10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
67,758 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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problem #12

May 182023

Explorer

  • 37,500 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal, before accelerating as needed. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact called the dealer and was informed that the vehicle was not under recall or covered under warranty; and was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The manufacturer had not been notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 37,500.

- Lombard, IL, USA

problem #11

Jul 232020

Explorer

  • 89,000 miles
Traveling at any speed, the vehicle will not excelerate, vibrates, and an yellow wrench appears on the dash with message "all terrain management fault". it has happened twice in the last two days. You have to coast to a safe place off the road, turn your engine off, and restart. It has a lag when trying to restart, but will start. This is extraordinarily dangerous while traveling on any roadway. I am taking it to the dealership tomorrow, but what research I have done states this is a very common occurrence. An issue with the throttle body (etb).

- Fayetteville, AR, USA

problem #10

May 212020

Explorer 6-cyl

  • 122,000 miles
While driving car suddenly started to sputter and I could no longer accelerate.. had roll to a complete stop.. once stopped I let it sit for a moment and it restarted and I was able to make it home.. it has happened on at least 3 occasions.. and on the dashboard it display a yellow wrench and says see manual.. this is very dangerous because I was in traffic on all 3 occasions.

- Pascagoula, MS, USA

problem #9

Feb 172020

Explorer

  • 150,000 miles
While driving at any speed, the car will suddenly stop accelerating. Once you are able to get completely stopped and turn the car off and restart it, it will do ok until the same thing happens again with no warning. When in traffic or with no place to pull off or coast to, this is extremely dangerous. Has happened to me about 10-20 in the past 2 -3 years. After researching online, I read many of the same situations. Took to local dealer and they diagnosed it as the throttle body and said there were numerous Explorer with the same problem.

- Moscow, TN, USA

problem #8

Dec 042019

Explorer

  • 56,391 miles
I was driving on a 4 lane road with a median (not highway). I was in the left lane passing 2 other vehicles when my Explorer began to accelerate and would not stop. The road was wet and as I began stomping on and off the gas pedal to try and release the accelerator, the vehicle began to hydro plane. I went across the right lane and hit the curb, which pretty much ripped out the front undercarriage of the vehicle. Once I left the roadway and could not regain control of the vehicle I put the transmission in neutral until I could get the car stopped. Once the vehicle came to the rest I tried again to stomp on the accelerator to get it to stop accelerating but had no response. The vehicle did not stop accelerating until I turned off the key.

- Germantown, MD, USA

problem #7

Nov 262019

Explorer

  • 102,000 miles
Stepped on the gas pedal to accelerate and vehicle kept accelerating after removing foot from pedal. Had foot on brake with tires locking up and engine was still revving up. The floor mats were not in the way and cruise control was not activated.

- Bismarck, ND, USA

problem #6

Nov 272019

Explorer

  • 34,000 miles
11/27/19 - I have a 2015 Ford Explorer with 34,000 miles on it. While driving my Ford Explorer down the highway at approximate 60 mph, the vehicle suddenly lost power and my husband had to let it coast to the side of the road. The motor was still running but pushing the gas pedal did nothing. The lights on the dash lit up, the wrench icon appeared along with a message to check the manual. We turned the vehicle off and let it sit a moment, then restarted it and we were able to make it home without any further issues. Research showed common issues in 2015-2016 Ford Explorer models with defective throttle bodies. The descriptions given for this defect matched what happened to us perfectly. We took the vehicle to our local dealership and discussed this issue specifically. After taking a look at the vehicle, they stated that there were no error codes and they could find nothing wrong with it. They said they couldn't rule out it being a throttle body issue, but without a code to go by, there wasn't really anything they could do. We left and on the way home, the vehicle stalled again, just like before. This time I was in town going 25 mph. I will continue to take the vehicle back until the issue gets resolved, but I am afraid to keep driving it without this being fixed. With all of the problems Ford has apparently had with this particular item, I don't understand how a recall has not been issued. I have been a long time Ford owner, but my next vehicle will be anything other than a Ford.

- Clayton, NC, USA

problem #5

Apr 012019

Explorer

  • 74,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. While driving 40 mph, the vehicle stalled and the check engine indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but the cause of the failure could not be determined. However, the mechanic stated that the throttle body needed to be replaced. Haldeman Ford (640 us-130, East windsor, NJ 08520, (833) 668-9583) was contacted and stated that the vehicle was not included in a recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 74,000.

- New Egypt, NJ, USA

problem #4

May 242019

Explorer

  • 85,200 miles
Stepped on the gas pedal to accelerate and vehicle kept accelerating after removing foot from pedal. It did this 3 times within 10 minutes. The floor mats were not in the way and cruise control was not activated.

- Fayetteville, GA, USA

problem #3

Jan 062019

Explorer

  • miles
There are often issues with the radio and heating system. Radio turns on and off by itself and so does the heat and air conditioning. In addition, I have complained about something making me dizzy and nauseous in the vehicle. In informed the finance company regarding my inability to breath, for which I was hospitalized. I have been hospitalized on numerous occasions since the purchase of the vehicle and have informed the finance. Furthermore, they have been additional hospitalizations in 2018, for which I will have to upload the documents at a later time.

- Evanston, IL, USA

problem #2

Feb 082018

Explorer

  • 39,000 miles
While driving in the car with my two children on route 193 in Maryland (not a highway but a busy road), the car suddenly stopped accelerating, an error appeared on the screen that said "terrain management system error", a wrench indicator light came on and the light on the tms knob went out (car had full tank of gas). I pulled over on the side of the road, turned the car off, restarted it and the error indicators were gone. It then drove with no problems. We took it to the dealer the following day for an oil change and asked them to look into the problem. After charging us $175 for a diagnostic, they told us that they couldn't replicate the problem and no codes were stored in the computer so there was nothing they could do. We picked up the car and brought it home. Sunday morning, once again it abruptly stopped accelerating, and the same error messages appeared. The terrain management system error only appeared for a couple of seconds and was then replaced with a wrench error on the screen. This time I took pictures in the hopes that it might help the dealer pinpoint the problem. I then cut the car off and restarted again. It drove with no problems again but we took it back to the car at the dealer on Tuesday because clearly there is a problem. I showed the pictures and was told, in order for anything to be fixed, they have to be able to replicate the problem and because when I restart the car the error codes are deleted from the history, there's nothing for the dealer to do. I received a call today (2/14/18) and again was told that the problem couldn't be replicated so no fix is authorized. I understand wanting to diagnose the correct problem, however this is a serious safety issue. Both times this has happened I have been with my kids and thankfully in places where I could safely pull over but what if it happens while I am on a highway or in an intersection?

- Bowie, MD, USA

problem #1

Apr 152015

Explorer

  • 24,000 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. While driving various speeds, the contact applied the accelerator pedal with force and smelled an exhaust odor. The vehicle was taken to the dealer (bill utter Ford located at 4901 S interstate 35 E, denton, tx 76210; (940) 321-7400) where it was diagnosed and repaired. The repair specifics were not available. The failure recurred several other times. The manufacturer was contacted at 800-392-3673 and stated that there was no issue. The failure mileage was 24,000.

- Krum, TX, USA