What 401 owners told NHTSA about the 2021 Ford Explorer Police Intercept

The car is struggling to switch gear and loosing power. While I am driving

NHTSA ODI 11474263

2021 FORD EXPLORER. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO ISSUE WITH THE REAR SUBFRAME. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE WAS MANUFACTURED WITH AN INCORRECT SUBRAME. THE CONSUMER BELIEVED THE SINGLE BOLTS WILL EVENTUALLY BREAK DUE TO STRESS. THE VEHICLE HAD A RECALL TO REPROGRAM THE PCM TO AUTOMATICALLY APPLY THE PARKING BREAK. THE CONSUMER WAS CONCERNED THE RECALL WOULD NOT STOP THE VEHICLE FROM ROLLING AWAY.

NHTSA ODI 11473371

Gear(transmission), when put in reverse the car goes forward instead of reverse, and Jerks in reverse after 7-15 sec. And it also jerks while accelerating.

NHTSA ODI 11470569

All of the sensors are out. Nothing is working. They were working fine then one day I noticed the lane keeping sensors were not working. Today I noticed the side sensors are not working which they were this morning. The middle row seat gets stuck if moved forward, it will not stay back. The button is always stuck so while on the road the seat randomly pops out of place. The wipers do not work properly, only on high speed. I have already called McCombs Ford West in San Antonio, Tx as I purchased the vehicle there in October of 2021 but they are not worried about it. They said I can go drop it off but they will check it when they get a chance and will not provide a loan car which I cannot do that as I have kids. All the safety features that it should have are not working. They told me it would be weeks before they even look at the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11470475

My vehicle is throwing alerts about a power train malfunction. It reduces speeds by it self attempts to loose all power when having issues and the transmission feels like it is slipping or not shifting into gear. This has now happened on multiple occasions.

NHTSA ODI 11470515

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that after his wife set the vehicle to "Park" while the engine was running, as she exited, the vehicle lurched forward and crashed into the garage back wall. There was no damage to the vehicle, however, there was damage to the garage back wall. The contact stated his wife saw no warning lights were illuminated. The contact's wife got back into the vehicle and observed that the gear shift lever was still in "Park" and she shut the vehicle off. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer, or an independent mechanic. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

NHTSA ODI 11470215

While driving vehicle, reduced engine power occurred resulting in the vehicle being unable to safely maintain highway speeds. Once safely on side of roadway, vehicle lost all engine power and would start. Vehicle had 11,049 miles on it and had been properly maintained. Attempts to start vehicle were unsuccessfully and engine sounded like internal components had failed (like a bag of rocks inside the engine). Vehicle was towed to Ford dealer in East Peoria, Illinois for examination and repairs. Excessive metal shavings were found in the oil filter and it was discovered internal engine components had failed, causing catastrophic engine failure. Engine block was replaced. Dealer was provided all previous maintenance records to show that the vehicle was properly maintained.

NHTSA ODI 11469713

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while the transmission was either in park(P) or drive(D), the vehicle independently rolled away without warning. The contact stated that he forcefully depressed the brake pedal in an effort to stop the vehicle. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and transferred him to the NHTSA. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V255000 (Power Train) which he linked to the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

NHTSA ODI 11469727

Feedback on Manufacturer Recall Number 22S27, NHTSA Recall 22V255 Allowing Ford to reprogram the powertrain control unit (ECU) on this vehicle so that the vehicle applies the emergency brake whenever the vehicle is placed in park in order to prevent the vehicle from rolling away if/when this one bolt breaks on the rear differential is NOT sufficient. The 2020 MY Ford Explorer ST/Plantium models have two bolts attaching the rear differential to the rear subframe. The equivalent 2020-2022 Lincoln Aviator also has two bolts on this part. The issue is that Ford ran out of the correct rear subframe parts and substituted a part for a lower powered powertrain, or this was a cost cutting measure gone bad. Cross referencing Ford's own parts numbers with the VIN shows the incorrect rear subframe installed at the factory. NHTSA should require Ford to properly and securely attach the rear differential to the rear subframe of the vehicle to prevent this issue. Allowing a workaround, use of parking brake to prevent rollaway, is not ok. Additionally, the equivalent police interceptor is obtaining the correct rear subframe as part of the manufacture defect resolution. Why wouldn't the others receive the same fix?

NHTSA ODI 11469737

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated the adaptive cruise control and the collision avoidance systems would malfunction. The vehicle would suddenly deactivate the cruise control and the collision avoidance would detect a non-existing object and stop the vehicle from also turning to avoid the crash. The contact stated that while idled at a stop light when the vehicle suddenly accelerated rear-ending the vehicle in front. The air bags did not deploy however the acceleration did not reach high enough speeds for such a response. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was not towed. There were no injuries or medical attention needed. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer however the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failures. The approximate failure mileage was 10,000.

