What 1,669 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Ford Explorer Gas

Rear suspension toe links have failed after prior recall repair in Canada in May of 2022. The vehicle is now registered in the US and the recall repair has failed causing driving, suspension, and extreme tire wearing.

NHTSA ODI 11743282

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact attempted to change the tires on the vehicle and was unable to remove the lug nuts. The contact stated that the lug nuts on all four wheels were swollen. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 176,825.

NHTSA ODI 11670891

Rear toe links, rear alignment is off. Dealership said they can’t fix it. My tires are wearing incredibly fast.

NHTSA ODI 11627425

Rear toe joint arm used to replace recalled rear toe joint arm is causing the tires in the back to tilt leaving vehicle at risk of roll over accident from tire, axel, or suspention failure. The suv becomes increasingly unstable and difficult to control. The mechanic said it was a miracle that my suv had not flipped. When I took this issue to the dealership, the service manager was aware of the issue and had a "high percentage" of cars that had the recall service done returning with the same problem. Despite this information being passed on to ford by its dealership service departments, Ford is continuing to place drivers at risk by using the toe joint arm that is too small. Pictures: rear vs front tires purchased same time, allign.before new toe joint placed with report, then after, recall work done and , allign report, toe joint arms used for recall. Date below is when my car was taken out of service for safety. Most driving speeds 25 to 35 mph zones.

NHTSA ODI 11567407

Thr manufacturer did not put rear tire links on my vehicle. I purchased brand new tires 3 months ago and my two rear tires are already showing sings of wear and tear. I went to a mechanic to see if I could get a full alignment on my vehicle. When they started on thr alignment, they informed me that they could not proceed because the vehicle was missing the manufacturer rear toe links. If I decided to let them order rear toe links and do the alignment, it would cost me almost $600. This is completely unacceptable for ford to drop the ball again and we the consumer are stuck paying for something that they should.

NHTSA ODI 11543671

I bought the SUV Used in January/2023 from a Ford dealer. It had brand new tires on it. 6 months later and the outer tread of the tires are bald, that’s when I realized the toe angle was pointed in. I went to Discount Tire to get new tires and an alignment. They put new tires on and then they told me they couldn’t do the alignment on my truck because it has a recalled part on the rear suspension. The toe angle rods are not adjustable. He showed me what they are supposed to look like on his computer for him to do the alignment. He then proceeded to tell me how dangerous it was because if the rod cracks, my wheel will fall off. I called ford, but they are claiming there is no recall for that part, but that can’t be true.

NHTSA ODI 11537761

Tow links from my vehicle is going bad. Vehicle fish tails a little on the highway when traveling on uneven surface. Knuckles have been replaced and Link-Stabilizer on both side by my mechanic. Ford STATED they replaced in May 2022 (never did) I had the original parts that came with vehicle. Ford refuses to reimburse. I'm concern now that the tow links are going bad and vehicle will soon be unsafe to drive.

NHTSA ODI 11518145

Need a new transmission when I need to press the gas it won’t go it like I’m just pushing the gas in park

NHTSA ODI 11511500

When I had to drive with 1 inch of snow on the road it felt like my rear end was going to come out of my car. My rear end was all over the place and has been getting worse when driving in snow and rain. This is putting my children life at risk especially since there's a recall on my vehicle and there's still no parts to fix it. I want a rental car until someone gets this issues fixed! Someone is seriously going to be injured or this problem and the recall that can't be fixed. I'm scared for my safety to even drive it in the snow or rain but I have to work. This is a huge issue and I'm not sure why this is still an ongoing issue

NHTSA ODI 11451415

The right front passenger tire fell off while driving.

