tire. While there is a small amount of metal holding the mounting plate in place, it requires two people to latch the seat in order to keep the metal plate from scoring the sidewall of my tire. The passenger's side mounting plate continues to be secure, yet there is a noticeable amount of rust on that side as well. If someone stows the 3rd row seat and tries to flip it back into seating position without knowing that the support ring is loose, they could end up scoring the sidewall on the rear tire and causing a complete failure. Further, the proper function of the seat belt in the third row seat could be compromised during an accident; the seat could pitch forward or flip back because it is not solidly secured to the van's structure.

- Gaylord, MI, USA

Inability to latch the rear seat, entire driver side anchor plate completely detached from the vehicle.

- Morgantown, WV, USA

The left rear seat anchor has detached from the body due to excessive rust in the rear quarter panel by the left rear wheel well. The third seat is no longer usable and there is a hole through the body that lets air and water into the passenger compartment. The right side wheel well area shows rust as well but the seat anchor has not yet detached from the quarter panel. Two Ford dealers have said they are not aware of this problem occurring and do not know if it can be fixed. My concern is safety while driving the vehicle, noise and water entering the passenger compartment, and the loss of use of the third seat. This vehicle is too young and useful to be scrapped.

- Valparaiso, IN, USA

The contact owns a 2004 Ford Freestar. The contact stated that while parked the contact pulled the rear seats up and noticed the stud which holds the back seat in place was loose. The contact pushed the stud and it fractured. Also, the wheel weld was corroded on the rear driver and passenger side. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to determine how to remedy the failure. The vehicle was later taken to an independent mechanic who welded new metal pieces to the wheel wells on the rear driver and passenger side. There was an investigation under NHTSA action number: EA12003 (seats:mid/rear assembly structure structure:body) that may be related to the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000. Updated 11/14/12

- Davis, IL, USA

Our son was in the rear seat and complained that as we turned corners, his seat moved. He said it felts as if it were not latched. Upon investigation, we found the seat did not latch on the drivers side. We tried without success to relatch it and found the latch anchor was loose. Being dark and 30 miles from home, we drove on. We then heard loud noise coming from that wheel well and began to smell "burning rubber". having no other option, we pulled to the side of the dark highway and saw a piece of metal hanging out of the van, onto the tire. We pulled it the rest of the way out and found that it was the seat latch anchor. The area seems to be completely rusted...from the inside. The metal did not look rusted from the outside. We now have a hole in the side of the van (in the wheel well) and a van which is incapable of hauling our family of five. Even using it as a four-passenger van, we have concerns about exhaust entering the interior of the van. (mileage noted is approximate).

- Dale, IN, USA

The third row seat was loose when locked in the upright position. When I looked underneath from the driver side rear tire I noticed the metal plate was loose. I put down the third row seat and looked through the plastic to see that all around the metal plate rotted away. Since the third row seat was not locked in place when I touched the bracket on the metal plate, the entire plate fell out onto the rear tire. The metal all around the plate inside the rear quarter panel is rotted and there is nothing to weld the plate back to. There is also a large opening into the vehicle because that plate is no longer there. My seven seat van can only hold four people safely.

- Hopewell Jct., NY, USA

Severe rust in the driver side rear wheel well caused the third row seat to detach from the vehicle. The third row seat is now unsafe and cannot be used. The seat can no longer be securely latched in place. This vehicle was garage kept and only has 72,938 miles on it.

- Allison Park, PA, USA

The contact owns a 2004 Ford Freestar. The contact stated that whenever she engaged the brake pedal, it felt hot to the touch. The contact stated that after inspecting the vehicle she noticed that there was a piece of metal rubbing against the tire. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnose that the rear wheel well needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. The failure mileage was 84,000.

- Shelbyville, IN, USA