10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
11 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
78,948 miles

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« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #124

Nov 092017

Explorer

  • 69,000 miles
With no warning at all, our power steering completely went out while driving the vehicle. This is similar to the recall of other 2013 Ford Explorer for the identical issue of sudden loss of power steering. Our vehicle does not fall under the recall according to Ford however this is a huge safety issue for power steering to go out with no warning or indication.

- Evans, GA, USA

problem #123

May 092017

Explorer

  • 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. While the vehicle was in reverse, it experienced a loss of steering function and required excessive force to turn. The power steering fault warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local bergstrom Ford of oshkosh dealer (3355 jackson St, oshkosh, wi) where it was diagnosed that the power steering rack assembly was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided case number: Cas 13488512. The contact was denied assistance for the repair because the VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign number: 14V286000 (steering). The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

- Oshkosh, WI, USA

problem #122

Sep 022017

Explorer

  • 75,000 miles
Vehicle power steering randomly goes out. Ford has open recall on very issue having with vehicle. Recall includes my vehicle model, make and year. Local dealership confirmed issue is same as recall issue. Ford states VIN is not included on recall so refuses to fix. Filed case number with Ford explaining such but still refuse to fix under recall.

- Oshkosh, WI, USA

problem #121

Nov 022017

Explorer

  • 75,000 miles
The power steering warning light would come on when starting and first backing up. Would turn car off and it would reset. The other day it did it again but this time did not reset. Towed to dealer and said I need new steering gear. Saw a recall for exact same problem in 2013 Explorer but since my car was manufactured in 12/12 and not 2/12 it was not under recall and repair is coming out of my pocket. It was even built in same plant as cars affected by recall.

- Spring, TX, USA

problem #120

Oct 242017

Explorer

  • 148,864 miles
Power steering assist fault, power steering failed when started in motion from parked. Twice Oct 17 2017 and Oct 23 2017 both times shut car off, then restarted everything worked normal. Took car to planet Ford spring Texas, Oct 24,25,26,27.dealer replaced steering gear cost, $1734.12. Ford has had steering problems 2010 to 2015. Contacted Ford, no recall for my VIN number. Ford case number case number cas13412020.

- The Woodlands, TX, USA

problem #119

Aug 182017

Explorer

  • 57,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. When the contact started the vehicle, the power steering assist warning indicator illuminated and the steering wheel seized. The contact stated that the failure previously occurred while accelerating after being parked. When the contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, it reset itself. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that they were aware of the failure. The manufacturer further stated that the VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign number: 14V286000 (steering). The manufacturer stated that the repair would be an out of pocket expense and, if the recall becomes extended and the VIN becomes included, the contact could possibly be reimbursed. The failure mileage was approximately 57,000.

- Tacoma, WA, USA

problem #118

Sep 262017

Explorer

  • 96,000 miles
While driving, my car's power steering and advance service trac will go out and I will have to drive without power steering until I can park and restart the vehicle. This has left me very at risk for an accident when driving due to the sudden jerk of the wheel when cornering or just going straight even.

- Andover, MN, USA

problem #117

Jun 232017

Explorer

  • 73,000 miles
We (my husband, my 10year old, my 7year old and my almost 2 month old baby and I)were driving on the highway, (we were going to Michigan for the weekend) when I started noticing that it required some effort to maintain the car in lane, after a while some lights went on "service power steering now" and "service advance track"..., so I got out of the highway with difficulty because it felt weird driving it, I couldn't keep it straight without effort. I turned it off and on-again, my husband checked it, everything seemed fine. We went back on the highway with my husband driving this time and after a little while the wheel just got so hard that he could barely turn it. He got out of the highway wrestling the wheel because it was so hard. My husband is very strong, so I know if he was having difficulty then the wheel was really bad. Thank god he was with me and thankfully the wheel thing happened to him. If it would have been me, I don't think I would have been able to control it. I am very grateful that we didn't end up in an accident just the thought of it scares me. I took the car to the dealership, they checked it and said that the cost to fix it is $2000. I contacted Ford so that they could pay for the repair. Since the guaranty was over they didn't take responsibility for it. Knowing the nature of the problem it's a fact that there is nothing I could have done to cause the car to have this problem. There was a recall for the Ford Explorer 2013 for problems with the steering system, but the recall was for cars built up to June 2012 and mine was built in July. As I told them, yes, my car was not part of the recall; nevertheless I did have the problem for which other cars were recalled!! thank god we are all ok but for all I know it could have been fatal. All I asked was to get my car to work the way it is supposed to.

