The drivers side seatbelt will not engage to the lock position.

- El Sobrante, CA, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving 5 mph, the accelerator pedal became detached from the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 215,000.

- Hermigage , TN, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 mph on a steep uphill grade, the bracket that supported the gas pedal suddenly broke away from the firewall and the bracket and gas pedal slid into the floor board and under the seat. The vehicle was backed down the hill in neutral and maneuvered to the side of the road in light oncoming traffic. Assistance was summoned and upon inspection the gas pedal was found with the bracket that attached to the firewall in a new like condition, except where three spot welds attached to the gas pedal bracket to the firewall had broken away. The vehicle was rigged to a running condition to travel approximately two miles or less to the owners residence where a more reliable repair was made. The repair was over seen by a licensed a&P mechanic. The manufacturer was notified by the owner of the weld failure. The approximate mileage was well over 100,00 and is currently back in service. Updated 06/18/13

- Onedia , TN, USA

We were lucky this time, we had the Explorer in the shop and I got a call from the lead tech that stated while the were servicing the brakes no less than 3 lines rotted through, but*** the antilock controller sprung a leak and sprayed fluid all over the hot engine causing a small fire!!! no damage but we were lucky...

- Kenosha, WI, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that as soon as the vehicle was started, it accelerated independently. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis and the contact was informed that the speed control deactivation switch had began to leak internally and caused the failure. The contact was informed of a recall for the failure under NHTSA campaign id number: 09V399000 (vehicle speed control) however, the dealer informed him that they were only required to stop the leak but not replace the defective part. The manufacturer was notified but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 201,000. Updated 01/05/13 updated 2/13/2013

- Charlotte, NC, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while trying to accelerate, the vehicle would not respond unless an excessive amount of pressure was applied to the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was found that the throttle body had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact that his VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign id number 00V422000 (vehicle speed control). The failure mileage was 100,000 and the current mileage was 170,000.

- West Sacramento, CA, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer eddie bauer edition. The contact stated that while accelerating from a driving traffic stop, the engine growled loudly as the vehicle abnormally accelerated rapidly. The brakes were engaged and the vehicle came to a stop. The contact was able to resume as normal. The failure recurred twice. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnosis but they were unable to locate a defect. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

- Schnecksville, PA, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while sitting in a drive-thru with the brakes engaged, the vehicle suddenly accelerated and there was an increase in engine rpms. The contact stated that he attempted to hold the brakes but the vehicle would not stop. As a result, the contact crashed into another vehicle. A police report was not filed and no injuries were reported. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 190,000.

- Middletown , OH, USA

When I drive my vehicle, I press the gas pedal and it feels heavier than normal. Then when I press the brakes to slow down it has a clocking sound. And it pulls back when I press the gas pedal to go faster.

- Renovo, PA, USA

The contact owns a 1998 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign id number: NHTSA campaign id number: 00V422000 (vehicle speed control). The vehicle was inspected by a dealer and they advised the contact to return after the first of the year to have the recall repair performed. A few months later while driving 35 mph, the steering wheel and brakes froze without warning. The contact crashed into a pole as the vehicle independently shifted into reverse and accelerated backward. The driver sustained major injuries and was transported to the hospital via ambulance. The police were called and a report was filed and available. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was deemed as destroyed. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was unknown. Updated 06/02/11 updated 1/18/2012

- Mantua, NJ, USA

Accelerator pedal came off while driving on highway I-95, had the car towed back to the house, inspected the pedal area and noticed there are 3 missing screws and one of the three openings is no longer usable. I've seen a lot of complaints on the internet about the accelerator pedal coming off on Ford. Contacted sawgrass Ford in fort lauderdale, fl. A local dealer and they said it would be $180 to take a look at the car plus the cost of the part. Ford should be looking at this as a safety measure, someone could really be injured and killed due to this issue. Hopefully they wont wait till a life is lost for them to look into this and possibly have a recall.

