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Ducati1098

Ducati1098

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So this is something you put off doing until your top develops issues then?
You don't need to. But depending on the future information released it, may not be a bad idea to hold off until you actually see a problem.
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Funksurfsoul

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2023 2 door badlands… out of warranty… noticed some honeycombing, and some minor drops/leaks on the rear hatch side windowsill… today was raining and decided to look at where it was coming from.. looks like small hairline crack in hardtop above the window..

Really not sure my best move here… try to trade it in for another bronco, in hopes they don’t notice the issue…

hope i get included in a recall, or try working with the dealer to have the out of warranty top replaced…

smash it like someone broken into the vehicle and make a claim through insurance?

I feel defeated.
 

Valhalla

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Take it to the dealer, see if the recall covers it since it leaks
 
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Ducati1098

Ducati1098

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Take it to the dealer, see if the recall covers it since it leaks
Recall is advanced notice, so the dealer won’t know until it’s released in November
 

GToddC5

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Mine was built November '21, delivered early January '22. I installed a Bestop just a couple months later in March, and the hardtop has been sitting in a corner of the garage ever since. 4.5 years later the Bestop is looking a bit rough (can't see out the rear window, side windows aren't far behind, and the snaps that hold the rear corners in place both disintegrated).

I think it's been great for the time served and was considering seeking just replacement window panels, but with this recall I'm thinking about bringing the hardtop out of retirement and using it until inevitable failure. Hell, It might even have issues I'm unaware of from several seasons in the NE, even stored in the garage.
 

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JL724

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Given they only offer to replace the piece of the roof that is cracked and you end up with a mismatched looking panel, not sure I'd take them up on the recall. What they should do is offer to let early owners with the MIC top buy new painted black tops at a heavily discounted price.
 

DarthLincoln

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NHTSA information:
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2026/RCLRPT-26V299-2713.pdf?_cl=pYWBPCB9OjYYMbDKnEdRJDe1

Appears to be for all hardtop panels, not just the clamshell.
Also appears to be an inspection followed by replacement based on inspection.

Oh this is really interesting!:
On February 17, 2026, the Ford engineering team conducted vehicle testing to induce/accelerate delamination of the hardtop outer layer. A barrier was created between the outer layer of poly-methyl methacrylate (PMMA) and the polyurethane (PU) substrate to simulate delamination conditions observed in the field. Additionally, the team worked with the supplier to conduct thermal cycle testing in March and April 2026. The testing indicated that cracking can occur on the PMMA panel during thermal cycling if the area of delamination is large.

FINALLY, official confirmation about what the outer skin material is: It's PMMA (acrylic), a thermoplastic.

There were previous posts in 2020 and 2021 that claimed the outer skin surface was polyacetal (POM). POM is also a thermoplastic like PMMA, but it has very low surface energy/friction and natural lubricity. POM, like Delrin, is a great material for automotive mechanical parts like bushings and plastic gears, but that low surface energy would make it very difficult to bond long term in a laminated structure.

Webasto’s press and PACE award had already identified the MIC was paper honeycomb (PHC) that was milled, then covered top and bottom by glass fibers and polyurethane to make the base structure, but the textured top outer skin was only referred to as "plastic resin molded-in-color film” in their press.


So the MIC hardtop construction is:

———————————— PMMA ————————————
------ Polyurethane + fiberglass substrate ------
######## Paper Honeycomb ########
------ Polyurethane + fiberglass substrate ------​


Also, I found a Michigan environmental inspection report from Nov-2021 of Webasto’s manufacturing facility in Plymouth MI which has a facility walkthru review of the fabrication processes of the Bronco MIC hardtop including reference to the PMMA outer skin:
https://www.egle.state.mi.us/aps/downloads/SRN/P1143/P1143_SAR_20210827.pdf


EDIT: PMMA was mentioned on Bronco6G back in Sept-2020, but the post was since deleted:
https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/thre...-top-and-dual-what-is-the-di.5945/post-212539
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