2016 Ford Explorer Complaint Log

I went into the store, came out 10 minutes later started the vehicle and it said service electric power steering, this also affected the stabilitrac, hill climb assist, 4wd, and traction control. If this would've happened while I was driving I would've caused an accident as the roads were icy. I brought it to a Ford dealership and the parts needed are on backorder with no lead time! You can't even get aftermarket parts! So now I have a vehicle with only 70k miles on it that I've had for less than a year that I cannot drive and have to continue making payments on because it's not worth anything to trade in. The repairs are going to cost just shy of $3000! Ford needs to recall this now!

steering on my car failed turning onto off ramp and could not steer the car with out a lot of effort missed the car in front of me and came to a stop on side of over pass missed the bridge called my dealer to have it looked at steering rack motor seized apparently it is a problem with 2015 2016 explorers cant find steering racks any where in north America I have been waiting for parts still no eta can you help with this problem thanks [XXX] email is [XXX]. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

On December 17th of 2022, I was driving my car when it abruptly became sluggish and felt like it wasn’t shifting gears correctly. After coming to a stop, when I resumed driving, it sounded like the engine was getting gas, racing, but the car was hardly moving at all. Then it seemed like it would shift into gear suddenly and lurch forward. A warning light came on the dashboard stating there was a “powertrain fault.” I was less than a mile from my home at the time, so I limped home, parked in my garage, and then looked up the issue in my owner’s manual. It said to quit driving it and to get it to a Ford dealership. The car was not driven thereafter. I had it towed to the Ford dealership, who did not honor my extended warranty because it wasn't towed in until 4 days after its expiration, despite having the failure occur while it was under the extended warranty. According to them, they couldn't tell from any "black box" that it happened while under warranty. So I was stuck for $6,031.55 for the repair. I implored the dealership to at least help me out with the price, but they would not. I wrote to Ford and explained in detail the event, and I sent that letter to every department I could find within Ford that may be able to help me or pass my letter to someone who could help me. No one ever even bothered to reply. The $6,000 expenditure was hugely hurtful. I had to leave it with the dealer for almost 3 months before I could pay. And this was a Certified Pre-Owned Vehicle with 53,000 miles on it. Maybe you can help? The repair bill was $6,031.55.

The electronic Power Steering randomly goes out. It has caused the need to make immediate stops. It comes and goes, but strangely seems to work just fine when it is raining. Otherwise, it goes from power assist, to choppy assist, to no assist. This causes loss of steering control (dangerous). There are various similar complaints online via forums for the 2016 Ford Explorer, which seems to be common danger that these vehicles have. This started mid-December 2022 and has continued.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while the vehicle was at the dealer for Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N01 (High Speed Fan Motor Relay) the dealer diagnosed that the water pump was faulty, causing the air conditioner fan to fail to deactivate. The dealer declined to perform the repair because the vehicle was out of warranty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was 41,785.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V031000 (STRUCTURE); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated while driving approximately 70 MPH, the passenger’s side A-Pillar trim was ejected from the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The local dealer was contacted. The failure mileage was 80,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

The plastic piece on the drivers' side of the windshield was loose and flapping. Before I could get it looked at and fixed, while driving down the highway one morning I heard a noise and in my rearview mirror saw black plastic shattering all over the road. If I didn't realize quickly what the noise was, I could have reacted and caused myself harm in an accident and if there were cars close to me, or a motorcycle or even worse a pedestrian, they could have been damaged or hurt. The missing piece has not been replaced or inspected so it is still missing. I had noticed the flapping plastic piece a couple weeks prior to the incident, a month tops.

While driving on the interstate at 65mph, the driver side windshield trim cover and outer rubber windshield seal flew off the vehicle. There was no evidence of this possible issue prior to the event and no previous damage to the part.

The passenger side windshield trim flew off while driving on the interstate with no warning. Other than it hitting the side of our car when flying off, no other incident occured. Nobody inspected the windshield trim as we installed a new trim piece we got on Amazon ourselves.

This vehicle has 70000 miles and the water pump went bad already. Read hundreds of complaints and still no recall. This part is definitely faulty and Ford should have recalled it long ago.

Same issue as NHTSA campaign number: 22V150000 The problem: The brake master cylinder may allow brake fluid to leak from the front-wheel circuit into the brake booster.

