general problems of the 2011 Ford Explorer - part 1

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while attempting to make a right turn at 20 mph, the power steering assist failed to operate as needed as the "steering assist fault service required" warning message appeared on the instrument panel. The contact stated that her left arm had been broken prior to the failure and that the loss of power steering assist nearly caused an accident. The contact had the vehicle towed to a mechanic where she was informed of NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering). The mechanic linked the failure to the recall and referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. Both the dealer and the manufacturer informed the contact that her vehicle was not under recall; the manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline to file a complaint. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.

I’m the original and only owner of a 2011 Ford Explorer (VIN [xxx]). Although Ford recall 14s06 (NHTSA 14v-286) was marked complete by autonation Ford of bellevue, I’m now experiencing the same issue: loss of power steering assist while driving, which creates a safety hazard. On July 29, 2025, a certified dtc scan at pierre Ford of seattle revealed three power steering control module (pscm) codes: u3000:49, u3000:72, and u3000:96. These codes are explicitly listed in Ford’s own bulletin (rcmn-14v286-7022) as qualifying for steering gear replacement under customer satisfaction program 15n01, which Ford issued as an extension of recall 14s06. Despite this, Ford denied the dealer’s request to perform the repair, citing that the csp period had ended. However, Ford’s bulletin states that repairs should still be approved via sssc request if dtcs are present — which they are. I believe Ford is failing to honor its own published recall repair procedure. This is not wear-and-tear; it is a continuation of a known safety defect. The steering intermittently becomes difficult to control — especially at low speeds — putting my family and others at risk. I’m requesting NHTSA investigate Ford’s denial of valid repair claims tied to recall 14s06/15n01 and hold them accountable for unresolved safety issues. Documentation available upon request. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving 25 mph, the contact became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. The contact stated that the message "power steering fault" was displayed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the power steering control module. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 172,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to make a turn, the vehicle lost power steering functionality, and the steering wheel seized. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The contact stated that her daughter was inside the vehicle during the failure. The contact continued driving but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the contact was informed that the power steering had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to Ford campaign number: 15n01. The dealer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 158,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel seized and failed to turn to the left or the right. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to the cost. The contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering); however, the VIN was not included, and the contact was informed by the manufacturer that the warranty had expired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 205,616.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 50 mph, the vehicle lost power steering functionality, and the vehicle became difficult to maneuver. The contact was unable to turn the steering wheel to the right or the left. The contact stated that two passengers inside the vehicle assisted with steering the vehicle. The message "power steering assist" was displayed on the instrument cluster. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the steering rack had failed. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000.

Recall 15n01,,,dealer sam galloway fort myers florida is refusing to repair steering recall for bad gear I was nearly killed as can was unstteable in a near head on crash!!! the diagnostic is showing the code u3000:49 in the dtc and they refuse>>>please help. . . Im disabled.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his wife was in a parking lot, the steering became inoperable. The message “power steering service now” was displayed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 170,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 mph, the vehicle became difficult to maneuver. The failure had occurred on several occasions. The contact stated that the traction control, engine oil, and tpms warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the power steering system needed to be reset. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The contact researched and became aware of NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

The contact’s daughter owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The power steering failure warning light was illuminated. The warning light had escalated from yellow to red. The driver continued driving the vehicle; however, excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer and was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, she became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. The service power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but a diagnostic result was not yet provided. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 240,000.

Power steering assist fault, and power steering eps system failed while driving! was replaced by Ford in 2015 and has already locked up while driving! tire pressure sensor constantly stays on even after replacement.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 70 mph, the steering wheel became stiff and difficult to turn in either direction. The contact was able to veer over to the shoulder of the road. The message "power steering assist failure" was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer and the contact was informed that the repairs were denied by the manufacturer. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. In addition, the local dealer diagnosed the vehicle and linked the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 144,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 2 mph, the vehicle became difficult to maneuver. The power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the residence. The contact stated that an independent mechanic diagnosed the vehicle at the residence and determined that the steering rack and pinion needed to be replaced. A dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 104,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at 10 mph, the steering wheel seized and was not functioning properly. The contact stated that the steering wheel became difficult to turn. As a result, the driver lost control of the vehicle, resulting in a crash into a gate where it came to a stop. The driver-side and passenger-side air bags did not deploy. No warning light was illuminated. No injuries were sustained. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 114,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the electronic power steering assist rack. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering); but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 185,000.

The contact owned a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel seized with the power steering warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the power steering control module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering); because the mileage was over 150,000. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 199,000.

See attached document for complaint.

I was driving down a highway at 55 mph and my traction control lights came on. Next my assist power steering warning light came on which was yellow. Then the red assist power steering warning came on and I lost all power steering. The dealership did confirm the problem was my steering angle sensor, but said this did not fall under the recall anymore because I have too many miles.