NHTSA ODI 11450385

While driving on the freeway, I heard a clunking noise from the rear of my vehicle and immediately started to fishtail violently back and forth across all 3 lanes of the highway narrowly avoiding crashing into other cars on the highway while avoiding spinning or flipping the vehicle. I was able to gain control of the vehicle while it whipsawed back and forth with all four tires screeching and smoking slowing down to navigate to the shoulder out of harms way. It was one of if not the most frightening experiences I ever had as a motor vehicle operator. On inspection, I observed the rear left wheel was loosely connected to the drive train and severly out of alignment by ~30% which was what caused the vehicle to begin to fishtail and whipsaw so violently at freeway speed which at the time of mechanical failure was approximately 70 miles per hour. The road was clear, dry and void of any debris in the road.

NHTSA ODI 11427042

WHILE DRIVING ON A STRAIGHT STREET 25-35 MPH JULY 30, 2020, ON A SUNNY DAY,MY CAR RIGHT PASSENGER TIRE CAME OFF. ON A CITY STREET. CAUSING MY CAR TO HIT THE CURB. THERE WAS NO BODY DAMAGE EXCEPT FOR THE PASSENGER FRONT AND REAR TIRE.

NHTSA ODI 11415603

REAR BRAKE CALIPERS SEIZED AND WORE BRAKE PADS ALL THE WAY DOWN. SLIGHT INTERMITTENT SOUND WAS NOTICED WHEN CAR WAS IN MOTION BUT THOUGHT IT MAY BE RELATED TO THE ROOF RACK DETACHMENT THAT WAS PENDING REPAIR. SQUEALING BECAME PERSISTENT AND STOPPED UPON BREAKING, AND STARTED AGAIN AFTER BRAKE RELEASED. UPON IDENTIFYING THIS CORRELATION TOOK THE EXPLORER TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THIS ISSUE IDENTIFIED WAS SEIZED CALIPERS.

NHTSA ODI 11407773

LAST NIGHT ONE OF MY HANKOOK S1 NOBLE ON MY 2017 FORD EXPLORER BLEW OUT WHILE DRIVING ON THE 405 FREEWAY AND REQUIRED ME TO PULL OVER AND CHANGE THE TIRE. AT 21,000 MILES ON THE VEHICLE/ TIRES THE MECHANIC SHOP TOLD ME THE TIRES WERE BASICALLY BALD AND HAD RUBBER EVENLY ERODING (WHICH INDICATES NOT AN ALIGNMENT ISSUE). THE TIRES WERE ALSO ROTATED AND SUPPOSED TO LAST 50,000 MILES. THERE ARE ALSO MANY OTHER COMPLAINS ON THESE TIRES THROUGHOUT THE INTERNET BUT NOT RECALL HAS BEEN INITIATED BY HANKOOK. THEY HAVE ADVISED THEY WILL GIVE A PRO-RATED DISCOUNT ON NEW TIRES, WHICH IS COMPLETELY UNREASONABLE AND NEGLIGENT..

NHTSA ODI 11386317

MY 2017 FORD EXPLORER HAS 19,000 MILES ON IT AND HAS BEEN MAINTAINED WELL. IT WAS OUTFITTED WITH HANKOOK VENTUS S1 NOBLES 255/50R20 TIRES WHEN WE PURCHASED IT NEW IN DEC 2017. THE TREAD HAS WORN DOWN TO 4/32NDS AND IS DISINTEGRATING-YOU CAN PEEL LITTLE BITS OF RUBBER OFF OF THEM. THEY ARE ALL WEARING EVENLY SO IT IS NOT AN ISSUE WITH LACK OF ROTATION/ALIGNMENT THERE ARE MOVIES ON YOUTUBE AND OTHER REVIEWS OF PEOPLE COMPLAINING ABOUT THIS ISSUE. HANKOOK IS ALSO AWARE THIS IS AN ISSUE AND IS DOING A VOLUNTARY PROGRAM WHERE THEY WILL GIVE YOU A PRORATED DEAL ON NEW HANKOOK TIRES. THESE TIRES NEED TO BE FULLY RECALLED AND HANKOOK NEEDS TO BE FORCED TO GIVE PEOPLE A PRORATED REFUND TO PURCHASE OTHER BRANDS OF TIRES NOT NEW VERSIONS OF THEIR PIECE OF CRAP PRODUCT. WE ARE NEEDING TO SPEND $1000 ON NEW TIRES FOR THIS OTHERWISE WONDERFUL VEHICLE.

