1999 FORD EXPEDITION Complaints

MY 1999 FORD EXPEDITION HAD A SPARK PLUG SHOOT OUT FROM THE HEAD ON MY WAY TO MY CABIN APRIL 2ND, 2010. I HAVE 2 SMALL CHILDREN AND WAS DRIVING IN A AREA WITH NO CELL COVERAGE OR GAS STATIONS. THE FUMES MADE THE INSIDE OF MY VEHICLE SMELL HORRIBLE AND HAD TO DRIVE TO 17 MILES WITH THE WINDOWS DOWN LATE AT NIGHT. THIS IS A BAD ENGINE FROM FORD, I COULD'VE BEEN WORSE OFF WITH KIDS GETTING SICK FROM GAS FUMES OR BEING STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE. *TR

UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES SUCH AS WINDOW SWITCH WORKING THE WIPERS, DIGITAL ODOMETER GOING OFF AND ON, BRAKES WORKING THE INTERIOR DOME LIGHTS,BLOWER MOTOR FOR HEATER COMING ON WITHOUT A KEY EVEN IN THE IGNITION,DOOR LOCKS DON'T ENGAGE UNTIL MOVING FOR A MINUTE OR TWO,AFTER BLOWER MOTOR KICKED ON WITHOUT A KEY, TOOK TO SHOP AND THEY SAID WATER HAD GOTTEN IN THE POWER DIST. BOX AND FLOORBOARD HAD MOISTURE ALSO. WILL COST ME OVER 700.00 BUT I CANT AFFORD TO FIX ON MY 600.00 DISABILITY CHECK I GET A MONTH. THANKS FORD!!! *TR

ENGINE BLEW OUT A SPARKPLUG JUST LIKE THE OTHER REPORTS. COST ME AROUND 900.00 GET RUNNING AGAIN. MECHANIC TOLD ME FORD KNOWS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM BECAUSE THEY A REPAIR KIT JUST FOR THIS PROBLEM. *TR

1999 FORD EXPEDITION WITH THE 5.4L TRITON ENGINE BLEW OUT A FACTORY INSTALLED ORIGINAL SPARK PLUG CAUSING A ENGINE FIRE. THIS SEEMS TO BE COMMON AMONG THIS PARTICULAR ENGINE. FORD WILL NOT ACKNOWLEDGE A DEFECT IN THE DESIGN, BUT ONLINE RESEARCH CONCLUDES THIS PROBLEM IS WIDESPREAD AND VERY DANGEROUS. FORD SHOULD BE COMPELLED TO RECALL THESE ENGINES AND REPAIR OR REPLACE THE ENGINE AT NO COST TO THE CUSTOMER. *TR

THIS IS THE SECOND TIME I'VE HAD A SPARK PLUG EJECT FROM THE CYLINDER HEAD DUE TO THE POOR THREADING IN THE CYLINDER HEAD! IT COST ME $3,000 FOR THE FIRST FIX, AND NOW MAYBE ANOTHER $3,000!!! THIS WAS THE SECOND ONE TO HAVE DONE THIS IN A 3 YEAR SPAN, IT DAMAGED THE CYLINDER HEAD AND IGNITION COIL ALONG WITH DAMAGING MY FUEL RAIL. THE FIRST TIME THIS HAD HAPPENED WE HAD TO TAKE IT INTO THE SHOP AND HAVE THE ENTIRE CYLINDER HEAD REPLACED ALONG WITH IGNITION COIL GASKETS ECT. THE BILL WAS $3,220. *TR

MY SON EXITED THE PUBLIX GROCERY STORE WHERE HE WAS WORKING AND FOUND THAT OUR 1999 FORD EXPEDITION WAS ON FIRE WITH NO ONE IN THE VEHICLE WITH THE KEYS IN HIS POCKET. THE FLAMES WERE COMING FROM THE ENGINE DEPARTMENT. FOUR SMALL FIRE EXTINGUISHERS WERE NOT ABLE TO EXTINGUISH THE FIRE, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED, AS WELL AS DAMAGE TO THE TWO VEHICLES PARKED ON EITHER SIDE. WE WERE HAVING NO MECHANICAL TROUBLE WITH THE VEHICLE AT ALL, IN FACT, WE HAD JUST REPLACED THE FOUR TIRES THE DAY BEFORE. THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE VEHICLE REGARDING THE CRUISE CONTROL, WHICH WE HAD COMPLIED WITH BY IMMEDIATELY TAKING THE VEHICLE TO OUR LOCAL FORD DEALERSHIP FOR THE RECALL, WHERE IT WAS TAKEN CARE OF. SUPPOSEDLY THE PROBLEM OF UNEXPECTED FIRES WAS CORRECTED. FORTUNATELY THERE WERE NO INJURIES OR FATALITIES THAT OCCURRED AS A RESULT OF THIS INCIDENT. THANK GOODNESS THE VEHICLE WAS NOT PARKED IN OUR GARAGE WHEN THIS FIRE OCCURRED. IT HAS CAUSED US A GREAT DEAL OF UNNEEDED AGGRAVATION, TIME AND UNAVAILABLE COSTS INVOLVED IN ACCOMMODATING OUR SON'S RESPONSIBILITY TO GET TO AND FROM WORK, ALONG WITH OUR OWN RESPONSIBILITIES. *TR

