Ford Explorer Complaints

917 consumer complaints on file.

#11666544June 12, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Request for Inspection and Service – Transmission & Water Leak Issues on 2023 Ford Explorer I’m reaching out regarding my 2023 Ford Explorer, as I’ve recently experienced two concerning issues that I’d like to have inspected and resolved: Transmission Behavior: The vehicle has been showing signs of abnormal transmission performance, including -- “hesitation when accelerating,” “jerky gear shifts at low speed,” or “delayed engagement when shifting from park to drive”. These issues are becoming more noticeable and impact the vehicle’s drivability and safety. Water Leak: I've also discovered a water leak, going down second row seat belts and getting water in corner of sunroof itself. I suspect it may be related to sunroof coming to a complete seal when shut via the buttons on vehicle even though it should be sealed, which I've read may be a known problem on this model. The vehicle is still under warranty, the vehicle has less than 36k milese on it, and I would like to schedule an inspection at your earliest convenience. If there are any recalls, service bulletins, or warranty coverages related to these issues, please let me know. I’d also appreciate a diagnostic without incurring fees for problems that may fall under warranty or known concerns. Thank you in advance for your attention to these matters. I look forward to your reply with next steps. Best regards, [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11666217June 11, 2025
ENGINE, POWER TRAIN
While our 2021 Ford Explorer with 47,000 miles to work the vehicle warning light came on stating the vehicle was overheated and shut down. We allowed the vehicle to cool for 20 minutes as recommended by the owners manual and then restarted the vehicle which immediately overheated again. We had the vehicle towed to the local dealer who diagnosed the issue as coolant in the oil forcing a replacement of the engine and coolant systems.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11666166June 10, 2025
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
As I am traveling on the freeway or expressway, when I have cruise control active and I am in the far right lane the vehicle suddenly changes to the speed of the frontage road dropping my speed from 65 or 70mph down to 40, even tho I am on the expressway. It almost caused me to be rear ended because of the sudden drop in speed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11665773June 9, 2025
STEERING, SUSPENSION
The contact owns a 2023 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel failed to turn into the intended direction. In addition, the contact stated the vehicle failed to remain in the intended lane while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the shocks and struts needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. In addition, the contact stated the vehicle had been taken to the dealer several times prior to the failure. The vehicle was taken to an alternate dealer where it was diagnosed with strut mount failures. The contact was informed that the strut mounts needed to be replaced. The vehicle was being repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 18,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11665745June 9, 2025
SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
6/2/25 tried to start vehicle, codes coming up and car would not start 6/6/25 car was in park running, starting chiming with alarms, the same alarms that came up a few days before.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11665714June 9, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Sun roof clips broke causing sunroof shade to sag
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11665659June 8, 2025
VISIBILITY/WIPER
When raining water droplets accumulate on the 2025 Explorer rear view camera lens obscuring the image and in some cases rendering it completely useless. Earlier models such as the 2014 Ford Explorer had the camera positioned in a manner where this did not happen and it stayed clean. Later Explorer models had the ability to clean the lens by activating the rear wiper's washer which squirted washer fluid on it.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664891June 4, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The electronic sunshade that covers the panoramic sunroof has malfunctioned and cannot be retracted fully. The sagging sun shade covers the rear window and blocks the view. I have taken it to the dealership for repair, but it is not covered under my extended warranty and is around $2000.00 to repair out of pocket. The dealership charged a $199.99 diagnostic fee to ascertain that it was the sunroof shade that had broken. There were no symptoms or warnings before this happened.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664553June 3, 2025
POWER TRAIN, SUSPENSION
Vehicle has 5700 miles on it. At roughly 3000 miles I noticed a clunk or tension thud at speeds under 12 mph, both moving forward and in reverse. Brought the vehicle to the dealer and was told it was unsafe to drive. Thus far they have replaced strut mount bushings and have told me the transmission mount was loose and that they have not been able to determine why. My impression is the transmission mount is a significant safety issue in that the vehicle could loose power and subsequent control at any time if the connection worsened or just happened again.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664320June 2, 2025
BACK OVER PREVENTION
The contact owns a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that upon shifting into reverse, the rearview camera failed to display an image. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V315000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 36,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664232June 1, 2025
POWER TRAIN, SUSPENSION
2022 Ford Explorer Limited issues: 49K miles, when putting the vehicle in reverse and press gas it does not engage, it rolls and takes a few seconds before it engages. Powertrain Failure/Malfunction causes vehicle to bog down, low power, and vibration in rear. Once you turn vehicle off the error goes away only to come up again around 75 mph. Vibration also occurs at 30-40 mph and again at 60-70 mph, rear captains seats shake and passenger can feel in front seat. Dealer is aware, this is the 3rd time in 1 month it’s done this.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664184June 1, 2025
Carry Handle, Shell, Base, Other/I am not sure
