While moving the steering wheel there is a weird clunk/pop noise and feels a bit loose. So this is concerning 66,000 miles on my vehicle. Also the front suspension is very rough and I have taken very good care. Dealership was not sure what it was but stated it was safe
2016 Ford Explorer steering complaints
Page 11 of 19: complaints 281 to 310 of 532, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Power steering locked up , well its electric steering .and the warring lights came on terrain assist and hill assist disabled, service advance trac ,steering loss , I was traveling on the freeway doing about 70 miles an hour when this happed I almost loss control of the vehicle . There are so many complaints about this problem with the ford explore steering issuse .
The steering wheel locked while we were driving in the car. We turned left into the grocery store and then back right to enter a parking spot and the steering locked and we almost ran into a parked car. Luckily we slammed on the brakes in time to avoid an accident. We had to crank the steering wheel all the way to the right to allow it to "release" and give us some steering back...but after that the steering now clicks while you turn left or right badly. We took it into our dealer...they said it is the steering gear motor. The car was in the same dealership 1 week prior to this getting an oil change and no signs of malfunction or wear/tear...without warning the steering locked up on us...very frightening...our car is 4 years old and only has 16,000 miles on it. And they cannot explain exactly why it happened. So I am unsure of if/when it happens again.
Sounded like a popping or clunk type noise when I turned the wheel to the right for a while then it started to make noise when turn the wheel either way. Losing control driving. Read on the news, 1.2 million explorer recalled for the steering assembly recalled for same issue but when I call ford they said this VIN was not part of recall. Very disappointed.
The first time my steering got stiff on 09/13/2019 while trying to make a left turn on a city street. In the process of making the left turn my steering wheel got stiff, and the steering fault hill start and trac light went on. I was unable to control the steering wheel which cause me to get up onto the side walk and almost hitting a tree. I had to slam on my breaks in order to avoid the accident. My kids body jerk back and forth really hard. I turn my car off and back on, and the steering wheel was was no longer stiff and working. I was able to drive home. The second time steering wheel got stiff was on 10/05/2019. While on the curve of a ramp to get off the freeway the steering wheel got stiff again and the steering fault, hill start and trac lights went on as well. Once again I had to slam on the breaks in or. I der to avoid hitting the rails, as I was not able to control the steering wheel. I try turning my car off and back on again to see if my steering wheel would work again, but it still did not work. I had to call my husband to come pick me up. I took the car to the dealer and I was told that they h.ad to replace the whole power steering equipment which cost me a total of $2350.39
Power steering failed completely on my 2016 ford explorer while driving. Dashboard lit up with a steering assist fault, and then hill assist fault. Steering the vehicle to safety was very challeging. I was turning at a left turn light and almost crashed into another vehicle because I could not steer the car. Looked it up online and have found numerous other accounts of the same issue with no repsonse or recall from ford.
My tire valve corroded after 3 years with the car. Which caused damage to the tire and the tire pressure sensor. The power steering went at 67000 miles. It stopped working completely while driving, extremely scary. The service department at the dealership said it is just something that happens. $2400 fix on a 4 year old car with 67000 miles and could have caused an accident.
Steering would lock up and you would have to force the steering back to drive ability. The rack and pinion was worn out, in my opinion prematurely. This happened while the vehicle was in motion. The first time it was notice was on highway driving in a construction zone. The steering would catch when turning left or right and you would have to force the wheel to straighten out the vehicle.
Steering wheel is stiff and makes noise when turning.
Even under warranty there were sporadic times the front suspension/steering would make a load thump noise. This usually happened when backing out of the driveway and sometimes when pulling out of a parking space. The dealer could never duplicate the noise so they found nothing wrong with it. Now at 48k miles and out of warranty the sound happens much more often. My wife said once the steering appeared to momentarily lock up and had to pull the steering wheel pretty hard to free it up. I found several other internet sites stating that the steering system is needing replaced on many explorers with relatively low miles at a cost to the owners of over $2000.
When turning right at a slow speed, heavy knocking/thumping noise and steering was jerky. Vehicle has 33,400 miles. Had it repaired at the ford dealership yesterday and they replaced the rack and pinion at a cost of $1800. Since I read this seems to be a common problem I asked if this issue has been recalled and was informed it was not.