NHTSA ODI 11309438

TOOK MY VEHICLE TO THE DEALER FOR TIRE PROBLEM. THEY INFORMED ME THAT I NEED ALL TIRES REPLACED. THIS VEHICLE HAS 27000 MILES ON IT. THE TIRES ARE RATED FOR 50000 MILES. MY WIFE DRIVES THE CAR. SHE DOES NOT FEEL SAFE IN IT AT ALL. THE TIRES SPIN IN WET CONDITIONS DUE TO THE ABNORMAL WEAR ON THE TIRES. SHE ALSO INFORMED ME THAT THE CAR SLIDE WHILE TRYING TO STOP. SHE SAID SHE WAS WITHIN INCHES OF HITTING THE CAR INFRONT OF HER. THESE ARE THE HANKOOK NOBLE 2 TIRES. HANKOOK SAID THEY WOULD PRO RATE THE COST OF NEW TIRES. HANKOOK KNEW ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND LET FORD KNOW THIS IS WHAT THEY WOULD DO. FORD HAS DONE NOTHING ABOUT THIS ISSUE. MY LEASE IS DUE IN 7 MONTHS. THE TIRES SHOULD AT LEAST LAST 3 YEARS. I AM AT THE POINT OF TELLING MY WIFE TO PARK THE VEHICLE AND DRIVE A DIFFERENT CAR. SAFETY IS A BIG FACTOR WITH THIS ISSUE. WHY IS NOBODY WORRIED ABOUT THE ISSUE THAT THESE TIRES WERE NOT REPLACED WHEN THE ISSUE WAS FOUND. I ANYONE IN MY FAMILY DOES NOT FEEL SAFE, WE WILL NOT DRIVE IT WITH WINTER COMING. SAD THAT NEITHER COMPANY WANTS TO TAKE THIS ISSUE SERIOUSLY. NOT GOING TO GET ANOTHER VEHICLE FROM FORD OR WITH HANKKOK TIRES AGAIN.

NHTSA ODI 11287448

I RECENTLY FAILED NY STATE INSPECTION DUE TO PREMATURE TIRE WEAR ON MY FORD EXPLORER 2017 WITH 24,500 MILES. THE HANKOOK VENTUS S1 NOBLE HAVE A SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING PREMATURE WEAR, HOWEVER NO FORD DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT WILL SERVICE MY VEHICLE EVEN AFTER CONTACTING HANKOOK AND PROVIDING INFORMATION ON THE SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT. WE SHOULD NOT ALLOW KNOWN POORLY MANUFACTURED TIRES ON OUR ROADS.

NHTSA ODI 11286670

2017 FORD EXPLORER: ALL 4 ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT TIRES (HANKOOK 255/50 R20 105H VENTUS S1 NOBLE 2) EXPERIENCED ACCELERATED TREAD WEAR. TREAD DEPTH IS DOWN TO 4/32 AT 30,000 MILES.

