This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The rear camera malfunctions and the display screen is blue. The vehicle is available for inspection. It creates a blind spot on the display screen of the area behind the vehicle and sounds an alert/alarm every time the malfunction occurs. The problem has not been reproduced by the dealer but I have provided multiple pictures of it occurring. The vehicle has been inspected by the manufacturer on several occasions. There were no warnings prior to the failure.
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that upon rapid acceleration at various speeds, exhaust fumes from the tailpipes would enter the cabin of the vehicle. The contact also stated that after heavy rains, water-filled the spare tire compartment located in the rear of the vehicle. One day while his wife was driving and coming to a complete stop, the water spilled out of the compartment and flooded the cabin floor of the vehicle. Once the contact discovered where the water was located, he vacuumed up nearly four gallons of water out of the spare tire compartment. As a result of the internal water intrusion, there were several electrical failures. The forward collision warning light would illuminate on the instrument panel without any vehicles in near proximity. The contact also stated that his wife received multiple alerts on her phone through the Ford app that an intruder had attempted to open the tailgate however, each alert was a false alarm. The contact had taken the vehicle to a dealer where the service manager agreed to have the vehicle thoroughly inspected. The vehicle remained in the possession of the dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 1,000.
Smoke started coming from the passenger side visor as I was driving. There was no indication of an issue with warning messages of any kind. Of course I panicked, ran from the car and called the fire department who stated it smelled electrical when they arrived. After a week of being at the dealership, they couldn't find anything; however, 30 seconds after I got into my vehicle, I noticed the cabin lights weren't working. After returning the vehicle within an hour they found that a wire had burned out and shorted out some fuses. 2 weeks later and I still don't have my vehicle. No injuries, just scared beyond belief to have a 2020 ST start smoking!! Even if they state it is fixed, I am still scared to death to drive it after that!! I have had issues with the brakes as well. Those stopped working but apparently that was a recall that was resolved. I have purchased Fords for the past 20 years. I will NEVER buy a Ford again with all the issues I have on this vehicle!
Ford has a recall for Explorer backup cameras failing but ours was not built on the correct date so it doesn't fall under the recall. Yet, our 2020 Explorers backup camera shows a blue screen and no video. Took it to the dealership and they said we were 2500 mile out of warranty and we would have to pay. You and Ford knows there is an issue and should have to fix this. it goes beyond the build date listed. This vehicle is full of gremlins and should be heavily watched.
- Millsap, TX, USA
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Vehicle started, but then every warning lamp and alert triggered on the dashboard and engine shut off. Would not restart, but would just cycle through error/alert messages. Waited 15 minutes, car started but upon putting it in reverse WITH FOOT ON THE BRAKE the car started to drive backwards. No amount of pressure on the brake pedal stopped the car. Had to depress and repress the pedal to stop the vehicle after shifting into gear. Rear cameras failed to activate as well. Thankfully, no one was behind the vehicle and injured. This is the second time this has happened and the second time I have reported to NHTSA. The Ford dealership is oblivious to the root cause of the issue. Their quick fix is a battery replacement and software reload.
1. Powertrain/Transmission: The transmission starting slipping and having hard shifts. When I would slow the car to turn or stop, it jerked at 30mph, 20 mph, and again at 15-10mph. Then it started hard shifting when you put it in Drive, and again at each shift. It wouldn't go over 55mph. The Powertrain Failure light(orange wrench) and Fordpass Notice finally came on a week and a half after the issues started. Shortly after the light cam on the car would not go in Reverse. There is a recall on the Powertrain in 2020 Explorers, however my VIN # does not show any recalls. I have an infant that is in the car with me usually. I am afraid for her to travel with me now in this vehicle, even once Ford tries to "fix" the issue because the warning light does not appear until the Powertrain is completely gone. I feel that the sensor should go off when it notices the transmission is having issues. This vehicle is now at a Ford dealership to be repaired.. Rear-view back up camera: Camera works 20% of the time. The screen is blue or the image jumps severely. It was taken to a Ford dealership and they said it didn't happen when it was there so they did nothing to fix it. There is a recall on this feature however my VIN # does not apply.. A/C: The air-conditioning unit fails to cool the air. The AC unit blows humid air.. Screen/display: The screen in the center console will go black and the steering wheel buttons will not work on the radio or bluetooth phone capabilities. The hands free phone option was not available during these system blackouts. 5. Park-aid sensor: The parking sensors in the front bumper keep falling out and go off making it seem like I am an about to hit something. I had to pop them back in place at least twice. Ford dealership has tried to address these issues already. However, these features still do not function properly on the car. If the feature "worked" while it was in the repair shop then they said they couldn't fix it.
The contact owned a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked under the car port and turned off, a fire ignited causing the vehicle to burn and also causing burn damage to the home. The fire department was called to the scene and extinguished the flames and a fire report was taken at the scene. The fire department determined the fire was caused by a faulty starter inside the vehicle. During the incident, the vehicle was destroyed. The contact indicated that the vehicle had not been started for 2 days prior to the incident. The local dealer and manufacturer were not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 6,000.
Transmission was grinding and stopped pulling at approximately 17,000 miles. Had car towed to dealer. There was a transmission leak. It was repaired and 6 quarts of fluid added. Since the repairs, transmission is hard shifting and jerking. I've had the car back at the dealer for steering issues 3 times. At highway speeds (65mph and above) the car wanders all over the road, like there's slack in the rack and pinion. The dealer says the alignment is okay and refuses to listen to my complaints. Have issues with the sync. The radio will randomly not let you adjust the volume and have had the back-up camera replaced. Also, randomly will not sync-up with iphone.
