What 2,423 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Ford Explorer

Driving down the NJ Turnpike the dashboard started displaying lane assist no longer available along with a check engine light. Once stopped the front of the car had been burned with parts of the bumper melted. No visible fire at that time. Had the vehicle towed to Holman Ford. They assessed the damage to the Explorer and it was determined that the front facing camera had shorted causing an electrical fire that damaged the camera and front bumper writing harness along with the engine wiring harnesses. The car has been deemed a total loss due to the fire. The vehicle on has 67000 miles on it to date.

NHTSA ODI 11726751

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 19V435000 (SUSPENSION), 24V031000 (Structure), and 25V347000 (STRUCTURE). However, the parts to do the recall repairs for 24V031000 (Structure) and 25V347000 (STRUCTURE) were not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver's side A-pillar detached from the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while the vehicle was idle and the contact was dropping off her child at school, the rear passenger seat caught on fire. The contact had turned on the seat warning, and when the daughter exited the vehicle, an abnormal burnt smell was coming from the back seat. The contact then noticed smoke was emitting from the seat. The contact pulled over to the side of the road, turned off the engine, and put out the fire. The seat was damaged beyond repair, and the wires were exposed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired for the most recent failure. No Fire and Police reports were filed. There were no injuries sustained. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN tool confirms parts are not available.

NHTSA ODI 11666632

There has been many reports of electronic steering issue where it would just swerve you off the road and loose full control while driving for years 2013-2015 cars but 2016 years are also being effected. A dealership confirmed it was an electronic steering rack causing the issue. No warning lamps had went off either

NHTSA ODI 11577640

ON AUGUST 20, 2020, MY VEHICLE HAD LAST BEEN DRIVEN AROUND 12 NOON. IT SAT IN THE DRIVEWAY WITH ALL OF US HOME. MY SON WENT TO GET IN THE VEHICLE AROUND 6:30 PM. SMOKE POURED OUT, THE SEAT WAS SMOLDERING AND FLAMES CAME UP. WE COULDN'T PUT THE FIRE OUT WITH EXTINGUISHER. FIRE DEPARTMENT PUT HOSE ON SEAT. FIREMEN STATED THEY SEE THIS OFTEN WITH HEATED/AIRCONDITIONED SEATS THAT MALFUNCTION AND BURN UP OR CAUSE FIRE. FIREMEN STATED THEY COULD TELL THE WAY IT LOOKED "LIKE ALL THE OTHER HEATED /AIR CONDITIONED SEATS THAT IGNITE THAT THEY SEE OFTEN". INSURANCE COMPANY SAYS CAR IS TOTALED SINCE HOSE WAS PUT ON IT. FORD WILL NOT WORK WITH ME. NO ONE LEFT ANYTHING BURNING IN THE SEAT OR SMOKED IN THE CAR. I BELIEVE THE CAR HEATED/AIR CONDITIONED SEAT MALFUNCTIONED AND FORD SHOULD HELP. I HAD PURCHASED BUMPER TO BUMPER WARRANTY FROM DEALERSHIP. WARRANTY COMPANY SAYS IF A CAR CATCHES FIRE, WARRANTY IS VOIDED, EVEN IF CAR MALFUNCTIONED CAUSING THE FIRE. INSURANCE COMPANY IS TRYING TO PAY AS LEAST AMOUNT AS POSSIBLE. THIS WAS A WELL CARED FOR, VERY NICE CAR. I BELIEVE IT MALFUNCTIONED. FORD MOTOR COMPANY SENT ME A LETTER SAYING THEY HAD THE DEALERSHIP TAKE PICTURES, AND THEY FEEL IT HAD SOMETHING LEFT BURNING ON THE SEAT. NO ONE LEFT ANYTHING BURNING ON THE SEAT. IN THE LETTER FORD MOTOR COMPANY SENT ME BY EMAIL, THEY STATE THEY INSPECTED THE CAR. THEY NEVER CAME TO SEE THE CAR IN PERSON. THEY ONLY HAD THE SERVICE STAFF TAKE PICTURES. THE CAR WAS SITTING IN THE DRIVEWAY ALL AFTERNOON. I ALSO BACKED OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY IN MY SUBARU AT 5:00 PM AND DID NOT SMELL OR SEE SMOKE AS I LEFT.. THE PASSENGER SEAT THAT IGNITED ITSELF HAD A STACK OF BUSINESS PAPERS AND SOME SOCCER GEAR THAT COULD HAVE OVERHEATED IF THE SEAT WAS MALFUNCTIONING TOO. THE SEAT IGNITED BY ITSELF. AS A CONSUMER I DESERVE TO BE ASSISTED. I WOULD LIKE THE CAR REPAIRED OR REPLACED W/SIMILAR CAR.*DT CONSUMER STATED VEHICLE WAS TOTALED AND SETTLEMENT WAS OFFERED BY THE INSURANCE COMPANY. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. *JB

NHTSA ODI 11374212

THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED, AND WHEN WE ATTEMPTED TO START THE VEHICLE BY PUSHING THE START BUTTON, THE VEHICLE DID NOT START BUT A LARGE AMOUNT OF SMOKE POURED OUT OF THE DASHBOARD. THE REPAIR FACILITY PERFORMED A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF WORK WITH THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, BUT STATED THAT THEY DID NOT DISCOVER WHAT THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE ISSUE WAS.

NHTSA ODI 11041892

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 FORD EXPLORER. WHILE TRAVELING 25 MPH, THE TAILGATE INADVERTENTLY OPENED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE THE ISSUE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE HAD NOT RECURRED WHILE DRIVING, BUT WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED. THE CONTACT CLOSED THE TAILGATE, BUT IT WOULD RE-OPEN. WHILE THE TAILGATE WAS OPEN, IT CLOSED UNEXPECTEDLY AND INJURED THE CONTACT'S HEAD. MEDICAL ATTENTION WAS NOT REQUIRED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE WAS AWARE OF THE SENSOR FOR THE TAILGATE. ALSO, WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED, THE DRIVER'S SEAT MOVED FORWARD AND INJURED THE CONTACT'S RIGHT KNEE. MEDICAL ATTENTION WAS REQUIRED. THE DEALER WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE, BUT THE VEHICLE MODULE WAS REPROGRAMMED. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THE VEHICLE HAD SEVERAL ELECTRICAL ISSUES BECAUSE THE INSTRUMENT PANEL DISPLAY WOULD NOT OPERATE OR OPERATED INCORRECTLY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 500.

NHTSA ODI 10956347

THE REAR HATCH OPENS AND THEN WHILE SOMEONE IS LOADING THE BACK OF THE CAR (WITH GROCERIES, ETC.), THE HATCH STARTS TO CLOSE. THE HATCH HITS THE PERSON AND DOES NOT REVERSE. INSTEAD, THE HATCH TRIES TO CLOSE EVEN TIGHTER ON THE PERSON WHO IS TRAPPED UNDERNEATH. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED. THIS HAPPENED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS AND CLOSED ON ME, MY SON AND MY DOG. THIS IS THE 4TH MAJOR PROBLEM WITH THIS BRAND NEW CAR!

NHTSA ODI 10905607

WIFE WAS DRIVING CAR & STOPPED AT TRAFFIC LIGHT , CALLED ME & SAID CAR FILLED WITH SMOKE & SMELLED BURNING , UPON FURTHER INVESTIGATION FOUND COOLING FAN MOTOR & FAN SHROUD CAUGHT ON FIRE

NHTSA ODI 10825354

COOLING FAN CAUGHT ON FIRE.

NHTSA ODI 10821021