We bought this in 2022 from clek, and a few months before we were transferring our daughter from the infant seat to a convertible seat, our infant seat became stuck on the base. Absolutely impossible to get off and my husband and I both tried many times. I reached out to Clek because I was very concerned that in an emergency situation it would take much longer to unstrap and get baby out instead of just grabbing the seat and going. I mean in a car fire, if we went in any body of water- anything it’s extremely concerning to me that this could happen. I have bought cheaper car seats than this for our other children and never once had this issue. They ended up emailing me with a video showing me to break the base, pull a strap and remove the seat from the base - that’s great besides it still won’t detach and you could never do this in an emergency. They also said this happens often which clearly it does if they have a video showing how to remove it. The car seat has been inspected by the hospital and police prior to this and we have had other friends/ family who are in those professional fields who were very concerned. We actually were told by Albee baby to report clek because they said they should refund us. They aren’t even offering us a new seat and we are due in less than 2 months with baby number 3. We have no seat and to be truthful I don’t want one like this where it may get stuck again. They also told me in an email, police and ems could help save my child- sometimes you can’t wait for that- that’s a horrible excuse to me. I should be able to save my children myself and I will never rely on anyone else.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11664147May 31, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS
On my 2022 it’s has a warning that it has a faulty park aid faults
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11663488May 28, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Since I have purchased this vehicle in November, I have noticed that the odometer will change for the time that I park to the time that I returned. I have an Excel file with over 700 log entries going back to the beginning of March. Along with photos of the dashboard to back up claims. I have attached two simple photos. You could see by the trip odometer clock that there was only a few seconds between the photos, but if you look at the odometer has changed by .2 miles.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11662838May 23, 2025
FIRERELATED
The contact owned a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked in the driveway for over three hours before the vehicle caught on fire. The origin of the fire was unknown, however, the contact believes the fire originated from faulty electrical wiring. The vehicle was unoccupied during the fire. The location of the fire was the rear end of the vehicle. The fire department arrived to extinguish the fire. A fire department report was filed. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was destroyed. The local dealer was contacted, and the vehicle was not diagnosed as it was determined to be a complete loss. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 75,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
Yes
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11662750May 23, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The rear axle bolt snapped. Causing the differential to fall out and rear wheel axles and driveshaft to break out of position.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11660969May 14, 2025
ENGINE
The contact owned a 2022 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that upon taking off after yielding to a stop sign, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power in the middle of an intersection. As a result, the vehicle was struck by another vehicle on the rear driver's side door, sending the vehicle careening back through the inspection past the stop sign before coming to a complete stop. All air bags were deployed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed a total loss by the contact's insurance provider. A police report was filed, and injuries were reported. The occupants did not immediately receive medical attention but later transported themselves or were transported to area hospitals for evaluation. The contact received a full-body MRI and was treated for whiplash, neck pain, and various bruising caused by the seat belt, while her husband received a CAT scan and was treated for whiplash, neck pain, back pain, and bruising on his arms. Meanwhile, the [XXX] occupant was transported to his primary care physician by his parents and treated for a neck burn caused by the seat belt. The contact also stated that the driver of the other vehicle was transported to an area hospital by EMT but was unaware of her condition or treatment. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 80,000. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
4
Deaths:
0
#11660826May 14, 2025
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE
The vehicle has intermittent issues with bucking, running poorly, and not shifting properly. It results in several warning lights which will clear at random. The dealer has told us it needed a new alternator. The repair was made but the problem resurfaced again today. This is not a new issue as it has occurred many times before.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11660723May 13, 2025
SERVICE BRAKES
Every component of the braking system signaled a fault & associated alerts simultaneously. Nearly a complete brake failure occurred (almost caused me to run into an intersection at a red light). Brakes maintained very little pressure even with pumping them, approx every 5th time I stopped pressure was regained. Quadrupled the braking distance. ABS, parking brake, etc - all failed. Managed to get the car to dealer service (hazard lights & slow driving). Car still at dealer service garage. Brake fluid levels are fine, no apparent leaks. Service intake tech replicated the issue but the mechanics could not. I refused to take the the car back without further work.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11659681May 8, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
my vehicles checked for a light came on. The Ford State it is not an emergency and that the vehicle can be driven, but it does need to have somebody at the Ford dealer fix it. Appointments are two weeks out. There are several problems with this number one most important I have lost signals I don’t know how you can say you can drive a vehicle and have no signals, number two. : I only have wipers on rapid speed. Number three, and of course this is just a luxury. The wiper on the rear window of the SUV does not work at all. Number four: the alert covers the main part of the vehicle screen very distracted. You cannot clear it. You cannot get rid of it even if you say OK.I think this should be a recall from everything I read there are tons of people who have this happening with this particular year and vehicle I do think it’s a safety hazard. I’m going to try to get my vehicle in sooner than the 13th. I’ve had the appointment now for almost a week. I just thought you folks should know. I don’t know if this is the appropriate form or not.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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