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2012 Ford Explorer transmission complaints

Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 55, newest first, as owners wrote them.

See the summary of 2012 Ford Explorer transmission problems: which part fails, at what mileage and related recalls.

Filed May 21, 2019 · Transmission · 75,000 miles · NC

Experiencing hard shifts with a thud. Happens when the vehicle is slowing down then when I accelerat there is a delay then a thud when it finally shodts into gear. Apparently I'm not the inly one from what ive heard. I wish ford would fix this issue. I have taken it to garage but they were unable to determine the issue.

Filed May 16, 2019 · Transmission · 84,000 miles · HI

Twice in 5 days the vehicle has 'awd off' error message pop up when driving at 25mph, and has forced the vehicle into idle while in traffic. All of the mechanics we talked to won't touch the vehicle because this a known issue, and direct us to the ford dealership to have it serviced. There is zero sense of safety when driving it.

Filed Apr 11, 2019 · Driver assistance, Steering · TX

Steering wheel locks up when you start truck and have to turn off and restarts to go away

Filed Feb 18, 2019 · Transmission · 49,152 miles · CA

At beginning, vehicle frequently suddenly reduce the speed while driving, then I experienced the difficulty to start the engine in the morning. Miss fire of the engine experienced during both in driving and morning engine start. The vehicle also accelerate when the driving speed around 20 MPH in city driving, and suddenly reducing the speed when it is around 80 MPH on highway. So I decided to send it to a local repair shop for finally I parked inside of the garage and waiting to delivery it diagnostic, but the repair shop could detect anything wrong in mechanic, therefore they recommend ne send it to ford dealer for further testing. After store this vehicle in the garage for few days, the engine can not start at all. I had to tow it to ford dealer for further testing. The only error ford dealer found is the re-installation of PCM software. Which ford had a recall on this vehicle, the recall work was performed by the same ford dealer on 11-15-2016. After last week re-install the PCM software by ford dealer, I still experience the uneven shaking when the engine accelerate to 4000 RPM (not driving condition), as well as the diving speed close to 80 MPH on highway. Buy ford dealer claims these symptoms are very normal of the ford expedition.

Filed Jan 3, 2019 · Acceleration, Engine · 58,900 miles · TX

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford explorer. The contact stated that the throttle body assembly was faulty. When the contact depressed the accelerator pedal, the vehicle would not accelerate. The contact pulled the vehicle over and it started shaking. When the contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, it operated normally. Sames ford (4721 ayers st, corpus christi, tx 78415, (361) 851-7600) diagnosed that the throttle was faulty and provided the repair cost. The manufacturer stated that there was no recall and advised the contact to save the receipts for reimbursement if a recall was issued. The failure mileage was 58,900. *tt consumer stated car would not accelerate on a busy road. Problem was fixed.

Filed Oct 14, 2018 · Electrical, Transmission · 62,000 miles · MI

2012 ford explorer xlt 4w. The terrain management system fault light came on and car went immediately into limp mode on a major road.there was no warning and was almost rear ended. Took to dealer oct.1 and they kept it two days. The dealer said they could not find a code. Dealer said it is fixed by updating and calibrating the ABS system. It was not fixed. . Oct 13 same light went on and car immediately into limp mode on expressway. Nearly caused accident because car immediately slowed down and would not go more than 5mph in limp mode. You loose complete control of the transmission and throttle. There are 53+ cases with this problem on the internet just this year. Https://www.carcomplaints.com/ford/explorer/2016/engine/wrench_light_on.shtml this happens suddenly while driving and without warning. The car immediately begins to shutter and vibrate and immediate begins to slow down to 5mph. This is a dangerous situation and should be investigated. You have no control over the speed of the car or the transmission.. Please google (terrain management system fault light) and see that there are many more ford cars are affected by this problem there are 3 youtubes showing this problem. They cars are not safe to drive. Anyone who had a terrain management system light that goes on while driving will experience the same dangerous situation

Filed May 28, 2018 · Transmission · 46,778 miles · FL

The problem occurs again twice on 5/23/18 the wrench icon appears again, lost power, no acceleration, turn off the engine and restart..made an appointment back to coggins ford and they checked and still there is no code to see what is wrong with the car. They suggest that it might be the electronic throttle body if I want to replace it but not guarantee. With my approval I am taking my chances to replace it because I am scared I will be in a serious accident if I will not do something about it. I hope this will fix the problem and also hoping that you will do something about this incident. Thank you.

