lol I just finished it a few days ago; it wasnt that easy. The PN LJ6BS550A62 also is a compatible rail to use. The mounting points are obvious; I would advise the following tools: trim removal kit, 3/8" torq wrench, basic hardware tools with multiple socket sizes (I believe 10MM was the only one I used) and torx bits.
There are online repair manuals (https://cardiagn.com/ford/escape/?fbclid=IwAR2uML7V1hPg9YGQ0EWSMHkQspiU3AJ4FboeuqkU2dQ5hNe0eEWJk_3BdYk) on how to perform the install, so you should review that first to get an understanding on what needs to be done. However, the manual I found was missing steps (specifically that the curtain airbags are in the way of the rail nuts and there were additional attachment points near the rear of the headliner)
The process requires to remove (or at least move out your way) pretty much all the pillars and the trims in your car since the headliner needs to drop down so you can access the rail nuts. The manual advise you to torq to 10NM, so you would need a torq wrench if you want to keep spec. Otherwise, you can just handtighten if your prefer. The issue was that 1 out of the 4 nuts is inaccessible to the torq driver since it was behind the curtain side airbags. You can choose to also remove the curtain airbags, but we just decided to hand tighten that one. I would also strongly advise at least to have another person to help drop the headliner. You also should disconnect the battery located (my car is a PHEV and is located in the wheel well) just to be sure the curtain airbags dont go off. (tip: the area of the headliner near the back trunk has 2 plastic clips that are snapped into the roof; there parts are glued on, I accidently manhandled and broke their glue joint to the headliner and had to reglue these parts).
This is my first time removing trim and performing an install like this, In terms of how long it took: first try; two people 5.5 hours to get remove the headliner, this is when I discovered that 1 nut was inaccessible to torq without removing curtain side airbags. Second try, two people 4 hours to drop headliner and install the roof rails; torq tighten 3 bolts and hand tight the 1 with a wrench.
I was originally going to have dealer do it for me, but they quoted 2.5K for install only. I bought the rails myself through a pick and pull yard.
Isn't a Ford Kuga just a European name for the Escape?
yeah I believe so; i just wanna make sure if I buy parts from a Kuga, it would work on an Escape
Any luck with the install? If so, we’re there mounting points obvious beneath the black trim? And what kind of hardware did you use?
lol I just finished it a few days ago; it wasnt that easy. The PN LJ6BS550A62 also is a compatible rail to use. The mounting points are obvious; I would advise the following tools: trim removal kit, 3/8" torq wrench, basic hardware tools with multiple socket sizes (I believe 10MM was the only one I used) and torx bits. There are online repair manuals (https://cardiagn.com/ford/escape/?fbclid=IwAR2uML7V1hPg9YGQ0EWSMHkQspiU3AJ4FboeuqkU2dQ5hNe0eEWJk_3BdYk) on how to perform the install, so you should review that first to get an understanding on what needs to be done. However, the manual I found was missing steps (specifically that the curtain airbags are in the way of the rail nuts and there were additional attachment points near the rear of the headliner) The process requires to remove (or at least move out your way) pretty much all the pillars and the trims in your car since the headliner needs to drop down so you can access the rail nuts. The manual advise you to torq to 10NM, so you would need a torq wrench if you want to keep spec. Otherwise, you can just handtighten if your prefer. The issue was that 1 out of the 4 nuts is inaccessible to the torq driver since it was behind the curtain side airbags. You can choose to also remove the curtain airbags, but we just decided to hand tighten that one. I would also strongly advise at least to have another person to help drop the headliner. You also should disconnect the battery located (my car is a PHEV and is located in the wheel well) just to be sure the curtain airbags dont go off. (tip: the area of the headliner near the back trunk has 2 plastic clips that are snapped into the roof; there parts are glued on, I accidently manhandled and broke their glue joint to the headliner and had to reglue these parts). This is my first time removing trim and performing an install like this, In terms of how long it took: first try; two people 5.5 hours to get remove the headliner, this is when I discovered that 1 nut was inaccessible to torq without removing curtain side airbags. Second try, two people 4 hours to drop headliner and install the roof rails; torq tighten 3 bolts and hand tight the 1 with a wrench. I was originally going to have dealer do it for me, but they quoted 2.5K for install only. I bought the rails myself through a pick and pull yard.