What 1,163 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Ford Explorer Police Intercept

While driving on normal suburban roads, error messages appear on the instrument display every two to three days: 4WD Fault Service Required, Pre-Collision Assist not available, Service Advance Trac. The check engine light or wrench icon appears on the instrument display, and the stability trac icon appears on the instrument display. When this happens, the adaptive cruise control does not function. Safety of the vehicle and driver are impaired by major safety system(s) do not function, such as the stability control and the collision avoidance feature. I have brought the Explorer in to one dealer one time, and another dealer two times. A repair to the half shaft speed sensor has been performed twice, however the problem still persists. This problem first appeared on the vehicle in July of 2022 at 44,000 miles.

NHTSA ODI 11485730

The transmission has failed. Started with hard shifting between gears, was to the dealership. Worked on it for 2 days, could not fix, gave back now as I was going thru an intersection went into a "neutral" type mode, lost all power coasted then picked up and started going again. Almost got rear-ended because of this. No messages appeared.

NHTSA ODI 11482193

While vehicle was in park it continued to go in reverse with warning lights showing "PARK NOT ENGAGED".

NHTSA ODI 11478643

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V255000 (Power Train) and the fix stated that the dealer would update the electronic parking brake software but not replace the bolts. The contact was concerned that an update would not fix the issue as the failure was with the bolts. The contact had not experienced a failure. The contact stated that he called the dealer and it was confirmed that the remedy was to update the electronic parking brake software. The manufacturer was contacted and confirmed the remedy and a case was opened. The manufacturer offered no further assistance. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI 11470689

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH the vehicle started jerking while shifting gears. After the vehicle accelerated above 10 MPH, the vehicle operated normal. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the transmission was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and a software update was performed; however, the failure continued. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer however, the mechanic was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.

NHTSA ODI 11470218

While driving on the highway the 2020 Ford Explorer XLT briefly lost all power, exhibited jerking through the drivetrain and erratic engine RPMs, before regaining power. Thereafter, the vehicle consistently jerked during acceleration and deceleration, with an audible clunking sound, as if the vehicle was transitioning gears or drive modes (2WD-AWD). Mileage noticeably dropped and transmission and engine RPM performance was erratic. Only a warning was issued with no indication of high severity, only reduced power. Upon further driving, the erratic behavior persisted included losing power in highway traffic and putting occupants at risk of accident. Vehicle has only 14,500 miles at time of issue with full dealer service history. As of this writing, it is being brought to the dealer for service.

NHTSA ODI 11470234

While driving on a busy , high speed road the pre collision error message came on the screen. It felt like the truck started applying brakes causing us to jerk. Although I tried I could not accelerate. Several error messages were sent to the ford app about the Powertrain. This put my kids and my safety in jeopardy. Our speed was greatly reduced and someone easily could have hit us. This is the second time I’m taking this truck in for service with the same problem. I have less than 25 k miles on this truck. This should not be happening.

NHTSA ODI 11469639

My car has a transmission problem. 6 times now, it fails to re engage after I took my foot off the gas pedal. This happens when I am attempting to accelerate after slowing down in fast moving traffic when I really need to be able to accelerate. This caused a very dangerous situation due the the fact that I am trying to get into a faster moving lane of traffic. This put me and others around me at risk. The car is at the dealership now. They say that they have identified the problem. No parts are available to fix the problem. Covid, you know!!! 6 weeks for parts! There are many complaints on the internet expressing the same problem. I also read that Ford has been buying some of this year and model back due to "This" problem. What does NHTSA know? There have been "Warning Messages", But when driving at 70-75mph and there is a problem like this, I did not have time to read it before it disappeared. Scared the crap out of me as I was put into a dangerous situation.

NHTSA ODI 11468744

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, unattended on an incline, the vehicle rolled backward without warning. The contact was able to place her hand on the brake and stop the vehicle. There were no warning indicator lights illuminated. The contact scraped her knee but no medical attention was provided. The contact stated while sitting in the driver's seat, the vehicle rolled backward. The driver was able to depress the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where they could not duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 22,000.

NHTSA ODI 11464987

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the rear end of the vehicle would make an abnormal, roaring sound as well as vibrate without warning. The contact also stated that the vehicle would violently jerk upon depression of the brake pedal or the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that she had taken the vehicle to the dealer several times for repair and had the transmission replaced; however, a year later, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was filed. The contact stated that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V154000 (Suspension). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 6,000.