NHTSA ODI 11270403

PURCHASED 2017 FORD EXPLORER DECEMBER 2017 WITH ORIGINAL HANKOOK VENTUS S1 NOBLE2 255/50R20 105H TIRES. HAVE 17,000 MILES AND HAVE BEEN ROTATED AT EACH OIL CHANGE; BEEN HAVING EXTREME TREADWEAR AND WAS TOLD BY THE AUTHORIZED DEALER THAT ITHE TIRES ARE BAD AND NEED REPLACED. DEALER SUGGESTED TO CONTACT HANKOOK DIRECTLY BECAUSE OTHERS HAVE EXPERIENCED SIMILAR ISSUES. I CONTACTED HANKOOK CUSTOMER SERVICE AND WAS TOLD THAT THE TIRES ARE BAD BUT THEY HAVE TO BE 4/32 TO GET A PRO RATED DISCOUNT, AT THIS TIME I HAVE 1-3/32, 2- 4/32 AND 1- 5/32, THE FORD DEALER WOULD NOT HONOR THE NEW CAR WARRANTY BECAUSE THEY SAID IT ISN'T A SAFETY ISSUE AND HANKOOK NEEDS TO TAKE CARE OF IT. MEANWHILE, NO ONE WANTS TO TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THESE BAD TIRES AT ONLY 17000 MILES, EVEN THOUGH THE EXPLORER IS RATED ON TOP FOR ROLLOVERS WITH A BLOWOUT... THIS IS ANOTHER DANGEROUS ISSUE SIMILAR TO THE FIRESTONE DISASTER. ARE THEY GOING TO WAIT UNTIL THERE ARE DEATHS BEFORE THEY START REPLACING THESE DEFECTIVE TIRES?

NHTSA ODI 11267139

I PURCHASED A 2017 FORD EXPLORER LIMITED SUV AT THE WINNIPEG,CANADA FORD 4S (MID-TOWN FORD SALES LIMITED ) IN JULY 2017. TIRE MODEL: 255/50R20 105H VENTUS S1 NOBLE 2. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE FOUR TIRES ABRASION MORE SERIOUS THAN OTHER VEHICLES UNDER NORMAL USE. IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE FOUR TIRES OF THE CAR HAD DIFFERENT PEELING SKIN PHENOMENA, AND THE TIRES HAD A SLOW LEAKING AIR PHENOMENON IN JULY 2019. AFTER THAT, I NEED TO REPLENISH THE AIR OF TIRES 2-3 DAYS REGULARLY IN ORDER TO KEEP THE TIRE PRESSURE. I CONTACTED THE MID-TOWN FORD SALES WHERE WE BOUGHT THE CAR AFTER DISCOVERING THIS PROBLEM, UNFORTUNATELY, THEY SAID THAT THEY ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TIRE, AND LET ME CONTACT HANKOOK TIRE MANUFACTURERS TO FEEDBACK THE PROBLEM BY MYSELF. I HAVE TRIED TO CALL THE HANKOOK CUSTOMER SERVICE SEVERAL TIMES FROM JULY, BUT THERE IS NOBODY ANSWERS. I ASKED THE LOCAL HANKOOK DEALERS IN WINNIPEG, THEY TOLD ME THAT I CAN ONLY GET FEEDBACK WITH HANKOOK HEADQUARTERS. NOW I FEEL THAT THE SKIN PEELING OF TIRES ARE GETTING MORE AND MORE SERIOUS WHEN DRIVING EVERY DAY. I AM WORRIED THAT THE TIRE WOULD BE BURST EVERY TIME WHEN I AM DRIVING. I SEARCHED ON THE INTERNET THAT THE TIRE HAD BEEN HAVING PROBLEMS FOR A LONG TIME. NHTSA ID NUMBER: 10127409 SSM: 46905. I DON'T KNOW WHY I HAVE NEVER RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FROM FORD. WHEN I WENT TO FORD 4S(MID TOWN FOR SALES), THEY SAID THAT THEY DID NOT HAVE ANY CLUE, THEY DID NOT ANYTHING ABOUT THIS ISSUE, AND ASK ME TO I CONTACT HANKOOK, BUT THEY DID NOT GIVE ME ANY CONTACT INFORMATION FOR THE HANKOOK. THERE IS NO CLEAR CUSTOMER SERVICE PHONE ON HANKOOK OFFICIAL WEBSITE. I AM SO DISAPPOINTED AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SOLVE THIS PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI 11257254

TIRES ARE DEEMED WORN OUT AT 16000 MILES.