When shifting into drive, vehicle will randomly have a hard brake pedal and vehicle will lurch forward with increased RPM. Use of E-brake or putting transmission in park required to stop movement. Place trans in park and restart of engine and problem gone until next time. Use of reverse, vehicle will suddenly stop and sound as if you hit something. Brake pedal very hard. Have to place trans in park and restart engine. The issue occurs from a stationary condition, in driveway or public parking areas, so this causes concern that this may ultimately result in accident or collision with a structure, another vehicle, or a pedestrian! issue cannot be repeated on demand. It is entirely random and every drive has to be approached with the expectancy that the vehicle will move without normal brakes to stop. There are no alerts to tell us why (or which system) is the issue. This has occurred randomly since buying this Explorer St. Ford service seems surprised and unaware of this issue (and more).
The vehicle will just shut off at anytime. It's not the auto start feature, all power will turn off at anytime. It has happened numerous times while driving waiting at a red light or to make a turn. It always happens while driving in the city.
I have received a auto hold system fault message on my cluster. The dealer is unable to replicate or produce any fault codes. This is part of the braking system.
This truck has a few different issues on and off issues 1. the reverse camera stops working turns blue when trying to reverse 2. all my warning sensors stop working going reverse or forward when trying to park there's even times when I'm driving and I get a warning that my sensor are not working to refer to manual 3.my car car has an auto shut off when on a red light for some reason this is not working I get the symbol on dash board but is crossed with a line 4. when driving and I step on gas the RPM stay high like if the engine or transmission is trying to catch up 5. when driving or you step on gas heavily I get a rotten egg smell or sewer type smell in cabin not a pleasant smell I'm constantly keep having this issues on and off will need to find out is Ford is gonna fix this issues they keep giving me the run around that there's no worker right. Now
I have a 2020 Explorer limited edition, with just over 10,000 miles. Since I got it, I noticed that shifting from 2-4 gear was pretty rough, and jerky. About 2 months ago, I left the driveway, heard a thud when I put it in D, and it didn't move. I hit the gas harder, and it moved, but would not leave 1st gear. Got a check engine light. Turned it off, waited a while, tried it again, and it drove fine, but check engine light was still on. The car drove fine for a couple of weeks. The check engine light went off the next day. 2 weeks later, I took it out of the drive, put it in drive and again, it wouldn't leave first gear. Put the car back in the garage, waited a while, and it was fine. Called the dealer, and scheduled an appt because I can't have these serious issues continue. My concern was that they won't be able to duplicate the issue, and just send me on my way. Needless to say, they ran several diagnostics tests, and found some issues/codes. They performed a pinpoint test trace and found codes P062C, P2242. They then performed tsb 20-2217 again, and the codes were clear. For a short time after, the jerkiness in the shifting of the gears went away, however that has since returned. Stopping and starting, and driving especially in neighborhoods, is very frustrating. It is uncomfortable to say the. Least, the very aggressive shifting, and jerking of the vehicle at low speeds. I have not yet had the same issue where the vehicle refused to change gears, or was stuck without moving, however the transmission as a whole is very problematic, and somewhat scary to drive.
Over the last several days of heavy snow and rain, I've noticed significant leaking in the rear storage are of my 2020 Explorer. Water will run down the right side of the trunk space, over the speaker grille, and into the storage compartment and spare tire space. As a result of this leak, I have had issues with the tailgate release not operating correctly (won't open), and more importantly, the audio control module which powers audio to the speakers in the car stops working intermittently. This poses a safety issue, since without sound from the speakers, I have no rear collision detection, no forward crash detection, and no cross traffic detection while in reverse. Furthermore, I am concerned that the loud popping noises coming from the driver and passenger side as well as the subwoofer can potentially start a fire due to electrical issues. According to tsb 20-2425, it appears a water leak in the rear of 2020 Explorer is a known issue. The dealership refuses to honor the repair under the bumper to bumper warranty which covers my car for 36 months or 35000 miles (which ever comes first), so I am left with a car that is a major safety concern for me. The car is 100% paid for, but with my current financial situation, I cannot afford another vehicle even with trade-in value.
I purchased my 2020 Ford Explorer in February 2020. Since purchasing I've had several electrical and other problems. I wish I had never purchased Ford. I've had issues with the camera which had a recall which was fixed in November. I've also had a problem with both passenger and driver window not being operable or operating incorrectly, which stills happens periodically. I also had to have the transmission repaired due to a recall. However, I still receive messages within dash that tells me transmission not in park when backing up. I sometimes am driving and it feels as if transmission is slipping. I've had nothing but problem after problem with Ford and do not recommend that anyone purchases.
2020 Ford Explorer XLT purchased new from dealer 04/2020. On two separate occasions the starter would not activate to start the car. When the brake is depressed the starter button and exterior lights flash. The car was towed to the Ford dealer, but the car started immediately according to technician. No issues were found. On the second occasion, the issue resolved spontaneously as well. Since I am not able to duplicate the problem with any regularity, there is no sense in taking the vehicle to the dealer. In both instances the vehicle was parked in a public parking lot with the engine turned off. The vehicle has less than 10K on it.
Drivers seat appeared to shift when turning. This has resulted in the plastic trim at bottom of seat to break and come loose from seat while moving. This has occured twice. Additionally we have received error messages on the 4WD while on an extended trip. It dropped us out of cruise controlled an told us to service transmission. Also reverse assist was inactivated as well as cruise. Back up view on screen turned blue. Brakes have also become inactive when starting to back up. (November 15, 2020) these problems are continuing to occur and the dealer has not tried to fix the issue.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Newport News, VA, USA