Adaptive Cruise Control Problems of Ford Explorer - part 1

Driving down the NJ turnpike the dashboard started displaying lane assist no longer available along with a check engine light. Once stopped the front of the car had been burned with parts of the bumper melted. No visible fire at that time. Had the vehicle towed to holman Ford. They assessed the damage to the Explorer and it was determined that the front facing camera had shorted causing an electrical fire that damaged the camera and front bumper writing harness along with the engine wiring harnesses. The car has been deemed a total loss due to the fire. The vehicle on has 67000 miles on it to date.

See all problems of the 2016 Ford Explorer 🔎.

During a red-light, as I was coming to a stop, the vehicle gave the warning saying “service power-steering now” and “traction control off. ” I was unable to turn the steering wheel much due to it being so heavy. My official complaint: vehicle: 2011 Ford escape XLT safety recall: NHTSA campaign number 14v284000 (Ford recall 14s05) issue: loss of electric power steering assist (eps) / steering torque sensor fault I am submitting this complaint regarding an unresolved safety defect involving my 2011 Ford escape XLT. This vehicle is subject to a federally recognized safety recall for loss of electric power steering assist: NHTSA campaign number 14v284000, Ford recall 14s05, which involves the electric power steering (eps) system and steering torque sensor faults that can cause the vehicle to suddenly lose steering assist. The safety issue covered under this recall is still present and represents an ongoing risk. The vehicle experiences a loss of power steering assist, which makes the steering wheel extremely difficult to turn and increases the risk of a crash, especially at lower speeds, in traffic, or during turns. On February 13, 2026, I had a scheduled appointment at kingman Ford (arizona) at 3:00 pm specifically to address this safety recall issue and the continuing steering assist problem. Kingman Ford declined service and refused to perform any recall-related repair, stating they could not provide service related to the recall. After the dealership refusal, I contacted Ford corporate customer service directly. Ford corporate also declined to provide any repair assistance, and stated they had no knowledge of any federal directives or requirements regarding safety issues connected to this recall. Because this is a federally recognized safety recall and the defect continues to occur, I am requesting that NHTSA document this as a recall remedy failure / unresolved safety defect, and review Ford’s refusal (and the dealership’s refusal) to correct a known steerin.

See all problems of the 2011 Ford Explorer 🔎.

While using Ford blue cruise, the blue cruise system failed to maintain lane control and fought the driver's steering wheel input, resulting in the vehicle colliding with a traffic cone. I have had 3 other instances where blue cruise has randomly jerked me toward the shoulder or an exit ramp, this is the first time colliding with anything. Only damage to the vehicle from this incident is a ripped fender well liner, there are some markings on tire sidewall but no damage. Certainly could have been worse. The cone collision happened on interstate 79 northbound at mm101 in west virginia. I have had lane jerking happen with blue cruise twice northbound at mm105, and once southbound at mm118. The system is on by default, I am trying to figure out how to turn it off to prevent future safety issues.

See all problems of the 2025 Ford Explorer 🔎.

Summary of facts for legal consultation bad faith redhibition claim — louisiana civil code art. 2545 prepared for attorney consultation 1. Vehicle & transaction information vehicle2020 Ford Explorer st — awdpurchase datemarch 2025purchase structure$17,000 trade-in applied + $17,000 remaining loan balanceadditional warranty$2,500 paid warranty purchased through dealership at time of saleselling dealerindependently licensed dealership (non-Ford franchise)warranty servicewarranty work performed during coverage period 2. The technical service bulletin (TSB 23-2174) Ford issued TSB 23-2174 in July 2023 — nearly two years before the vehicle was sold to the client. Key facts about the TSB: •covers: 2020–2021 Ford Explorer/Lincoln aviator awd vehicles •component affected: front axle disconnect actuator (fada) — left side •failure mode: fada o-ring seal failure causing awd malfunction, triggering powertrain warning light (wrench icon) with dtcs c00a6 and/or c0631 •required repair per TSB: full replacement of fada with revised intermediate shaft and reprogramming of transfer case control module •result of proper TSB repair: permanently eliminates front axle disconnect capability — a fundamental, permanent change to vehicle drivetrain operation •TSB was publicly available on [xxx] at time of purchase — free, searchable by VIN 3. Critical pre-sale service record — January 2025 the dealership's own service center performed the following repair on the vehicle approximately 1–2 months before the sale to client: date of servicejanuary 2025 (approx. 1–2 months pre-sale)work order descriptionleft axle disconnect/hub actuatorparts listedmotorcraft left axle seal onlylabor hours9 hoursdtcs or TSB referencednone listed on work orderawd module reprogrammednot indicated on work order critical observation: the terminology used on the dealer's own work order — "left axle disconnect/hub actuator" — mirrors the exact component language of TSB 23-2174. A technician with suffici information redacted pursuant to the freedom of informat.

