2023 FORD EXPLORER Complaints

The contact owns a 2023 Ford Explorer. The contact stated there was an unknown part loosened at the front of the vehicle. While driving at unknown speeds, there was an abnormal rattling noise detected from the strut that had become louder over time. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where the front-end bolts were tightened. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted, opened a case, and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V091000 (Suspension, Steering). The approximate failure mileage was 3,000.

Vehicle was within 3 feet of curb in our parking space at home. Vehicle suddenly surged forward and crashed into our building. This happened October 20,2023. the Vehicle has been in the shop since October 21,2013. Statefarm Insurance paid for investigation in the the black box. Investigation yielded no conclusive results. Upon further investigation the vehicle surged for the investigator as well. Which led to the problem with the wire harness and the accelerator being identified.

The contact owns a 2023 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the seat belt warning light failed to illuminate while the seat belt was manually unlatched. The contact stated that the seat belt warning light was only illuminated during the initial start-up of the vehicle and then deactivated after the seat belt was latched. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 5,000.

There seems to be two issues of concern; 1. Braking system .. when you are in your car, you can hear constant clicking from the engine and the brake light keeps turning and on and off. The light keeps indicating that the brake is on. This happens continuously every day. 2. Steering… when you are switching lanes, it’s not a smooth transition. It feels like a jerk each time and feels like if you were to put the brake, the car will flip over. Very concerning. Happens all the time.

On 11/27/2023, my family and I were in this vehicle as I was driving on a side street. Suddenly the engine shut down while I was driving. I was fortunate enough to pull the car into a parking lot to be towed to a nearby Ford dealer. After a week of research the problem, they could not find anything wrong and returned the car to me. A week later, as I was driving to a major intersection, it shut down again. I called for a tow truck and was able to bring it to a Ford dealer nearby in Greer, SC. Again, they could not find out what the problem was and returned the car to me. I am currently driving the car but I am fearful for my life because I dont know of when this engine shut down would happen again? What if it could happen while I am driving in the middle of a major national highway? If it shuts down on a highway while an 18-wheeler truck behind me, I do not think that I will be alive to write this report. I urge your office to review this matter with the Ford corporation for me to return the car to them. Thank you, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Loose carpet under front seat. Could cause carpet on driver side to buckle up causing gas peddle issues. Had ford dealer look at it but refused to remedy issue. This could cause issues like Lexus had years ago with gas peddle sticking.

As the passenger, following a passenger side impact, (T bone) I sustained 1st and 2nd degree burns extending from my ribs to my hip. To my knowledge the only airbags that inflated were the curtain air bags. Immediately upon impact I had a burning sensation on my right side that slowly began to spread. Once out of the car it was discovered that something had burned through 3 layers of clothing with the singed edges sticking to my skin. My vehicle was not drivable and was towed to a body shop. I spoke to the insurance company about the incident as I am receiving medical treatment for the burns. No one was interested in investigating the air bag.

Every time i was traveling in sport mode, shifting was delayed & was very rough transition to next gear. Car was not accelerating or decelerating properly. Burning smell came from the engine. Car’s electrical momentarily went haywire. Wrench light came on. This happened within 18 hours of purchasing this NEW car. And several times over the subsequent week. Indicator light went on intermittently & so did same problems described above. My safety was put at risk because my car was not driving properly which caused distraction. I was confused about what to do. It also made it difficult to change lanes or speed up/slow down because it was jerky. The dealership i bought it from said a ford engineer came out to inspect the car & that several parts were ordered to fix it, including a battery for the electric motor & a wiring harness. They said it was a big issue and those parts were hard to come by, but i only learned this after 30+ days of the vehicle being under their control. I only dropped it off for a “test.” They did not make documentation of any of this work and would not release records to me. They also declined to release the car to me when i was tired of the lack of transparency. They said they couldnt give it back j til it was fixed but never provided work order with estimate or details of coverage. I never signed anything giving them permission to replace or repair the parts, especially because they would not disclose the ford engineer’s findings to me until a few weeks later after i threatened to invoke my rights under lemon law. They had already taken the car apart & ordered parts by then-without my informed consent.

The rear camera on my Explorer shows a blue screen most of the time and this has become a serious safety issue. A few weeks ago while backing out of a parking spot I almost hit a pedestrian who came out of a double-parked car because the pedestrian was in my rear view mirrors blind spot. Luckily a passenger in my car saw them and alerted me. The remedy for this recall was supposed to be available after August 7th. I have tried multiple times to get my vehicle in for repair. I have complained to my Ford dealer and opened a case with Ford customer service. They each told me something different and I'm not sure what to do now.

Vehicle purchased in May 2023 (51323) at koons silver spring. Vehicle had computer and 'random stalling' issues where the car would not start/stay on in August 2023. Called dealership, vehicle towed to Koons for repair. Service team said they could not replicate issue. Vehicle continued having intermittent issues, vehicle dropped off for repair in sept 2023 - service team repaired main computer system. Oct 3 2023 check engine light came on and vehicle continued random stalling/jarring/jerking forward for amount of time that vehicle had to be driven back to residence (<1.0 miles from time/location when check engine light came on) tech came out to the residence to check the engine system, they identified a misfire but unable to determine why?. as of 11/3/23 vehicle remains at dealership, notified that Ford Safety Engineers (FSE) was notified of the issue, and no solution is available at this time. Can is unusable and is under 9,500 miles. I have not been able to have consistent use of my vehicle and have continued payments as expected. Dealership has no anticipated return date or repair date for my vehicle and this seems to fit the maryland lemon law criteria (car purchased in maryland, resides in maryland).