general problems of the 2012 Ford Explorer - part 1

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 3 mph, the power steering fault, the turn signal, advance-trac alert, and power train warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the steering wheel became inoperable. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the control modules were inoperable. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 237,000.

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40-60 mph, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. In addition, the contact stated that there was an abnormal burning odor coming from the vehicle. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA campaign number: 25v467000 (fuel system, gasoline) and linked the failure to the recall; however, the VIN nor the year, make, or model was included. The vehicle was not repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000.

The truck has been in shop 5 times or actually 5 different dealerships. The recall has yet to be fixed but I continually pay to have the problem investigated. The dash flashes loss of fuel pressure, service advance track soon, battery level and mechanic wrench . I have this on video as it is constant occurrence. Each time Ford takes it in they can't make the issue happen or recreat it. As told several times happens sporadic and not under any certain conditions. Over and over paying diagnostic fee and what they say will repair the issue only it happens pulling off the lot at 5 star Ford dallas texas took it in under default to bob tomas mckinney where they scanned it and found 17 communication errors left it there nothing was done but more exploration of issues going down the list of com failures and paying for each 3 anyway and it did it again leaving me stranded 3 times to count eventually leaving at don davis Ford arlington texas where it was again said repaired and is currently at planet Ford dallas where historically I paid $2850 and nothing was done as it again left me stranded and towed there where it can sit until it's fixed meaning this loss of horsepower the electric flashes and the gears in transmission actually function as per requested each time in service.

In September 2021 the tranfer case craked and also cracked the transmission. I had both replaced. I got the car back in April of 2022 3 weeks later the tranfer case cracked again no waring lights no warn or symptoms indicating it was going bad just cracked.

I was driving with my child in the car when u hear a loud noise. After that I heard grinding. So when I got home we put the car on jack stands. There seemed to be no problems. The next day I took the car to a shop and was called to come back down. The mechanic showed us that the transfer case blew a part and cracked the transmission. Not one warning lights or service engine light came on. Had the drive shaft fell out as a result it could have killed me and my child.

The power steering, four wheel drive, and traction control completely stopped working even after I had it towed to the dealership some months back to fix this problem! also,the myford touch goes black and will not work for weeks. When the power steering quit I was on a paved side road near my home.

Vehicle shutting down while driving.

Car won't go into park.

Tl the contact owns a 2012 Ford Explorer. The contact took the vehicle to billy howell Ford Lincoln (1805 atlanta hwy, cumming, GA 30040, (770) 887-2311) for routine service. The dealer noticed that the power transfer unit was leaking and needed to be replaced. Two weeks prior, the vehicle was repaired by the same dealer per NHTSA campaign number: 19v435000 (suspension). The vehicle was not repaired and the failure recurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was 140,000.

Twice in 5 days the vehicle has �awd off� error message pop up when driving at 25mph, and has forced the vehicle into idle while in traffic. All of the mechanics we talked to won't touch the vehicle because this a known issue, and direct us to the Ford dealership to have it serviced. There is zero sense of safety when driving it.

Steering wheel locks up when you start truck and have to turn off and restarts to go away.

Purchase vehicle 2 21 2019 and the two engine lights warning lights breaking decelerates which is very dangerous driving on the highways. Service light tracking light stays on and the vehicle does all this on it's on. I have contacted by chat the Ford corporation about this serious issue with this make and model. I was told their was no service bulletin so they could not help me. They refuse to address the dangerous matter this make and model has very dangerousand the lights are still on. Also with the engine lights staying on all the time the cruise control does not work.

2012 Ford Explorer XLT 4w. The terrain management system fault light came on and car went immediately into limp mode on a major road. There was no warning and was almost rear ended. Took to dealer oct. 1 and they kept it two days. The dealer said they could not find a code. Dealer said it is fixed by updating and calibrating the abs system. It was not fixed. . Oct 13 same light went on and car immediately into limp mode on expressway. Nearly caused accident because car immediately slowed down and would not go more than 5mph in limp mode. You loose complete control of the transmission and throttle. There are 53+ cases with this problem on the internet just this year. . Read more...

The problem occurs again twice on 5/23/18 the wrench icon appears again, lost power, no acceleration, turn off the engine and restart. . Made an appointment back to coggins Ford and they checked and still there is no code to see what is wrong with the car. They suggest that it might be the electronic throttle body if I want to replace it but not guarantee. With my approval I am taking my chances to replace it because I am scared I will be in a serious accident if I will not do something about it. I hope this will fix the problem and also hoping that you will do something about this incident. Thank you.

I was driving on the highway with the speed of 60 miles per hour and suddenly the wrench icon shows on the left hand side of my steering wheel and my car speed is slowing down. I tried to push my accelerator harder but it will not pick up speed, so I pull off the road and turn off my engine. After a few minutes, I started my car and it starts and drove home with a low speed and made an appointment to coggins Ford in jacksonville,FL. 05/14/2018. I will follow up on the result.