NHTSA ODI 11469294

Ford sold a non sale vehicle to me on 11/05/2021 after Ford Critical Review Team on 8/9/2021 deemed wrong rear axle bolts being put on. Essentially, putting a no transit order on vehicle. I was made aware on this recall only after I updated my app on May 10th,2022. Read on app about the no remedy recall stating 2022-4-14. I have spoken with Ford Corporate as the service manager stated for me to do via phone. Ford's buyback department will not consider it. The buyback team is waiting on a recall remedy as of today. I do not feel safe in my vehicle, and have opened a claim with the BBB. I am only requesting Ford to either do a buyback or swap out vehicle for one year newer. No communication with Dealership about the problems both NOW and IMMEDIATELY after purchase of 2021 Ford Explorer ST.

NHTSA ODI 11469460

In the last 2 months I have had a total of 3 back up cameras and the equipment is still turning blue on random. I have had the wiring replaced to “fix” the Bluetooth echo, and it is still doing it. The gas take also shakes enough to move the car when you come to a stop depending on amount of gas in the tank.

NHTSA ODI 11468627

While in a driveway at a decline (approximately 5% grade), I placed the vehicle in park and set the emergency brake; when I decompressed the brake to turn the vehicle off it took off sliding down the street. A coworker was with me and was about to get out at the time as well. Fortunately I was able to gain control before I hit the mailbox in front of us and no one or thing was injured This was the second time this happened; however, the first time the emergency brake was not set. Also, starting at 23k miles, I am repeatedly getting a "Auto Hold system fault" error every few days. This occurs sometimes at startup and sometimes while driving and the Auto Hold will not work when it comes up. However, if I stop and restart the vehicle, it will go away and work. I am not sure these are related.

NHTSA ODI 11467554

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while parking the vehicle on an incline, the transmission inadvertently shifted out of park(P). The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact stated the failure occurred whenever the parking brake was not activated while parking the vehicle. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 50.

NHTSA ODI 11465693

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that after she had parked her vehicle and retrieved items out of the liftgate compartment; the vehicle began to roll back independently towards her. A witness alerted her that the vehicle was rolling towards her; the contact moved out of the way. She then opened her driver-side door as the vehicle proceeded to roll back; the contact was pinned in between the concrete post and the driver-side door as the vehicle eventually stopped. Witnesses assisted her and aided her away from the vehicle which bruised her left arm. The contact did not seek medical attention for the injury. The contact called the dealer and they offered no assistance. The contact then had the vehicle towed to a different dealer Lithia Ford Idaho Falls(980 W Broadway St, Idaho Falls, ID 83402) where the driver-side door was replaced. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and she was given a case number. The cement post was damaged as a result of the failure. The police were called after the failure and a report was filed. The vehicle was repaired; however, the cause of the failure had yet to be determined. The failure mileage was approximately 4,500.

NHTSA ODI 11465778

Ford safety recall 22S27 dated April 19, 2022 DOES affect my car and I just called Ford corporate and they DO NOT confirm that my car should be on the recall list. I have visually inspected my car and I do have the improper 1 bolt, rather than 2 bolt design installed on my car. If the bolt breaks, my car will be disabled wherever this happens without warning. This can cause an accident and I do not understand how Ford is not at least including me on the recall list. The only way to fix this issue is to replace the axle structure with the 2 bolt design.

NHTSA ODI 11465015

I am having major issues with the 3rd row seating on my Ford explorer getting stuck and not able to be moved. This is happening causing children to not have places to sit and seatbelts to secure themselves in for a safe commute. Each time the seats are stuck, they are not even able to be moved manually. The entire seat including the head rest becomes immobile and leaves the seat in either a half open/closed position or an open position with no headrest capability. While traveling out of town on January 23 with 6 people in my vehicle my 3rd row seats became stuck in positions where I was unable to safely transport 2 of the occupants of the car. I also had to travel home in an extremely unsafe situation where luggage had to remain in laps for a 4 hour car ride and could have been catastrophic had there been an accident. I reached out to the service department of Palmetto Ford on January 24th about this issue and they told me it would be 3 to 4 weeks until they could get my vehicle in to “look at it.” I reached out to my sales person who was able to coordinate with the service manager to get my vehicle looked at the next day. They did not have a loner for me to drive so they rented one from Enterprise and had me come back the next day to pick it up and began to repair my car. It took them about 2 days and they said they had to completely replace the computer brain of the 3rd row seating. When I left it was in working order. Two months later while once again out of town with 4 other people’s children to care for my 3rd row seating gets stuck again in an unusable position. This time I had no other alternative but to put these kids in seats together seatbelted in and pray that I did not get hit. When I got home on March 29th I called Palmetto Ford sales to let them know that my seats are once again broken and spoke to the sales manager Jake. I told him that I felt unsafe in the vehicle now and that I would like them to take it back. I told him I had more travel

NHTSA ODI 11464541

I had the backup camera parts replaced 4/15/2022 and within 10 days of having the vehicle back the backup camera was turning blue again.