The contact stated that their daughter owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact's daughter infromed them that when they drove the vehicle, who had informed them that the power steering assist would suddenly seize while driving at various speeds. When the failure occurred, the driver would have to turn the vehicle off, then back on to regain power steering assist. The power steering had failed, and the driver was unable to regain power steering. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who replaced the rack and pinion, but the battery failed. The vehicle was repaired. The failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer approximately 3 times. The vehicle was not repaired again. The manufacturer was informed of the failure, and a case was opened. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline to file a safety complaint. The failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at 35 mph, the steering wheel failed to move as intended. The service power steering now warning light illuminated. The contact merged to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the contact's place of business and had not been driven since the incident. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact associated the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 168,281.

On or around December 15 while driving I lost the ability to steer the car without using considerable strength.

Power windows and power mirror buttons stopped working and then “service power steering now” message came on and the steering wheel is locked and very hard to turn. The electrical wiring for the windows run through the power steering gear. The vehicle has not been inspected or repaired.

I was driving 68 mph down the highway when my car threw a power stearing assist fault, I almost hit head on with a semi but was able to hit my e break and put the car in neutral to get back over to my side fo the road. I had to have the car towed, my mechanic said there was a recall on the electric power assist system. The reference number is 14v286000. I called the Ford dealship and explained to them the situation as well as what my mechanic said and they told me they were not going to do anything for the vehicle. How are we not going to replace faulty parts that almost took someones life. Someone has to be held resposible as there should be safety measures in place on the vehicle to prevent this and there were none and now the manufacturing company isnt going to honor the recall put into place by the NHTSA.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that on several occasions when the vehicle was started, the steering wheel was intermittently firm. Additionally, the contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the steering wheel locked. The contact stated that the following day while attempting to move the steering wheel, the steering wheel was back to normal. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering gear needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 103,500.

While driving down the highway, the power steering quit working totally. Causing me to go off the road into the ditch. There was a recall on the power steering gear that Ford refuses to fix. They state it was fixed with a power steering module reset that did not.

I was on the highway and my whole steering went out and I bought the vehicle 2 years ago and learned today there was a recall in the steering gear and I need to know what I can do because I have 3 children one with down syndrome and we need to have a vehicle that is safe please help.

As I was driving, a “service power steering” warning came on along with another warning about my power assist being lost. I have taken my car to see a mechanic a total of 4 times for this same issue and need answers or reimbursement.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced a loss of power steering functionality intermittently. The contact stated that upon turning off and restarting the vehicle, the vehicle operated as needed; however, the failure progressively worsened. The contact stated while driving 50-55 mph with her child in the rear seat, the vehicle made an abnormal beeping sound, the messages "power steering failed" and "service advancetrac" were displayed, and the steering wheel seized. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The contact restarted the vehicle; however, the failure persisted. The contact called an independent mechanic who instructed the contact to temporarily disconnect the battery. The contact followed the instructions; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was towed to the residence, where it remained. An independent mechanic diagnosed that the power steering control module (pscm) and the steering rack assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the power steering control module (pscm) software was previously updated under NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000.

I have a vehicle recall on the electronic power steering system for my Ford Explorer that my dealership is refusing to fix. They allegedly fixed it once but it is not working and is extremely dangerous. Ford says this: what I show for the epas steering, it's recall 14s06c. I show that this recall was performed for this VIN on April 6th, 2015 please assist thank you!.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his fiance was driving at 45 mph, she became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. After which, a warning message displayed reading "service power steering. " the driver was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. The advance traction control and traction control warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the son was driving and accelerating from a stop light the power steering suddenly failed causing the vehicle to "jerk" to the right. During the failure, the "power steering" warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on multiple occasions. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed that the VIN was not included in the NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000(steering). The contact indicated that the vehicle had experienced that same failure listed in the recall. The local dealer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 226,000.

Power steering has gone out on car. There was a previous recall but I was told it has expired. I am not over the miles allowed to claim the recall on the power steering. It is not safe to drive this car without properly being fixed. The recall should still be applied regardless of its expiration as I have not exceeded the milage. I don’t feel it is safe to have an expired recall on a car, especially if the milage is so low.

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the "power steering assist fault," message was displayed after which the contact became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly. The contact stated that extra effort was needed to steer the vehicle. Due to the failure the contact briefly lost control of the vehicle, before coming to a complete stop after driving into a small roadside ditch. The contact was able to drive the vehicle out of the ditch unassisted. The abs and traction control warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 14v286000 (steering); the VIN was included, but the contact was informed that the vehicle had already been repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 134,000.

My vehicles epas is failing. This happened while I was diving down the road. The Ford motor company is aware of the issue. In the past they did a csp for the issue. That csp has expired. The issue has not been resolved and they will do nothing to resolve the issue.