My vehicle was purchased new from Ford dealer with factory tow option, which comes with an undercarriage cover with integrated air scoop to help cool engine & transmission while towing. This cover (Ford # BB5Z-9910494-A) is designed with quarter tern thumb screws to hold it on to the undercarriage. While driving on highway, this part fell off and was not recovered. Now my vehicle is at risk of serious damage to either transmission or engine, or both in not having this key part. The weak design for fastening this metal part to the vehicle is a serious safety hazard, and Ford should provide a resigned replacement part through recall.
2013 Ford Explorer transmission complaints
Page 2 of 5: complaints 11 to 40 of 119, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The power transfer unit defective and I almost lost control of my vehicle without warning The vehicle has been inspected
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at 30 MPH, the engine shut off inadvertently. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The power train warning light was illuminated. There was no further information provided. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 123,000.
My 2013 Ford Explorer had coolant leaking below (No check engine light present). If I didn't notice the coolant on the garage floor, I would've never known of any issue. After taking it in to the dealership, they said the issue was defective Water pump (Actual Replacement Pump Cost: $155.64) that is leaking coolant and failing to properly cool the engine. Due to the design flaw of the engine, the water pump is internally positioned in the engine requiring disassembly of the entire engine to access and replace the faulty pump. Since this is a labor intensive requirement, the $155 part required $1,814.95 in labor costs associated with the replacement. This is uncalled for. Not to mention, the parts that were removed in the engine also were required to be replaced based on manufacture requirement (additional $802 in gaskets/seals/bolts/etc. If the water pump was not replaced, it would lead to complete engine failure. I had no options other to pay $2,930.22 in total parts/labor costs to replace a $155 Water pump. Shame on Ford.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH, the message stating that the engine was overheating was displayed. The contact was able to pull over on the side of the road, where the vehicle shutoff. The contact was able to restart the vehicle, but had the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the water pump had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 170,000.
The power steering in my 2013 Explorer went out on the road, and a light came on. My I am having my steering assembly replaced. 2800.00 plus. Please advise, as there was a recall on this model for same, though I received no info regarding the issue. My car was made in Chicago as well. The recall number was 14S06, but for some reason, my car was not covered. I filed a verbal complaint as well. Thank you. (The car is being inspected and handled at Lynch Ford, Mount Vernon, Iowa. ) My safety was at risk, and the situation was dangerous. Thankfully, I was not hurt. This took place on the 24th of July. Thank you. (Complaint---[XXX].) “INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).” The consumer stated that the manufacturer has yet to assist them with the issues.
2013 Ford Explorer does not appear on VIN list for 14S06 or for 15N01. The vehicle is exhibiting a dangerous loss of steering assist and I believe this VIN should be included in the recall.
Transmission has failed at 136,000 miles. All maintenance is up to date and has been performed by the dealership. When i pulled out on a main road the car would not accelerate almost causing an accident. I took it to our local mechanic and they had two mechanic's check it and stated the transmission failed. Check engine light show catalytic converter failure, Terraine maintenance failure and solenoid shift failure that came out of the middle of now where .
Water pump failure, this part has been recalled on most Ford explorers but not mine and I’m unsure why. My water pump has failed and is causing additional damage to hoses and the engine due to overheating. My vehicle overheated on the interstate and was completely drained of water. I had to pay a $400 tow bill and walk over 10 miles home. The water pump started working again and then once again stopped working. This has caused a lot of problems to my safety and well-being, not to mention I have lost my job due to being late for work multiple times due to not having a reliable form of transportation. A quick Internet search has showed me this is a very common issue for my vehicle and I believe Ford should be held responsible for the faulty part.
at any speed the Explorer would go into "limp Mode"....NO THROTTLE...Terrian Management Error would appear and the wrench sign,,,,,dash lights and terrain knob light would go off....at highway speeds, with no warning, this could be a deadly situation.....taken to our local Ford dealership.....they had no idea what happened....COULD DO NOTHING...after some research we decided to have them replace the THROTTLE BODY, at our "out of pocket" expense.....driven the car three times with no problems.....but after the first time it happened, to my wife, we went like 2 months without a problem...then it happened again...three more times before we took it in......YouTube is full of folks having the same problem....Explorers and F-150 trucks......you can stop and turn the car off...wait about 20 secs and restart...everything was back to normal...TIL THE NEXT TIME.....my Wife refuses to drive the car again til it is FIXED.....I drive it twice a week only....2013 Ford Explorer LTD....V6
Faulty water pumps causing leakage and eventually seize the engine
This winter I began starting my vehicle and letting it warm up before driving it. After letting it run approximately 10 to 15 minutes, I opened my door and to get in and there was a very strong exhaust smell inside. I would have to roll my windows down to clear the cabin of the fumes. This happened every single time I would let it sit and warm up. There is also something happening with what I believe is my drive-train. There is a lot of different noises (squealing/whining, grinding (metal to metal), clanking and thumping) when I give it gas after sitting at a light. As soon as I step on the gas pedal it makes all the above noises and jerks, then acts like it doesn't want to go. It finally kicks in then goes. Once it kicks in, it drives just fine. The noise sounds like its coming from the undercarriage and sometimes the rear end. I am not driving the vehicle now, it is parked in my driveway, so I am currently without transportation. There is also a very loud popping noise coming from the front end. I was told this could be ball joints or possibly stabilizers.