This is the continuation of my 2012 Ford Explorer follow up complaint about the power train malfunction and reduced power that happen on 5/12/2018. As I mentioned in my last complaint that I took it to coggins Ford in jacksonville on 5/14/18 and they checked my car and the service advisor said that they test droved and checked but no codes so they cannot do anything and he advised to keep on driving until it happens again and to bring it back. Now, I am nervous driving this car, it might put me and my passengers in a dangerous situation if suddenly this happen again loss of power and stalling while driving. This a serious safety and it can lead to accidents, injury or death. I hope Ford will investigate and have a recall on this problem.

After starting the car while parked the 'service advance trac" warning came on. After driving approx. 100 feet the warning went away. There was a slight hardness in the steering at this time. That went away when the warning went away. This occurred on Nov. 10, 2017. The second problem occurred on Nov. 23, 2017. While parked overnight and all day in our garage I started the car and the "power steering assist fault'' warning came on. I could not turn the steering wheel at all. I turned off the engine and within 10 to 15 seconds I started the car again. No warning came on and the power steering worked o. K. I started the car again this morning and no warning or problem.

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Explorer. While driving various speeds with the accelerator pedal depressed, the vehicle stalled and the oil pressure and power train wrench warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was unable to start on the first attempt. The failure recurred over three times. The contact noticed the failure after she depressed the accelerator pedal after a complete stop. The local dealer (gulf coast Ford, n, 3000 state hwy 288, angleton,TX, 77515) was contacted scheduled an appointment for two days later. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 155,000.

2012 Ford explore limited. While driving on highway, the car suddenly with no warning decreased speed then a wrench warning light came on in the lower left dash panel, and the car was idling very rough. Even though I was pressing on the gas pedal to accelerate, there was no response. I was able to limp it home at literally 2 mph in "limp mode". The car did not respond when I pressed the acceleration pedal although I still had power. I had to have it towed to dealership to be checked out. After researching what it could be, I learned it is possibly the electronic throttle body (etb) and/or purge valve. I am passed extended warranty naturally and probably going to be left with a huge bill. Why is this not a recall Ford????? it is clearly a manufactured issue with this many people experiencing this same issue.

I have had the car for 2 years and have had at least 10+ incidents of my car losing all power for acceleration. It has happened on the highway going 65+, it has happened accelerating onto the high way, it has happened on residential streets, it has happened on state highways, it has happened in parking lots. The car suddenly revs super high but pressing the accelerator does absolutely nothing. I have to limp to the side of the road, turn the car off and usually it fixes the issue. But several times I have had to turn it off and restart several times before I have normal control of the car again. I have brought it in several times and every time they tell me unless it is happening at that moment they can't figure out the problem. I have kids in my car most of the time and to suddenly lose power is a tragedy waiting to happen. Today during a routine oil check, it was discovered my ptu is leaking. In a 5 year old car I would not expect this to be the case.

Experiencing hard shifts with a thud. Happens when the vehicle is slowing down then when I accelerat there is a delay then a thud when it finally shodts into gear. Apparently I'm not the inly one from what ive heard. I wish Ford would fix this issue. I have taken it to garage but they were unable to determine the issue.

Fuel and exhaust fumes or smell of burning oil. Problems with turbo.

While driving the vehicle suddenly power would be lost. When applying more pressure to the accelerator, no usable power was present and the vehicle could not exceed 30 mph. After this occurred on the 4th time on a subsequent day, the "engine" symbol was displayed. Currently the vehicle is at a Ford dealership to troubleshoot the problem. On two occasions this discrepancy with acceleration and functionality of available power nearly caused an accident with small children in the vehicle. This should cause a major concern to other owners and Ford motor company as a whole due to the potential damage, injury, or death that could occur due to completely losing acceleration and/or power while driving.

My 2012 Ford explore ltd. Stops in the middle of the road while driving. A wrench light comes on in lower left dash, and the car loses power. I can no longer once this happens. I must turn off the car and restart the engine to get it going again. This has happened on a highway going 70 miles per hour, and in the middle of intersections, on regular city, suburban or neighborhood streets, not to mention it is now happening 2-3 times a day while with no warning. It happens while driving only, sometimes after turning, sometimes not, but the car is always in motion at the time, at various speeds in various temperatures, with climate control either off or on, seems to have no bearing. This is extremely dangerous and can easily cause an accident, injury or death. Apparently the current recall for the power steering does not address this. I am having that worked on right now as I type. This happened once last year on the highway, and once about 6 months ago as I pulled out of a parking lot. Hadn't happened again since until the month of October in the 80 degree weather of plano TX, whether car was already warmed-up or not.

Gear shift message - �shift to park� after putting vehicle in park and ignition is turned off.

The ptu unit went bad and had no oil in it- whole unit needs to be replaced. Should have oil, should be permanent. No reason for this- car is 4 years old and now we are paying $2000 to fix. Read that this problem is an epidemic. Should be recalled for this problem. It's everywhere Ford has awd!!.

Car sputters and hesitates when orange wrench comes on intermittently while in motion.

