10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
1,888 miles

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problem #25

May 032024

Explorer

  • miles
Vehicle "service required" light (wrench) displayed on vehicle when commuting from work to home on a Friday. Light went off next time vehicle was used, so vehicle was used to commute from home to work. During this commute, light came on approximately 25 miles from home, and then 25 miles from work (commute is 32 miles 1 way). Driver stopped vehicle and once vehicle turned off, light went off. Local Dealership was contacted (Ryan) was able to diagnose issue over computer, stating 1. the vehicle (parts are not communicating with each other) and then the light is from transmission pump overheating. He stated this is common (transmission issue) with 2020 Ford Explorers. I did research and this is correct. We agreed to bring vehicle in to be checked out instead of driving it any further. I also asked if any dealer vehicles were having issues filling up fuel at the local gas station (they fuel all vehicles there), since recently the gas pump would stop filling after 2-3 gallons when vehicle was further empty. I said this has happened 3-4 times in the last few weeks (vehicle is filled up 2x a week). Upon review, Ryan found 2 TSB (bulletins) for the vehicle and explained these are again issues with this vehicles. 1-TSB 20-2337 Automatic Transmission Clutch, Coolant Pump. 2-TSB-22-2433 Fuel filler neck and housing for the fuel filling system. I have contacted number given by previous Service Manager (Jim) 1-800-392-3673 and either customer service personnel where: upset I received this number, stating this is a dealership only number to call them. Finally given the information since vehicle was fixed/corrected prior to contacting them (dealership personnel requirement) they were not able to help-stating the department helps in financial situations only. Phone calls to the above number 3-5 times. I research and found a general number for Ford (866-436-7332), getting case [XXX}. Cust. Service Specialist Amber told me they will not help and to contact INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMA

- Eureka, IL, USA

problem #24

Apr 082024

Explorer

  • miles
Vehicle caught fire while parked after driving.

- Bel Air, MD, USA

problem #23

Nov 082023

Explorer

  • miles
Adding gas to my FORD EXPLORER 2020 Limited EcoBoost 4WD, is almost impossible. We just purchased this vehicle used in November 2023. No matter what gas station we use, no matter how slow we fill, the nozzle continuously clicks off every few seconds. We use the funnel that came with the vehicle & the gasoline consistently spills out along the side of the vehicle. The only way to get gas in the tank is with the funnel at the slowest fill possible. When the tank is on the fuller side, it sloshes around incredibly loud & there-??s also a knocking sound on the driver side under the steering wheel area. I-??ve looked online & have seen so many others that have these same issues. Took the car back to the dealership, they attempted to fill up the tank themselves and were just as confused as I was on how difficult it was to fill the tank.

- Clarksville, TN, USA

problem #22

Oct 122023

Explorer

  • miles
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

problem #21

Aug 012023

Explorer

  • miles
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

problem #20

Sep 182023

Explorer

  • miles
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

problem #19

Apr 042020

Explorer

  • miles
In April 2020, I brought my car into the Lafayette Ford Dealership in Fayetteville, NC bc I had been experiencing issues with the car moving when it was not supposed to. I would start the car with my foot on the brake, switch it into reverse/drive and *without taking my foot off the brake* the car would jerk forward or back, depending on if I was in reverse or drive. The event that caused me to bring my car into the dealership occured while I was in front of my garage. I had my foot on the break, and was planning to adjust my direction toward the garage when my car propelled forward and took a hit that resulted in bad damage to my driver side bumper. The dealership held my car for over a week and was not able to replicate the problem, so they told me my car was fine. I have since mentioned this problem every time I get my car serviced to see if there have been any similar complaints and nobody has shared anything. At my last service appointment, they updated my firmware so that the car keeps the emergency brake on until I disengage it, which nullifies the issues that I had been having. Today I can across the following article that sounds exactly like the cause of the damage to my car. What are my options for taking this information to Ford to have them acknowledge the fault and fix the damage? Thank you. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2023/06/25/ford-explorer-recall-investigation-nhtsa/70354653007/

- Freeport, FL, USA

problem #18

Aug 172023

Explorer

  • miles
This is my third complaint regarding the same issue, driving on the freeway today the gas pedal was not responsive leading to a drop of speed almost getting hit from behind, don't know what to do, I'm getting nervous to use my car because the problem comes with no notice (see complaint [XXX], [XXX] and [XXX] ) hopefully I will not get in a serious accident before something is done. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #17

Jul 312023

Explorer

  • miles
Fuel gauge on electronic instrument panel shows empty at all times. Driver can run out of gas without warning. Vehicle OBDC shows fuel sensor fault, local dealer claims a faulty instrument cluster with very costly repair. No warnings before this happened. Just Fuel light coming on, check engine light coming on and fuel level showing Zero.