Filed May 14, 2018 · Transmission · 46,702 miles · FL

This is the continuation of my 2012 ford explorer follow up complaint about the power train malfunction and reduced power that happen on 5/12/2018. As I mentioned in my last complaint that I took it to coggins ford in jacksonville on 5/14/18 and they checked my car and the service advisor said that they test droved and checked but no codes so they cannot do anything and he advised to keep on driving until it happens again and to bring it back. Now, I am nervous driving this car, it might put me and my passengers in a dangerous situation if suddenly this happen again loss of power and stalling while driving. This a serious safety and it can lead to accidents, injury or death. I hope ford will investigate and have a recall on this problem.

Filed May 12, 2018 · Transmission · 46,702 miles · FL

I was driving on the highway with the speed of 60 miles per hour and suddenly the wrench icon shows on the left hand side of my steering wheel and my car speed is slowing down. I tried to push my accelerator harder but it will not pick up speed, so I pull off the road and turn off my engine. After a few minutes, I started my car and it starts and drove home with a low speed and made an appointment to coggins ford in jacksonville,fl.05/14/2018. I will follow up on the result.

Filed Nov 24, 2017 · Electrical, Steering · 100,000 miles · CA

After starting the car while parked the 'service advance trac" warning came on. After driving approx. 100 feet the warning went away. There was a slight hardness in the steering at this time. That went away when the warning went away. This occurred on nov. 10, 2017. The second problem occurred on nov. 23, 2017. While parked overnight and all day in our garage I started the car and the "power steering assist fault'' warning came on. I could not turn the steering wheel at all. I turned off the engine and within 10 to 15 seconds I started the car again. No warning came on and the power steering worked o.k. I started the car again this morning and no warning or problem.

Filed Nov 1, 2017 · Electrical, Engine · 155,000 miles · TX

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford explorer. While driving various speeds with the accelerator pedal depressed, the vehicle stalled and the oil pressure and power train wrench warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was unable to start on the first attempt. The failure recurred over three times. The contact noticed the failure after she depressed the accelerator pedal after a complete stop. The local dealer (gulf coast ford, n, 3000 state hwy 288, angleton,tx, 77515) was contacted scheduled an appointment for two days later. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 155,000.

Filed Oct 23, 2017 · Transmission · 91,200 miles · TX

2012 ford explore limited. While driving on highway, the car suddenly with no warning decreased speed then a wrench warning light came on in the lower left dash panel, and the car was idling very rough. Even though I was pressing on the gas pedal to accelerate, there was no response. I was able to limp it home at literally 2 MPH in "limp mode". The car did not respond when I pressed the acceleration pedal although I still had power. I had to have it towed to dealership to be checked out. After researching what it could be, I learned it is possibly the electronic throttle body (etb) and/or purge valve. I am passed extended warranty naturally and probably going to be left with a huge bill. Why is this not a recall ford????? It is clearly a manufactured issue with this many people experiencing this same issue.

Filed Oct 13, 2017 · Steering, Transmission · 45,000 miles · CT

Gear shift message - 'shift to park' after putting vehicle in park and ignition is turned off.

Filed Aug 29, 2017 · Engine, Fuel system · 72,000 miles · TX

(re)starting august 1, 2017, while driving, the vehicle would suddenly and without warning decelerate, with no response from the gas pedal. Ford calls this their "limp home mode." the wrench icon warning would display and the entire vehicle would shudder until it was put in park and turned off. Usually, it would resume normal operations after being restarted, however, on one occasion, it took three attempts to restart. After two such incidents occurring in less than a mile, I don't feel safe driving on the highway (or, really, any other place) as there is no indication to other drivers and the vehicle actively decelerates, rather than coasting. During one such incident, the deceleration was so pronounced that passengers jerked forward in their seats and a canine passenger lost its footing, falling into the back of the seats. We previously experienced this same issue in 2015, leaving me and a small child stranded when the vehicle did not restart at all. As part of a "goodwill" repair due to the vehicle being just out of warranty, the etb (electronic throttle body) and purge valve were replaced by ford. I filed complaint 10787972 with the federal safety agency on 10/25/2015. In 5 years, this will be the second replacement of a part that's expected to last well over 6 years. Ford is aware of the problem, is and has been sued, and is being investigated.