See all problems of the 2020 Ford Explorer 🔎.

Everyday I get alerts saying the power train system, then I can’t use my cruise control, and many other alerts pop up.

See all problems of the 2021 Ford Explorer 🔎.

When driving the vehicle's instrument panel cluster randomly goes blank. When it does so, all of the items related to speed control, lighting, turn signals, etc. Become non-operational. Additionally, the driver has no idea what his/her speed is nor any other information about the operation of the vehicle. It is very unsafe.

Back up camera is intermittent like the other Ford models effected by other recalls. Adaptive cruise control and front collision warning system out of calibration, senses buildings and other obstacles on the left intermittently. Cruise control comes on but is not working. No accidents because of this defect.

See all problems of the 2015 Ford Explorer 🔎.

The first component that fails and gives a warning is a 4wd failure. Once this warning occurs it cascades into a failure of collision assist, a sudden loss of adaptive cruise control, traction control and lane assist component. When this first occurred and my vehicle would suddenly slow down on the highway, because the cruise control would suddenly shut down and swerve due to the lane assist also shutting down. These warnings and failures did not reset immediately when you shut the car off and would last for days at a time. This would also happen randomly either on the highway or local roads. This is a known issue to Ford and they have issued TSB 23-2174 in regards to this.

Three times in 5 months since purchasing our 2025 Ford Explorer, all dash lights will come on while driving and vehicle will come to a stop. Braking pressure is reduced greatly and then vehicle will not continue in forward or reverse. Multiple restart attempts will allow the vehicle to move under 5 mph but will brake hard to a stop if it goes over 5mph. Two different dealerships have inspected and preformed the same software updates Ford is recommending and its not fixing the issue. Ford is refusing to do anything about it at this time because they claim the software update is as far as they are allowed to go in diagnoses. I have a Ford case #xxx.

As I am traveling on the freeway or expressway, when I have cruise control active and I am in the far right lane the vehicle suddenly changes to the speed of the frontage road dropping my speed from 65 or 70mph down to 40, even tho I am on the expressway. It almost caused me to be rear ended because of the sudden drop in speed.

Adas system malfunctions, 4wd malfunctions, vehicle will randomly shut off during driving.

Ongoing issues with the screen displaying upside down, blurry, red/green lines, powering on and completely off. Rearview calibration issue off centered (dealership fixed). This also impacts the cruise control alerts, lane keeping assist, etc. And occasionally powers vehicle off. Dealership was able to fix delayed reverse transmission via software for the pcm. Multiple dealership repair attempts have not fixed this ongoing issue from 2022-2025. Videos available via email request. Dealership verified some of the concerns and Ford would only authorize software updates, new battery, some camera components. When this failed to fix they were not authorized to further repair. As a courtesy the dealership rebuilt the software and this did not fix the issues.

See all problems of the 2022 Ford Explorer 🔎.

While driving. Every light on the dash started coming on. Pre-collision assist not available, 4wd fault not available, no cruise (adaptive or regular) available, reverse break assist not available, hill assist not available. Every time the vehicle was started it would these issues or would start while driving. This is an absolute safety issue and hazard. The vehicle has plenty of reports online of this happening to other. Ford was willing to give vehicle back saying it was safe to drive without fixing bc I couldn’t afford it and it wasn’t covered under the power train warranty. I was told I have to report it and if it gets enough reports something will be done. But this is an unacceptable answer and cost for something that is a safety concern.

