2014 Ford Explorer: engine failure

Filed Jul 21, 2025 · Steering · 129,000 miles · WA

The contact’s daughter owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving on the highway at 55 MPH, the steering wheel seized, and the power steering assist was disabled. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned off and restarted the vehicle however, the power steering assist feature was still inoperable. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer to be diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the rack and pinion was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, 2 years later the failure reoccurred. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving 35 MPH, the vehicle lost power steering functionality and the steering wheel became stiff. The contact stated that several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The driver pulled over, restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle regained power steering functionality and the warning lights turned off; however, the failure reoccurred. The local dealer was not contacted and the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 129,000.

Filed Apr 30, 2025 · Steering · PA

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel failed to turn in the intended direction. The contact stated the steering wheel had seized. The contact stated that the failure had occurred while turning and almost caused a crash. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with a failed electronic steering rack. The contact was informed that the electronic steering rack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The contact was advised to contact the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Feb 14, 2025 · Steering · 100,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 2 MPH, the message "Loss of Power Steering Assist" was displayed. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized and was difficult to turn to the left or to the right. The contact stopped the vehicle, turned it off, and restarted the vehicle and the vehicle regained power steering functionality. The contact had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was diagnosed, and it was determined that the power steering assist had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering). The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the recall. The contact was referred to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Filed Dec 17, 2024 · Steering · 131,856 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel seized with the traction control and check engine warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the power steering control module (PSCM) had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 131,856.

Filed Sep 24, 2024 · Steering · 149,000 miles · FL

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH and attempting to make a left turn, the power steering failed without warning. The contact depressed the brake pedal and turned the vehicle off. After waiting for a while, the contact restarted the vehicle and continued driving at slower speeds. The contact noticed that when the steering wheel was turned to the left or the right, the steering wheel seized and jerked the steering wheel and the vehicle moved in the direction as intended. The vehicle was taken to a body shop where the vehicle was inspected, and the contact was made aware that the vehicle had an electric power steering assist, not a hydraulic power steering fluid system. The contact was referred to the dealer for assistance. The dealer was contacted, and an appointment was scheduled; however, the vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 149,000.

Filed Sep 5, 2024 · Steering · 180,000 miles · OK

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the vehicle had lost power steering functionality with a message to “Drive Safely” displayed. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 65 MPH, the steering wheel seized, and the vehicle became difficult to maneuver. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and inspected the vehicle but was unable to find the cause for the failure. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the destination where the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was towed to the dealer but was not diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and it was confirmed the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer opened a case for the failure. The manufacturer had referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 180,000. The VIN was unavailable.

Filed Aug 20, 2024 · Steering · 168,000 miles · MS

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH, the steering wheel seized with the message “Steering Loss – Stop Safely” displayed. The contact was unable to turn the steering wheel. The contact stopped, turned off and restarted the vehicle; however, the steering wheel remained seized. The vehicle was towed to the contact's lot. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by a dealer or an independent mechanic. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and informed the contact that there was no recall on the VIN related to the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 168,000.

Filed Aug 16, 2024 · Steering · 84,700 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the electric power steering stopped functioning as intended. The traction control warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the steering seized, and the vehicle was difficult to steer. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle was jerking. The contact stated that the failure occurred while his minor children were seated in the rear seat of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed power steering module. The contact was informed that the steering assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the repair was not covered under recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 84,700.

Filed Jul 26, 2024 · Steering · 125,000 miles · NC

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 55 MPH the steering wheel seized. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and restarted; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the steering gear assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 125,000.

Filed Jul 18, 2024 · Driver assistance, Steering · NY

Lost of power steering while driving and ABS not engaging only flashing lights when getting close to object in front of you at higher speeds. Car inspection at oil change shows seized u joint for steering shaft

Filed Jul 15, 2024 · Steering · 120,000 miles · CT

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the "Service Power Steering" warning light illuminated. The contact attempted to make a steering adjustment to stay in the lane and became aware that the steering wheel had seized. The contact was unable to turn the steering wheel to the left or to the right. The contact stopped and turned off and restarted the vehicle however, the power steering functionality had not returned. The contact had the vehicle towed back to the residence. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering). The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

Filed Jul 10, 2024 · Steering · 62,000 miles · IA

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH and turning the steering wheel to remain in the lane, the felt that the steering wheel had seized, and the contact was unable to turn in either direction. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The contact stopped the vehicle and had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic. The mechanic diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the rack and pinion and steering gears needed to be replaced. The mechanic informed the contact that the steering gear teeth were fractured. The mechanic related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.