10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 2 / 4
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 5,586 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
2020 Explorer VIN: [XXX] Summary [Recall] Back Over Prevention: Sensing System: Camera Description The remedy is under development. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed june 26, 2023. Owners may contact ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23s23. This recall expands and replaces nhtsa recall number 23v-022. Vehicles previously repaired under 23v-022 will need to have the new remedy performed. Owners may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov. Read less
- Long Beach , CA, USA
2020 Ford Explorer purchased in January 2021. Since owning this vehicle, we have experienced numerous (10+) situations where at a light or entering traffic with our foot on the brake pedal and waiting to proceed the car starts to acerate on its own and jump forward 4'-6' before it stops. I have visited my dealer Jones Ford in Charleston, SC and reported this issue a couple of times over the past few years. As usual they were unable to replicate the issue in shop or find a service code that relates to this problem. On Thursday, [XXX], 2023, while horizontally parking my vehicle in Georgetown, SC in front of an electrical pole (with support wires holding it in place), with my foot on the brake pedal coming to a stop, the engine accelerated and jumped the curb hitting the steel wires causing damage to my front and right side. The following Monday, [XXX] I brought the Explorer into the dealer to investigate the problem since it was still under an extended warranty. After spending a week at the dealer, they return the vehicle unable to find anything wrong and charged me over $200 for a service inspection (Invoice Included). At that point I contacted Ford Customer Service directly and after numerous calls and emails they denied that anything was wrong with my Explorer and closed the case (email included). Since January 2024, I have incurred 5 additional occurrences, and the last one was last week while I was parking the car in reverse...it jumped and struck the parked vehicle behind me. Thank goodness there was no damage to either vehicle. Over the past weekend in continuing to research this problem I came across an AP Article from June 2023 discussing this problem with 2020-22 Ford Explorers (article included). This is why I am lodging this complaint; Ford was well a where of this dangerous situation that my wife and I faced over the years. When the vehicle would accelerate it was very scary, and you honestly were not positive the car would stop. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT
- Mount Pleasant, SC, USA
Vehicle caught fire while parked after driving.
- Bel Air, MD, USA
The factory welds at passenger outlet on the exhaust broke.
- Moses Lake, WA, USA
I bought my 2020 Ford Explorer Platinum new in November of 2020--right during the COVID pandemic when businesses weren't opened, so there was no place to go for the largest time. I had already retired from my job of [XXX] years. I have another vehicle, Jeep Wrangler, which I try to drive, too. My Explorer only has 7,818 miles on it and my 2018 Jeep Wrangler has 10,681 miles--the point I'm trying to make is I don't go anyplace that much! I have noticed for quite sometime, my Explorer has a burning smell and the hood and front side would be so hot--it was too hot to touch! I only drive about 9 miles to the local grocery store or Walmart and by the time I get home and pull it in the garage. it's hot and smells light something burning/scorched. I'm afraid it's going to catch on fire and cause my house to burn. About two years ago, I took it over to my dealer which was at that time Bob Bowen Ford in Brazil, IN. The service manager is a dud and doesn't seem to care about troubleshooting problems. They did take the vehicle in their shop and supposedly looked at it but told me it was probably some oil that had spilled over, causing that hot smell. No, that is not the reason. The other day I had the hood up, when the heat or air conditioning is on, it starts throwing out really hot, very hot air. I also want to say the hood does not have a safety latch on it which could be another concern! I also noticed that at the top inside the vehicle, it says the passenger air bag is off. I've tried to figure out how to turn it on, but I can't find any instructions on doing that. Then, of course, like you already know, the recall on the rear camera has not been fixed. I received my letter from Ford dated November 2023, that the parts were available to repair my vehicle. I called my Ford dealer on [XXX] about getting that recall fixed and they said they couldn't get the parts. I'm going to take my Explorer over this week and let them know there is a problem. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATIO
- Terre Haute, IN, USA
[XXX] My Ford Explorer had engine failure on the highway, just as I had entered it. The dashboard read powertrain malfunction, engine overheat, and service engine. My vehicle went from 60 mph to almost a complete stop on the highway. I had almost a dozen cars nearly rear end me as this happened. Getting off the road was just as dangerous as it only went 10mph max on the busy highway I was nearly hit several times. The vehicle was taken to an automotive shop for diagnosis. There was oil in the coolant tank and cracked head gasket, needing a new engine. The automotive shop called the ford dealer to confirm it was under warranty and was towed to the dealer at my expense [XXX]. Was told February 9th that parts were ordered for repairs. I asked the service rep Mike for a list of parts being replaced and the cause of the engine failure, he would not give me an answer and said he'd call me back. [XXX] I then asked Crystal R at Ford customer service the same questions, she said she would get back to me [XXX]. As of [XXX] Ford customer service representatives, and employees at Red McCombs Ford have gone no contact with me. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
- San Antonio, TX, USA
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. While attempting to restart the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start. The contact had the vehicle towed from the middle of the road to an independent mechanic. The mechanic found that the oil pan was drenched in excess oil indicating a possible oil leak. The mechanic diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the engine and turbo chargers needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure where it was confirmed that the VIN was not included in any recall. The manufacturer was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 68,000.
- Chandler, AZ, USA
There is an exhaust leak under the car that propagates into the ventilation system and also when a door is open while idling. This is a known issue for some models with the 3.0L engine under emission recall (21E11), but does not include my VIN even though the powertrain is identical. Dealer replaced some flex tubing to try and correct, but that did not work. It's a safety issue because the smell is strong and there's no way to tell how much carbon monoxide is present to the passengers.