I bought the car in December and I was only able to take it out on the road in January, when it started to have problems with the software and brake system. I brought it to the dealer's workshop where I bought it, but they haven't solved anything and they say that the faults the car presents are normal.

While driving on a two lane, rural road at dusk, with adaptive cruise control turned on, the car suddenly applied the brakes (hard) and a red warning briefly appeared on the dashboard. (it was on too brief to read. ) the brakes were released quite quickly, but the vehicle had slowed approximately 20 mph. There was no other traffic on the road at the time. No animals were crossing the road when the incident occurred. The weather was clear and visibility was good. Although it was dusk, the landscape was clearly visible without headlights. This is a rental vehicle and I have not used cruise control since the incident. Note: had another vehicle been driving behind my vehicle, it could have rear ended it. This is a rental vehicle. Rented from enterprise in woodland CA. The registered owner is ean holdings llc of tulsa.

See all problems of the 2023 Ford Explorer 🔎.

* the component that appears to be malfunctioning is the driveshaft and/or related transmission system. I have experienced repeated issues such as abnormal jerking when switching gears, grinding or clunking noises, and jerking through the drivetrain with erratic rpms before the vehicle regains power. These symptoms are consistent with problems covered in recent recalls for the 2020 Ford Explorer. The vehicle is still in my possession and available for inspection upon request. Issues have made it feel unsafe to drive the vehicle, especially with children in the car. The unpredictable jerking and loss of power present a serious danger, particularly when accelerating into traffic or driving at highway speeds. I am extremely concerned that a sudden failure could result in loss of control, a rollaway, or even a serious accident. Another concern is the defect involving the driveshaft or half shafts that might disconnect or stop functioning. This disconnection can lead to a loss of drive power or, if the parking brake is not applied, a possible vehicle rollaway. *while I have not yet had the issue diagnosed by a service center, I have filed a lemon law claim, and I’m in the process of addressing the matter formally. The symptoms I’m experiencing appear to match known issues that Ford has already recalled for the 2020–2021 Explorer models. Manufacturer has not yet inspected the vehicle, and no inspections have been conducted by police or insurance representatives. I am open to having the vehicle inspected by Ford or an authorized party as needed. *there were no warning lamps or messages displayed prior to the issues occurring. The symptoms—jerking, clunking noises, and erratic rpm behavior—began gradually over time, with the first noticeable incident occurring a few months ago. Since then, the issues have become more frequent and severe.

Check engine light goes on and off. May stay on a day or 2 but goes back off. When I get it checked no mechanic seems to know why. Same with the check charging system light that comes on. Also, the trim on the outside kept coming out, hitting my passenger side window and cracking it. It has completely come off 2 days ago. Rain is getting in my car. Back tires keep losing air. There was an issue with getting an alignment due to incorrect hardware and wiring. There is a safety recall for this.

See all problems of the 2013 Ford Explorer 🔎.

On [xxx] my 2022 Ford Explorer was involved in a collision during my morning commute to work. On [xxx] while stopped at a stoplight across from sheetz, with the auto brake hold engaged for a minute or two already, my vehicle accelerated forward into the vehicle in front of me. The impact was so sudden that the driver of the vehicle I collided with thought I had been rear ended. While I had contacted my insurance company (erie insurance) regarding the collision, I had also reached out to my service center, laurel Ford (windber, PA), concerning the incident. Because of my concerns with the auto brake hold and copilot system with the collision, they had me bring it in on 16 September to run diagnostics. Later that day on the 16th, I had received a phone call from the service tech letting me know that he did find system error logs approx. 40 minutes prior to the collision. He let me know that he was going to keep diagnosing and will be most likely reaching out to his next level service support. The next day on the 17th, the service technician called me back to let me know that when he reported the issue to his support center he was advised to park the vehicle, not let it be driven, and for the service manager to get with me to file a report (Ford reference # xxx). Since that time, nothing more has happened with my Explorer. I have both the current manufacturer's warranty and Ford protect warranty. The most recent update from laurel Ford was that Ford corporate said a field service engineer needed to evaluate the issue. The laurel Ford service center is no longer getting replies from corporate and has a regional manager involved, with no luck so far. It has been an extreme burden and has been beyond stressful using my wife's car for work, l'm in the military and my base is over 40 miles away, while she relies on friends/family to get to her work and also make sure that both of my kids get to their activities. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