- Hollywood, FL, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. While driving on October 3, 2008 without warning the front end of the vehicle caught fire. The driver and passenger were able to exit the vehicle. The passenger sustained injuries to the arm and shoulder. The manufacturers recall letter 00V422000, vehicle speed control was received in November 2009. Report 378123209 was filed with the manufacturer; however, the failure could not be investigated, because the vehicle was destroyed. The sumner county sheriff report number was 9386782. The failure and the current mileages were 130,000.

- Castalian Springs, TN, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at 45 mph, the vehicle independently decelerated. The contact moved the vehicle of the roadway and found that the accelerator pedal was hanging from the assembly by three tiny spot welds. The weld had also fractured and the entire accelerator pedal assembly had detached from the vehicle. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to his residence where he made unknown repairs to the vehicle. Neither the dealer or the manufacturer were contacted. The failure and current mileages were 103,000.

- Newark, OH, USA

Engine revvs and vehicle is thrusted forward at top speed from dead start or when slowing down. This is the second on this problem. Both times lead to property damage, and accident.

- Flushing, NY, USA

TL * the contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. While driving at speeds of 45 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact coasted into a nearby parking lot and suddenly, noticed a fire had erupted near the drivers side window. The contact did not report any injuries. The fire department was called to the scene but a fire report was not taken. The vehicle was towed to her place of residence and has not yet been repaired. The failure mileage and current mileages were 100,000.

- Grantville, GA, USA

Stuck accelerator on 1997 Ford Explorer with 58,000 miles. While driving on interstate 287/78 in NJ I tried to turn off the cruise control but instead the car accelerated uncontrollably to over 85 mph. I gained control by turning the engine on and off until reaching a safe place to stop. An njdot truck helped me and later that day I emailed what happened to Ford's customer assistance. I wanted them to have a dealer examine my Explorer to see if this was caused by a material defect of normal wear and tear, in which case I would repair it. They refused to help so I wrote a letter to dearborn and received a response saying the matter was closed (case # 1510510480). My wife said (and I believe her) that if she were driving it would have resulted in a crash. I noted that there was a recall on the 2002 escape that sounds like the same problem. I just want to prevent potential loss of life due to this, in my opinion, faulty design or manufacturer glitch. Njdot documented the case since I sent them a "thank you" and they responded. The vehicle put me and others on the highway in a life-threatening situation (viz a viz Toyota) but Ford is unwilling to consider the case. They want to treat this as an "out of warranty" condition but I believe it is potentially a product liability that if not corrected will cost lives and damage.

- Milltown, NJ, USA

A 1997 Ford Explorer cruise control deactivation switch caused a fire resulting in the death of the driver.

- Eugene, OR, USA

Operator was exiting parking lot onto main road when vehicle picked up speed, operator tried to stop vehicle, by breaking, but vehicle accelerated faster, causing operator to lose control of vehicle, vehicle still accelerating turned back towards other end of parking lot crashing into large metal sign post. Operator had to be taken to nearby hospital, and them evacuated to mass general hospital, for emergency head operation as a result of injury to head. (subdural hemotoma).

- Bridgewater, MA, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that there was a small motor bike lodged under the vehicle, which somehow caused it to catch fire. The entire front end of the vehicle and the front cabin seats were destroyed. There are three vehicle speed control recalls on this year, make, and model vehicle, but it has not been determined if the VIN was included. There were no injuries. A police report was filed. The recall numbers and VIN were unknown. The failure mileage was 159,000.

- Washington, DC, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford Explorer. While driving 35 mph, he noticed smoke coming from the under the hood. In addition, flames erupted from the engine compartment after he opened the hood. The dealer stated that the vehicle speed control switch caused the fire. There is a recall for the vehicle speed control (NHTSA campaign id 07V336000) however the dealer stated that his VIN was not included. As of January 30, 2008, the dealer had not repaired the vehicle. The current and failure mileages were 160,000. Updated 02-19-08 updated 02/19/08

- Fox River Grove, IL, USA