- Huntsville , AL, USA
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle experienced a hard downshift and failed to accelerate as needed. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with catastrophic engine failure. The contact stated that the vehicle remained with the dealer unrepaired due to the cost of the repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
- Mcleansville, NC, USA
January of 2023, 30,000 miles took the car in for oil change and for a complaint of exhaust noise and smell coming from just behind the engine. Dealer checked and stated they found no issues. December of 2023 43,000 miles on a cold day noticed exhaust vapors coming from under the car in the area of the noise. Found the pipes, NMZ-5G203-A and dash -B to be broken at the expandable joints. This corresponds to both my wife and I experiencing head aches/excessive sleepiness while driving long distances. Made an appointment for January 04, 2024 at Tom Peck Ford Clinton WI. The pipes were found defective and replaced at a cost of~$600. Given the left side had a recall on the police version 3.0L, why was a recall not made for the passenger models with the same engine? Have noted the issue reported on the NHTSA sight often. Recall 21E11. Ford also issued a CSP TSB 21B35 which referenced the Police and ST models with the 3.0L engine, but the parts are the same for the Platinum version. Also noted the -B part as now been updated to a dash -C. It is clear from the reports on the NHTSA and various Explorer forums the flexible connection is a failure point that could lead to an accident or death. The is a far more serious issue than the chrome pieces on the window up and down buttons causing some cut fingers. I cannot download the documents or pictures.
- Roscoe, IL, USA
Car became unresponsive to accelerator while trying to pass on the freeway, lost speed and had cars around me going 65+ mph, this is not the first time this had happened, have filed several reports and have not heard about a fix to this, getting nervous using this car and I don't know what recourse I have, dealer unable to duplicate the problem and almost got involved in an accident again, please advise. See complaint 11539225, 11533701, 11521566, 11494044
- San Diego, CA, USA
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the vehicle experienced a hard downshift which caused the vehicle to jerk and independently shift into park. The contact smelled an abnormal burning odor. The vehicle lost power motive and stalled. The contact pulled over and was able to restart the vehicle. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a dealer. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 83,000.
- Brundidge, AL, USA
My 2020 Explorer ST has been in the shop off and on for three months. The engine had to be replaced at about 45K miles. The transmission whines. The latest issue occurred while driving in downtown Chicago. I was coming up on a light and moved to the left turn lane to turn into oncoming traffic. When I went to go - I pressed the pedal and nothing happened. I ended up rolling into oncoming traffic when finally, the vehicle responded. On the way home this happened about 10 times on the interstate. It would happen when you quickly decelerate and then accelerate after the transmission downshifted. The loss of responsiveness lasted about 5-10 seconds each time and was accompanied by a loud clicking sound under the vehicle. It is still at the dealership and waiting to hear back from them.
- Indianapolis, IN, USA
Vehicle would suddenly slam on breaks when breaking and stalled changing gears. We have had it looked at and it is in engine failure - the vehicle is only 3 years old.
- Lincolnton, NC, USA
Reporting a loss of motive power and loss of transmission torque to the rear wheels from my Explorer that had been remedied with the PCM software update. Experience a surge forward nearly striking another vehicle. Contacted my Ford Dealer who advised that I must wait for a letter and instructions from thereafter. I have several trips planned with family and feel this is unfair ( prolonged fix and intial fix didn't work) and unsafe but I need my vehicle.
- North Port, FL, USA
The 2020 ford Explorer eco boost limited that we have has had many issues that we are concerned about. Our number one concern is when we accelerate on the freeway to get up to speed we have a rotten eggs/ perm smell. We have taken this into the ford service department and they were able to recreate the smell and had the ford master mechanics look at it. The smell is a sigh of a catalytic converter going out according to other mechanics on other vehicles. They have gave us the excuse that it is the way the vehicle smells when you accelerate. It is a strong odor that makes the passengers in the vehicle verbally ask what is throat smell. My specialty in my career has brought up the question that I don-??t know the smell and is it harmful. What could the long term effects have on me and or my family and kids. It-??s a very displeasing smell and to hear the ford dealership tell us that it-??s just the way the vehicle smells is a little frustrating knowing that we bought a vehicle that may have an issue and is not performing the way it is designed to. Also we have had issues with the electronics in the vehicle where the passenger mirror continues to extend beyond the set position. If you are not paying attention and look to use your mirror while driving you will not be able to see where the mirror is designed to show. Ford after a while of back and forth not wanting to fix it finally fixed it he issue by replacing a new mirror. We have had connection issues from the main computer and our tailgate will randomly open while getting our kids in the car. It has not done it while driving yet but we expect it to. We have taken it in for those reasons but they have not been able to fix it.
- Peoria , AZ, USA
While driving around town when I am coming to a stop either at a red light or stop sign or even in the drive through at a restaurant I am getting a message that says "shift to P, then Restart Engine" and then the car just shut's off and I have to put it in park and restart the car. After restarting the car sometimes is very sluggish as if it is not going to get through the intersection or starting from a stop... this is in my opinion a very serious problem and a safety risk for not just myself and family but that also of the general public.
- Apopka, FL, USA
Vehicle lost power while driving at 75mph on major highway. Received power train malfunction warning light. Had to tow car to dealership and wait 9 days for the service technician to determine a repair. Now my parking brake light keeps coming on.
- Kimball, MI, USA
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at approximately 55 MPH, there was a beeping sound for the Hill Start Assist warning Power Train collision assist not available. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the axle disconnect actuator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
- Orosi, CA, USA
- Marathon, WI, USA