Randomly, the power steering, abs, and traction control went out on my car. There are thousands of others with this issue and previous years of this car have already had a recall relating to this issue.

Power steering just went out with no warning. Plus 3 other failures service advance trac power steering fault and terrain management fault. All these occurred at the same time.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while attempting to leave her residence, it was difficult to maneuver the steering wheel. The contact continued to drive the vehicle when several unknown warning lights displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed with a power steering rack failure and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was 70,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the "pre-collision assist unavailable" and "cruise control" messages were displayed. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the cruise control module; however, the dealer was unable to diagnose a failure with the pre-collision assist failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 90,000. The VIN was not available.

Absmodule part number db5z2c219b. Part not available from supplier due to issue that has not been resolved. Vehicle not driveable due to possible break failure could occur.

See all problems of the 2014 Ford Explorer 🔎.

All of the adas along with the brakes of my vehicle fail. The dealership failed to inform me of the recalls prior to purchase. The dealership in town shows all of the parts in stock in their parts department but claim not to have any parts available. When I called, I was given the runaround then sent to a voicemail. When I showed up to the dealership they stated they can only order certain amount of parts and I wasn’t on the list yet was told over the phone I was placed on the list on may 22 2024.

Hi there! we received a letter in the mail about a recall on our exterior a-pillar trim which did fall off on its own and ripped of the seal that was on it by my windshield we never received a call from the dealership so they can replace this for us and because it fell off everyday that it has rain water has been getting into my car to the point that I have puddles on the floor of the vehicle water got into my dashboard and blew out my a/c motor and blew out my sunroof motor which it is wide open now we can’t close it. . I ride around in the SUV with it being extremely hot my children are also in the car with us because it is our only means of transportation also the buttons on my radio are messed up due to water getting in… I’ve contacted carvana the place we bought it from about this and they said this is a Ford issue because they were suppose to replace this a while back I don’t know what to do or who to contact we can’t really afford to fix it on our own. . I am scared that one day I drive it the airbags will just go off because water is going all through my dash when it rains! I don’t know what else to do!.

The transmission began slipping causing poor control at higher speeds using the cruise control or passing gear. Only about 42,000 miles on the vehicle and no financial help from Ford. Service for a new transmission was $7667. 11at dave sinclair Ford, 7466 south lindbergh, st. Louis missouri, 63125. 314-892-2600.

With the Ford intelli-cruise enabled in settings, the vehicle automatically adjust the speed while using the cruise control. The vehicle will randomly, quickly, accellerate to a extreme new speed limit it thinks it has detected. For instance, several times while travelling on I-81, with a 70mph speed limit, the vehicle will think the new speed limit is suddenly 85mph and quickly accelerate to that speed. I have attached a photo of the dash displaying that setting the car set by itself. On the flip side, once on I-81, it thought the speed limit was 35mph and quickly slammed on the brakes to slow to 35mph from 70mph. Both are quickly overridden by the driver tapping the brake and cancelling the cruise control. However, both could lead to hazards to other drivers potentially resulting in a wreck, especially the sudden slow to 35mph on the interestate. The dealership says "yea, it happens and people complain". I have no idea why the speed changes, there are no road signs or other indications to even cause the system to re-evaluate its settings. Ford says intelli-cruise uses road signage and other ways to also determine speed (whatever that means). This is a safety issue that needs to be remedied by Ford. However, without NHTSA enforcement, they don't seem interested in resolution. (this website isn't allowing me to upload the . Jpg file, upload button disappears when I click it).

