2013 Ford Explorer: engine knocking or ticking

Filed May 17, 2024 · Steering · NC

My 2013 explorer that I purchased is apart of the recall OEM 15n01 EPAS steering efforts. My VIN matches under the recall and my steering gear/rack seems to be faulty or broken. The service center confirmed the steering rack is faulty and is not safe to drive, It doesn’t let me drive in a straight acceleration and there’s knocking/grinding noise when it allows me to turn the wheel. What steps do I take in having this issue repaired?

Filed Jul 14, 2023 · Engine · MD

Driving down the street to my house at 25mph. Suddenly there was a ticking sound coming from under the hood. I pulled into my driveway shutoff the vehicle and looked under the hood. The engine had not overheated, it hadn’t even revealed a maintenance code. I checked the oil and noticed that the color was not as dark as it should be and seemed like there was a lot of air bubbles in the oil. I allowed the vehicle to cool down an hour drained the oil and it was the consistency of chocolate milk, and coolant leaking. Took it to a Ford dealership, they say the engine is a total loss due to water pump failure even though it wasn’t run or driven any Significant distance after the water pump failed. There are no safety recalls, there was no warning, and now I’m left with only purchasing another engine or vehicle. Numerous other have reported similar experiences. This is the result of faulty design and Ford should be held accountable.

Filed Jun 30, 2022 · Steering · 92,000 miles · LA

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while reversing out of the driveway at 20 MPH, she heard an abnormal knocking sound coming from underneath the driver's side floorboard. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced; however, the part was not available. The vehicle was repaired with remanufactured parts; however, while driving and turning all the way to the right, the steering rack was making abnormal grinding sounds. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic where the rack and pinion were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the independent mechanic who advised the contact to take the vehicle to an authorized Ford dealer since the parts to repair the vehicle were no longer available. The contact stated that the parts were on national back order. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000. The VIN was not available.

Filed Apr 16, 2021 · Steering, Wheels · 98,000 miles · MI

I was driving and heard a knocking noise from the rear end. Within 30 seconds I lost control of my steering. My car began fishtailing and the rear tires were squawking. The only way I could straighten out the vehicle was to turn wheel completely to the left. I was doing 35 MPH and dropped down to 15 MPH until I could pull over to safety.

Filed Dec 23, 2020 · Suspension · 122,000 miles · NJ

I received notice about a safety recall for my ball joint suspensions for my vehicle. Actually two notices from ford. I scheduled my vehicle for recall service and apparently my vehicle VIN does not fall under the recall. You can literally hear my ball joints knocking every time I make a turn. Even the mechanic confirmed that my ball joints were horrible but his hands were tied because my VIN did not pop up in his system with the recall. How is it I get not one but two notices for the safety recall and now my vehicle is not covered under the company recall? When again you can literally hear the joints knocking every single time I make a turn. Is it really going to take for me to get into an actual accident to have this issue addressed?

Filed Jul 13, 2020 · Engine · 158,513 miles · CO

For the past several months had a slight ticking sound at warm or cold startup. Was getting tired/achy while driving more than an hour. The sound became much louder over the weekend. It has been diagnosed as a cracked front exhaust manifold and may have been leaking co into the passenger compartment.

Filed Aug 15, 2019 · Acceleration, Suspension · 65,000 miles · IN

Front sway bar links have been knocking over 1 year ago. At the time my car was only 5 years old. At first the ford dealership they thought it was valve body in the suspension the first time they checked. Explorer was jerking when I slowed down to a stop. The second time I took it in they said it was the throttle body. They replaced that because I complained that I have had so many problems with a 5 to 6 year old car. Only has 77,000 miles on it.

Filed Nov 15, 2016 · Engine · 118,000 miles · TX

My truck has almost 120000 miles. And we were driving and notice the check light came on. We went to advance auto and had the truck scanned to see what code would come up. It said there was two cylinder misfired. And that it probably came from bad fuel. And then the engine started jumping and skipping. We finally got it to firestone and they said there's tapping and knocking at the bottom of the engine. They came to the conclusion that now the truck needs a new engine. They quoted me a rough estimate of $10,000. We've kept up with all the oil changes along with having the A/C compressor replaced because it went out as well. The warranty company will only replace the engine with a used or remanufactured engine for $3700. There is no way a 2013 ford explorer with less than 120,000 miles needs a new engine. And we also smelled exhaust fumes through the vents inside the vehicle.

Filed Apr 8, 2015 · Engine · 85,491 miles · TX · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 2013 ford explorer. The contact heard an abnormal noise coming from the front of the vehicle and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that there was smoke coming through the vents into the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, but was not diagnosed. The eco boost motor was replaced. After the vehicle was serviced, while driving 45 MPH, the contact heard a knocking noise under the hood of the vehicle and the engine stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the evap purge valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failures. The failure mileage was 85,491.