Started having issues with the steering at 39,500 miles. Sounded like a popping or clunk type noise when I turned the wheel to the right. I took it to ford dealership who indicated the whole steering assembly needed to be replaced. This car was built at the chicago plant like all the other explorers that needed the steering assembly replaced. Ford indicated this VIN was not part of recall.
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, the steering wheel failed. The driver kept the steering wheel under control and move into the slow lane while continuing to drive. The contact stated that the steering system failure warning light illuminated on the instrumental panel when the failure occurred. The vehicle was towed to lewis j c ford (9505 abercorn street savannah, georgia, 31406, (912)-210-5677) to be diagnosed. The mechanic located the failure at the steering wheel rack and pinion. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.*dt
Steering started making a grinding noise turning left or right. Intermittent severe pulling to the left or turning from left to right. Happens at low or high speed. Started about 58k miles. Car is unsafe and un-drivable in this condition. Advised the rack and pinion is bad and needs to be replaced at approx $2000.
Started driving and received a warning on the screen saying "steering fault service now". Lots power steering control. Thankfully was at a low speed and could stop safely before leaving our neighborhood. Put vehicle in park, powered off, powered back on, and was able to drive again. Vehicle has 56k miles on it.
While making turns either at slow speeds or at a complete stop, the steering makes popping sounds. Steering wheel also locks for half a second. Took vehicle to a shop and was advised it was the rack and pinion on the front right tire area. The vehicle is a 2016 and has 41k miles. This issue began manifesting approximately two weeks prior. Estimated cost to repair is $2500. According to vehicle forums this is a common issue with this vehicle make and model.
My wife was driving down the road when the steering quit. It was pulling from side to side and she almost lost control. Steering failure alarms were continuing to go off. She was able to get the vehicle off the roadway and avoid a crash.
Power steering went on a 2016 ford explorer xlt with 57001 miles on it. Charged for steering rack/box replacement plus other astronomical fees associated with it out of pocket. The vehicle is supposed to be a family car. It is unsafe and hasn't been the same since. Car just gave out on highway with children in car. The car started to actively sway all over the road without warning. No control. Had to pull over. Called for assistance and than restarted the car to have no power steering what so ever. It was worse than trying to drive a heavy duty truck. As a female, I could not even turn the steering wheel. No codes came up prior; until the restart of the car. ???? Dealer took week to get it in plus a day for part and thousands out of my pocket during a world wide pandemic. With massive amounts of people complaining about this issue why hasn't it been recalled? This is incredibly dangerous.
The vehicle was in motion on a state highway when the following warning messages were displayed steering assist fault service required, hill start assist not available, service advance trac, terrain management system fault. At this point I had complete loss of power steering. I was able to pull to the side of the road safely and had to have towed to the ford dealer in my town which is was 2 hours away. Ford dealership diagnosed the problem as power steering control module.which is integral with the rack and pinion assembly. Cost of repair is 2400.00 of course I have a lifetime warranty on most parts including fuel pump, engine ,transmission but rack and pinion not considered under this warranty.
The vehicle was in motion on a state highway when the following warning messages were displayed steering assist fault service required, hill start assist not available, service advance trac, terrain management system fault. At this point I had complete loss of power steering. I was able to pull to the side of the road safely and had to have towed. Local ford dealership diagnosed the problem as power steering control module.which is integral with the rack and pinion assembly.
Noticed problem with steering. When I changed lanes the vehicle continued in that direction until I corrected it. This happened several times while driving home from work so I went straight to matt bowers ford in metairie. I was told the steering gear needed to be replaced, the module reprogrammed and an alignment. I've seen quite a few recalls concerning this but was not told that my vheicle VIN was not affected. I now see many people are complaining of the same problems. This should be looked at carefully before someone gets hurt.
I was driving home from dropping my daughter off at daycare and I lost the power steering on my vehicle while the vehicle was in motion and I was driving a steady speed down a straight road. My daughter was no longer in the car with me as this could have resulted in an accident but thankfully she was not and I was able to pull off the road with a lot of effort involved. My car had to be towed to the ford shop and I had to have my power steering core changed. $2500. This car only has 37,000 miles and is a 2016 ford explorer. Quite frustrating, disappointing and expensive. There needs to be a recall with this problem because I am not the only one this has happened too.
