CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2003 Ford Explorer one of our worst vehicles on record. "Avoid like the plague" is putting it lightly.
The 2002-2005 Explorer has a very well-established record of expensive transmission failure at under 100k miles. The Explorer has an enclosed transmission which is typically replaced with a rebuilt transmission at a cost of almost $3,000.
Another common problem for the 2002-2003 Explorer is wheel bearing failure at around 90k miles, with a typical repair bill of $500 to $1000 depending on how many wheel bearings failed.
Adding insult to injury, the 2002-2005 Explorer also has a massive problem with the rear panel cracking. While it's a minor annoyance compared to transmission failure, ironically the crack usually goes right through the Ford logo.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
75,805 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.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the lift gate was cracked. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer for inspection. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified and stated that the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The failure mileage was 96,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while inspecting the vehicle it was found that the hinge for the liftgate was broken. The vehicle was not taken to a mechanic and was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted who informed him that the vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign id number 04V442000 (structure: Body: Hatchback/liftgate: Hinge and attachments). The failure and current mileage was 110,308.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the hinges on the back lift gate fractured and allowed the glass to become disengaged. The vehicle could not be driven. The dealer was notified and informed the contact that there were no recalls on his vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who stated that the vehicle had been repaired under the recall NHTSA campaign id number: 04V442000 (structure:body:hatchback/liftgate:hinge and attachments) 8 years prior and provided no other assistance. The failure and current mileage was 130,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the lift gate hinges were fractured. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign id number: 04V442000 (structure:body:hatchback/liftgate:hinge and attachments). The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 40,000 and the current mileage was 82,000.....updated 10/11/12 updated 10/16/2012
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated the hinges for the rear lift gate fractured. The contact mentioned that the glass fell down into the door. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and had the hinges were replaced. The manufacturer was contacted who stated that there was a recall for the failure under NHTSA campaign id number: 04V442000 (structure: Body: Hatchback/liftgate: Hinge and attachments) but the vehicle was not included since the recall was only issued for the 2002 model year Explorer. The failure and current mileage was 115,000.
- Bowmansville, NY, USA
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The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated there were two large cracks below the rear liftgate, located near the manufacturer's emblem. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for inspection. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified and they were unable to provide assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the rear lift gate detached from the hinges of the vehicle. The dealer was notified and stated there was a recall but the contact's VIN was not included in the recall associated with NHTSA campaign id number: 04V442000 (structure: Body: Hatchback/liftgate: Hinge and attachments). The manufacturer was notified and offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 55,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer XLT. The contact stated that a crack was found in the rear door panel. The crack was noticed while the vehicle was parked in the contact's garage. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was not contacted and the vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 125,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the window on the rear hatch developed a crack and the hinge was bent due to defective material. The manufacturer was notified and stated that the repairs associated with NHTSA campaign id number 04V442000 (structure: Body: Hatchback/liftgate: Hinge and attachments) were previously performed. The manufacturer would not provide further assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 53,000 and the current mileage was 64,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that there was a fracture in the rear lift gate hinge, making it impossible to connect the rear tailgate door to the vehicle. The dealer and manufacturer were notified, but the NHTSA campaign id number 04V442000 (structure:body:hatchback/liftgate:hinge and attachments), did not include the VIN. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were approximately 160,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the glass on the rear hatch bottom molding was cracked. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not repaired. There were no recalls for the failure. The manufacturer was notified who offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 180,000 and the current mileage was 186,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that she noticed a fracture on the lift gate window. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where they advised her that she would have to have the panel replaced. The manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 39,000. Updated 04/26/12 the consumer also stated the rear differential was replaced.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. While examining the vehicle, the contact noticed that the rear glass hatch housing was cracked in half. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was informed that the rear hatch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The current and the failure mileages were 120,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact noticed a crack at the rear hatch back under the rear window. The contact stated that the crack was becoming wider when the hatch back was opened and closed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 30,000 and the current mileage was 40,000.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. While parked, the contact noticed that the panel below the rear window hatch was cracked. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostics where the technician stated that the rear panel would have to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 59,000. Updated 03/21/12 the consumer stated the rear panel connected to the back rear window cracked underneath the rear window and has weakened the rear view window. The seal has rotted out due to water seeping into the defective cracked panel. Updated 04/09/12 water seeped into the cracked panel and caused corrosion and electrical problems. Updated 05/07/12
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the rear tail gate door developed a cracked. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since there were no recalls related to the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 110,000 and the current mileage was 112,000.
I noticed a crack on the rear hatch trim panel under the window out of nowhere. Also, the paint on my hood and quarter panels has been bubbling and peeling off in huge chunks. It would seem they should do a recall on these issues since there are so many complaints.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford explored. The contact stated that the rear lift gate glass shield cracked and shattered. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer nor was it repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 166,079.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Waldorf, MD, USA