Please refer complaint number: 11507564 manufacturer promised to release a temporary remedy by mid August. Its November ,still no temporary fix nor permanent. Dealers give a fixed response of no parts available or no remedy. Attached is the recall letter that promised a temporary fix by Aug 7,2023.

Driving on a two lane highway with the cruise control set, tapped brake to eliminate the cruise as a truck had pulled onto highway ahead of us. Accelerated to pass the truck and resumed the cruise control to maintain previous speed. The vehicle began increasing speed as if the gas pedal was floored. Tapping brakes didn’t stop it nor did shutting the cruise off on the steering wheel, car was going 80-90 mph. Had to ride the brakes while the throttle seemed to be wide open until we could get it in neutral and pull of on the shoulder. Restarted the vehicle after it was shut off and the throttle was wide open again. The third time I started it, it appeared to be running normal. I did not engage the cruise control after that. At the time there was no engine light or warning light on. About a week later the engine light came on then a couple days later it was not on. Then it randomly would come on. I had scheduled an appt and it was determined the throttle body, gasket and purge valve needed replaced. This was an extremely scary situation and I would like to know if this has been an issue and could it possibly happen again? this could’ve caused a serious accident when you have zero control of the speed and it’s approaching 90mph on a highway. I did get repairs that were an expense over $500. Is there an explanation as to why this happened and can it randomly occur again??.

Vehicle was within 3 feet of curb in our parking space at home. Vehicle suddenly surged forward and crashed into our building. This happened October 20,2023. The vehicle has been in the shop since October 21,2013. Statefarm insurance paid for investigation in the the black box. Investigation yielded no conclusive results. Upon further investigation the vehicle surged for the investigator as well. Which led to the problem with the wire harness and the accelerator being identified.

Warning that the cruise control function was not working. The the car would not go more the 5 miles an hour until it had switched out of 1st gear, it kept changing gears. I was scared to death of driving it. I had to use my emergency blinkers everytime I had to slow down and the try to regain speed. The transmission was making a clunk noise and the engine was reviving like crazy. I was afraid of being rear-ended or someone crashing into my car because I could not get out of the way. The car is at the dealership right now, they will not have time to look at it until after the holiday. I was 600 miles from home and terrified.

When the car starts all warning lights come on. Hill start assistance, pre collision assistance, all assistance. There is no cruise, no safety collision assistance at all. First appeared on may 19 2023. Ford dealer is currently trying to fix the problem. They are unsure why it’s doing it. It puts all occupants life at risks as the car doesn’t have any safety assistance.

Loss of power steering, electric steering assist is making noise when turning steering wheel. My mechanic said that I need new gear assembly, he also said that there is a recall for this for a Ford Explorer years 2011-2013 and 2015-2017 but for some reason there is no recall for 2014 even that its the same part.

When using my cruise control the speed jumps up to 75-85 mph without my input. For example, when I set the cruise control to 55 it suddenly jumps up to 75 or 85 mph on its own. This happens when the speed signs on the road change. This past week I used my cruise control for a long trip. I was on a highway that changed the posted speed from 55 to 65 mph. The cruise control suddenly went from the posted speed of 55 mph to 85 mph. This is very concerning! it has happened several times and I can no longer use the cruise controller. I have approximately 5,000 miles on my vehicle .

While using intelligent adaptive cruise, the vehicle suddenly thought the speed limit was 85mph and quickly started accelerating. Confused, I hit the brakes to stop the acceleration. I have uploaded a photo of the dash that I took showing that the system read the speed limit sign as 85. I saw no speed limit sign in the area, so, I have no idea what prompted the system to change speed. I was talking on the phone via android auto and using waze, via android auto, usb direct connect. The only other problem I've ever had with this system is on interstates that have specific truck speed limits in west virginia. There, sometimes trucks have slower speeds and this system picks up those truck speeds and decelerates/brakes to comply. While it can be overridden in the moment, the next time it sees such sign, it slows again. This sudden deceleration poses a hazard to other drivers who do not expect a 'non-truck' vehicle to suddenly slow.