NHTSA ODI 11463930

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the vehicle would lunge backwards when shifted into reverse. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated after each failure, she turned off and restarted the vehicle, and she was then able to reverse without any further issues. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who informed the contact that the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 10,500.

NHTSA ODI 11454826

When this vehicle is put into reverse it does not engage the transmission at times. You either have to put it back in to park and back in reverse and/or floor it in essence push the throttle all the way down for it to engage. As that happens and it finally engages you’re going way too fast in reverse. Also when it does not engage it acts like a stick shift and that you are in neutral and you’re either rolling forward or backward depending on the incline. Very frustrating I’ve taken it into the shop two different times specifically for this they say they have a work order in place and the last time they said it was a chip and they ran their diagnostics and corrected it. It still did not get corrected and is still a problem . I am not pleased at all with this failure in the transmission as far as the engaging of reverse is involved. Thank you

NHTSA ODI 11452572

2020 FORD EXPLORER. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO ISSUES WITH THE TRANSMISSION. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED SEVERE VIBRATIONS AT CERTAIN SPEEDS AND AS THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTS. THE CONSUMER STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER BREACHED IT'S CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATION BY FAILING TO PROPERLY AND TIMELY REPAIR THE VEHICLE.

NHTSA ODI 11452145

While driving my 2020 Explorer a couple of weeks ago I noticed it was down shifting really hard when I would slow down to stop at a light. There were no warning lights or check engine lights of any kind. It continually got worse over the next few days so I made an appointment with our local Ford dealership. When I called they told me it was probably just a computer issue and they could reset it. On my first appointment I was having them change the oil as well as “reset” the computer. When they came out to talk to me they said they had a technician “reset” the computer but the actual “transmission guy” wasn’t there and I would probably have to bring it back. He told me it would probably drive different to me now because it has an “adaptive” transmission and it would have to adjust to the way I drive. I called and made another appointment that same day after I saw it was still doing the same thing. Well the next night I took it on a trip to the next town that was about 20 minutes away. It started “driving” very strangely and I began to smell a hot or chemical kind of smell. I actually pulled off to the side of the highway at one point. I was able to make it home and didn’t attempt to drive very far until I had it looked at again. We’ll I took it back today and they’re now telling me it has to have either a new transmission or that one rebuild. Whichever Ford decides. Luckily it’s still under warranty or I’d have a bigger problem. After researching I’ve discovered thousands of other people who have had the exact same issue with their 2020 Explorer, all at different mileages. I feel Ford should have already issued a recall for this known problem by now. This is absolutely a safety issue because if your in traffic or pull out into an intersection and the car doesn’t want to shift it could cause a serious wreck. I’ve already had to have the backup camera replaced(before they issued the recall)and the drivers side power window motor replaced. Definitely regret buying.

NHTSA ODI 11451420

I have this 2020 Ford Explorer with about 15k miles on it. It suddenly started down shifting hard, getting hang gears, and having multiple issues. I took it to my local Ford dealer who refused to even do a diagnostic because my vehicle had warranty work done on the head gasket about two weeks after it was purchased. They are claiming it is similar to the issue I am having now. I am now trying to work with Ford to get it repaired. I checked online and this seems to be a pretty common issue on the forums that I went to and people were describing identical experiences that I had with my car. One example is that when I applied a small amount of pressure to the gas pedal, my car wouldn’t shift, got up to 7k rpm, and then finally did a hard shift that felt like I hit something. The hard downshifting would happen even when I was coming to a complete stop or anytime I was slowing down.

NHTSA ODI 11446694

1) Powertrain - 10 speed transmission will not shift properly. When down/up shifting, The transmission slams into gear. It started at 54000 miles. Dealer repair shop stated that there were zero codes and was unable to ascertain the problem. Problem continued and only got worst. On another visit, the mechanic was able to duplicate the sound and still no codes. It was stated that I should return the vehicle on Monday and Ford technical would be contacted. Vehicle was returned on a Monday. i spoke with the Mechanic. he now stated that he could not duplicate the slamming. I recommend he ride with me. We took a four- mile drive. Within 3/4 mile, the slamming was back. The vehicle was kept until Friday of same week. The factory Rep recommended that dealer should reset the computer and drive for 500 miles. The dealer Rep/Dannelle stated Ford should assumed the cost of replacing the transmission and not the dealer under my Extended Warranty. Now the dealer's Repair shop will not return my phone call. 2) I also called in report and request an appointment regarding my electric windows will not go up or down. Zero return call. After driving approximately 300 miles and stopping for fuel, the windows started working again.

