I replaced the thermostat housing 4 months ago to fix the obvious leak there but continue to experience coolant loss.

When the expansion tank level was low and I look inside the radiator, I saw the coolant was also low in the radiator. I filled the radiator before refilling the tank. After running the engine for a few minutes I noticed coolant seeping out the top at the seam between the plastic and aluminum core.

I looked around the radiator cap but it is not leaking there and dripping onto the radiator. However research indicates it is possible that the cap has failed and is not properly maintaining pressure in the system or allowing flow between the expansion tank and radiator. This could be a contributing factor.

Additional research led me to this website: https://thefordexplorer.wordpress.com/2011/01/15/fixing-your-2006-2009-ford-explorer-radiator-problems/ The author explains that electrolysis is a known cause of radiator failures in the 2006-2009 Explorers and Ford published a TSB. I will look into this in the process of fixing my problem.

I would like to replace the radiator myself to avoid the substantial labor cost, but the transmission lines run into it. Ford designed the transmission as a closed system which requires special tools and a machine to fill.

I was surprised to hear about the radiator leak because it had not overheated before and I did not smell any fluid or see it in my garage. I had the impression it was perhaps a bogus repair request from the dealer, until I checked on line and called a few shops and apparently these radiators leak all the time especially after 60,000 miles (WOW ) the magic Planned Obsolescence number is not dead after all and as Mr. Ford said we are not in the business of making cars we are in the business of making money. Clearly this is one of those high ticket items scheduled to blow just after warranty expires, and leak environmentally offensive fluids all over the road. Don't buy a Ford unless you have figured in these extra costs to be incurred later on because clearly they are going to come. Also had a the same problem as others with the transmission slipping fortunately that was covered under the waranty, and finally if you go to a ford dealer expect not to get your car back for quite a while, get a ride or a taxi.. they will not be on time!!!!!!!!!! add it up brakes 200.00 radiator, 680.00, battery 200.00, ... (not to mention the rear light bulbs out) over 1K at 60K miles .. not a bad little haul.

I purchased my 2007 Ford Explorer EB edition in June 2009. I loved how quite it was. At 60,000 miles I thought this is going to be the best vehicle I have ever owned until Last week when i seen coolant pouring onto my carport. I took it to Glenn Sain Ford, where I bought it, and they told me I needed a new radiator. Thank goodness I got the extended warranty! I picked up my explorer, and they told me I needed new brakes and quoted me a price but decided to go elsewhere. I drove my explorer from the ford place to another shop to get my brakes put on and asked them to drive it to see if it sounded loud to them. After replacing my brakes, they said the fan was alittle loud and it looked like a new one had been put on it. This happened on a Friday. During the weekend I noticed the transmission slipping so I called Glenn Sain Monday morning and told them that my fan was loud and my transmission seems to be slipping. The next morning I took my truck up to Glenn Sain to have them look at it. They said my truck doesn't sound loud and that my truck was a quart low on transmission fluid. It has been 7 days since then and my transmission is still slipping and it sounds like I am driving a bus now. I wish I had known of the radiator issue before hand!

With 48,000 miles on our explorer I noticed the overflow tank was always low in antifreeze so I just topped it off and went on my way. Next time I looked it was low again and then I started smelling that oh so sweet antifreeze smell everytime I rolled the window down. Looking under the hood I found the antifreeze residue all over the fan blades and near the drain plug. I added stop leak knowing it wouldn't help when I did it but it made me feel better to know I was trying a cheap fix. I kept smelling antifreeze so I did a little research and BOOOM, here it was.. After reading all this terrible news I decided to find a radiator from anybody but FORD and install it myself. I went online to Radiatorbarn.com and ordered a radiator and came home after working all day and started the dreaded job working by myself on it. After flushing it and pulling it in the shop its a fairly simple process to remove other than the tranny lines without that $20 plastic tool but a cut off tool and a steady hand will do the job also. I got it back in after a few dirty words and topped it off with antifreeze and started looking on autotrader.com. After figuring out what the new vehicle was gonna be we traded that POS for a real suv. (2011 GMC Yukon) I WILL NEVER OWN ANOTHER FORD!

The car started having a loud noise under the hood. After researching I realize that it was the fan. It would come on in low gears and then go away and it wasn't consistent. The temperature would remain the same. I took it to one place and they fixed the canister valve because the fuel light was on as well. A week later the noise was much more frequent and happening in higher gears. Suddenly it started overheating. I was told by the radiator shop that this happens all the time and they all crack in the same place. So much for the reliable ford that I thought I bought.

I took the 2007 Ford Explorer in due to transmission being noisy and laboring to shift. This was fixed as part of Standard Drive Train warranty on 2007 models. The dealer said there was a coolant leak (no drips at home garage and no overheating issues) and the radiator needed to be replaced for $977.47. No help was forthcoming from Ford and I see a lot of complaints on the 2006 Explorer radiators. This is obviously a poor design for the radiator. I have had good luck with Ford products for 30 years and feel this one should be resolved to my satisfaction by Ford.