- Burbank, IL, USA

problem #116

Sep 182017

Explorer

  • 130,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. While driving approximately 65 mph, the steering wheel seized and the power steering and advanced track warning indicators illuminated. The policed pushed the vehicle to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to towne Ford (1601 el camino real, redwood city, ca 94063, phone number: (650) 366-5744) where it was diagnosed that the power steering system failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: Ces13160631. No further assistance was offered. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.

- Antelope, CA, USA

problem #115

Sep 212017

Explorer

  • 69,000 miles
When traveling on the interstate the vehicle started pulling my steering to the right or left when not driving straight. The steering wheel would pop to one side or the other making it difficult to maintain my lane on the interstate. Dashboard lights appeared indicating trac control and trac system maintanence. After exiting the highway the vehicle made a loud popping and screeching noise when making a sharp turn, the wheel became more difficult to turn and was physically challenging. Realizing the severity of the situation and feeling the loss of control behind the wheel I attempted to pull into a parking lot when the steering completely locked up. The wheel wouldn't budge and I was left stranded with the car jacknifed on a side street. A tow truck was required to remove the car from the street and I had to remove myself and my 4 week old baby from the car and to safety while waiting for an alternate ride. Very scary and upsetting. Thankfully it did not happen on the interstate or it could have resulted in a potentially fatal accident.

- Monroe, GA, USA

problem #114

Sep 132017

Explorer

  • miles
Steering wheel assist fault. The steering just can't turn. It seems to me that manufacture defect. I almost get involved in a terrible accident while driving in hwy. Traction is off

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #113

Sep 012017

Explorer

  • 65,000 miles
The power steering intermittently stopped working. The power steering needs a new steering wheel rack and pinion to properly operate at 65000 miles. There is a recall for this but Ford will not honor my VIN number even though it falls in the year of 2013. This problem makes it unsafe to drive even at low speeds it is hard to steer the wheel. To fix this problem it is $1,500, which will not honor the recall that has been set.

- Auburn, GA, USA

problem #112

Aug 312017

Explorer

  • 127,400 miles
Purchased a used 2013 Ford Explorer XLT with 127,158 miles on it. Drove it for 5 days without problems. On day 6, I drove the car on the freeway for 73-miles. At 127,400 miles I stopped at a burger joint for 35-minutes before resuming my drive to my destination, several warning messages appeared on the information screen when I started the car again. 1)service power steering now. 2) terrain management system failure. 3)service advancetrac. The power steering was dead from that point on. The car was drivable but it took great effort to turn the steering wheel when the car wasn't moving or when making anything more than gradual turns. A search for this problem says that the electric power assisted steering (epas) has died. There was a huge recall to address this problem, but my VIN# is, sadly, not included in that recall. This means that all epas units can be faulty, not just the ones built at the Chicago assembly plant from May 17, 2010 to February 28, 2012. (the identified units of the recall)