Loss of steering while driving. Nearly caused a 4 car collision. Steering wheel locked while driving 57 MPH. Was barely able to slow down and pull off to the side. This has happened multiple times, however after this last time, the steering wheel is permanently locked. Steering loss light came on afterwards.
I was turning into a gas station and the power steering went out with no previous warnings or issues.
Steering was getting difficult while making turns. Took it to a ford dealer and was told the rack & pinion need to be replaced for $2,560 and it is unsafe to drive. Ford is not covering this issue even though it is a faulty part on their end and should be their responsibility.
I was driving on the highway 65 in ham lake, mn several weeks ago when I suddenly lost control of the steering. The vehicle lunged to the left towards the ditch. I was able to fishtail it back onto the road, almost rolled the vehicle and barely kept it under control. I got over to the right shoulder and call the anoka county sheriff for assistance. A deputy assisted but I don't believe a formal police report was filed. This was sunday july 19th. We were able to get to local mechanic who looked at it the follow day and determined that the toe control link had broken. They repaired it with a new part from the local ford dealership and the vehicle seemed fine. Last night the new part that they installed broke as well. I looked online and see that there is a recall for this exact part, the toe control link on 2011-2017 ford explorers. I checked the VIN on the ntsb website but it indicates that our car is not included in the recall. We had brought the car into metropolitan ford in eden prairie earlier in the year for other recall issues. Had the recall been comprehensive, this would have been caught and fixed. At 65 MPH, my daughter and I should have both been killed in the original incident. It had been several weeks since the (near) accident and we are still shaken up by it. Fortunately, last night's incident was at much slower speed. I am fearful that there are other families whose lives in danger as well. I have a photo that I took of the current (second) break that occurred that is attached.
I initially had 'steering fault' alert a few months ago. Just today a 'terrain maintenance fault' alert came up with a few alerts icons on the dashboard. The steering froze to the point I could only move the steering wheel an inch while muscling it to a stop. Apparently, according to the dealership, this is a know issue. They had me restart the SUV and that temporarily solved the issue, but it could happen again at anytime. The dealership said, if the issue isn't occurring when I bring the SUV in they can't specifically diagnose the problem, but more than likely the steering gear needs to be replace for ~$2k. As I am reading others, this is an ongoing issue that could put drivers in danger and have for others. I was in marshfield, ma when this happened, driving 30 MPH approximately 2pm on plain street.
The fluidity of the steering is deteriorating. When turning the wheel right or left there is a grinding sound of metal on metal. Intermittently I have to wrestle with the steering wheel when accelerating through a turn which is a major safety concern I have as I typically am traveling with two young children. The problem has arisen in the past three months and the mechanic I utilize, who does not repair steering racks, reported that the cost of addressing the issue could exceed $1000. This problem should not be associated with a 2016 model that just went over 50,000 miles and is not subjected to rough, extended driving but rather most days are a 28 mile round trip for work.
49000 miles, electronic steering is starting to go out. When driving moderate speeds car makes loud audible noises especially when turning the wheel. Rack and pinion will need to be replaced. Ford told me it was 100% safe to drive. Took to independent mechanic who said the exact opposite and should be replaced before it goes out heaven forbid at high speeds.family of 4 young kids, this is supposed to be a safe, family car. Ford is putting a lot of families at risk not recalling this. This car only has 49k miles. They are losing lots of return customers by not handling a safety issue properly. I hope no deaths have to happen to bring more severity to this pressing issue. If you hear a click when steering, get the car inspected asap! Clicking occurs when stationary and is more intense when driving. It could go out at any moment.
Our 2016 ford explorer with only 50k miles started to have very sticky steering and it would make some clunking noises when turning. This progressively got worse while my pregnant wife used the SUV as a daily drive until one day she said she nearly lost control of the ford and had to swerve off the road to avoid hitting oncoming traffic. We took the vehicle into harold zeigler ford in lowell, mi and they said that the electronic steering gear had gone bad and needed to be replaced. That means replacing the entire steering assembly which is a $2,200+ repair. That is way to serious of a repair to happen so often and this early. Based on the many similar issues I have read about regarding this issue and the fact that ford already had a similar recall for earlier years of the explorer, this needs to be recalled. Someone will get hurt and ford is just trying to save money by not addressing it. The worst part is that there seems to be no guarantee that it won't happen again in 50k more miles.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2016 Ford Explorer?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history