NHTSA ODI 11445164

Inlet exhaust leak and rattle, the vehicle sounds like a diesel truck. Transmission jerking into out of third gear.

NHTSA ODI 11442766

Suv was banging and stalling when braking down a hill or going up a hill. Driving on the interstate it totally lost power. It happened at various speeds. First dealer near where it happened refused to look at it for a month after I told them I lost power on the interstate and stalled out. Had it towed to the dealer I bought it from and no recalls are showing up even though I got the wrench and transmission alert of total failure. It has been sitting there over a month and they have torn out the transmission-issue also with clutch seals.

NHTSA ODI 11440313

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle both the digital display screen and instrument gauge cluster would randomly malfunction, scramble, and the display screen would turn blue. Also, the transmission would shift abruptly and while driving the vehicle would lose throttle response causing the vehicle to slow before abruptly accelerating. The contact indicated that the failure had occurred while driving 60 MPH on a six-lane highway. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who indicated that the collision avoidance system had malfunctioned. In addition, while driving, the engine would randomly rev extremely high and had occurred while letting off the accelerator pedal. The local dealer and manufacturer were both notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 100.

NHTSA ODI 11435603

The car would not shift out of first gear. Had to put the car in neutral and then back into drive to get it to shift.

NHTSA ODI 11431218

I have already complained to dealer about constant hesitation and jerking, going from 1st to 2nd and sometimes 2nd to 3rd gear on automatic transmission, as well as slight loss of power going up inclines under 30mph. They told me a road test and transmission test showed nothing wrong. Incident I am reporting happened back in May2021. I was making a right hand turn onto a busy road from a parking lot, from a complete stop. As I pulled out onto the road, going from 1st to 2nd gear, the car completely stalled for about two seconds. I almost was rear-ended because of the stall. I had to take my foot off the gas and then put a lot of pressure on the gas pedal to get the car moving again.

NHTSA ODI 11428214

The car jerks when it is downshifting between 2nd and 3rd gear. It was inspected by a dealership in TN (we were out of town from MI) and the Ford dealership there was unable to identify the issue as they did not have a transmission tech. We have 15K in miles on our car. We contacted Ford CS and the car was driven by a car hauler back to a dealership in MI. They have 1 transmission person. At this time, we have had a rental car for over 2 weeks at a cost of over $1200. They cannot service the vehicle until next week leaving us without a vehicle for over 3 weeks. Ford has been difficult to work with and meanwhile I continue to pay my lease, they are only offering $35/day for 10 days for rental car and have no idea when the car will be fixed. I have asked for credit on our lease and formal follow up on this and they are slow to reply leaving us stranded to find our own way home. Very disappointed as this seems to be a known issue with the 2020 Explorers and the new power train.

NHTSA ODI 11426871

Transmission - available for inspection upon request (yes) Vehicle will lunge or stall as it searches for the right gear. Have had the vehicle to Ford Authorized Dealers 3 times with varying degrees of success. Now problem has reoccurred and is worse that ever. Searches for the right gear, lunges, sometimes will not go into gear at all. Feel unsafe driving the vehicle. Currently have a 4th apt with Ford to look at the transmission. No warning lights or messages present on the dash.

NHTSA ODI 11425544

Electrical- lift gate will just stop working at times. Trouble with Bluetooth connection Fuel- when filling up the pump will stop (even if only put in 2 gallons). Seats- drivers seat broken Engine/transmission- hard shifting, put itself in park while at red light Multiple ongoing issues with Explorer. Been in/out of shop over 10 times in one year. I have videos but unable to upload them.

NHTSA ODI 11425370

I was in a turn lane at a intersection waiting on the light and my daughter noticed the vehicle had shifted in to reverse by it self. The backup camera was not on and if it had not been called to my attention I would have backed into the car behind me. I shifted into drive when the light changed and went on my way. This has happened only once.

NHTSA ODI 11425296