- Spokane, WA, USA

problem #111

Aug 312017

Explorer

  • 1 miles
I was driving on a residential street approximately two minutes from my home to run an errand. I was using the hands-free device on my phone as per Texas law. There is one way each way with a yellow double line divider and many people park on the side to check mail walk dogs etc. So I tend to drive so that I won't hit those individuals. The road is curvy and I noticed that I was starting to veer off into the grass and I tried to steer back left and press my brakes at which time I realized that my brakes were not working and I could not get back on the road. I then ran over a fire hydrant which did not decelerate my car nor did it deploy my airbag; continuing to depress the brakes I am then hit a large light post which continued to not decelerate the car and not cause any airbag to deploy, and I still could not turn my wheel to the left (or to the to the roadway); there was a large delivery truck waiting to get into the gated community on the right-hand side and I ran into that vehicle stopping my car and totaling it where are the complete front end of my car was completely destroyed (pushed in) yet my airbags did not deploy. I was going to posted speed of 35 mph as I always do. My car had recently been inspected as required by the state because it is out for renewal in August 2017. I bought the car less than three years ago as a Ford certified used car with a 10 year 100,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty on it. It had less than 67,000 miles on it at the time of the incident. If the truck had not been there to stop my car, there is no other obstruction other then a major highway and I probably would not have survived.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #110

Aug 252017

Explorer

  • 181,721 miles
Loss of steering with code showing advanced trac system fault. Cannot turn steering wheel and blinkers will not come on. It can happen with vehicle in motion or stopped and running. Problem happens randomly and causes the car to be uncontrollable.

- Ponchatoula, LA, USA

problem #109

Aug 202017

Explorer

  • 51,597 miles
Power steering failed while driving on a city street. Warning light came on. Dealership says the power steering assembly needs to be completely replaced. Low mileage...51,597 miles.

- Ada, OK, USA

problem #108

Aug 112017

Explorer

  • miles
When turning the wheel in either direction, there was a grinding noise. It was determined that the gear in the steering assist system needed to be replaced. This is a recall item for the same make, model and year, but I'm being told that my VIN# is not included in the recall.

- Chesapeake, VA, USA

problem #107

Aug 172017

Explorer

  • 69,000 miles
I was parked came back to my car started it and started to back up to pull my car out of parking spot and steering wheel would not turn after backing up and pulling forward. A few seconds later a light came on and blinked power steering fault I shut car off and turned on again same thing. I looked it up and came across a recall for 2013 Ford Explorer but build date only runs through Feb 2012 recall number 14S06 and my car was built in Dec 2012 so I don't fall in the recall. Researched a bit and there are tons of consumers with 2013 Ford Explorer with same fault and they don't fall in the recall just like me. I'm not sure how we all got left when we all have the same exact issue and problems as the people in the recall. I called Ford corporate and received a case number and even though its the same issues as recall they say Ford corporate wont cover it and it costs $1600 to replace the rack and pinon. Very disappointing that Ford treats their consumers this way when there is a lot of people complaining of the same exact issue and the same year car but cut the build date off early. There are a ton of complaints on this site alone not to mention car complaints site. NHTSA should reopen the case and help out the people with the same issue. Thankfully I was in a parking lot going slow when it occured cause I could have got into a terrible accident with all the kids in the car if I was on the main street. This is a safety hazard and should not go overlooked! and a very expensive one at that! I would have never put myself and children in the jeopardy of driving a car with a fault like that if I knew Ford 2013 had such a big safety problem such as this and I am shocked at how many people were left out of the recall and have complained and nothing has been done about it.

- Moorpark, CA, USA

problem #106

May 252017

Explorer

  • 100,000 miles
I lost power to the electric power steering while parked. It needed to be replaced at my own cost.

- Naperville, IL, USA

problem #105

Nov 182016

Explorer

  • 52,000 miles
Ford exhaust I am getting a strong rotten egg smell and a burning smell everytime I drive my car which is a 2013 Ford Explorer limited 4WD it has been getting progressively worse. This happens when I am on the highway and when I am just driving down the street. I am not sure if it gets progressively worse when the car is going faster because it smells all the time. I just had the car toed to dealership because it will not start. In addition I noticed that I have been suffering from headaches, dizzinessand and fatigue while driving which has never happened to me before. Finally I noticed that when there is no power in the car there is no way to open the back tailgate to let people out when you are sitting in the third row of the car so you are trapped back there with the smell.

- Plymouth, MA, USA

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