The PTU (Power Transfer Unit) was engineered without a drain plug and described by Ford as "Maintenance Free" for the life of the vehicle. Due to the close proximity of the PTU to hot exhaust components, small fluid capacity, and no recommendation by Ford to be serviced for the life of the vehicle, my PTU started failing within warranty under 50,000 miles. The propane smell within the cab of the vehicle is a tell tale of the PTU fluid breaking down under severe heat conditions, spewing out of the vent and flashing on the surrounding exhaust components. This was not diagnosed at that time by my local Ford dealer, so the problem continued until the PTU finally failed out of warranty at approximately 71,000 miles. Research confirmed that this PTU design failure has been recognized by Ford and that it can lead to a complete failure while the vehicle is in motion, causing loss of control and risk to lives. Recognition by Ford of this problem in the 2013 model year Explorer is self evident, as later model years incorporated air dams to direct air to flow over the PTU to help with cooling, and incorporated drain plugs and recommended service intervals to properly service the PTU. There have been thousands of premature PTU failures in Ford vehicles, but Ford has not yet issued a recall or replacement PUT's with a drain plug for serviceability for my 2013 model year. My PTU had to be replaced at my cost with another non-serviceable PTU, that will no doubt fail prematurely. I am concerned that my vehicle could pose risk to my family's safety in the future, because the repair that was done by my Ford dealer is not a long term, complete solution.
As stated in the 2 of the articles in this year make and model range 2013-2018 Ford explorer. The car has been up to date with maintenance, after a couple thousand miles after the oil changed was. I then took the car to a mechanic shop and was told the water pump and thermostat were failing. I stopped driving the car and decided to take it to a ford dealer. After visiting Palmetto Ford in Miami. I was told the car did not have an open recall for this vin and they did not cover it. It is evident that the problem has been present in many ford explorers in this year and has been a safety concern since the car overheats while on the road. I will need to have a recall placed on my vin number so that i can take this to a ford dealer and get it resolved asap so that i can get back to my normal living as I do not have a transportation and happen to be losing time from work and spending money in rides. My vin number is provided in this report Vin: [XXX] 2013 Ford Explorer Limited Recall 16v925000 (engine and engine cooling) https://www.bing.com/search?q=2013+ford+explorer+water+pump+recall&cvid=744c57e549d049c2bbcd35d89655cedd&aqs=edge.0.0l3.8405j0j1&pglt=41&FORM=ANNTA1&PC=U531 https://www.carproblemzoo.com/ford/explorer/water-pump-problems.php#:~:text=The%20contact%20reference%20manufacturer%20recall%20number%3A%2016s46%20campaign,not%20assist.%20The%20failure%20mileage%20was%20approximately%2065%2C000. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
I pulled into a parking spot. I shifted to park, turned off my engine. My vehicle rolled backward and hit a parked car while I was still sitting in it.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made an abnormally loud sound. Upon inspection underneath the vehicle, the contact noticed that the link shaft bracket and CV axle had broken in half. Additionally, the vehicle rolled away while the gear shifter was in park(P). The contact activated the parking brake to stop the vehicle from rolling away. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 20V692000 (Power Train) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was unknown. Consumer was left with loss of power and a loud metal hitting metal sound the tripod spider joint/ bearing had broke because it was not properly supported due to bracket failure the recall for this part is for models starting with 2014 Ford Explorer mine is a 2013 mine was built at the same plant as the recall for 2014 and up the exact problems the recall list is what happened even down to the roll away even through its in park it will still roll unless the parking brake is applied.
I was driving on the interstate and all of a sudden the vehicle lost power. It slowed down and I had to pull off the interstate. I thought it was because I broke for the speed limit change to fast. This was before July. It happened another time and I noticed the dashboard and it showed a big wrench symbol. Pryor to the mishap I saw nothing on the dashboard, no warning at all. I checked the internet and it was stating that there were a recall on this problem. I have not received any paperwork.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 10 mph, the vehicle lost power steering functionality while driving. The vehicle was turned off and restarted and regained normal steering functionality. The failure recurred. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and diagnosed that the battery, alternator, and transmission needed to be replaced. The battery and alternator were replaced. The dealer also performed three recall repairs for the door, rear toe link, and exhaust. and the battery and alternator were replaced. The failure recurred and the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic for transmission repair. The vehicle remained at the mechanic's. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering). The failure mileage was 200,000.