Windshield trim pieces flying off while driving down the highway.

My check engine light keeps reading a evap code. I have replaced the evap throttle 3x’s. My car smells of a gas leak coming from somewhere. I have taken it to Ford, and to two other mechanics. They claim that the check engine code is wrong and they cannot find where the fuel smell is coming from without the proper code. My check engine light turns on and off with the same error everytime. The evap code is not the problem. I have made a complaint months ago, and still nothing. Not sure what else I can do.

Waterpump malfunction. Risk puts the user at financial obligation to repair the car as the waterpump is needed for proper function of heater elements and other internal parts. Unsure of if this has been reproduced or confirmed. Diagnostics was ran on the car, determined the issue to be the water pump. There are no warning lights and or indications that would warranty service for this part.

My windshield panel trim came off while i was driving

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle, she noticed water leaking under the front of the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and was informed that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Water pump failed.

The power steering on my 2016 Ford Explorer completely stopped working while driving with two children in the vehicle. This is completely unacceptable for a 6 year old car with just over 100,000 miles. Ford Corporate refuses to honor this as a safety recall or safety issue despite the substantial complaints filed with the NHSTA. Are they really going to wait until there is a loss of life or severe injury to address this? On top of Corporate's unwillingness to acknowledge this is a manufacturers defect for which the safety of their customers and their families is at risk, they will not even consider a financial assistance program to partially fund the approximately $2,500-$3,000 price tag of rectifying; not to mention the backorder on the part needed. How many complaints regarding the very same issue have to be filed before NHSTA forces Ford to do something to prevent severe injury or death as a result of this known manufacturing defect?

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the steering column was emitting a grinding noise and the steering wheel suddenly seized without warning. The contact stated that excessive force was needed to maneuver the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was informed that the rack and pinion failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the vehicle was not covered under a recall. The approximate failure mileage was 59,900.

As I was driving my electronic power steering system went out causing me to be unable to steer my vehicle. I was luckily able to get it off the road but had I been going any rate of speed it could have caused a major crash as you cannot steer.

My 2016 Ford Explorer is in the dealership having the transmission repaired due to a recall that says there is an internal flaw in the design that has to be repaired. In removing the transmission, it was discovered that the transmission mount was cracked. I will have to personally pay for a new transmission mount according to Ford because that detail was not included in the specific recall. My contention is that the jerking and shuddering that happens every time I accelerate has caused the failure of the mount. I believe this is a reasonable explanation to a part of the drive train that is unaffected by normal driving. Bottom line is that the jerking and shuddering that was cause by the torque converter er.al, probably caused enough movement to crack the mount. Obviously the transmission doesnt move under normal circumstances.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated she noticed the heat in the vehicle was not operating as needed. The contact also noticed that there was no coolant in the coolant reservoir, and the engine was overheating. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the mechanic stated that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 95,000.

The water pump has failed causing me to breakdown going down the road. The car has less than 100k miles and did not alert me to any kind of mechanical issue before hand.

On Wednesday, November 2, 2022, at about 4:00 pm I proceeded to parallel park my vehicle and as I put my foot on the gas pedal the car took off uncontrollably at a very high speed, I tried to control the car but before I could stop it, I crashed and hit a tree. My vehicle was severely damaged. The vehicle was taken to the Dealer for inspection, and I was told there was nothing wrong. I know what happened and there is something wrong with this vehicle. I am glad that the tree was there because if not I believe I would have ended inside the house that was behind the tree and could have injured someone. My vehicle is at the body shop now, but I don't think I will drive it anymore, I don't feel safe in it.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the front driver’s side trim detached from the windshield without warning. The contact then stated that the passenger side trim was also detaching. The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that there was no recall on the VIN for the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was advised to call the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 98,000

