Vehicle had a history of suddenly jerking harshly while driving at highway speeds (65 MPH), but at irregular intervals and problem could not be forced to replicate. At approximately 97,000 miles while on an out of state trip, the vehicle began to refuse to accelerate properly from a standstill, appearing to "limp" (in ford's words) until it reached 10-15 MPH, then it would suddenly engage and accelerate rapidly, but would still quit accelerating briefly until reaching speeds >40 MPH. At interstate speeds, the transmission seemed to run fine until going into mountains, where it would not find the right gear for maintaining speed. Car continued to worsen until finally reaching a dealership that was willing to look at the problem. No error codes were observed, so was told the transmission had to be overhauled or replaced. The overhaul was not going to be guaranteed nor would the dealership promise when the car would be repaired and recommended a ford rebuilt transmission, which I was forced to select. The vehicle still has problems, though not as severe as formerly, but there are still no error or service codes being returned by any of the car's electronics. I have no options other than to drive it until it fails completely again, wherever that may happen.
2004 Ford Explorer transmission complaints
Page 8 of 16: complaints 191 to 220 of 460, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. When the vehicle is parked on an incline, it moves in reverse on its own. The vehicle has been to the dealer seven times, but they cannot determine the cause of the failure. The failure mileage was 54,000 and current mileage was 86,000.
My complaint is with the 2004 ford explorer and is a universal complaint for explorers from 2002-2005. These vehicles have problems with their rear differentials causing them to whine loudly at various speeds. In some cases they will leak and in extreme cases even seize up causing a dangerous situation for the drivers. There are multiple articles on this situation online and I myself have had my differential parts replaced twice already. I still experience a slight "whine" in the rear end around 60mph, not as bad as before but still there however. Apparently when the factory warranty has expired ford dealers will only repair this problem again if they are paid to do so. This is a major problem with these vehicles and has been for some time. Ford needs to accept ownership of this situation and have a recall sent out to all owners advising them the problem will be fixed at no expense to the owners. It is a downright annoying,costly and sometimes dangerous situation that needs to be addressed now as there are many of these vehicles on the road with unhappy owners at the wheel. Myself included. Thank you for your time.
Trans in 2002 to 2005 ford explorers are bad. They slip in and out of gear. Sometime you have to wait 5 to 10 seconds before it will move and this almost got me hit in mine by a 18 wheeler more than once. Talked with ford dealers they all clam its a ford mess up but there is no recalls yet. And this is with them beginning with in 20,000 to 90,000 miles on the explorers. I know of over 900 cases of this first hand and someone needs to get ford off their butt and do something. Noone can keep putting out 3500.00 for a rebuilt trans while their still paying on the vehicles. All of them go bad right after the warranty runs out. Being in law enforcement I see this every day and its not sage for family's in these vehicles. If something isn't done asap someone going to get hurt or die. They slip all the time when you back up your sitting in the road for 10 seconds waiting for it to go in drive then drive slips until you get to 35 miles an hour then their fine until you stop again. Call ford motor company and they just say sorry cant help you should have got the extra warranty on the vehicle. Me personally if it happens again im going to ford motor company and drive it right through the front doors and leave it there.
Transmission slips - lurches into reverse - recently slipped and wouldn't pull going up hill - 2 times in 2 days.
Vehicle goes forward after put in park and turned off. The transmission has been checked at ford dealership. Have letter explaining that if transmission fluid was not changed out that serious consequences may occur. Ford dealership not aware as this was not displayed as a recall. Herefore,transmission fluid was not changed at that time.
On january 17, 2009, I was attempting to back my 2004 ford explorer out of my driveway. When I attempted to put the truck into reverse, the steering column-mounted gear shift mechanism broke. The "wand" broke completely away from the column, with only the rubber covering holding it in place. Later, when a mechanic opened up the steering column, it was apparent that the gear shift mechanism failed because a piece of metal broke in half; it looked to be made of some soft metal. Because of the way ford designed the transmission, the entire steering column had to be replaced. The explorer had only 55,000 miles on it at the time of the incident. Total expenses for repairs were in excess of $1,600.
I am also having the transmission problem with my 2004 ford explorer. My vehicle jumps violently when it is put in reverse. When you first put it in reverse it will not move then all of a sudden it jumps backward. I also have been noticing that the truck feels like it is not in gear feels like it slips . I have made no repairs on my vehicle as of yet, but after reading the newspaper article I see that this problem is occurring with other vehicles,. We all seem to be having the same problems. I hope that ford will take care of these ford explorer problems before their are more accidents. I have not had an incident as of this date 4/30/09, but I can tell you that when I put my vehicle in reverse I am very worried because of how violent the truck jumps backward.