THIS COMPLAINT IS IN REFERENCE TO OUR 1999 FORD EXPEDITION. MY WIFE STARTED OUT ON HER DAILY DRIVE TO WORK. AS USUAL, SHE ALLOWED THE VEHICLE TO WARM UP FOR 10 MINUTES BEFORE LEAVING. ABOUT 1 BLOCK FROM OUR HOME, SHE HEARD A POP AND THE VEHICLE STARTED TO SHAKE, RUN ROUGH, RATTLED AND LOSE POWER. SHE ALSO HAD TROUBLE STEERING THE VEHICLE BECAUSE OF THE LOSS IN POWER. SHE WAS ABLE TO RETURN HOME WITHOUT ANY FURTHER INCIDENT. I INSPECTED THE VEHICLE LATER IN THE DAY AND FOUND THAT THE 2ND SPARK PLUG FROM THE FRONT OF THE ENGINE ON THE PASSENGER SIDE HAD BLOWN OUT OF THE HEAD AND DAMAGED THE COIL. I AM REPORTING THIS INCIDENT BECAUSE I HAVE READ OF MANY FORD OWNERS WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS SAME FAILURE. THIS VEHICLE RECEIVED A TUNE-UP AT APPROXIMATELY 92000 MILE IN 2006. IT CURRENTLY HAS AROUND 130000 MILES. *TR

THE FLARED PORTION OF THE TERMINATOR FOB ON THE RETAINING/RETRACTING CABLE FOR THE SPARE TIRE FRACTURED AND SEPARATED ON MY 1999 FORD EXPEDITION EDDIE BAUER (I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER). *TR AS A RESULT, THE SPARE TIRE AND THE METAL CROSSPIECE RETAINER DROPPED ONTO THE STREET PAVEMENT, AND IN FRONT OF ONCOMING VEHICLES, WHICH SWERVED AND AVOIDED COLLIDING WITH THE LOOSE SPARE TIRE. I AM JUST GLAD, AND FORTUNATE, THAT THE SPARE TIRE DID NOT BOUNCE INTO THE AIR, OR END UP CRASHING THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD OF AN ONCOMING VEHICLE. THERE ARE NUMEROUS REPORTS OF SIMILAR, IF NOT IDENTICAL INCIDENTS OF THIS SPARE TIRE CABLE BREAKAGE POSTED ON THE INTERNET. ACCORDING TO THE OWNERS MANUAL, THE CRANK MECHANISM IS DRIVEN USING THE JACK HANDLE, AND IT IS SUPPOSED TO "RATCHET" WHEN THE SPARE TIRE BECOMES SNUG AGAINST THE VEHICLE UNDERCARRIAGE, PREVENTING OVER TENSION ON THE CRANK MECHANISM AND CABLE. UPON INSPECTION, THERE WERE NO SIGNS OF RUST, OR CORROSION, OR ATTEMPTED THEFT OR TAMPERING. A SMALL COLLAR PORTION OF THE TERMINATOR FOB REMAINED ON THE CABLE, WHILE FLARED PORTION BROKE AND SLIPPED OFF OF THE END OF THE CABLE. THERE ARE NOT ANY ADDITIONAL SAFETY DEVICES ON THE VEHICLE THAT RETAIN THE SPARE TIRE IN THE EVENT THE CABLE FAILS. DURING THE 2001 FIRESTONE TIRE RECALL, THE DEALER REPLACED ALL FIVE TIRES, WHICH INCLUDED THE SPARE TIRE. OTHERWISE, THE CRANK MECHANISM HAS NOT BEEN USED. I SEARCHED BUT FAILED TO FIND A REPORTED GOVERNMENT RECALL OF THIS CABLE AT HTTP://WWW.RECALLS.GOV/SEARCH.HTML. TO REPAIR THE CABLE END, I CREATED MY OWN TERMINATOR FOB USING AN ELECTRICAL SPLIT-BOLT SIZED TO THE DIAMETER OF THE CABLE. I FASHIONED A J SHAPE IN THE CABLE TO FORM A LOOP AND PLACED A SMALL SCREW THROUGH THE LOOP TO PREVENT PULL-THROUGH, ADDED A FEW DROPS OF BLUE LOCKTITE TO THE THREADS OF THE SPLIT-BOLT, AND CINCHED UP THE SPLIT-BOLT. *TR

WHILE SITTING IN TRAFFIC IN DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI, I HEARD A LOUD "POP" UNDER MY HOOD AND THEN MY TRUCK SOUNDED LIKE A STEAM ENGINE. I ALSO BEGAN TO SMELL RAW GASOLINE. I PULLED TO THE CURB AND CHECKED UNDER THE HOOD. DRIVERS SIDE REAR SPARK PLUG HAD BLOWN OUT, BREAKING OFF THE COIL PACK. GAS HAD SPRAYED ONTO THE SIDE OF MY ENGINE. MECHANIC ADVISED THAT IT WAS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS ENGINE. MANUFACTURED WITH AS FEW AS 4 THREADS TO HOLD IN A SPARK PLUG. THIN WALLED ALUMINUM CYLINDER HEADS ARE A VERY POOR DESIGN. FORD ADVISED THAT THEY WERE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM, BUT HAD NO INTENTIONS OF A RECALL. *TR

I OWN A 1999 FORD EXPEDITION, LAST YEAR THE NUMBER 3 PLUG POPPED AND HAD TO BE RETHREADED AND NOW WE HAVE A DIFFERENT POPPED PLUG THAT NEEDS REPAIR. THE FIRST REPAIR COST $800 AND I HAD TO RENT A CAR. FOR THIS SECOND REPAIR I BROUGHT THE TRUCK TO TWO REPAIR GARAGES AND NEITHER MECHANIC COULD REPAIR THIS PLUG BECAUSE IT COULD NOT BE REACHED. HOW CAN I BE COMPENSATED DUE TO THIS BEING A KNOWN PROBLEM AND A SECOND OCCURRENCE IN MY VEHICLE? *TR