1993 FORD EXPLORER Complaints

WHILE DRIVING APPROX. 60-65MPH RIGHT REAR TIRE BLEW & THE TREAD HAD SEPARATED. LOST CONTROL OF VEHICLE FOR A WHILE. HIT SIDE OF ROAD. NO ACCIDENT OR INJURIES. HAPPENED 3 YRS AGO & HAD 60,000 MILES. REPLACED THE ORIGINAL TIRE WITH SAME TYPE OF FIRESTONE ATX. THE 2ND TIME WAS THE LEFT REAR TIRE AT SAME SPEED & 100,000 MILES. ALSO REPLACED TIRE 1 1/2 YRS AGO WITH SAME TYPE OF FIRESTONE ATX. HAVE NO PROBLEM, YET, WITH THIRD SET OF FIRESTONE. THE FIRESTONE ATX LT22575R15 WERE THE SIZE. DID NOT REPORT TO DEALER, TIRE CO. OR INSURANCE COMPANY. DO NOT HAVE THE TIRE OR DOT NUMBER. *AK

PE00-020, FIRESTONE ATX TIRE TREAD SEPARATION; WHILE DRIVING ABOUT 65 MPH, TREAD ON THE LEFT FRONT TIRE CAME OFF. DRIVER WAS ABLE TO CONTROL TRUCK AND NO ONE WAS HURT. OWNER BELIEVED THAT TIRE WAS ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT. OWNER REPLACED ALL FOUR TIRES ON THE TRUCK WITH OTHER FIRESTONE ATX TIRES. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER INFORMATON.*AK

I'M TRYING TO FIND THE RECALLS ON MY AUTO. NO SAFETY DEFECT MENTIONED IN SUMMARY. *AK

TRANSMISION FAILED GOING UP A HILL AND ALL TRANSMISION FLUID WAS LOST AT ONLY 78000 MILES. TRANSMISION HAD TO BE REPLACED. VEHICLE ALSO HAS ABNORMAL SHAKING ABOVE 55 MPH.*AK

DRIVER SEAT BELT BUCKLE AND THE RETRACTOR WERE BROKEN. PASSENGER'S SIDE SEATBELT RETRACTOR WORKED INTERMITTENTLY, AND BUCKLE DOESN'T RESPOND TO THE BOTTOM. CONSUMER STATED THAT SHE HAD TO USE A KNIFE IN ORDER TO GET LOOSE OF THE PASSENGER'S SIDE SEATBELT. REAR MIDDLE SEATBELT WILL GO INSIDE OF THE RETRACTOR, BUT IT WLL NOT RELEASE PROPERLY.*AK

PREMATURE HEAD GASKET FAILURE IS APPARENTLY A COMMON FORD PROBLEM. THIS HEAD GASKET BLEW AT ONLY 70,000 MILES ON A 6-YEAR OLD VEHICLE. THIS IS TOO EARLY FOR THIS TYPE OF PROBLEM TO HAPPEN. IT COULD BE A FLUKE, BUT THERE ARE INTERNET SITES ABOUT FORD VEHICLES WITH THIS SAME PROBLEM. REPAIRS ARE VERY COSTLY FOR PARTS THAT SHOULDN'T HAVE GONE BAD IN THE FIRST PLACE. THIS VEHICLE WAS NOT EVER DRIVEN ROUGHLY OR PUT UNDER UNUSUAL STRESS--JUST CITY DRIVING. I THINK THAT THERE IS A REAL PROBLEM WITH FORD HEAD GASKETS THAT SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED. THANK YOU.*AK

FIRESTONE ATX TIRE P235/75R15 EXPERIENCED TREAD SEPARATION, OWNER REPORTING THAT THE VEHICLE HAD THREE SETS OF THESE TIRES. ON THE SECOND SET OF TIRES AFTER 40,000 MILES OF WEAR AT HIGHWAY SPEED OF 55 MPH, DRIVER NOTICED A FLAPPING SOUND AND WAS ABLE TO SLOW DOWN AND PULL OVER, FOUND TREAD SEPARATING FROM THE TIRE. LAST TWO SETS WERE BROUGHT FROM A TIRE STORE. TIRE NOT AVAILABE FOR INSPECTION. *AK *SLC

RIGHT REAR TIRE BLEW OUT VEHICLE FISH TAILED, FLIP OVER ON THE DRIVER SIDE THEN BACKUP, RUBBER PEELED OFF LIKE A RECAP, THEN THE LEFT FRONT TIRE WENT FLAT.