Doing a routine oil/filter change I noticed the overflow tank was empty and radiator was not completly full. It took 2 qts of 50/50 mix to bring levels back up and have been watching it daily. My wife drives it to and from work (40 miles) and honestly didn't think much of it as its been super hot this summer but I started to notice the o/flow tank losing fluid slowly. Found antifreeze drips on driver side around the draincock and traced it back up the radiator to the area below the top hose where aluminum and plastic meet. I didn't want to but added 1/2 small tube of granual (looks like sand) stop leak from Advance Auto and so far so good. No leaks and levels are full but I'm the type of car guy that doesn't settle for quick fixes so I'm currently researching this problem to find out why and how to correct permantly. If it is a common raditor malfunction then I'll be looking for aftermarket replacement with the same dimensions and connections to install; maybe an all aluminum one from Be-Cool are Summit. Could the problem be the plastic/aluminum radiator and high under hood temps or vibrations with the mounting setup? For this to be a common problem on Explorers only then 'mI leaning more toward the setup and not the radiator itself.

I will research it but I'll bet that if you look hard enough you will find that the same radiator part # fits other models of vehicles which doesn't have leak problems. Radiators just don't start leaking and on this certain model only with this many complaints. I will be updating my research soon.

Update from Nov 10, 2010: My leak finally got to the point where it had to be fixed. Purchased replacement from autopartswarehouse.com and installed myself. Contacted Ford about this problem and they were no help. I did run across something interesting while doing search for radiator in that one internet supplier noted that they would no longer give the standard warranty on the 2006 unit due to a defect in manufacturer mounting system on these cars. The link is: http://www.radiatorexpress.com/product.asp?part=2007+FORD+EXPLORER+EDDIE+BAUER+-+4.0+liter+V6+RADIATOR+Name+Brand+Replacement+4+Door,+SOHC&part_id=218463&aaia_id=1434497

Sent this link to Ford but haven't heard from them about it. I feel for the ones that don't have the ability to do this at home in there own shop; the swap was straight forward with no surprises and so far so good - it's dry under the hood with no new leaks. I did see how the mounting system may be the problem. The way it is designed the radiator takes alot of road shock and is not fully supported. The side mounts are rubber supported but the bottom where the radiator sits in the support is not. It is plastic to plastic. If a new leak develops I will address this area. One more important aspect to this problem (note my picture) is that the leak was not in a area where aluminum and plastic are factory joined together. It was mid-way in the radiator in the side.

Update from Jan 17, 2011: How many people have 06-07 Explorers with radiator leaks/failure/issues?

He replaced the radiator in Nov 2010, so far so good right? Wrong, as of 6:30pm Jan 17,2010 in Food Lion parking lot it spewed out every bit of antifreeze it had!!! :(( So I have a $35000 SUV that I am still making $550/mth payments on w/$16000 left to pay! sitting in the driveway that is undrivable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

According my research on the web there seems to be a pattern with radiator leaks/failure that FORD is not willing to address!!!

My engine was running rough for weeks. Sounded like a school bus. I called the dealer, and they kept telling me that due to the hot and humid weather, it was the fan working overtime to cool the car. I'm driving home form work, have the A/C on (it was 95 degrees outside!) and all of a sudden it goes completely hot and the temperature gage goes immediately to "H", then the digital panel goes red and the temperature icon shows up there, too. When I shut off the air, the temp returns to normal. I took the car in and the dealer said I had a radiator leak and needed a new thermostat. Said I had no coolant in the system. They neded to flush the coolant and then put a new radiator in. Funny, not sure how that could be possible when there wasn't any leaking of anti-freeze in my garage, driveway, or anywhere near the car, and there was no smell whatsoever. Also not sure what they're flushing when there's nothing in the system to begin with. When I questioned the dealer, he said, "yeah, we're really not sure how this happened." Cost me the $100 deductible aand $140 for the flush. Ridiculous.

Took my '07 Explorer in for the routine maintenance (Pkg B?) and an oil change and asked them to look at the tranny because I was getting a whirring noise which I thought was a gear slipping. They did the mtce and came back and said it wasnt the tranny and couldnt duplicate the problem on a test drive.

It only got worse so I took it back this week and asked them again to take a look. They did a tranny diagnostic and said it wasnt that. They were able to hear the noise and said it was the fan clutch and then did a pressure check and found coolant level was low. Now they tell me I need a new radiator....on a vehicle that has less than 55k miles. Never had this with a vehicle before. And like most here, its not covered under warranty as mileage is exceeded.

I asked why they wouldnt have noticed the fluid level was low on the mtce pkg B they did and was told well they would have topped up. Was also told the level fell into that "grey area" where fan is overworked but dash light doesn't come on. With all the instnces highlighted here they should/were aware what the problem was and I could have avoided $150 in "diagnostic" charges.

I only hope I get a good replacement rad and don't run into having to replace it annually like others seem to have run into.

I bought a Ford Certified 2007 Ford explorer thinking I made a great purchase. I love my Explorer, but I have to replace my radiator with less than 40,000 miles on it. Of course my warranty just ran out, so I will have to pay $800 to replace it! After reading all the complaints of having to replace radiators (Some cases more than once) I am REALLY disappointed in Ford. I cannot believe Ford has not recalled this problem. It is almost like Ford picked a P.O.S. radiator to place in there Explorers to save a buck. They know it will last long enough until the warranty runs out, so they will not have to deal with it later. So much for buying AMERICAN! I will never buy a Ford again!