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

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 15 MPH, the vehicle was jerking. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and the contact was informed that the vehicle warranty had expired. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.

NHTSA ODI 11510889

I parked my vehicle 2/17/2023 around 9:45pm in the parking garage of my Condominium for the night. I was awakened Saturday morning 2/18/2023 by the building fire alarm and my neighbors banging on the doors to get outside because smoke was visible from the side of the building. I exited the building and crossed the street. The entire parking garage was filled with thick black smoke. The sprinkler system had activated and the Fire Dept arrived. Through the smoke I was able to see that my 2020 Ford Explorer Limited Edition was on fire. The front end was engulfed in flames which were now shooting up the side of the building and the ceiling of the parking garage.

NHTSA ODI 11510193

Several electrical issues from day of purchase. Dealerships have looked at codes,but have been unable to repeat conditions or find an issues. Recently, on a random basis,the vehicle would become unresponsive & the accellerator pedal would not engage & for 10-20 seconds the vehicle wouldn't respond. At a point it reset itself and continued as if nothing had happened. This occurred on 6 or 7 occassions from June 2022 to Dec 2022. In Sept I took to dealership to check, they were unable to recreate condition & therefore no repair was made. In Dec the front brake pads went metal to metal. I decided to replace them myself. I put the Electronic Emergency Brake (EB) into the Maintenance Mode & changed the front pads and rotars. When I started to jack the front end up the car moved, so I immediately lowered the vehicle & verified the car was in park. At this time I discovered that the car, in park, could be moved by pushing it. I moved the car about 5 to 6 feet in either direction. I believed this was due to the EB being in the maint mode. I blocked the rear wheels & completed the repairs with no further incident. When I attempted to return the car to normal & take the EB out of maint mode, I was unsuccessful. I then bleed the brake system to ensure I hadn't inadvertently gotten air in the system. After multiple unsuccessful attempts to restore EB to normal, I contacted my local dealership for help. I was informed that even the site tech's had difficulties getting system into normal. I had AAA tow car to dealership, which then replaced the rear brakes, flushed brake fluid & renewed & restored sys to norm. When tech moved car to parking lot, they placed car in park and upon exiting car, it began rolling. When i contacted for pickup, I was informed of issue and gave permission to diagnose problem. Inspection of transmission found pin for parking mechanism broken, metal shavings in transmission. Need for extensive repairs or replacement of transmission.

NHTSA ODI 11509975

This is a 2020 Ford Explorer with Platinum trim. The vehicle has less than 30,000 miles on it. There is a foul odor emitted from the rear AC when it’s turned on for either heat or cooling. This has been verified by the dealer. They changed the cabin filter which really only applies to the front and then did a solvent flush for the rear. That has not resolved the issue. Checking other Ford forums I realized it’s a common problem with 2020 Ford explorers 2020 and newer. There doesn’t seem to be a way to resolve the issue and no direction from Ford. I bought this vehicle used and my guess is the previous owner sold it since the foul odor is unbearable. There are no other issues with the vehicle and looks and drives like brand new.

NHTSA ODI 11509040

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while reversing, the rear-view camera displayed a distorted image. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V022000 (Back Over Prevention) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 17,700.

NHTSA ODI 11508741

The vehicles rear view camera randomly displays a blue screen on reverse backup. All sensors go failing at times. Attached are some screens over the month. I have taken this to a dealership for a most recent recall fix (02/01/23) and it seems this issue never gets fixed. I keep getting notices of recalls and they claim they will patch it with software fixes but there seems to be more serious sensor issues . When this happens in a school zone it feels dangerous. This is a leased vehicle and I haven't received much help even from the manufacturers dealerships. Didn't find anyone to even listen to these issues. If we try to manually reverse the emergency braking comes into play from nowhere and applies itself due to these malfunctioning of sensors.

NHTSA ODI 11507564

On November 16, 2022, my 2020 Ford Explorer XLT AW, VIN # 1FMSK8DH2LBC95627, was being driven when it experienced a horrific incident of spontaneously bursting into flames. There were flames coming from under the hood and smoke inside the car. The vehicle was in traffic and had to maneuver over to the breakdown lane while the vehicle was filling with smoke in order for the occupants to escape. The Explorer’s mileage was 10,744 miles and had just recently been at the Ford dealer for regular maintenance. The vehicle had been driven that particular day approximately 100 miles without incident before it caught on fire. 1. Damage beyond repair Vehicle was totaled by insurance company 2. A spontaneous fire put everyone in the traffic area at risk 3. No reproduction of the event 4. Fire started with no warning

NHTSA ODI 11507142

Front camera is cloudy. We are unable to see what is in front of the vehicle when pulling in garage and parking spots. High probability to injure or kill our dog, small children, or cause damage to other vehicles when attempting to use the front camera.

NHTSA ODI 11506549

Transmission has been fixed twice, but it is still causing issues. It shifts hard and sometimes shutters. No dealership takes it seriously anymore. It is a known manufacturer defect that isn't being corrected promptly, probably to skirt by until warranty expires. The auto-hold system sporadically stops working. It will pop up on the dash that it is not available, but it will work after restarting the car a time or two. The info screen will randomly be a black screen after startup. The backup camera sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. Rarely, there will be no sound from any speaker. Radio, phone, turn signal, nothing works through the speaker like it should. The turn signal will make a strange noise through the dash that doesn't match normal sounds.

NHTSA ODI 11506587

This vehicle has 17,000 miles and has developed a very scary vibration that starts at 50mph. The vehicle is very unsafe and cannot be taken down the road. Nobody should be driving it! Local ford was called and really don't care and booked my vehicle 6 weeks out from when I called. I have had many problems with this vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11505740

Memory seat module issue. After parking vehicle and turning off ignition, the driver's seat will automatically move all the way forward and wedge the driver against the steering wheel.

