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2.1

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
76,937 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.

2013 Ford Explorer brakes problems

brakes problem

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2013 Ford Explorer Owner Comments (Page 2 of 3)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #25

Apr 162019

Explorer

  • 106,000 miles

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

Power steering assist fault. Causing loss of power steering almost causing a accident was able to pull to side of road unable to steer the vehicle. Others have had this and some recalled but not all. This recall needs to be extended before someone dies. City street. I can't imagine being on a freeway in phoenix when this happened.

- Payson, AZ, USA

problem #24

Apr 162019

Explorer

  • 106,000 miles
Power steering assist came on as I was driving and lost steering. Very dangerous

- Payson, AZ, USA

problem #23

Feb 212019

Explorer

  • 120,000 miles
Was driving down the interstate and the power steering went out advancetrac lights came on and the dash started flashing service power steering now and service advancetrac now

- King George, VA, USA

problem #22

Mar 162019

Explorer

  • 91,887 miles

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

Power steering down. Warning massage said 'power steering assist fault' 'service advance trac' 'terrain management system fault'. it is too hard to steer. Control module internal failure, codes U3000-49, U3000-96, U3000-71.

- Ridgewood, NJ, USA

problem #21

Aug 152018

Explorer

  • 86,000 miles
Issue already reported.see NHTSA ld.number 11174395.vehicle is AWD. Clunking noise coming from front axil area only. Current milage86644.

- Kingman, AZ, USA

problem #20

Jan 202019

Explorer

  • 135,632 miles
Like recall number 14S06, my Explorer power steering assist is intermittent and will sometimes will not work at all. I've checked with a local dealer and they say that it is not a recall under our VIN. This vehicle lost power steering while my wife was driving with both of our young children in the car.

- Liberty, NC, USA

problem #19

Jan 032019

Explorer

  • 81,500 miles

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

While driving my vehicle at a slow speed my steering wheel locked up.

- Wildwood, FL, USA

problem #18

Dec 112018

Explorer

  • miles
My vehicle keeps giving me a "shift to park" message after it's already in park. I purchased the vehicle in the summer of 2012 and it's a 2013. Within the first month of having it this issue began. I've mentioned it several times when I've taken my vehicle in for service. I even took it in just for that error message and was told because the issue couldn't be duplicated I would have to bring it back when it happens again and I still had to pay the diagnostic fee of $150 plus tax.

- Honolulu, HI, USA

problem #17

Jul 262018

Explorer

  • 79,000 miles
I was driving on the freeway at around 65/70mph when suddenly my car shut down. The wrench light illuminated, and the dash said to "check manual" and all power was lost in the car. It was a terrifying experience. I was in the fast lane during the morning commute and my car completely shut down and I had to safely navigate getting over 6 lanes of traffic. Thank god no one was injured because this could have been deadly. The car went into "limp mode" I took it to a Ford dealer today and it was diagnosed as a defective electronic throttle body. I was told it is not covered by the Ford extended warranty which should cover it for 10 years or 150,000 miles. I called Ford and they also told me it was not covered. This is contrary to all the research I have done and the agreement Ford reached with the NHTSA.

- Orange, CA, USA

problem #16

Jun 062013

Explorer

  • 150 miles
I have been complaining of a suspension issue since I had purchased this vehicle in 2013. I am being told there want be a recall until someone dies. I even tried to have it fixed under warranty but suspension are not covered according to Ford dealers.

- Conroe, TX, USA

problem #15

May 222018

Explorer

  • 106,000 miles

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

Power steering does not work at times on start up. Could go out at high rate of speed and cause an accident. Should be a recall

- Katy, TX, USA

problem #14

Feb 182018

Explorer

  • 52,000 miles
Vehicle in motion when all of a sudden would slow down to a crawl and lose ability to accelerate. Yellow wrench warning light would then light up. Happened twice and almost had serious accident. Also would experience burning smell when accelerating up a hill. Previously reported to dealer but they would not believe.

- Dededo, GU, USA

problem #13

Jan 012018

Explorer

  • 88,000 miles
I received an error code on my 2013 Ford Explorer that stated "checks brakes" whenever I made a left or right turn. The car would also do a hard jerk when I turned and it was hard to drive at certain speeds. When I did a vehicle check, my brakes were registering as "ok". a couple of days later, my vehicle did the same thing when I made a turn. This time after the check brakes warning light came on, my car completely cut off on me. I was able to re-start it but I was really nervous and immediately took it to the Ford dealership. I contacted the service department the next day on the status of my vehicle and was told that 40 different error codes came up when they did a diagnostic test. I was told that my car has a "steering gear issue" and to replace it, I will have to pay $1683.87. I was able to find complaints on the 2013 Ford Explorer with the same issue. Recall number 14V286000 dated 20140529 for steering:electric power assist system is for 2011-2013 Ford Explorer. The recall states 'vehicles manufactured May 17, 2010, through February 28, 2012 may experience an intermittent connection in the electric power steering gear, which can cause a loss of the motor position sensor signal resulting in a shut down of the power steering assist." I contacted Ford headquarters about the recall and was told that my car was manufactured after the recall date so the recall does not apply to my vehicle. I stated the my vehicle is having the same exact issues as the recall on the same make, model and year Ford Explorer. A case was opened by Ford headquarters for financial assistance on January 5th, 2018. I an still awaiting a response. I do not feel safe driving my vehicle and I have resulted in renting a vehicle or having my husband drive me and our three kids back and forth. My car is at Ford service center and I will eventually have to pick it up.

