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What 2,429 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Ford Explorer

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (2,429)Crash / fire / injury (77)Body & structure (574)Steering (527)Engine (379)Transmission & drivetrain (213)Electrical system (124)Engine & cooling (114)Fuel system (110)Airbags (99)Speed control (76)Suspension (73)

76 of 2,429 complaints match · Speed control · clear filters · page 4 of 4

Sep 18, 2015Speed controlEquipment Adaptive/mobilityBrakes

SEPT 31ST - WITH 358 MILES AND LESS THAN OWNED FOR 24 HOURS ALL ADAPTIVE EQUIPMENT FAILED, FLASHING ABS FAILURE LOSS OF SPEED CONTROL. OCT 1ST CAR TAKEN TO JCLEWIS FORD IN SAVANAH,GA, WAS CALLED BY THE DEALER APPROXIMATELY 3 HOURS LATER AND WAS TOLD TO PICK THE CAR AND THE ONLY PROBLEM WAS TO REALIGN AND RESET COMPUTER SOFTWARE. I TOOK THE CAR AND DROVE 39 MILES AND WE SUSTAINED A TOTAL REPEAT OF THE PROBLEMS. AT THIS POINT THE DEALERSHIP SAID THEY HAD NO IDEA AT POINT WHAT WAS WRONG OR THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM, APPROXIMATELY FIVE DAYS LATER I WAS TOLD THE CAUSE WAS THE FAILURE OF THE REAR ABS WHEEL SENSOR WHICH THEY TOLD ME WAS REPLACED AND ALSO THAT THEY HAD DRIVEN THE CAR FOR FEW DAYS AND IT WAS NOW OPERATIONAL. I DID PICK UP THE CAR AND AGAIN WITHIN A FEW MILES WE SUSTAINED THE SAME FAILURE WITH AN ADDED FEATURE I BACKED OUT OF MY PARKING SPACE AND FOUND THAT I HAD LOST ANY ABILITY TO MOVE FORWARD AND THERE WAS A SEVERE GRINDING NOISE EMANATING FROM TRANSMISSION, DROVE THE BACK TO DEALER SHIP FOR THE FOURTH TIME AND WAS TOLD THAT EVEN THOUGH I WAS TOLD THAT THE FORD DEALER MECHANIC DID NOT REPLACE ANY PARTS AS I WAS TOLD. AS OF TODAY SEPT 18TH THE CAR IS STILL WITH THE DEALER AND WAS TOLD THAT IN FACT REPLACED THE LEFT ABS WHEEL SENSOR BUT THEY SAID THAT IN FACT WAS NOT THE PROBLEM AND THAT IT STILL EXISTED. I WAS TOLD THAT THEY WERE THINK IT IS BEING CAUSED BY SOME TYPE OF SHORT IN A WIRE HARNESS BUT THEY STILL ARE AWAITING PARTS. I HAVE REQUESTED A MEETING WITH A FORD REPRESENTATIVE BUT I WAS TOLD BY THE SERVICE MANAGER THAT HE COULD NOT ARRANGE A MEETING. I WAS TOLD BY A FORD REPRESENTATIVE I BELIEVE DETROIT THAT I SHOULD LOOK AT THE BACK OF THE OWNERS MANUAL FOR ADVICE ON THE LEMON LAW.

NHTSA ODI 10765252

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Working with the data? Download all 2,429 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 22, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 Ford Explorer verdict →