2003 Ford Explorer fuel system problems

Filed Apr 20, 2014 · Fuel system, Transmission · 85,000 miles · CA

The o/d light came on. I had to let off on my accelerator pedal to get my car to shift into 2nd gear. Sometimes I would push on the accelerator and at 4000 RPM, my car would shift. After taking the car into the transmission shop, the technician told me that the band for second gear snapped and a rod starting grinding which dispersed metal into the transmission. The rod as well as the gears, solenoid, and the torque converter had to be replaced. The cost of this repair was 1700 dollars. Should my transmission be going out this soon? Why wasn't there a recall for this transmission?

Filed Jan 26, 2014 · Acceleration, Fuel system · 83,547 miles · OH · crash

This event has happened twice now my 2003 ford explorer has excelerated without warning ! And while trying to stop the vehicle. The second time ending in an accident. I have only had this vehicle just under 2 months ! The floor mats are not the problem here. Once I was in reverse and a power surge came over the vehicle the brakes would not work didn't result in an accident but was somewhat afraid of it. I was coming home last nite turned into my drive and the vehicle excelerated without warning brakes did not work at all ended up smashing into my ford escape that could have bin my little girl or someone's child! Will not drive this vehicle again. Have had fords most all of my life never seen this before! There's a lot of exceleration problems listed on this site I think it's time for a recall before someone is killed thanks for your concern!

Filed Feb 11, 2013 · Fuel system · 123,000 miles · VA

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford explorer. The contact stated that while refueling, a large amount of fuel sprayed out of the filler neck. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 123,000. The VIN was unavailable.

Filed Oct 18, 2011 · Fuel system · 86,676 miles · AZ

My 2003 ford explorer was in the shop for a fuel smell and diagnosed with a fuel tank leak around the fuel filler hose at the gas tank. There is visible cracking on the plastic surrounding the base of the filler neck as it attaches to the fuel tank with constant fuel seepage. I called the customer relationship center at ford motor company with the hope that they would be concerned about this serious issue and was given a case number and asked to take my vehicle into my local ford dealer's service department for an inspection to verify the problem. I left my vehicle with them for an entire day and was told at the end of the day that there would be no assistance available from ford and therefore no work or inspection was performed by the service department. This is a critical ford motor company engineering problem and would hope they would take a serious interest in resolving such a hazardous issue.

Filed Nov 20, 2010 · Fuel system · 160,000 miles · NC

I have a 2003 ford explorer and recently the check fuel cap light went on, I have change the cap 3 times, reset the computer, check the charcoal canister, the fuel lines and all the recommendations on the users manual but nothing seems to work, now the service engine soon light also went on, I checked online and there is thousands of people with the same problem... No solution from the dealer or online yet.

Filed Mar 2, 2010 · Fuel system · 74,042 miles · WI

1. Fuel gauge just stop working after refilling the vehicle. 2. The failure just happened and now it does not detect gas in the engine. 3. The failure happened shortly after getting a non-related item fixed on february 27, 2010.

Filed Dec 15, 2008 · Engine, Fuel system · 35,998 miles · CO

I put the date of incident as the date I purchased the vehicle. I put this date as such because ever since I purchased this vehicle, we have had nothing but run arounds by the service providers and constant repairs every 3-7 months since I purchased the vehicle. The first major repair occurred when I had owned the vehicle for 18 months, at 35,998. It had an $1800 transmission job. Subsequent repairs have been focused transmission issues (always something slightly different than previous), engine function, and other mechanical issues. An extended warranty was purchased, but due to the parameters of the warranty, all issues were not fixed because they "were not able to be duplicated", (I.e. An intermittent transmission issue that had been occurring for 30,000 miles). Now that we are out of our warranty vehicle, we have an overpriced vehicle that is still owed on that will continue to need significant repairs. The most recent issue is the heating element, including the actuator and blend door function. This faulty piece will fail in the cold position. This causes a safety issue because you are faced with a repair that you may not be able afford (since they can run up to $1200) and having heat in the winter. With the current auto industry having the issues they are, they need to begin to make quality vehicles that aren't made to break just to get more money out of customers. To have continued customers, a company must have a consistent product that people can trust. The current american auto industry does not have that.

Filed Dec 6, 2007 · Fuel system · CA

My vehicle continued to stall at near stops or while stopped. Or whenever accelerating from a stop. Took to shop, where the "throttle position sensor" was replaced. Also replaced was the throttle body assembly. Was told that the throttle body assembly was defective (warped). The repair person (dealer authorized repair shop) who worked on my 2003 ford explorer used to work for a ford dealership, and he said he had seen this happen before. I have the part they replaced. If this is something that has happened to others before, shouldn't there be a recall?

Filed Jun 30, 2006 · Body, Fuel system · 12,000 miles · TX

Hello. I have several complaints regarding my 2003 ford explorer including several safety issues. The first complaint is regarding the driver's seat which shifts routinely on acceleration and de-acceleration. This concerns me if I get into an accident and the seat malfunctions. The second complaint is regarding the gear shifter not going into park easily. I have to jiggle it to into park. I am concerned that this might not properly engage park and my vehicle might roll. Thirdly, my rear lift gate trim has had to be repaired at least 3 times. I am concerned that although the dealership says there is no safety issue, there possibly could be due to the rear lift gate hinges being recalled and representative informing me that the reason that I continue to have a crack appearing is due to design flaw. This concerns me b/c I frequently utilize the lift gate to retrieve groceries and other items and do not want the window to fail and fall on my head. The remainder concerns are regarding the function of my vehicle. I have had to have 3 of the window motors replaced under warranty. The transmission has had to be fixed twice (shifting module malfunction). Finally, the fuel gauge had to be repaired due to improper fuel readings. I guess all these items could be very problematic as well b/c I could run out of gas and be stranded with my child, my vehicle might not shift properly leaving me stranded. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have questions. Ps. I would also like to add that as I was completing this process I remembered that my vehicle had a high pitched whine that had to be repaired. I do not remember exactly what had to be repaired but it was covered under warranty.

Filed Aug 24, 2004 · Fuel system · 11,666 miles · CA

Vehicle loses power and you are unable to accelerate it, its stalls as a result of the loss of power. The vehicle is difficult to get out of traffic. Vehicle was repaired several times including replacement of fuel pump, fuel filter, and cruise control wires. The vehicle is not repaired at this time.