Body problems of the 2018 Ford Explorer - part 1

While driving at an undisclosed speed, I noticed an abnormal buzzing sound coming from the windshield. I have noticed that there have been several complaints regarding that issue. Also, there was a strange smell coming inside the vehicle.

My VIN was removed for the a pillar recall. I received no notice as to why and my car was inspected a year ago. At that time the problem was not present. It is present now, but for some reason, my VIN has been removed. I would like to know under what conditions it was removed and by whom.

During a storm, our SUV had water leaking in through the top, middle of the windshield. The water soaked the dashboard controls and our heating/air system was stuck on high heat and would not turn off. It was 70° and it was extremely hot in the SUV and the windows kept fogging up making it hard to see. Our temperature controls no longer work properly.

1 year ago, the exterior pillar trim detached on the 202 highway in mesa, arizona while I was drivign 65 mph. It cracked another windshield. I received the recall and went in to robert horne Ford dealership. They informed me those pieces are on recall. I told them to notify me when they became available. It has been 1 1/2 years and still nothing. This week, the other side pillar trim came off, again while I was on the highway. This is dangerous. Now I feel like my windshield is not secure, as it is shaking while I am driving. The recall was announced in January of 2024. It is October of 2025. How can a company ignor the recall and simply not address explicit safety violations? NHTSA # 24v031.

This recall has been 1. 5 years and still does t have a remedy by Ford? part was checked by Ford dealership, they advised yep it qualifies but we don't have parts then left. That was 1 year ago.

B pillar trim behind passenger door (vertical pillar) is peeling from the top. May fly off and cause a safety issue on roadway if unaddressed. Similar to existing recall of a pillar trim for same year and model as well as an existing recall for 2011-2017 b pillar trim (same issue as mine, but adjacent model years).

We have been trying to get safety recall notice 24s02/NHTSA recall 24v031 accomplished by our Ford dealership for several months and they say that the parts required are on back order from Ford. My complaint with Ford motor company is not having the parts needed for the dealerships to comply with the recall. Currently, the parts are on an emergency order from the dealership. The part on the right side a pillar is vibrating at highway speed and I am expecting a failure.

The a-piller trim molding flew off while I was driving down the road. I am aware that this part was previously recalled and potentially “fixed” before I purchased the vehicle, however it flew off and was a terrible safety hazard.

The a pillar trim has become loose and detached while I was driving, almost causing an accident. There has been a recall on this part. I have tried on numerous occasions to resolve the issue. It has been over a year and the parts are still not available. I have tried to remedy and made multiple appointments at the service center to get my vehicle inspected and they tell me the same thing that there is nothing they can do.

The a-pillar appliqué trim has cracked and is pulling away from body of vehicle. There is a safety recall notice that was issued in February 2024. I have been calling regarding remedy of this issue and I have been told parts are still not available. It has almost been one year.

While traveling on [xxx] eastbound in the st. Louis, mo area I heard a pop and noticed my passenger side a-frame trim body piece was free from the top mooring point. This caused me to have to exit the freeway earlier than expected. Fortunately, the trim piece did not come completely dislodged and cause further danger on the freeway. I still need to drive this vehicle with a trim piece that is only partially connected to the vehicle. This is related to an unresolved recall and could cause further safety concerns on an ongoing recall. Please help me contact Ford to ensure a quick resolution to this recall that is supposed to be resolved "late 2024". Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The keyless entry panel on driver's side next to driver's window is poorly put on and is starting to come off and could tear off on freeway and cause a safety risk to others. We took the vehicle into a Ford dealership for repairs on some other trim that had a recall and when we received our vehicle back we heard a whistling noise on drivers side and saw the keyless entry panel trim piece was coming off and when we called back to have them fix they stated they didn't damage it during the other trim work they performed and it isn't part of the recall.

Roof rails are coming detached in the rear of vehicle which was found at the dealership before purchasing and pointed out to the salesman. He said that the Ford dealership would take care of this problem at a later date after the purchase. I told him of the importance of needing the roof rails secured on the vehicle. He said no problem that the dealership would take care of this with either a pin kit or just replace them. Now that vehicle is in for service and the sales department is saying that they will not cover the price of the fix. I think that this should be part of the roof rail recall or the roof rail recall should be expanded to cover my vehicle. Car was purchased on 11/25/2024.

Exterior a- left pillar become detached on the interstate and was a hazard to the cars behind, almost caused a crash. Exterior a-right pillar is loose. I have attempted to get the recall repair completed at a dealership, but have been unsuccessful.

The dash on my 2018 Ford Explorer platinum is rolling up from the front of the dash. It is made out of some sort of leather or vinyl. But with it rolling up towards the driver, it causes a glare onto the windshield which causes visibility issues. I know I'm not the only one experiencing these problems with the platinum trim on the 2018 Ford Explorer. But this really needs to be looked into and recalled. You can also look up the Explorer platinum on a vehicle search website and visibly see that every platinum edition Explorer has this issue. It's unsafe and should be addressed immediately.

