What 1,669 owners told NHTSA about the 2014 Ford Explorer

Lane keeping system malfunction. Steering assist malfunction. I have no power steering and it’s hard to control vehicle. Ford diagnosed that I need a new steering rack and sensor.

NHTSA ODI 11623742

My steering system needs to be replaced. While driving, my steering became very hard to control. My vehicle sways and I wrecked bc of it. Ford said it’s the steering gear that needs to be replaced for $2600. My driver and lane keeping assist lights came on when this started happening. My car needs a new sensor because of the wreck as well. This has prevented me from attending to everyday activities such as work. I have lost so much money and will probably lose everything I have like my home because of this. Ford needs to fix this now!

NHTSA ODI 11615137

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed with his 12-year-old child in the vehicle, the steering wheel tightened up, and the vehicle drove straight and crashed into a sand barrier. The air bags deployed. The driver sustained injuries to his chest, head, and shoulder. There was no injury stated for the 12-year-old child who was also in the vehicle during the crash. Medical attention was provided to the driver. A Police report was filed but was not provided to the contact. The vehicle was towed to the Police Precinct. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that prior to the crash, the vehicle was parked and rolled back and struck another vehicle. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V537000 (Suspension). The contact called an unknown local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired after the crash. The contact stated that the vehicle was totaled; however, the Insurance Provider had not yet rendered a decision on the vehicle. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

NHTSA ODI 11606028

The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that after making a left turn, the vehicle jerked in the opposite direction, and then the steering wheel became difficult to turn, and she crashed into a parked vehicle. The check engine and air bag warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that after parking the vehicle, she noticed a fluid leak underneath. The vehicle had not yet been taken to an independent mechanic or a local dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V675000 (Suspension). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was unknown. The contact stated that the air bags never deployed at the time of the incident. Also, it is difficult to click the seatbelt clip in. The local Ford Service Team was contacted but offered no help, stating that the accident had no correlation to the recall. They stated that they would not be covering the cost of repair for that incident.

NHTSA ODI 11516053

My 2014 Ford explore Set fire and lost control of steering on the highway the transfer case set fire, which made the driveshaft explode and twist. There were no warning signs of this. And we are very lucky that we were not hurt in this we have lost so much money and time there is no way that this was not due to a recall when I contacted Ford they pretty much told me the car was totaled and I was going to have to pay a lot of money depending on how much damage the fire did.

NHTSA ODI 11511279

My Ford Explorer had a rear suspension toe link Recall, and in December I took my vehicle to the Ford dealership to get it fixed. At that time, they did a full vehicle inspection, fixed the part, and told me everything looked great. Shortly after the service, we had a snow storm, and my SUV would fishtail in Icy/snowy conditions. Every time it'd snow, it made me so scared to drive, because I'd essentially not have control over my vehicle. The issue wasn't present when the roads were clear. Within the two months since that service, my back tires have gone completely bald, down to the wires. I recently got in a car accident because my car wouldn't complete a turn and ended up t-boning a Tundra on a residential street. Luckily I was going slow so the damage to the other vehicle was minimal, and no obvious injuries have resulted from the accident. I was able to remove some of the plastic pieces around the fender, in order to still drive it, so I took it to the Ford dealership that originally serviced my car for an inspection. Now that the dealership has inspected my vehicle, they're claiming that it's not on their liability and that they're not responsible for any of the damage. Now the alignment is off on both the front and back, and the strut is bent (whether that's from the accident or not, we don't know). The Manager admitted that when servicing my vehicle they were only allowed to perform a rear alignment, but a front alignment was never suggested or offered to me. When aligning a vehicle (especially in the winter) the whole vehicle should be aligned, not just half. They of course claim zero liability or responsibility, even though I was having issues with it fishtailing shortly after it being serviced at their shop, for a part on the suspension, which affects alignment.