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated upon taking the vehicle to the dealer for routine maintenance, he was informed that the Power Train Unit (PTU) was leaking and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who informed the contact that the Power Train Unit (PTU) installed on the vehicle was not the original part and would not be repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was opened. Additionally, the manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000. The VIN was not available.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65-70 mph, there was an abnormal exhaust odor entering the vehicle. When the accelerator pedal was released, the odor dissipated. There were no warning indicator lights illuminated. The driver and passenger sustained a headache due to the odor but medical attention was not provided. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that the seal was broken. Additionally, the mechanic informed her to use premium or Chevron fuel. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, who opened a case, and referred her to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 112,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was a grinding sound coming from the steering wheel while turning in either direction. The steering wheel became difficult to turn and excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle. The contact stated that the Steering Assist Fault Service Required message displayed. As the failure worsened, the contact lost steering capability of the vehicle and the vehicle was towed to the dealer. The vehicle was diagnosed with a defective power steering rack. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Crossing busy intersection with children in vehicle, vehicle lunged and wrench symbol came on dash, and as crossing intersection vehicle wouldn't go more than 5mph, this could possibly cause a serious accident injury wife and child or possibly death, this vehicle had approximately 60000 miles.

November 1, 2022 my car went to the dealership because the check engine light came on. We had it towed to our local repair shop and they suggested it go to the dealership as it appeared that there was a crack leaking fluid into the engine. It was at that time I was notified that I was going to need a new engine and it was suggested that I go through Ford Motor Company for assistance to cover the replacement. They agreed to covering 60% of the repair. I waited until July for an engine to be available. I picked up my car on 7/16/23 and on 8/15/23 it was towed back to the dealership and determined that the new engine had failed. Another new engine ordered and we are still waiting to get my car back. Possibly it will be back next week.

While driving on a state highway and exiting the roadway the steering wheel locked in the turning direction long enough to drive over the small curb on the opposite side of the roadway. If this was a higher exiting speed a larger incident or crash would have been worse.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 15 MPH, the power steering failed, and the vehicle started fishtailing. The contact used excessive force to regain control of the vehicle. The contact was able to get the vehicle to stop. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer. The contact learned that the rear toe link had disconnected from the vehicle causing the rear passenger’s side tire to no longer to be able to properly attach to the vehicle. The vehicle learned that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V537000 (Suspension) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

My airbag light on the dash came on after starting the vehicle and will not go off. I took it to a Ford dealership and was told it was the wiring that goes to the 2nd row airbags and I would need to replace the wiring harness. The cost was estimated $1260.00. I purchased an extended warranty for the vehicle that covered electrical but was told it would not be covered because it went to the airbag and airbags are not covered. I have looked into this airbag problem and it seems this has been an issue for the vehicle for years. If the airbags do not work that is a safety issue and Ford is not doing anything about it. With as many complaints this has and for the safety concern something needs to be done. I can not afford $1200 to fix something that Ford has not bothered to fix for its customers.

Unknown system or components, smells like propane or exhaust odors inside the cab. Mostly when driving slow or at a full stop. It is a police interceptor suv with 65k miles. No warning lights or other symptoms appeared prior to odor. Odor gives me a headache/nausea.

10/23/22 While driving at highway speeds - Interstate 39 - a large piece of the driver's side windshield trim flew off. We had no impact with anything that would have made it fall off - it simply came apart and landed on the road behind us. We have had the piece fixed since. Body shop could have photos still - if needed. No warning signs were present in the car.

Steering rack failure causing loud popping inside of the rack and pinion causing trouble steering, also abruptly pulling the vehicle or hard steering several reports of people almost wrecking.

It has a known problem of that the water pump leaks into engine and causes engine failure. It's all over the google. Today, car dealer called me and told me, I would be better replace the water pump before it fails. It is not failed yet, but they said they saw the symptom, which will cause fatality if I don't change it. And it will cost me not to die from that design failure. Is this not a matter for a car manufacturer to cover by recalling it? When I searched on google, there is a law suit going on, and many many forum of people who's having the exact same issue with multiple ford and lincoln model. Please help people on this matter...

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle started overheating with the high temperature warning light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over on the side of the road and notice that there was no coolant in the engine due to a coolant leak. The contact added more coolant and the vehicle started to operate normally. The vehicle was diagnosed by an independent mechanic, and he stated that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed by the dealer. The failure mileage was 55,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, she noticed a white cloud of smoke coming from the exhaust. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the residence then towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that oil had leaked through the exhaust. The contact was informed that the turbos and catalytic convertor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was denied a claim and transferred to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000

Transmission died with no warning at under 80k miles. The car lost its ability to accelerate while merging on the highway. Got off highway and to friends home. Car would not reverse and could not accelerate over 15mph. Had it towed to AAA repair shop. According to AAA repair shop a new Transmission is needed. This is unacceptable with only 80k miles, never received warning lights, and regular maintenance. 2016 Ford Explorer has know Transmission issues.