My 2004 ford explorer has a transmission problem. I never know if and when it will go into reverse or park. It hesitates and I then find out what gear it is in. This explorer is a one-owner car. 32,000+- miles on it. Weekends only. Yes, I went through the earlier recall, but it did little if anything to correct the problem,. At the time, I figured that I had been screwed into buying a defective car whose transmissions wouldn't last after the warranty ran out. Sometimes, the transmission doesn't engage right away and then jumps hard into reverse. Other times, it hesitates before going into drive and/or park. I never know. I am 57 years old. Please tell ford for me ----not to pee on my leg and tell me that it is raining. They didn't fix the problem. And I believe it to be dangerous. And since bush isn't president anymore, maybe your agency can stand up again for american consumers. Or will you? Feel free to contact me or for ford to contact me. The truth is the truth.
Tl*-the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. The contact started the ignition on a warm engine, and then moved the gear shift from the "park" position into the "reverse" position. Immediately, the transmission exhibited extremely hard shifting. There were no prior warnings. The failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was able to proceed to normal operation. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostic tests. The technician stated the failure was related to the automatic transmission solenoid pack. The solenoid pack was replaced for the malfunction. The contact had concern on the safety risk involved. The failure mileage was 60,000. The current mileage was 81,000. Updated 05/15/09 *bf updated 05/18/09.
Tl*the contacts owns a 2004 ford explorer. After driving in reverse and parking the vehicle it began to move after the back door was opened. She was able to engage the brake pedal to stop the vehicle from moving and confirmed that the gear shift was in park. The body shop mechanic was unable to duplicate or diagnose the failure. The contact stated that it was caused due to slippage of the gears and although the gear indicator reads park it is not fully engaged. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 39000 and current mileage was 44000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. After starting the engine, the gear shifted from the "park" position to "reverse". There was a forceful forward shifting motion when that occurred. In addition, when the gear shift was placed in the "reverse position" and shifting into the "drive" position there was immediate hesitation. There were no warning light indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for inspection. The technician stated the failure was contributed to the shift solenoid which was replaced. An authorized dealer previously replaced the solenoid for identical failure. The contact is aware of the safety risk. The failure mileage was 8,804 and the current mileage was 55,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. When placing the vehicle in a parked position the vehicle it rolled backwards even when it was on a level surface. On one occasion the vehicle rolled backward and crashed into another vehicle. There were no injuries. When the failure occurred she notices the over drive light illuminated on the instrument control panel. The dealer stated that her second gear was missing; therefore, she would be responsible for paying $3,700 to replace the transmission. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure mileage was 95,000 and the current mileage was 100,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. The transmission in the vehicle is constantly slipping. The vehicle hesitated after numerous attempts to adjust to the correct gear. Due to the failure it takes longer than it should to increase speed. The dealer made an adjustment to the transmission; however, the vehicle was not fully repaired. The failure mileage was 10,000 and the current mileage was 96,000. Updated 05/15/09 *bf updated 05/18/09.
Shifting into reverse, the vehicle will not move, when you give it more gas, then suddenly surge. This latest incident, I almost hit a pedestrian. I thought this was a throttle response issue, but now I think it maybe a transmission issue. This has been an issue since the day I bought it....the dealer put some fluid in the transmission and re-calibrated the throttle. Dealer said this is the first year ford used an electronic throttle. (no cable from gas pedal to throttle body.) after reading the newspaper article, seems that many owners have had similar complaints.
Transmission shifts very hard and when put into reverse it violently shifts to reverse. Have had the vehicle in for multiple repairs on the transmission and now the local ford dealership tells me I have to replace the transmission with the mileage on the vehicle a little over 70,000 miles.
No accident or injury has occurred. The transmission shifter binds when shifting into park. The interlock solenoid pin has worn a grove in the cam in which it contacts. When shifting from any gear to park, if you release the brake pedal at the right time the vehicle will not go fully into park.