While on freeway, car suddenly decreased speed even though I was pressing on the pedal to excelerate. It has happened a few more times but luckily I was not on freeway. Took it in to mac haick and they said it was the throttle body. My car has less than 30,000 miles and I asked if this was common and was told no. He said that sometimes it happens with more that 60,000. I asked if there was a recall and was told no. I then called Ford customer service, the rep said that they did not have any recalls and gave me a case #8559890.

November 13, 2015 carolina, puerto rico I'm driving normally then a wrench light pops up on the dash & says "see service manual". I then immediately without warning loose all control to my gas pedal & the engine shakes at an idle. I am forced to pull over. We return home less 10 mile per hour, then turn the car off. Once I turn it back on it "warnings 0" in some way & runs normally.

I'm driving normally then randomly a wrench light pops up on the dash & says "see service manual". I then immediately without warning loose all control to my gas pedal & the engine shakes at an idle. I am forced to pull over (mind you with my 2 kids in the car when this has happened 3 times in 1 month). Then turn the car off. Once I turn it back on it "resets" in some way & runs normally (until this happens again). The first time it happened was 3 weeks ago on a weekend late morning driving maybe 45mph, the 2nd time was this past Tuesday 11/2/15 in the evening after work at 5:15pm driving may 35mph. I took it to the dealer they said it was "fixed" & they sent me on my way. Then it happened the 3rd time the next morning on 11/3/15 @ 7:30am when I was stopping at a stop sign so I wasn't going more than 5mph. It's been back at Ford since then & they said they "can't fix it if it doesn't show up for them or the can't duplicate the problem" meanwhile myself & I have no vehicle to school & work. & the worst part is all tree times my kids were with me & there could've been an accident but Ford won't do anything.

Burning smell under acceleration.

While driving on a 2-lane highway about 50 mhp, my 2012 Ford Explorer suddenly lost all speed and the gas pedal had no effect. After drifting over to the shoulder out of harms way, the power remained on and the dashboard said "check manual" with a wrench lit up. What happened was that it just lost all speed and the gas pedal had no effect until I turned off the power and re-started. This was the first incident. This happened twice more in the following month for a total of three times when the exact same thing happened, just lost all speed. Finally Ford service was able to diagnose it and said it was the throttle body. After doing research, it appears that other Ford models have the same throttle body problem, loss of speed. This should have been a recall but someone dropped the ball, making it a part of the customer satisfaction program (csp 13n03) instead. This is obviously a very dangerous situation. Ford service has been extremely difficult work with as they will not honor csp 13n03 for my Explorer.

Driving to work at the normal speed limit 6:30 am in light traffic. Ambient temperature was 65 degrees in dry conditions. Suddenly felt like the transmission had been placed in neutral. Engine continued to run but no power to the transmission. Was able to let the car coast until I could turn on to a side street and stop. An error condition displayed "awd off" and then a wrench icon appeared. I placed the transmission in park and turned off the engine. Restarted the engine and the car resumed normal driving conditions. Took the car the next day to the Ford dealership. Was told that no error code was captured so they could not do anything. I asked how it was that the computer could display the "awd off" message and the wrench icon without a code being stored. No response. Was told to leave car running next time, call a tow truck and then they could get the code. Of course, I am not always close to the dealership, it could happen after they closed or on a weekend. Noted that in March 2014 Ford settled a complaint on "throttle body" problems in escape, fusion, etc, that had a similar description. Explorer was not included in that settlement.

I parked the vehicle to go into a store. When I returned and started the vehicle. I had the power assist fault and service track management errors show on the panel. I had to drive the car home without power steering. I took the car in for service yesterday and was told that it needed a steering gear. I was under the impression that this would be part of the power steering recall issued last year, however that is not the case. I was told by the service tech that he tried to contact Ford to see if they would work with me on this and they stated there was nothing they could do. So I brought the car home without repair or new parts ordered due to the costliness of this issue. It appears that I am not the only one having this potentially dangerous issue with their vehicle. At this point, I am quite disappointed with Ford!!.

I was driving back from the mall on a single lane highway at 55 mph with the whole family. All of the sudden the vehicle just quit. I tried to restart the vehicle while it was gliding without power, but it would not start. I had to pull over to the side of the road until the car stopped by itself. While the car was gliding to a stop, there was no steering brakes or anything available, since the engine had cut off automatically. Luckily I did not get hit by anyone. I finally pulled over, restarted the car and drove again. In a couple of minutes the car stalled again with no controls. This happened about 4 times within a space of 15 miles. I took it to the Ford dealership the next day and had to spend $1000 fixing it, which they blamed on the throttle activation or body. This could have resulted in a fatal situation, especially because the vehicle had no controls when it stalled. I believe there has been the same issue with other Fords and Lincoln vehicles on the web. This should be considered a serious safety issue, which should be fixed as soon as possible. This could happen again to someone and result in serious injury. I feel like Ford should be responsible for the fix to ensure public safety.