I started my car after work (this is after a 12 hr sit time) and seen I had a fault on my dashboard, power steering assist and service advance faults. So in short, I do not have power steering, nor do I have my 4wd, and for some reason my turn signal does not work for steady on. The turn signal works for lane changes but not for steady on turning.
Four 2013 ford explorer ran hot while I was operating the vehicle. We thought it was low on antifreeze so we added some. Out of precaution, we began monitoring the antifreeze level and notice that the level would drop, over a couple of weeks, enough which required us to have to add more antifreeze. My wife called ford's service department to schedule an appointment to determine/confirm the problem. We were told that it sounds like the water pump was may be defective. On our way to the appointment, the vehicle shut down and had to be towed the rest of the way. Upon inspection, we were told that antifreeze had leaked into the engine, and further, the engine was damaged because of a broken timing chain.
All terrain management system continuously faults even after being it repaired in 2016, it was okay for 2 years started again faulting every now and then in 2019. This year the all terrain management system stopped work completely in march. At first the vehicle had to be in motion for it to fault but now it happens right after starting the SUV. This is an extreme safety issue as it seems to loose grip of the road no matter the weather.
I have had the vehicle for about three months and have had more problems from it then anyone can imagine from the wrench light ( transmission) to the torque converter to camshaft codes to converters to sensors , AC condenser went out, brake issues after replacing new pads and rotors , this has been a nightmare . The truck only has 84k miles and I have experienced more issues from it then any vehicle I have ever had . Ford really made junk this time.
My wife experience "spontaneous acceleration" of our ford explorer. My wife was pulling into a walgreens parking lot, slowed down to turn into a parking space when the car lunged forward at a high rate of speed. My wife had her foot on the brake as she was entering the space, but the brake could not control the car. There was an extreme and spontaneous acceleration. Once the car hit the pole, it automatically shifted into reverse even with my wife applying the brake. The car came to a stop after hitting a parked truck. Additionally, the air bags did not deploy even though there was enough force on the front end to make the airbags deploy.
My 2013 ford explore keeps cutting off completely while driving. A wrench comes up on my dash and also terrain management come up. I pull over cut the car off wait a minute and it starts. I understand this happens quite often with explorers. Shouldn't ford be responsible for this due to being very dangerous. Please look into this🙏
At first the car was vibrating a little when downshifting from 45 to a stop. After a few months, the engine sputters and then seizes up and dies when put in drive from park and also from park to reverse. When stopping the car still feels like the downshift is faulty and when at the complete stop the feels like it going to lose power and die. The car has no trouble codes. Took the car to the dealership and the mechanic seem to immediately know what was wrong with the car. They troubleshooted it and called to tell me that they couldn't find any issues, but that it has to be a internal transmission issue and would have to remove transmission and tear down for inspection or replace with a new transmission on a 8 year, 64000 miles, 1st owner car. This car has low miles, stored inside a garage and is maintained at the dealership for oil changes and maintenance.
Transfer case makes a lot of noise I have to replace it. I am electric wreck steering makes a lot of winding noise.
Computer voice comand 80 MPH governor
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 ford explorer. The contact stated while reversing out of the drive way the power steering ceased and became difficult to maneuver. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to owatonna ford-lincoln located at (1001 hoffman dr nw, owatonna, mn 55060 507‑451‑7860 ) to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the steering gear and cam bolt needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 112,000.
Steering become hard cant move the wheel or make any turn... And the light of service power steering and service advance trac came on. I almost have a accident do to this problem.
2013 ford explorer limited 4wd 3.5l became undriveable in a matter of 4 days. It started as a squeal as I accelerated from a stop and quickly escalated to lurching, pulsating and bumping at all speeds. Mechanic initially thought it was a caliper that was locked up but when I brought it back 2 days later after the problem persisted and worsened he realized that the transfer case was faulty. He noted that ford is notorious for faulty transfer cases and horrible warranties that end before the parts go. I'm told that my vehicle could lock up at any moment and cause me to not be able to react putting my families safety and those around me in danger. Help please! I'm told this is a common issue and not isolated to my vehicle. Multiple phone calls to ford have me on hold for 15+ minutes with no sound and then phone call ends without the chance to talk to a representative. My vehicle had roughly 94,000 miles at the time. Repair cost was estimated between $3,000 - $5,000.
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