I purchased a new 2004 ford explorer in 2004 and had constant problems with the transmission - hard shifting, slipping, and delayed shifting. I brought it back multiple times to 2 very good dealers and the problems remained. They replaced my rear axle three times but said because there were no stored codes from the transmission, ford wouldn't let them do anything else. My transmission kept having delayed shift and hard shift problems so I kept bringing it in to my local dealer even after my warranty expired. After 6 times at 2 dealers, it was doing the same thing. I do not blame the dealers, as they were only taking ford factory direction. I called ford customer service several times prior to my warranty end, and was always told to go back to the dealer. During those calls to customer service, I requested a ford factory rep contact me but customer service refused and advised me again to go back to the dealer for service. Last week, my transmission finally failed at 87k miles. It still shifted hard, and had delayed shifts, but it suddenly had no reverse, and extreme slippage in first gear. The check transmission light started flashing for the first time so it stored a code. I took my explorer back to the dealer who advised the code meant an internal failure of a band or other part and the transmission needed to be replaced at a cost of about $4500. The dealer service manager was very good about the entire problem, so I am still not at all upset with the local dealer. I paid almost $200 for the diagnostic of a failed band but decided to have the transmission repaired at a local transmission shop. There, the manager took the transmission apart to diagnose the problem and did not find a broken band or other part. He advised it was probably due to other problems that may have been there since it was new, and advised that I install a rebuilt transmission instead of rebuilding this one due to the problems with the aluminum case. I spent $3000; finally fixed.
I understand there are worse vehicle failures out there, but the sheer fact that so many owners of my vehicle, 2004 ford explorer (and its respective brothers: lincoln aviator and mercury mountaineer) are experiencing transmission failure has LED me here. The transmission in my truck is getting progressively worse and at the moment I am almost afraid to have my wife and our 2 children ride in it. The delay in the shift causes us to slow slightly in traffic and I fear (as do so many other ford/mercury and lincoln owners experiencing the same problem) that its inevitable failure may result in an accident or worse. Ford refuses to accept any responsibility for this even though every owner is experiencing this at the same mileage on the same model vehicle. One recall, in 2005 I believe, addressed a need for "solenoid additive" to the transmission. Many feel this was just a band-aid placed over a broken bone for ford and merely delayed the transmissions failure. (past the warranty) could it be that so many explorer / mountaineer / aviator owners are simply running their $30,000+ vehicles into the ground? Or is ford refusing to stand behind a faulty product? Just like the firestone tires several years back, ford should be held accountable before a bad situation becomes disastrous.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 ford explorer. While driving between 40-60 MPH on normal road conditions, the contact heard a whining noise when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The failure occurred continuously and there were no warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnostic testing and they stated that the failure was related to the rear differential. The vehicle has not been repaired. The failure and current mileages were 39,000. Updated 03-27-09 *bf updated 04/01/09.
Back rear hatch cracked. Just like the 100's of others I found on my internet search of the problem. Our transmission also failed and had to be replaced, at our own cost.
I have had 2 problems with my ford explorer. 1. Crack in the rear window panel, ford won't fix. 2. Total transmission failure, had to replace at my cost.
Purchased used 2004 explorer xlt 12/6/07 at 53,000 miles. Approx 6 mos later, it began having delayed shifting and would jerk into reverse. At times I had pulled out too far into the road and needed to back up to avoid a collision and the car would not safely reverse quickly. It would hesitate and then jerk into reverse at a high speed. The tranny would slip after slowing down and then accelerating. Once after shifting into reverse, I hit the gas and it revved up as if in neutral. I paused and hit the gas again without changing gears and it reversed. The first dealer said its tranny fluid was low and they topped it off. No change. The second dealer reprogrammed it with no change. They replaced the solenoid which seemed to fix the jerky shifting and improper acceleration. Now it is progressively getting worse again, just like last time. It starts out only having issues once a month and then they become more regular until it happens every time you drive the car. I don't think the car is safe as I cannot get it to move quickly when I need it to. The car has a new appointment with the dealer and I think they are going to replace the transmission. I have seen sites where hundreds of other explorer owners have had the same problem, sometimes even much worse than this one. The dealers are stumped because it doesn't show any codes. According to the computer nothing is wrong with my car when even I can tell that it has major transmission problems. It now has 80,000 and I have paid the deductible at least three times and still no change. I better have a new transmission coming to me...