NHTSA ODI 11462906

The auto rear trunk hands free lift gate likes to start closing on its own when you are moving around under it. For instance and could hit you in the head. It has before. Other manufacturers use a similar system and I've never had this happen. It's to sensitive to movement

NHTSA ODI 11462837

(1)While reversing into the garage, the rear facing camera system turned blue and disabled the reverse braking system. (2) several instances: while reversing, the reverse braking system disables randomly.

NHTSA ODI 11460821

I left a facility Friday evening, pulling out of the plaza I was second from front at a red. When the light turned green the car in front of me started going, I started going. I had to give it gas as MPH on the road I was on is 45mph. As I am accelerating through the light the car just would not accelerate. The traffic behind me was coming up FAST! I was panicked. The car in front of me turned into a gas station which gave me the additional 5 seconds for my vehicle to come back on. I never lost power inside the vehicle. It was almost as if I was running out of gas. I had gotten gas 2 days before and filled the tank. I actually called the gas station and they have not had anyone inquire so I don’t think it’s gas. It was very scary and had I had my children in the vehicle I’m not sure I would or honestly probably will not drive with them in this vehicle anymore.

NHTSA ODI 11460300

Since purchasing this vehicle I have off and on experienced my bluetooth echoing for the party on the other end of the line. I have also experienced my gas tank shaking my entire car upon stopping depending how much gas is in the tank, usually full to 3/4 full. I have also experienced on multiple occasions my back up camera turning blue. There was a trend going for a while if it was hot outside it would turn blue all the time. However, over the winter months it periodically started changing blue. More recently, when I put my car into reverse it will take a few seconds to switch gears. I also experienced my front driverside window not going up. I had to turn the car off and back on again in order for it to go back up. Altogether, I have had multiple issues with my brand new car since the day of purchase. I immediately took the vehicle back in for the gas tank shaking and their response was because I was not used to driving a "smaller" car. I however find that extremely unsafe in the event I were to break too hard, I feel that my gas tank would come disassembled.

NHTSA ODI 11460176

Got it in the car and pushed the push start button. The cars engine turned over only half way and started to restart and turn over multiple times even though the motor was running halfway. This went on for 15 minutes until i opened up the hood and looked down and after a couple minutes the engine seized and turned off and started smoking, shortly after started on fire from the bottom of the engine. The fire went on for 10 minutes until we turned it off.

NHTSA ODI 11459057

Approximately 1.5 months ago, my ford explorer started having issues with shifting frm drive to reverse or reverse to drive, stopped to reverse and stop to drive. I had my oil changed and there were 2 updates to the transmission that were done. The problem persists. When going through a car wash in which you put the car in neutral and ride through as it washes, I placed the car in neutral and almost hit the vehicle in front of me due to it taking 3-4 seconds to shift from drive to neutral.

NHTSA ODI 11457587

I'm writing to you to relay a serious safety issue that started with the 2021 Explorer ST manufacturing processes. When Ford designed the new Explorer ST, the rear subframe was engineered to allow the rear differential to be attached with four bolts (Attachment-A). This was needed to properly secure the differential in light of the ST motor putting out more horsepower than their other models. My 2020 Explorer ST had the correct subframe with two bolts (Attachment-B.) At some point during the manufacturing of the 2021 ST models, Ford started using base-model Explorer rear subframes that contained a single bolt (Attachment-C) on the rear portion of the subframe. This was likely done due to the global shortage of parts and materials that most automotive manufacturers encountered. The results were predictable, and many users in Explorer discussion groups have reported the single-bolt shearing off, dropping the differential and damaging the rear suspension components and exhaust (Attachment-D & E.) This is a glaring safety issue, especially with a performance car, as a failure at speed could result in loss of control of the vehicle. To date, Ford has not responded to my inquiries requesting more information and a resolution. They did recently release a Special Service Message acknowledging that this is an issue (Attachment-F.) The thread below on explorerst.org outlines the problem in detail. There are dozens of people there and in the Explorer ST groups on Facebook that have encountered this problem, with varying levels of successful resolution and attention from Ford. I'm happy to provide additional links to conversations about this, if needed. https://www.explorerst.org/threads/rear-end-damage.2602/ I represent a growing group of ST owners who would like Ford to issue a recall, and repair their vehicles before a failure occurs.

NHTSA ODI 11457248