Filed Jul 7, 2017 · Transmission · 55,000 miles · RI

I have had the car for 2 years and have had at least 10+ incidents of my car losing all power for acceleration. It has happened on the highway going 65+, it has happened accelerating onto the high way, it has happened on residential streets, it has happened on state highways, it has happened in parking lots. The car suddenly revs super high but pressing the accelerator does absolutely nothing. I have to limp to the side of the road, turn the car off and usually it fixes the issue. But several times I have had to turn it off and restart several times before I have normal control of the car again. I have brought it in several times and every time they tell me unless it is happening at that moment they can't figure out the problem. I have kids in my car most of the time and to suddenly lose power is a tragedy waiting to happen. Today during a routine oil check, it was discovered my ptu is leaking. In a 5 year old car I would not expect this to be the case.

Filed Mar 21, 2017 · Fuel system, Transmission · 105,000 miles · OH

Fuel and exhaust fumes or smell of burning oil. Problems with turbo.

Filed Mar 7, 2017 · Electrical, Transmission · 45,000 miles · OH

Bad smell with heat or AC on at higher speeds headaches and lightheadedness felt at times. A seperate issue altogether windows and door locks have failed to work a couple times leaving me stuck inside car until it decides to work. Dealer has had suposed part on back order for 2 months.

Filed Feb 6, 2017 · Engine, Transmission · 52,736 miles · FL

My 2012 ford explorer would all of a sudden sound like it was slipping out of gear while driving. I would lose all control of the accelerator & vehicle would idle very rough. The "wrench" light would appear on the dash display. I would have to drift over to the side of the road, turn the vehicle off, & then re-start the vehicle. This happened without warning & became more frequent. Dealership replaced the throttle body (at my cost) & explained no recall had been determined yet, but expected it to be issued in the future due to the number of complaints. I also had to pay to have my selector lever assembly replaced again since I was again having the issue of vehicle problem of "shift to park" appearing once again. The first time this part was replaced it was covered under tsb 15-0047, but this time it was at my expense.

Filed Jan 2, 2017 · Transmission · 51,000 miles · FL

While driving the vehicle started to make a grinding noise coming from the front area. Pull over and tow to dealer . The transmission pto had a internal failure. The car only has 51k miles normal driving. I search on the internet and found that ford had several issues with this part breaking in low time. This could be a safety hazard.

Filed Nov 2, 2016 · Acceleration, Engine · 40,000 miles · AL

While driving the vehicle suddenly power would be lost. When applying more pressure to the accelerator, no usable power was present and the vehicle could not exceed 30 MPH. After this occurred on the 4th time on a subsequent day, the "engine" symbol was displayed. Currently the vehicle is at a ford dealership to troubleshoot the problem. On two occasions this discrepancy with acceleration and functionality of available power nearly caused an accident with small children in the vehicle. This should cause a major concern to other owners and ford motor company as a whole due to the potential damage, injury, or death that could occur due to completely losing acceleration and/or power while driving.

Filed Oct 27, 2016 · Fuel system, Transmission · 40,000 miles · TX

My 2012 ford explore ltd. Stops in the middle of the road while driving. A wrench light comes on in lower left dash, and the car loses power. I can no longer once this happens. I must turn off the car and restart the engine to get it going again. This has happened on a highway going 70 miles per hour, and in the middle of intersections, on regular city, suburban or neighborhood streets, not to mention it is now happening 2-3 times a day while with no warning. It happens while driving only, sometimes after turning, sometimes not, but the car is always in motion at the time, at various speeds in various temperatures, with climate control either off or on, seems to have no bearing. This is extremely dangerous and can easily cause an accident, injury or death. Apparently the current recall for the power steering does not address this. I am having that worked on right now as I type. This happened once last year on the highway, and once about 6 months ago as I pulled out of a parking lot. Hadn't happened again since until the month of october in the 80 degree weather of plano tx, whether car was already warmed-up or not.

Filed Aug 18, 2016 · Transmission · 48,000 miles · PA

The ptu unit went bad and had no oil in it- whole unit needs to be replaced. Should have oil, should be permanent. No reason for this- car is 4 years old and now we are paying $2000 to fix. Read that this problem is an epidemic. Should be recalled for this problem. It's everywhere ford has awd!!