My concern is in regard to an ongoing problem that my vehicle and thousands of others like it have; the lack of safety one may be faced with if the rear on these vehicles fail due to substandard parts used in the rear differential on the ford SUV's and f-150's. My understanding is that the costly repair that is required the manufacture will not honor after the basic warranty is over even though this is an ongoing problem. On these vehicles. I was told today that if I continue to drive the vehicle to the point of complete failure I risk the vehicles back wheels locking up. My question to the federal safety agency is why has there not been a recall on these vehicles knowing that this is a major problem in the drivetrain of these vehicles. I have 79k on my vehicle and a friend had their rear differential replaced at 22k and the problem is prevalent again on that vehicle again as well. In my estimation this could result in serious injury. What does it take to get a recall on this problem? Does hundreds of people have to die or suffer serious injury for something to be done? I have had my vehicle back to ford for one bang or clang or another since the vehicle had 18k on it. Will the federal safety agency ever see fit to make a re-call on these vehicles or again does several people need to suffer injury or loss before something is done?
The transmission is failing on my 2004 ford explorer. I have babied it for quite awhile because we already had plenty of electrical problems with it that had cost us a lot of money and we really have no idea where to get the money to fix this problem. We still owe a lot on it. When it first started, I spoke to my mechanic and looked on the internet for a solution. If you google "2004 ford explorer transmission", you will see a huge list of people with the same problem. Ford has the nerve to ask for a bailout with my money, but they won't stand behind their lousy product!!! This is going to cost me at least $2500 to fix and I think since they have been aware of the problem from the start, they should have to correct it before we start handing them money. This is more than unfair! Further, the plastic parts on these vehicles are cheap and break easily. One of my visors is suspended from the sunroof by a phone earphone cord because the plastic hinge broke and it dangles in your way when you are trying to see out the windshield. Please help!
Purchased 2004 exp xlt in 2007 with 34,600 miles. Took it to dealer while still under warranty. Said jerking into reverse and delayed shifting between 2nd + 3rd was "normal". Found out "normal" meant they all do it, but not that it is correct. A ford dealer told me solenoid body replacement will fix it. After reading the numerous complaints on-line, am not sure. The seat belt retractors do not work (didn't on the '94 either) but at least the seats in the 94 were comfortable. Just do not ever buy a ford again!. A friend has exactly the same model with exactly the same issue. Hard to believe ford does not want to do anything for their customers. But it does make it easy to understand why life-long ford owners will never own another one. My froend said they only offered him $3200 for his 2004 exp xlt on a trade-in. Not very much unless they know about the problem. Really sad ford will do nothing. I feel bad for all the good service people that are foced to lie to customers while ford hides behind the curtain.
I own a 2004 ford explorer xlt v6. On 2/9/2009, I left my workplace at about 6pm and within about 1/4 mile my automatic transmission started slipping. I shifted to 3rd gear and it did not slip. Within about 1 mile after shifting to 3rd, the overdrive light started flashing. Within about 5 miles the vehicle turned off and the service engine light came on as well, while I was traveling approximately 50 MPH on a causeway! I was able to pull over to the right. I turned the vehicle completely off. Turned the vehicle back on, put it into drive and no warning lights were displayed. I continued for about 1 mile, and drive started slipping again. I put it into 3rd, overdrive light started blinking. Approximately another 5 miles the vehicle shut off completely and service engine light came on again. I was able to pull over to the right. Turned the vehicle off, back on, and again proceeded home. I made it home. I have two children that luckily were not in the vehicle with me. My concern is that the transmission randomly failed and then the vehicle completely shut off, which could have resulted in an accident because the steering could've locked and the power brakes could've disengaged because the car was off.
There are many know problems with this transmission. I have made repairs to many 5r55 series transmissions and they are all defective in a few different ways. I spent 5 years at ford repairing these problems and now my personal vehicle is showing symptoms of failure. The only proper repair for this is the complete replacement of said part. Although the replacement part is most likely going to be a failed unit from another vehicle.
2004 ford explorer eddie bauer transmission problem (seen on many complaint websites.) solenoid body needs repair at 75,000 miles on car that has diligently had all scheduled maintenance. This causes transmission to slip hard in reverse and in transition between gears. It happened once and almost caused accident. No automobile needs to have this replaced under 150,000 miles. This costs $1,100 to fix (5 hours of labor and the part is $525.) the price of the part is ridiculous. Take care.
Purchased the vehicle new. Had regular maintenance performed. Shifting has been harsh and sporadic since nearly new. Has gotten progressively worse until now (jan, 2009) 67,000 miles when it became un-drivable. Took to ford dealer where purchased. Bottom line is that transmission is shot and they recommend a new tranny. Further research, online and with other owners, makes it obvious that this is a common, well known problem possibly having to do with incorrect tranny fluid installed when new. Ford says no recall, no warranty, and provides no relief. This is criminal.
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