NHTSA ODI 11510009

WHEN DRIVING THE 2014 EXPLORER, COKING OVER A HILL AND BEGAN BRAKING. CAR LOST BRAKING CAPABILITY AND BEGAN TO SPEED DOWN THE HILL, AND CRASHED INTO A TREE. ONE MIDDLE OCCUPANT ON 2ND ROW CAME UNBUCKLED AND DIDN'T SURVIVE. THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING TRIAL FOR 3 YEARS AND RECENTLY INFORMED THAT NO INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN PERFORMED ON THE VEHICLE OTHER THAN THE EDR/CDR. NO POST VEHICLE INSPECTION HAS BEEN PERFORMED, NO MEDICAL REPORTS HAVE BEEN PULLED. I HAVE PREVIOUSLY FOR 3 YEARS INQUIRED FOR HELP ON THIS MATTER AND HAVE FORWARDED QUESTIONS REGARDING INFORMATION OBTAINED. I KNOW WITHOUT A SHADOW OF A DOUBT I AM NOT LIABLE FOR THIS ACCIDENT AND HAVE WORKED FOR 3 YEARS TRYING TO OBTAIN INFORMATION ON THIS VEHICLE. WHEN I WAS COMING DOWN THE HILL THE CAR SEEM TO BE INCREASED IN SPEED - THE REPORT DOES SHOW THAT FOOT WAS ON THE BRAKE THE ENTIRE REPORT AND NO GAS WAS APPLIED. I TURNED AS FAR AS I COULD WITH THE WHEEL AND THE STEERING BARELY STEERED AS WELL. I WOULD LIKE TO SAVE A LIFE SOMEWHERE DOWN THE LINE AS THIS HAS CHANGED MY LIFE FOREVER. THE OCCUPANT ON THE 2ND ROW PASSED AWAY THAT DAY FROM SEAT BELT COMING UNATTACHED. MEDICAL REPORTS SHOW HE WAS WEARING A SEATBELT. IF THERE WAS SOMEONE WILLING TO LOOK INTO THIS - WOULD BE A LIFE CHANGING SITUATION.

NHTSA ODI 11292202

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD EXPLORER. WHILE DRIVING 65 MPH, THE STEERING WHEEL SEIZED AND THE "POWER STEERING OUT PULL OVER" WARNING MESSAGE APPEARED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO MCLAUGHLIN FORD (950 N MAIN ST, SUMTER, SC 29150, (888) 471-4257) WHERE AN ALIGNMENT WAS PERFORMED AND THE COMPUTER WAS RESET. AFTER THE REPAIRS, THE FAILURE RECURRED AND THE CONTACT REAR ENDED ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY. A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THERE WERE NO INJURIES SUSTAINED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO J.C. LEWIS FORD (9505 ABERCORN ST, SAVANNAH, GA 31406, (912) 210-5690) WHERE THE ALTERNATOR AND BATTERY WERE REPLACED, BUT THE FAILURE STILL OCCURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO MULTIPLE UNKNOWN DEALERS, BUT THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DIAGNOSED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE 113,738.

NHTSA ODI 11207712

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD EXPLORER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH, THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER WITHOUT WARNING. AS THE CONTACT APPLIED FORCE TO THE STEERING WHEEL IN ORDER TO STEER THE VEHICLE, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY JERKED TO THE SIDE. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO THE REAR END OF ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. UPON INSPECTION, THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE LOWER CONTROL ARM IN THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE HAD FRACTURED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED MINOR BRUISES AND THE REAR PASSENGER SUSTAINED MINOR NECK BRUISES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE CONTROL ARM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 18,500.

NHTSA ODI 10811166

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD EXPLORER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHEN STARTING THE VEHICLE, THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL NOISE COMING FROM THE STEERING WHEEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE BEARING NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT LOST CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE AND CRASHED IT INTO A TREE. THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE REAR PASSENGER SUSTAINED A BUSTED LIP THAT DID NOT REQUIRE MEDICAL ATTENTION. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 7,000.

NHTSA ODI 10664627

TO AVOID HITTING ANOTHER VEHICLE THAT ILLEGALLY CAME INTO THE LANE I WAS ENTERING (THEY WERE DRIVING ON THE SHOULDER), I HAD TO TAKE EVASIVE ACTION, WHICH CAUSED ME TO TURN MY VEHICLE INTO A CURB. AT THE TIME, I WAS TRAVELING 15 TO MAYBE 20 MPH. AFTER HITTING THE CURB, MY VEHICLE CAME TO A STOP AND UPON INSPECTION I DISCOVERED THAT THE LOWER CONTROL ARM HAD COMPLETELY BROKEN IN HALF. MY VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A LOCAL DEALERSHIP, WHERE THEY SUBSEQUENTLY SERVICED THE VEHICLE, WHICH I PICKED UP ON MARCH 15, 2014. HOWEVER, WITHIN 100 MILES OF DRIVING, MULTIPLE SYSTEM ERRORS OCCURRED, AND MY STEERING WENT OUT. THE DEALERSHIP IS NOW SAYING THERE WAS APPARENTLY AN ISSUE WITH THE STEERING GEAR ASSEMBLY, AND THAT THEY WILL BE ABLE TO FURTHER DIAGNOSE UPON REPLACING THAT PART. MY CONCERN IS THE SAFETY OF THE VEHICLE AND SPECIFICALLY THAT I DO NOT THINK A CONTROL ARM SHOULD SNAP IN HALF AT THAT SPEED, PARTICULARLY IN A SUV THAT HAS AN UPGRADED SUSPENSION AS PART OF THE TRIM PACKAGE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10573219