NHTSA ODI 11255496

I TOOK MY 2017 FORD EXPLORER SPORT WITH 23,800 MILES TO BE INSPECTED TODAY AND IT FAILED INSPECTION. I WAS TOLD THAT THE TIRES ARE SEVERELY WORN. I TOOK IT TO A TIRE PLACE AND THEY CONCURRED. THE TIRES ARE HANKOOK VENTUS S1 NOBLE 2. THERE IS ALMOST NO TREAD LEFT AND THE THEY ARE SCALLOPING AND FLAKING PIECES OF RUBBER.

NHTSA ODI 11253677

HANKOOK BRAND TIRES ON FORD EXPLORER. I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE 2 SETS OF HANOOK TIRES ON MY FORD EXPLORER AT 25,00 AND 20,000 MILES ON THE TIRES FOR LOW TRED ON TIRES. THE TIRES HAVE A 70,000 MILE WARRANTY AND THE WAS NO CAUSE FOR TIRE WEAR, I.E. OUT OF ALIGNMENT.

NHTSA ODI 11245860

THE VEHICLE IN QUESTION IS A 2017 FORD EXPLORER WITH HANKOOK VENTUS S1NOBLE2 FRONT TIRES THAT ARE SHREDDING BOTH ON THE INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR PARAMETER OF THE TIRES. THE DELAMINATION IS MIGRATING TOWARDS THE CENTER OF THE TIRE AS WELL WITH FLAPS AND CHUNKS OF RUBBER SOME OVER 10MM ARE SEPARATING FROM THE SUBSTRATE. THE TIRES ONLY HAVE 27,000 MILES ON THEM AND LOOK LIKE THEY HAVE 50,000+. I HAVE NEVER SEEN A VULCANIZATION PROBLEM LIKE THIS IN MY CAREER. THERE IS CLEARLY SOMETHING WRONG WITH THIS RUBBER COMPOUND REMINISCENT OF THE FORD FIRESTONE DEBACLE. THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE AND THE DEALER SEAMS TO BE INEFFECTIVE IN GETTING A CORRECTIVE ACTION IN PLACE. THE DEALER IS SKALNEK FORD IN LAKE ORION, MI AND WAS NOTIFIED ON SATURDAY AUGUST 17TH WHEN I WAS INFORMED THAT I WOULD NEED TO BRING MY CAR BACK ON MONDAY AUGUST 19TH AT WHICH TIME THEY WOULD FIX THE VEHICLE. I HAVE SINCE RETURNED FROM THE DEALER WITH THE REPAIR NOT COMPLETED AS THE DEALER IS WAITING FOR HANKOOK TO RESPOND BACK TO THEM WITH THE REPAIR AUTHORIZATION. AS OF THIS COMPLAINT THE DEALER SAID FORD WOULD NOT COVER THE ISSUE AS IT IS OUT OF THE 12/12 WARRANTY PERIOD FOR THE TIRES, AND THEY ARE NOT SURE IF OR WHEN HANKOOK WOULD RESPOND. ON A SEPARATE NOTE WHEN I WAS IN THE SERVICE AREA OF THE DEALER ANOTHER CUSTOMER WHICH ALSO HAPPENED TO BE AN ENGINEER SAID HE HAD THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM WITH HIS VEHICLE AND REPLACED AT HIS EXPENSE ALL 4 TIRES WITH ANOTHER BRAND. IN SHORT THIS IS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT AND COULD IN FACT PUT CONSUMERS AT RISK. MY WIFE ONLY DISCOVERED THE ISSUE BECAUSE SHE TOOK THE CAR IN FOR A POTENTIAL TRADE-IN AND THE DEALER ALERTED HER TO THE ISSUE OF THURSDAY THE 15TH OF AUGUST.

NHTSA ODI 11245005

HANCOOK 255/50R20 105H VENTUS S1 NOBLE 2 TIRES WORN TO POINT OF STEEL BELT SHOWING WITH UNDER 20K MILES. SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERN.

NHTSA ODI 11243177