- Jacksonville, NC, USA

problem #12

Jun 012017

Explorer

  • miles
The "door ajar" sensor on many Ford products is defective and causes the door ajar light to come on even when the doors are closed. This also causes the interior dome lights to remain on at night and will not allow the doors to be locked while operating the vehicle. It is dangerous not being able to lock the doors as children could open the doors accidentally and fall out. It is also dangerous having the interior dome lights remain on while driving at night. Ford knows about this problem as when I took the vehicle in for repairs, they acknowledged a service bulletin is available about the problem. Because of the safety issues involved, there should be a recall on the door ajar. Battery drains quickly after getting new on within a year. Brakes also continues squeaks after getting them fixed.

- San Antonio, TX, USA

problem #11

Sep 212017

Explorer

  • 69,000 miles
When traveling on the interstate the vehicle started pulling my steering to the right or left when not driving straight. The steering wheel would pop to one side or the other making it difficult to maintain my lane on the interstate. Dashboard lights appeared indicating trac control and trac system maintanence. After exiting the highway the vehicle made a loud popping and screeching noise when making a sharp turn, the wheel became more difficult to turn and was physically challenging. Realizing the severity of the situation and feeling the loss of control behind the wheel I attempted to pull into a parking lot when the steering completely locked up. The wheel wouldn't budge and I was left stranded with the car jacknifed on a side street. A tow truck was required to remove the car from the street and I had to remove myself and my 4 week old baby from the car and to safety while waiting for an alternate ride. Very scary and upsetting. Thankfully it did not happen on the interstate or it could have resulted in a potentially fatal accident.

- Monroe, GA, USA

problem #10

Sep 132017

Explorer

  • miles
Steering wheel assist fault. The steering just can't turn. It seems to me that manufacture defect. I almost get involved in a terrible accident while driving in hwy. Traction is off

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #9

Aug 312017

Explorer

  • 127,400 miles
Purchased a used 2013 Ford Explorer XLT with 127,158 miles on it. Drove it for 5 days without problems. On day 6, I drove the car on the freeway for 73-miles. At 127,400 miles I stopped at a burger joint for 35-minutes before resuming my drive to my destination, several warning messages appeared on the information screen when I started the car again. 1)service power steering now. 2) terrain management system failure. 3)service advancetrac. The power steering was dead from that point on. The car was drivable but it took great effort to turn the steering wheel when the car wasn't moving or when making anything more than gradual turns. A search for this problem says that the electric power assisted steering (epas) has died. There was a huge recall to address this problem, but my VIN# is, sadly, not included in that recall. This means that all epas units can be faulty, not just the ones built at the Chicago assembly plant from May 17, 2010 to February 28, 2012. (the identified units of the recall)

- Spokane, WA, USA

problem #8

May 022017

Explorer

  • 71,000 miles
Began experiencing some light binding in steering while driving highway speed. Exercised the steering back a forth a little. Advancetrac stability control was turned off by the vehicle control system and steering service warning appeared on the dash. Vehicle became difficult to steer. Vehicles from my model year were recalled for steering gear failure (14S06), but my vehicle was manufactured after the relevant date. Ford is making me pay for the repair (new steering rack) for $1520 (parts and labor).

- New Bern, NC, USA

problem #7

Jan 202017

Explorer

  • 24,375 miles
While driving down a city street my vehicle lurched and the terrain management system fault light and orange wrench light came on. It wouldn't accelerate and I lost my power steering. I was able to coast to side of the road. I shut it off and waiter for about a minute then restarted it. It idled rough for a few seconds then smoothed out and I was able to make it home.

- Milton, FL, USA

problem #6

Nov 112015

Explorer

  • 47,435 miles
I was backing up from parking spot in a city garage and when I place the car in drive my power assisted steering (epas) failed. I got the power steering fault error, advancetrac error and terrain management error. The car was too difficult to manually steer actually nearly impossible. It took almost 1 hour and 2 grown big men to manually steer it out of the garage so that it could be put onto a flat bed tow truck. Ford claims that my VIN# number is not part of the recall (14S06) for this issue. The dealership that I had it towed to has quoted me around $2,000 to replace the steering rack. This is definitely a safety hazard and Ford need to takes responsibility and correct this issue.

- Richboro, PA, USA

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