Power Transfer Unit (PTU) exploded cracking the PTU case and Leaking out all gear oil which can be caused by PTU being too close to the exhaust and the PTU overheats from the exhaust heat breaking down the gear oil, this gear oil being over heated and that close to the exhaust could have caught on fire and if I have been on the highway at a high speed it would have caused the vehicle to lose all power going down the highway and in turn we could have been hit and killed due to the immediate loss of power SSM 47993 which has the year make and model of my car already listed on it as well as other ones listed by NHTSA however Ford consumer affairs refuse to do anything or offer any help even though they have acknowledged that there is problems with the PTU in multiple models. Is this truly worth someone's life as this can cause severe damage to the drive shaft when they explode with absolutely no warning or lights on the dash coming on or anything? All Ford Motors consumer affairs could say to me was ma'am your vin number is not listed on our end. My car is a 2016 Ford Explorer Platinum AWD with 3.5L ecoboost with Twin Turbo, it only has 64,660 miles on it.

On February 03, 2022 I took my to the Ford dealership in my area, I was told that rear toe link was replaced. After 8 months while I was driving the Explorer 2016, the car starts swerving from side to side, and lost the control. For few seconds I was struggling to stop the car, after I stopped the car I checked the tires, I saw the rear left passenger tire was loosen, and steering wheel wasn’t straight. Me and my friend were terrified and still not feeling alright. I lost the confidence in Ford Explorer.

The driver windshield trim flew off my 2016 Ford Explorer as I was going down the highway. I saw where this has made the news and wanted my report included in it. Nobody was hurt and I was unable to retrieve the trim.

While driving on any damp/wet/or dirt terrain the rear end of the vehicle will slide side to side even though I am steering normally. Driving in town I have drifted sideways into the other lane of traffic barely avoiding an accident.

Steering started making grinding noise and when parked steering froze. Restarted and steering unfroze and made grinding noise and slowly drove to repair shop. Checked for recalls and none on this vehicle. Repair shop said no parts are available form Ford for a repair. This has to be a factory defect and could lead to serious injury or death.

My wife was driving our kids home from school when she experienced a sudden loss of steering followed by inaccurate control with no type of indication for an issue on the dashboard. Once she was able to (thankfully) make it home, I drove the vehicle around and noticed that there was a considerable lack of power steering when turning and the steering wheel would not return to the center position as typical. We brought it to an auto shop that diagnosed the issue as being the electric power steering rack which appears to be a fairly common issue with these Ford Explorers regardless of mileage. Tried to address the issue but the part if back-ordered for weeks and we are unable to fix our vehicle. Looking online, it appears that this is a common issue with Ford Explorers that could potentially lead to serious complications if experienced driving at higher speeds. Additionally, there are already a couple of recalls related to the steering of this vehicle.

While driving 60mph on the highway my windshield molding on the passenger side flew off.

While driving normal speed on the freeway, the passenger windshield molding flew off. Also, the driver side side window meeting has flown off. Both replaced at my cost. Both of these objects flying off the car could impact or hit other motorists causing damage or potential injusry.

Every since I bought this vehicle back in December 2016. I've had major problems that consist of the battery lasting a year an half. In 2018, Ford had it for two weeks due to a major problem that they repaired but never told me what the issue was. Still, to this day, I don't know what they repaired. In 2021, My water pump went out, something is wrong with he fuel injection that may be causing the engine light to be on. Every year since 2016 there's been something going wrong with my Explorer, including the radio panel/cameras monitor. Last year, 2022, I was driving down the highway when my windshield trim panels flew off! I thought it was something from another car until I stopped and realized, my windshield didn't have a cover on the driver side. I'm hoping I didn't caused harm or almost caused harm to any drivers behind me! Nonetheless, since my incident, I have noticed other Explorers missing a windshield cover.

The contact's father-in-law owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that an unknown fluid was leaking from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer where it was discovered that the water pump was defective and needed to be replaced. The contact paid for the repair; however, soon after the repair, the failure returned. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it remained in their possession. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000.