NHTSA ODI 11505592

While driving at 40 my vehicle started jerking. Drove maybe another couple Miles and stopped at red light and the vehicle would not engage. This is a 2020 ford explorer with 41,000 miles. I brought it to ford and have been waiting 1 month still for the parts. I keep asking what’s wrong with it and they just keep reviewing the rental. Also brought it in last year for a recall on the brakes-they fixed iit in 5 minutes where now my emergency brake is engaged all the time

NHTSA ODI 11505304

Drivetrain failure. Vehicle rolled forward while turned off, in park, while on a hill. Break did not respond while rolling (passenger who was still in car tried to lean over the seat to depress the break). Driver ran from behind the vehicle, hopped in (while car was moving!), turned car on, applied break and veered the vehicle right to get the car to stop. Vehicle nearly collided with three pedestrians and a nearby parked car. We have brought this car in to a Ford Dealership today. We reported a shuttering that occurred during peak torque while in for service last year - but dealership said they could not replicate.

NHTSA ODI 11505405

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Rear back up camera How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? The loss of the rear camera image while in reverse has increased my risk of crash. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Yes, it has been to Holman Ford Turnersville many times for repair but the issue keeps occuring. I have been in touch with Ford directly and have two cases open. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No warnings or symptoms

NHTSA ODI 11505164

The first incident happened in the fall of 2021. I was going down the interstate and came to almost a dead stop when my car down shifted. I was able to ease it to the next exit where I had it towed to ford. They “replaced” the part. Fast forward to Jan 2023. My husband and I were again driving on the interstate when the car again downshifted when we were in bumper to bumper traffic in the left lane. Luckily we were not hit and my husband veered into the median. Its now in the shop again since Jan 4th.

NHTSA ODI 11504328

The rear hatch opens unexpectedly with no command given. It happened twice while in Drive pulling out of my garage. There was no audible or visual warnings the hatch was opening. The hatch impacted the garage door frame causing the glass to shatter and denting the metal. First incident was 4/2022 the second was 1/2023. Both were reported to my insurance provider and the Ford dealer. I also contacted Ford directly for reimbursement of my deductible and other expenses and they paid. See attached. Please see SSM 49015 - 2020 Explorer/Aviator – Partial Power Liftgate Opening And/Or False Anti-Theft Alarm Activation – Liftgate Ajar - Built On Or Before 17-Feb 2020. The problem is not resolved and I no confidence the hatch won't open whie I am on the road. If it does and something falls out this would be a major safety issue.

NHTSA ODI 11504175

We are a law enforcement training center and received a recall notice on two Ford Interceptor Explorers in July of 2022. When we contacted our local authorized dealer (Asheville Ford), we were told it wouldn't be until October of 2022 before they had the parts in stock to make the necessary repairs. We contacted them in December of 2022 and set an appointment to take both vehicles in on January 23, 2023. They kept both vehicles until January 25, 2023 and returned the vehicles stating on the work order "Unable to perform campaign at this time".

NHTSA ODI 11503597

We are a law enforcement training center and received a recall notice on two Ford Interceptor Explorers in July of 2022. When we contacted our local authorized dealer (Asheville Ford), we were told it wouldn't be until October of 2022 before they had the parts in stock to make the necessary repairs. We contacted them in December of 2022 and set an appointment to take both vehicles in on January 23, 2023. They kept both vehicles until January 25, 2023 and returned the vehicles stating on the work order "Unable to perform campaign at this time". We are concerned about utilizing these vehicles under the high stress we put them in in a training environment until the necessary repairs can be made.

NHTSA ODI 11503601

I hit my brakes at a traffic light and the dash board lite up. With the following messages. Service Advance trac, 4WD Fault service required, see manual, hill start asst not available, auto hold fault, tooknto dealer tried to charge $600 for a diagnostic, codes were ran all codes are communication codes. Have no abs brakes. Took to another shop they couldn't figure it out. Called Ford. They refer back to dealer who what's to charge more money for diagnostics and the 33 codes they say are in the computer. Big safety issues. Happened just after 60,000 miles before looking at it dealer stated it wouldn't be covered under powertrain warranty anyway. Can't upload photos from phone for some reason.

NHTSA ODI 11502307

When there is heavy, consistent rain, the rear passenger side window leaks. I took the vehicle in for service under warranty and they told me Ford said the vehicles are not built to withstand heavy, consistent rain. Ummmm, what? This is not a small issue. During one downpour, there was at least an inch of water in the rear storage compartment. I live in eastern TN and we do tend to get a lot of rain, but I do not see how this window does not seal out the water.

NHTSA ODI 11502103

I was driving in the fast lane on the interstate and the left front down pipe fell off the catalytic converter. My research shows there is a recall for the pipe cracking. I cannot find a recall for my vehicle. Obviously the pipe cracked and fell off.

NHTSA ODI 11501846

trans shifting when cold

NHTSA ODI 11500616

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while approaching a stop, the vehicle's upper center console detached from its housing causing the contact to crash into another vehicle due to the failure. No one was injured. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was 48,123.

NHTSA ODI 11500446

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while reversing, the 360-degree camera view became inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The dealer was contacted but offered no assistance. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact that the warranty on the vehicle was expired. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 59,000.

NHTSA ODI 11500462

The contact owns a 2020 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle went into Limp Mode. The contact stated that the vehicle alerted her that the power train malfunctioned, pre-collision assist was unavailable, and the tire pressure malfunctioned. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and produced codes: P0E76 and P0E74 indicating that the half-shaft speed sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact referenced Ford Technical Service Bulletin Number: TSB 22-2145. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact inquired about a buy back and provided a case number. The failure mileage was approximately 24,186.

NHTSA ODI 11500359