17 problems related to front suspension have been reported for the 1997 Ford Explorer. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Serious noise problem at right front end during any movement of the vehicle. Unsure if this is a safety issue and currently concerned to travel any lengthy distance.
Vehicle leans to the left front. Left front of vehickle is lower than the right side. Makes turning to the right tricky.
Consumer was traveling about 75mph on highway and vehicle was vibrating. Also, rear right passenger side tire separated from wheel, and driver lost control, and vehicle rolled over and landed in the middle of highway.
Front tire wear and alignment.
I have a situation with my 1997 Ford Explorer 4x4. I recently took it in to have an alignment done. I have just purchased this vehicle from the dealer above. When I took it to get aligned the mechanic told me I needed to buy a caster adjuster kit. This amazes me that Ford wouldn't have good enough engineers to put the correct size caster adjusters on my vehicle. There has been no aftermarket work done to it . . It is all Ford factory suspension, so it is not my fault, it is theirs. This seems like an injustice that I have to buy a $100 kit because Ford didn't get it right the first time. I have talked to 3 other dealers, and they don't act surprised, actually I was told by 2 of the other dealer service departments that this is a common problem. I want my complaint on the books, in case ther eare more.
The problem persist and DE dealers never fixes the problem in my vehicle what I've to do to resolve that delicate prblem. No safety defect listed.
Excessive wear of michelin tires. Vehicle would make a loud of noise. Took to dealer & was informed the wheel, left front, was out of alignment real bad & needed replacing. The inside of tire was worn through to the steel belting, while the outside showed no wear. The front end was not aligned properly at the factory.
No summary listed for this vehicle.
Heard a bang & wheel was on its side. Left front suspension caused wheel to tilt while driving about 5mph. Vehicle towed to dealer. Mechanic said bolt was left off or was missing from the suspension.
I brought this vehicle to the dealer four separate times because I thought the front end was out of alignment. They charged me all four times and it turns out the tires were defective. They are not the recall tires but I have since replaced them (at my own cost) and the vehicle seems to be running fine now (last two weeks). I would like to know why all the wilderness brand tires were not recalled? they clearly are defective! if it was a design problem then would'nt every plant have the same design problem? if it is a quality control issue than would'nt that also be the same problem at other plants, companies like firestone write one set of procedures for safety and inspections of tires. They don't have different inspection procedures for each plant! they certainly don't have separate procedures for the same brand of tires. You guys drop the ball, and now we are paying for it!!!!( dot number: w2hlipy426 tire size: p235/75r15 ).
When traveling and upon idling, consumer noticed a high pitch sound coming from the front end of vehicle. Consumer has contacted dealer, dealer unable to determine the cause, but has noticed a similar problem on several other Explorers.
When vehicle is idling or at a stop light it vibrates.
Consumer is complaining of the vibration that is occurring when steering, problems could be due to the firestone wilderness ht tires (p225 70 r15) or the suspension.
Vehicle drifts or floats at highway speeds. Most noticeable in inclement weather -it feels as if the front end was going in two directions at once. Then it pulls to right and if you overcorrect it, then it will pull to left dramatically. Situation is like a balancing act between opposing poles. This vehicle has history of " front end" problems from original owners and myself dating back to 10-23-1996. TSB # 98-3-11 issued Feb 98, speaks of drift/pull with tire wear as I have now. Problem can possibly result in high speed rollover on inetrstate due to operator attempting to compensate for drift/pull. The correction may be such as to create a catastrophic shift in center of gravity, causing rollover.
Pe00020; tire tread separation: while driving at any speed, truck pulled severely to the right. Tire on the driver's right front side continued to shear on the inside. Tires were firestone wilderness, size p23575r15, original equipment sold with Explorer. Tires were aligned and switched around, but continued to pull to right, and sheared the tires.
Call red hickey for important cause finding of tire wear in suspension 828 253 4311 he has investigated it on many Explorers. As soon as you rotate your tires the trouble starts. The wear on our vehicle at both front is not the air preasure. Hickey says it is a Ford design flaw known and ignored for years and overlooked by most shops. He is in the allignment business the last 40 years and known as an expert in the area for problems others can't fix. (dot number: w2hlipy tiresize: p235/75r15).
No summary listed for abov evehicle.