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1.9

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
83,768 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

1997 Ford Expedition wheels / hubs problems

wheels / hubs problem

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1997 Ford Expedition Owner Comments

problem #10

May 022011

Expedition 8-cyl

  • 130,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving down the highway a normal speed the spare tire on my Expedition fell off when the cable holding the tire up seemed to have broke. My vehicle ran over the tire and I could see the spare bouncing wildly down the road. Fortunately, no other cars hit the tire but it was extremely close since a car just passed from the other direction and there would have been no way they could have missed the bouncing tire in the oncoming lane. Ford does not know how close they came to killing innocent people. The road was smooth without bumps, the tire just fell off. To my knowledge, we have never used the spare tire on this vehicle.

- Battle Ground, WA, USA

problem #9

Mar 212010

Expedition

  • 78,215 miles
The contact owns a 1997 Ford Expedition. While coming to a stop sign at 3 mph, the contact suddenly heard a noise. Upon stopping, the contact noticed that the spare tire had fallen off because of a broken cable. The contact called an authorized dealership and the dealer stated that they would not be able to inspect or repair the vehicle. The current mileage was 78,525. The failure mileage was 78,215.

- Freemont, CA, USA

problem #8

Apr 122009

Expedition

  • 136,000 miles
Our spare tire that was mounted underneath the car, -fell off- while driving through a residential neighborhood. The cable "broke" that was holding it in place underneath the car. Thank goodness we were not on the freeway. It will cost $100. To repair.

- Orem, UT, USA

problem #7

Jun 272005

Expedition 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 165,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

On June 27, 2005 while driving about 65 mph the consumer heard a noise. And upon stopping, the consumer noticed the spare tire fell off. No damage to the vehicle was reported. The cable broke completely off, and the tire was gone. Owner called Ford, and they were not concerned. The brake line ruptured.

- Central Square, NY, USA

problem #6

Jan 152005

Expedition 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 102,300 miles
The spare tire of my 1997 Ford Expedition (truck) is normally threaded with a wire rope and winched up into place beneath the back of the Expedition. It works well and is easier to use than the traditional bolt/plate. However, in January 2005, my wife was driving on grant road a major street in tucson Arizona and the wire rope broke and the tire flew off from beneath our Expedition and bounced wildly down the road. Fortunately nothing and no one hit the tire; but there was potential for a very serious accident if it had been hit by one or more cars. Traffic stopped and my wife went back and retrieved the errant tire from the middle of three lanes. I do not know if the cable was corroded; but living in a dry climate of the Arizona desert I do not believe this was the case. There was no rust of any kind I could see. I believe Ford Motor Company should notify truck owners to inspect the cable for defects. We were very lucky that a lot of damage wasn't done to other vehicles or humans.

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #5

Jul 162004

Expedition 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 170 miles
The spare tire retention cable failed, causing the spare tire to fall out of the bottom of my 1997 Ford Expedition. This happened under normal highway driving conditions on a busy section of road. There fortunately were no vehicles following at the time or there most assuredly would have been an accident.

- Granbury, TX, USA

problem #4

Dec 202002

Expedition

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Spare tire fell off of 1997 Ford Expedition while driving on road. The spare is suspended by a cable under the rear section of the vehicle. This event occurred while driving at very slow speed. However, the car following behind my vehicle could not avoid the fallen tire and drove over the top. The defective tire suspension cable was replaced, at my expense, by a local dealer. I am concerned about what may have happened if this had occurred while driving on the freeway.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #3

Jul 162003

(reported on)

Expedition

  • 76,000 miles
Consumer states that spare tire cable snapped in half while driving at highway speed. Consumer saw the tire rolling down the highway.

- Hamilton, OH, USA

problem #2

Jan 202003

Expedition 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 150,000 miles
While driving and without warning spare tire fell off from back of vehicle.

- Traverse City, MI, USA

problem #1

May 062001

Expedition 4WD

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
Cable that binds up spare tire fails to release spare tire for use. Design was very flawed. Consumer states he bought design flaw to the attention of Ford, they pulled the part from the parts bin for the 2001 Expedition and it was exactly the same as consumer's vehicle.

- Palmer, AK, USA

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