- Statesboro, GA, USA

problem #16

Jul 292023

Explorer

  • miles
There have been a few times when the gas pedal (accelerator) isn-??t responsive. I have pressed the accelerator to the floor a few times and there has been a long delay in response from the engine and when it did respond it was at a lower rpm then expected when the pedal is to the floor. It has occurred when the vehicle is at a stop and the accelerator is pressed to hard. This has occurred multiple times.

- Orchard Park, NY, USA

problem #15

Jul 212023

Explorer

  • miles
Previously filed reports 11521566 and 11494044, stating problem with no response from the accelerator pedal, it happened several times again, at different speeds and different driving modes, should I wait to be involved in an accident to sue the company directly or what other recourse do I have? Have taken the car different times and mentioned the problem but they say "we found nothing wrong" the car is out of warranty now and have seen reports of transmission problems that should have caused a recall.

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #14

May 012023

Explorer

  • miles
engine does not respond when trying to pass slower traffic, press the gas pedal several times with no response, car started to slow down with fast traffic behind/sides on the freeway, took more than 20 seconds to respond to gas pedal input almost causing an accident

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #13

Nov 162022

Explorer

  • miles
Car did not respond to accelerator while driving on the freeway causing the car to decelerate on traffic creating a dangerous situation, other cars honked and swerved around

- San Diego, CA, USA

problem #12

Mar 012021

Explorer

  • 750 miles
When stopping, moving slow or pulling into a parking spot or garage you can hear and feel the fuel in the tank sloshing back and forth. This happens when the fuel tank is at least 1/2 full and is very noticeable but seems to go away when fuel is under 1/2 tank.

- Medina, OH, USA

problem #11

Feb 112021

Explorer

  • miles
When parking vehicle or backing out of garage slowly, you hear fuel sloshing under the front seats like there is no baffle in the tank. Very very noticeable and also mentioned on this site from other Ford owners. A tsb should be issued by Ford immediately as they did for the same issue with tsb 18-2378. This is not a normal condition and it's a cop out for Ford not to address this problem that they have had in other Ford products and this one now as well!!

- Hampstead, NH, USA

problem #10

Jan 302021

Explorer

  • 5,687 miles
I took my car to the bank and parked in the parking lot and while I went to the atm I left the car running I wasn't away from the car for more then three minutes and when I got back in the car it started sputtering and then just shut off. I tried to start it back up but upon doing so the vehicle wouldn't turn over. The engine sounded like it wanted to turn over but wouldn't. I tried this a bunch of times until the tow truck arrived( about an hour) but every time the vehicle still wouldn't turn over. Just continued to make the engine noise then would shut off.

- Lake George, NY, USA

problem #9

Dec 172020

Explorer

  • 651 miles
Vehicle will not start when parked on driveway w/ nose facing street if there is less than about a quarter of a tank of gas in it. When tried to many times the dash reads cranking limit exceeded. Vehicle was towed to dealership - 2021 loaner was provided and the same issue happened. Dealership also advised they had another customer with a 2021 Explorer have the same issue a week prior. Was told to park my car in street and not use driveway or to always have more than a quarter tank of gas. These are not acceptable answers

- Monroe, NJ, USA

problem #8

Nov 252020

Explorer

  • 7,300 miles
Vehicle has been in multiple repair shops multiple times for fuel pump, electrical, and power train problems. The first time it shut down in the middle of a parking lot, it was towed was at 1720 miles. It currently has 7772 miles. I would get it out of the shop one day the car would either have the same warning lights appear or break down totally. Prime example picked it up on Monday, November 23, 2020 and it started experiencing problems on the 24th as soon as the gas warning light came on the car shut off at 65 mph and all the cabin lights came on inside the car. I managed to get it restarted after 20 minutes around 8:15 pm and get to a gas station and I put gas in it and the gas warning lights went out. Then shut down completely at 70 mph on the 25th on highway 421 near yadkinville, nc. Warning lights would appear at the moment the car shuts down. (near hit by a tractor-trailer that swerved to miss hitting me.) had it towed to two separate Ford dealerships. The first said they could not work on it because it was a holiday and they knew I was out-of-town from Virginia. The second dealership inquired about the problem. Ohmed out the fuel component and discovered the connector was defective on the fuel pump and it had been wired improperly and replaced the missing screws on the fuel pump. The shop rewired the component correctly and the vehicle runs. I still consider the car unsafe because I can still feel the powertrain jerk subtlety.

- Stafford, VA, USA

problem #7

Sep 252020

Explorer

  • 12,100 miles
Received malfunction indicator lamp- regulatory

- Argyle, TX, USA

problem #6

Mar 052020

Explorer

  • 12,600 miles
Transmission issues again. Same broken / cracked weld at transmission oil cooler. Part replaced. This is the vehicle's 3rd oil cooler (we're at 12,600 miles now)

- Houston, TX, USA

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