Filed Jul 23, 2016 · Electrical, Seat belts · 38,000 miles · MD

Transmission shifts out of gear, from drive into neutral or stalls out. Safety hazard while driving. 6f35 transmission. Dealer(s) refuse to acknowledge issue or repair despite customer complaint and transmission fault code. Vehicle stalls while at all speeds on highway, city streets, or while in intersections. Too dangerous to drive

Filed May 9, 2016 · Transmission · 52,000 miles · IN

Repeated issue with malfunctioning TCM. Went into default mode while driving on state highway. Repairs made but have since taken vehicle in again for same service issue and is scheduled for a third repair. I know the 2012 focus, fiesta and expedition have class action suits due to TCM. Dealer has twice told me vehicle is safe to drive in it's current state since service and check engine lights are not flashing in default mode.

Filed Mar 22, 2016 · Transmission · 107,000 miles · FL

Car sputters and hesitates when orange wrench comes on intermittently while in motion.

Filed Jan 11, 2016 · Transmission · 29,500 miles · TX

While on freeway, car suddenly decreased speed even though I was pressing on the pedal to excelerate. It has happened a few more times but luckily I was not on freeway. Took it in to mac haick and they said it was the throttle body. My car has less than 30,000 miles and I asked if this was common and was told no. He said that sometimes it happens with more that 60,000. I asked if there was a recall and was told no. I then called ford customer service, the rep said that they did not have any recalls and gave me a case #8559890.

Filed Nov 13, 2015 · Transmission · 2 miles · PR

November 13, 2015 carolina, puerto rico I'm driving normally then a wrench light pops up on the dash & says "see service manual". I then immediately without warning loose all control to my gas pedal & the engine shakes at an idle. I am forced to pull over. We return home less 10 mile per hour, then turn the car off. Once I turn it back on it "warnings 0" in some way & runs normally.

Filed Nov 5, 2015 · Transmission · 27,500 miles · AZ

I'm driving normally then randomly a wrench light pops up on the dash & says "see service manual". I then immediately without warning loose all control to my gas pedal & the engine shakes at an idle. I am forced to pull over (mind you with my 2 kids in the car when this has happened 3 times in 1 month). Then turn the car off. Once I turn it back on it "resets" in some way & runs normally (until this happens again). The first time it happened was 3 weeks ago on a weekend late morning driving maybe 45mph, the 2nd time was this past tuesday 11/2/15 in the evening after work at 5:15pm driving may 35mph. I took it to the dealer they said it was "fixed" & they sent me on my way. Then it happened the 3rd time the next morning on 11/3/15 @ 7:30am when I was stopping at a stop sign so I wasn't going more than 5mph. It's been back at ford since then & they said they "can't fix it if it doesn't show up for them or the can't duplicate the problem" meanwhile myself & I have no vehicle to school & work. & the worst part is all tree times my kids were with me & there could've been an accident but ford won't do anything.

Filed Nov 3, 2015 · Transmission · 43,000 miles · TX

Issue has occurred multiple times, under different conditions. Without warning, the vehicle loses acceleration and the wrench icon and awd errors display. The throttle becomes unresponsive, but all other systems remain functioning. If you leave it in gear without the brakes engaged, it will move at idle speed on flat ground, but is unable to navigate inclines. When slowing to a stop, the whole vehicle shudders. Stopping and restarting normally returns the vehicle to normal operation. However, on october 25, it failed to start and had to be towed to the dealer. There is no external indication of this sudden loss of power and it creates a very dangerous situation because it happens without warning and you are only able to steer and brake to control the vehicle. Our 2012 explorer is currently at the dealership, who has indicated that the problem is the electronic throttle body (etb) and purge valve. Ford is aware that there is an issue with etbs with other models, reference the federal safety agency action # pe13003, and explorers, reference the federal safety agency #10054323 and 10053276, ford tsb # tsb-13-9-8 and tsb-13-5-29. Description: lincoln/ford: due to diagnostic trouble codes (dtc) p0106, p0236, engine on some vehicles experience hesitation, loss of idle RPM, difficult in starting, lack of power, running rough and crank no start situation. Description: ford: due to blocked vapor purge line port in air cleaner outlet pipe assembly, the mil would illuminate, with dtc p144c.

Filed Oct 1, 2015 · Engine, Transmission · 10,000 miles · MA

Burning smell under acceleration.

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