TOTAL FAILURE OF EMERGENCY PARKING BRAKE - WENT TO APPLY BRAKE AND THE PEDAL WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR WITHOUT ENGAGING BRAKE; REPEATED ATTEMPTS UNSUCCESSFUL - THE VEHICLE WHEN STOPPED CAN ONLY BE KEPT FROM MOVING BY THE FOOT BRAKE, OR PLACING THE VEHICLE IN GEAR. THIS DEFECT IS THE SUBJECT OF PRIOR RECALL (NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID 94V169000) COVERING THE SAME FAILURE. THIS RECALL WORK WAS COMPLETED ON MY VEHICLE IN 1994. BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THE RECALL WORK WAS DONE, MY VEHICLE EXPERIENCED THE INTERMITTENT FAILURE OF THE PARKING BRAKE TO ENGAGE, BUT RELEASING THE PEDAL AND RE-APPLYING WOULD ALWAYS WORK. NOW, THERE HAS BEEN A COMPLETE FAILURE OF THE PEDAL SYSTEM AND FORD & THE DEALER INDICATE THAT THIS IS NOT COVERED BY THE ABOVE-REFERENCED RECALL SINCE THE WORK WAS ALREADY DONE. THIS FAILURE IS A SAFETY HAZARD! *AK

CAR WAS PARKED WITH ENGINE RUNNING ON MY RESIDENTIAL DRIVEWAY IN PARK. I GOT OUT OF THE CAR TO BRIEFLY GO INTO THE HOUSE TO GET MY SON. I WALKED FROM THE CAR INTO THE GARAGE, AND WAS ABOUT TO ENTER THE HOUSE THROUGH THE DOOR INSIDE THE GARAGE WHEN I SAW THE CAR ROLLING INTO THE GARAGE. I TRIED TO GET INTO THE CAR TO APPLY THE BRAKES, BUT THE CAR HIT THE WATER HEATER. THE WATER HEATER WAS MOVED OFF ITS BASE AND INTO THE WALL. DAMAGE TO THE WATER HEATER, GARAGE WALL AND INTERIOR UTILITY ROOM WALL OCCURED AS WELL AS DAMAGE TO MY EXPLORER. I HAVE TRIED ON MANY OCCASIONS TO DUPLICATE THE CONDITION BUT CANNOT. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO PUT THE CAR INTO DRIVE AND GET OUT WITHOUT THE CAR IMMEDIATELY ROLLING FORWARD. THE DRIVEWAY HAS A SLOPE GOING AWAY FROM THE GARAGE AND YET IT STILL IMMEDIATELY ROLLS FORWARD. IN FACT, IT ROLLS FORWARD FASTER THAN I CAN WALK AT A NORMAL PACE. HOWEVER, I HAD WALKED APPROXIMATELY 40 FEET WHEN I NOTICED IT COMING TO ME THE DAY OF THE INCIDENT. I'VE TRIED TO DUPLICATE THIS WITH BOTH A COLD AND WARM ENGINE, BUT CANNOT. IN OTHER WORDS, IT ALWAYS ROLLS FORWARD AS SOON AS I RELEASE THE BRAKE WHILE IN DRIVE. THIS SHOWS ME THAT I COULDN'T HAVE LEFT IT IN DRIVE. IF I WOULD HAVE LEFT IT IN REVERSE OR NEUTRAL, IT WOULD HAVE GONE BACKWARD. I LEFT IT IN PARK, BUT SOMEHOW IT WENT FORWARD, AFTER I LEFT THE CAR AND WALKED SOME DISTANCE. I'VE CONTACTED FORD MOTOR AND THEY SAY THEY CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT UNLESS MY INSURANCE COMPANY FILES A COMPLAINT WITH THEM. APPARENTLY MY INSURANCE COMPANY IS NOT INTERESTED IN DOING SO. MEANWHILE I AM OUT 2 DEDUCTIBLES (AUTO AND HOME) AND BEWILDERED AS TO HOW THIS HAPPENED AND CONCERNED IF IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN TO ME OR SOMEONE ELSE WITH MORE SEVERE RESULTS. *AK