I am filing a safety complaint regarding unresolved recalls on my 2018 Ford Explorer (VIN: [xxx] ). First recall: over two years ago, I was notified to repair the exterior a-pillar trim/window shields. The dealer in yakima, wa, placed me on a waiting list and said the part was unavailable. I have been waiting over two years with no resolution. Recently, while driving on the highway, this part fell off and struck the windshield of another vehicle behind me, creating a dangerous situation and potential for serious injury. The dealer refused to repair it for free, stating I must either wait longer or purchase the part myself, despite this being a manufacturer safety recall. This long delay and refusal put my safety and the safety of others at risk. It also caused stress, confrontation, and concern for my financial obligations, as I continue paying for a vehicle with unresolved safety defects. Second recall: the high-speed cooling fan motor relay recall was not properly addressed. The dealer only started the vehicle, stated the fan worked, and performed no inspection or repair, leaving a potential hazard unresolved. Ford response: I reported these incidents to Ford customer service, but they said the situation did not qualify for opening a case. I strongly disagree, as these are confirmed safety recalls and one part already failed during driving. Additional concerns: I am still making monthly payments for this vehicle while unresolved recalls continue to appear. The ongoing failure to repair these defects, despite multiple reports, creates financial and safety burdens. I request NHTSA to investigate these matters, require Ford to complete all recall repairs properly, and hold the dealer accountable for their refusal to provide free safety repairs in a timely manner. Thank you. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

The paint is bubbling and peeling on front hood and looks like trash. I have 50,000 miles on my car it isn’t used that frequently.

Cowl is rotting and pieces are coming off. Car has less than 50k miles. Also causing windshield to rattle.

On July 5, 2024, I was driving on hwy. 12 in napa, California. The front pillar on my window flew off on the highway. Luckily, no other cars were around and no one was hurt. When I took my car in for service, I told them I needed it fixed and the other pillar looked at. Ford in walnut creek told me that they were on backorder and had no idea when I would get a replacement part. I called again a couple of weeks ago to see what the status was and again, no idea when the part would come in. This is the fault of Ford. They should be mfg. These parts. In the meantime, I have been driving around for close to a year with no a-pillar and at risk of losing the other one. Please help. They need to be accountable.

No incident yet. Between front door and back door, trim not secure. Is this included in recall #24v031?.

Lost a pillar trim yesterday on a drive. I was advised that the recall was still in advanced notice. I am not paying to repair my vehicle while they figure their stuff out. I will be driving around without an a pillar now!.

Passenger side a-pillor flew off car on hwy near sweetwater TX luckily there wasn’t a car behind while driving hwy speed.

The vehicle experienced multiple defects, including: overheating due to a malfunctioning cooling fan motor relay. Exterior a-pillar trim detachment. Persistent starting issues, even after replacing the battery. The vehicle is no longer in my possession due to repossession, so inspection may not be possible. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? the overheating issue posed a risk of engine failure while driving. The detached a-pillar trim could have caused a road hazard for other drivers if it fell off while in motion. The starting issues left me stranded on multiple occasions, which could have been dangerous in certain environments. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? yes, the dealership confirmed the issues but stated the vehicle needed to meet specific conditions (e. G. , 100 miles for certain repairs) and required costly repairs that I couldn’t afford. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives, or others? the vehicle was inspected by the dealership, but Ford motor company has not performed any direct inspections to my knowledge. Were there any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? for the overheating issue, the engine temperature warning light appeared intermittently. For the starting issue, there were no warning lights; the vehicle simply failed to start on multiple occasions. The a-pillar trim issue was visibly apparent, but no specific warning messages were displayed.

I saw that Ford has issued a recall that affects 2016 and 2017 Ford Explorers due to a b-pillar trim piece that is not properly attached and may separate from the vehicle. My 2018 Ford Explorer also has this issue. Will 2018 Explorers be included in this recall?.

Was driving on the high way and the b pillar trim detached and was hanging by the wire. No damage was done to this area prior and appears the adhesive gave out. Due to incident back lift gate is inoperable and displays as open.

The passenger windshield trim piece blew off my vehicle on the interstate yesterday and caused the vehicle behind me to swerve to try to avoid it. Looking through my rear view mirror, the driver appeared to lose control due to over correction. The driver avoided a collision and crash, but it looked hairy for a few moments. The driver's side trim piece blew off my vehicle last year. After googling, I see that this is a very common problem that should be addressed, in my opinion, with a recall due to safety.

I was driving on the freeway when one of my a pillers flew off and cause the person behind me to loose control of their car. About 5 min later the other a piller flew off almost causing an accident with a semi and trailer.

Front hood paint bubbling, corrosion and peeling.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph, the passenger’s side trim detached from the vehicle. The trim struck the front windshield of another vehicle, causing the other driver to lose control of the vehicle and the vehicle spun out. The contact was unsure if the front windshield was cracked due to the impact. There were no reported injuries. The contact called the local dealer and was referred to a collision center for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The collision center was contacted and provided an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was contacted, opened a case, and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 99,800. The VIN was not available.

I have a 2018 Explorer that may be involved in the Ford recall for the windshield trimpieces that may come loose. I may not have that issue but I have an issue with trim pieces separating from both the drivers and front passenger doors.

On the exterior this car has a plastic a-pillar cover on both sides of the windshield, I already had one fly off on expressway ( luckily didnt hit anyone or cause an accident) I replaced the one, but now the other side is coming loose as well, not sure if its a defect in the clips or the design , but the dealer doesnt acknowledge this to be a problem, there happily charging 600. 00 to replace each a-pillar and they keep coming loose.

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Cowl trim on front windshield is detaching from the windshield and flapping while vehicle in operation. Concerned this will fly off the vehicle snd possibly land on another traveling vehicle and possibly cause an accident. This just started making a buzzing noise approximately two weeks ago and after further investigation the trim is literally coming off the windshield in pieces. No warning lights just a noise from the dash. Pictures can be provided.

The windshield trim has come loose & come off on the left side while going down the road. The right side is beginning to do the same thing. I noticed pieces missing on 10/10/23 & on 10/11/23 a big piece flew off the car as I was driving down the highway.

Windshield trim detached during highway travel. It flapped hitting the windshield and flew off almost causing collision.