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

on several occasions when applying reverse the rear vision camera gives an image on the blue screen making vision impossible

NHTSA ODI 11519471

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V022000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The local dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the part was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had experienced the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI 11518924

Transmission shifts hard, clunks and jerks forward on occasion. Have to accelerate very slowly and cautiously to avoid the jerking forward. Constant whining when I accelerate from a stop, noise tends to stop when accelerated to 40 mph, below that speed, constant annoying whining. Was not noticeable when I purchased automobile, but started constantly around February, 2023. Only have 51,000 miles on the car, daily driver, few long trips. When accelerating to freeway speeds, the whining is constant until I pass 40 mph. Transmission does not seem reliable at all. Have not been able to get a mechanic to look at the issue as of yet due to scheduling availability. Have not had any warning lights come on regarding the transmission. Have had to replace oil right after purchasing vehicle as I noticed oil on the garage floor was quite a lot and then twice within a year due to faulty plastic cap, that if not put on properly allows the oil to leak. Never had this experience with previous Ford models (2007 Ford Edge)

NHTSA ODI 11518927

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V022000 (Back Over Prevention). The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the recall repair was performed; however, the contact stated that while shifted into reverse, the rear-view camera failed, and the screen display was blue. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that the vehicle was previously repaired under 21V735000 (Back Over Prevention) and needed to be repaired again. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

NHTSA ODI 11518698

Sudden unintended acceleration when parking; vehicle stopped with brake depressed. Vehicle suddenly accelerated and steering wheel jerked back and forth with no driver input resulting in an collision with an unoccupied parked car. No injuries. Insurance adjuster stated that Dealer found no evidence of equipment malfunction. A police report was filed (military police aboard a military base), report is pending as requires FOIA. No warning lamps or messages or other symptoms prior to failure.

NHTSA ODI 11517367

On April 1, 2023 | was leaving the garage of the Marriott Residence inn in Arlington, VA, with two passengers. Up the ramp of level two to level one, slight turn and suddenly car accelerated so fast, sounded like an airplane. Like the accelerator had a mind of its own. Brakes and steering wheel did not respond. We traveled about 20 feet in about 10 seconds at rapid speed head on into a wall. My car was totaled, airbags deployed, a parked car next to me was totaled. EMTs and police responded immediately. We were immediately taken by 2 ambulances to Virginia County Hospital. Injuries: Driver: partial amputation of right middle finger 16 stitches, deep scrape on left Front passenger: severe bruising from seat belt, cut to finger Rear passenger: 4 fractured ribs and severe bruising from seat belt, lower back injury. All treated and released from hospital ER late afternoon, I was not cited. I believe there was some kind of mechanical malfunction.

NHTSA ODI 11517421

Vehicle jerking while driving and breaking

NHTSA ODI 11517214

The wiring harness in the back for the air was installed upside down, making the hot cold and the cold hot The vent in the ceiling that distributes air was kinked and had to be replaced The seatbelt on the drive side second row bucket seat was installed upside down The heater core had to replaced due to heat not blowing hot, still not and car was returned a second time Found out upon calling Ford that the car had two transmissions repairs by the previous owner and another "additional repair" done in 2022, would not disclose to me. I informed them the dealership gave me clean car facts. Car has less than 28,000 miles on it. I have had it less than ONE month.

NHTSA ODI 11516911

Back up Camera goes blue or blank screen, we have called the Ford Dealer, we took it into their maintenance. Can’t find issue We just received a recall in mail , we called the Ford Dealer today about our backup Camera recall. THEY told us they know nothing about it and Ford Manufacture has not confirmed this issue. ( todays date is 04/05/2023

NHTSA ODI 11515553

Transmission and transmission cooler have to be replaced on 2020 Explorer with 65,000 miles

NHTSA ODI 11515431

Backup camera stays on the entire time driving or it will stay as a black or blue screen and not go back to original screen

NHTSA ODI 11515338

I’m constantly cutting my fingers when I used the window controls to roll up or down my car windows. I believe this issue is the chrome is coming off and slicing people when they used it. This issue is unsafe and dangerous especially when driving.

NHTSA ODI 11515016

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the driver's side door opened while the contact was making a left turn. The contact stated that the "Door Ajar" chime sounded. The contact was wearing his seat belt and managed to shut the door but had to hold on to the door handle to keep the door closed. The contact stated that the failure recurred. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer; however, the mechanic could not duplicate the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to Ford Customer Satisfaction Program: 19N09 (Latches/Locks/Linkages). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 12,000.

NHTSA ODI 11514582

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the back over prevention camera malfunctioned and intermittently displayed a blue screen. Additionally, while driving, the display screen would erroneously activate and cause the steering wheel to momentarily vibrate and shake. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who performed a software update which corrected the failure; however, after a second software update was performed, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 37,000.

NHTSA ODI 11514558

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that on various occasions after starting the vehicle, the brake system warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the warning light disappeared after driving; however, the failure persisted whenever starting the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where the failure could not be duplicated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 20,000.

NHTSA ODI 11514489

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the rearview camera image was distorted. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V022000 (Back Over Prevention). The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.

NHTSA ODI 11514014

Despite bringing the vehicle in for two recall repairs, I still get the blue screen on the 360 camera when reversing. This limits my ability to safely back up and view my surroundings.

NHTSA ODI 11513989

The issue was initiated when you turn the vehicle on. The vehicle would process through normal startup modes, and then produce several error codes and light illuminations, all within several seconds. The illuminations would consist of; Traction Control Error, Auto Hold Error, Descent Control Error, Lane Assistance Error, and Collusion Avoidance Error. This would then maintain the error during the trip or until the vehicle was powered off for several minutes. After the power cycle, the vehicle would start and show no symptoms of any error codes, at all. This would happen in several different instances a day, lasting several months. In several of my cases, this would disable traction control for longer periods of time throughout the day or week as well. This places extreme risk to drivers who may not know that there are so little standard safety features active while behind the wheel. Additionally, it affects drivers ability to stop, which traction control and auto hold disabled, and reduces the safety of everyone else on the road. I took the vehicle twice to a Ford Certified dealer and repair shop to investigate the issue. The technician was able to verify the codes that arose from the incidents. However, the first instance when I took the vehicle in, they were unable to locate a solution to the problem. After the second visit, they recommended a complete reprogram of 5 major computer modules that have created the system error. I inquired since this seems to be an issue widespread that they could not identify as a user error, but rather an equipment defect. They indeed charged me for the service when this should be something that should be issued a recall and fixed at a wide spread level. The safety of others while on the road are effected and may lead to serious vehicle accidents as a result of the failure of the vehicle component.

NHTSA ODI 11513734

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, a message indicating that the 360-degree camera was inoperable was displayed. The contact stated that the failure persisted while reversing. The contact also stated that the Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) that activated an indicator light in the side view mirrors when a vehicle was detected in the blind spot was malfunctioning as the sideview mirror indicator light failed to illuminate as needed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the failure could not be duplicated; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that the failure mostly occurred during cold weather. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V022000 (Back Over Prevention); however, the parts to do the recall repair were not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and informed the contact that the recall was placed on hold on March 15, 2023. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 12,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ODI 11513095

When stopped at a light the engine suddenly accelerated forcing a hard braking action to prevent an accident. after 2-3 seconds it went to idle still in gear. This has happened 3 times the third time 2 witnesses said that it was not caused by braking with their foot on the accelerator. In reviewing the three episodes I noted that the air-conditioned switch was engaged all three times when this uncommand occurred. This never occurred when the car was moving only at a stop. It seems that the air conditioner was called to turn on by the body control module which cause the engine RPM to decrease which cause the power train control module to react increasing the demand to the throttle body which either stuck high or was over commanded in not reacting in a fast enough manner to satisfy the power train control module. When this occured I thought we were going to hit the car in front of us. I think this is correctable with some changes in the power train control module programing.

NHTSA ODI 11512802

I started my car via remote start and after entering the vehicle, I hit the start button, depressed the brake and turned the transmission to reverse. Upon rolling back, I noticed the brakes felt funny, not completely stopping me as they should with the amount of pressure I was applying. I proceeded start driving thinking the brakes my fix themselves after letting off and driving forward. I then began to hear dinging, prompting me to look at the dash. It was flashing a bunch of errors: “hill start assist not available”, “Pre-collision assist not available”, “service advance trac”, “check brake system”, “hill descent Control fault”, 4WD fault service required”, “Park Break limited function service required”. As I was driving down the road with all of this flashing/ dinging and brakes not completely working, I noticed my emergency brake was on as well. I never use the emergency brake and am unsure how it was switched on. I was able to pull over about a minute down the road and turned the car off and then back on. I tried again to start driving, but had to pull over again 100-200 feet down the road because the dinging, notifications, and brake issues continued. At this point I again, turned the car off and back on. This time it cleared the issue and no more dinging, notifications, or brake issues. This has happened about 3 times. After the first time, i mentioned it to the dealer when servicing my car, but they were unable to find any problems. Each time this happens, i am able to clear it with a restart. I seem to notice it happens with colder temps (under 40 degrees).

NHTSA ODI 11512446

The transmission is extremely rough. When my vehicle shifts gears, increasing or decreasing speed, it jerks and sometimes takes a few seconds to shift at all. Very clunky and unreliable. This has happened many times- I am currently looking for a mechanic to look at my transmission as my vehicle is out of warranty. I JUST purchased this vehicle and it has acted up at least 20 times in a month and a half. I did own an explorer in the past that had 130000 miles and it was perfect. I never had issues with it!

NHTSA ODI 11512266

Vehicle shut off at a stop light and was unable to be restarted. Vehicle had full power but would not start when pressing engine start switch. Vehicle was stuck in the middle of lanes blocking traffic and putting me in danger of being hit by other drivers. Police had to respond to block traffic until a tow truck could arrive. Dealer states the vehicle exhibited loss of communication to the PCM and there is a TSB #22-2145 for a neutral out condition. Vehicle is at dealer awaiting repair.

NHTSA ODI 11512085

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle jerked while depressing either the brake pedal or the accelerator pedal after coming to a complete stop. The contact stated there was no warning lights illuminated during the failure. The contact called a local dealer and was scheduled an appointment. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000.

NHTSA ODI 11510744

The rear defroster is peeling off the window, causing the defroster to fail. In icy conditions, it elimates my ability to see out of the rear window. I took it to the dealer, and they told me other Explorers had the issue but that they wouldn't fix it and that I should file an insurance claim.

NHTSA ODI 11510746