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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 5
Injuries / Deaths:
11 / 0
Average Mileage:
2,435 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.

2020 Ford Explorer miscellaneous problems

miscellaneous problem

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2020 Ford Explorer Owner Comments (Page 1 of 5)

problem #90

Feb 162024

Explorer

  • miles

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

I have a 2020 Ford Explorer that has had intermittent issues with the passenger side losing heat since aprox 11/18/2023. On Friday 2/16 we had snow begin falling at 7AM locally. I park in the GARAGE. 1/2 way to work, on a major highway, my passenger side began fogging up. The heat was all the way up and there was no way for me to aim my driver-side vents to the other side of the car. After 4-5 minutes, my passenger side was completely fogged up and 1/4-1/3 of the windshield was also completely fogged up. In the 15 minute drive, I could not see anything on the right side of my vehicle and almost missed my exit, hitting a curb and scraping my rim. This is a known issue as there are 2 bulletins out by the NHTSA for my SPECIFIC make, model and years.

- Decatur, IL, USA

problem #89

Sep 022021

Explorer

  • miles
The back hatch has opened 4 times with no warning. The vehicle was in motion. First Time September 2021: I was backing out of my garage, the hatch came open and hit my garage door, it bent the hatch and it was repaired by RT Auto Centerville Iowa and garage door had to be replaced. Second time November 2021: I was backing out of my driveway and it came open with no warning, no damage. Third Time October 2022 I was backing out of my garage, the hatch came open and hit my garage door again, no warning, Repaired by Copeland Repair Center Oskaloosa Iowa Fourth Time February 2023: I was backing out of my garage, the Hatch opened with no warning & hit my garage door, the hatch, and camera were completely replaced and the vehicle had to be painted by Copeland Repair Center Oskaloosa Iowa. Prior to the fourth incident, I contacted FORD Motor company and was advised there was no recall or complaints on this issue and was told to go to the FORD Dealership. I went to the Ford dealer and was advised to take the problem to the repair shop, it was not FORD's issue that they had check it and found nothing wrong. Since the camera and hatch have been totally replaced, this has not happened. I am worried to have passengers in the back row seats due to this issue, for fear it will come open and someone will get injured. I purchased this vehicle new in May of 2020 from Junge Motors, North Liberty, Iowa. [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] I only have one of the 3 Estimates. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6

- Exline, IA, USA

problem #88

Nov 182023

Explorer

  • miles
The chrome trim on the 2020 Ford Explorer inside door handle and window switches is separating/peeling off and is very sharp. My neice sliced her finger and was bleeding from the inside passanger door handle chrome that is peeling/separating from the handle when opening the door to exit the vehicle. I have cut my finger on the chrome tipped window switches.

- Carson City, NV, USA

problem #87

Jan 292024

Explorer

  • miles

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

Issues with the rear liftgate opening and closing on its own it will close open and partially close partially open at random in the middle of the night at random it keeps going till it kills my battery It closes when your underneath and causes a safety concern if you were not aware and get out of the way quick enough. Took it to dealership it needs a wiring harness due to corrosion and a switch. I see other people reporting the same with water leaks causing corrosion.

- Southwold, MT, USA

problem #86

Nov 012023

Explorer

  • miles
Failure of panoramic moon roof gasket, and in adequate drainage system installation. This causes substantial water intrusion into vehicle. Flooding of drivers side floor causes extremely slippery and wet conditions when operating the pedals. Water migration into vehicle has potential to impact electronics, causing further damage and dangerous driving conditions. Vehicle has been inspected and problem confirmed by the dealership, who contracted a water leak specialist to identify the issue. No warnings prior to appearance. Issues has been ongoing for the past 3 months - 1,000 miles and 4 months after the end of bumper to bumper warranty.

- Crofton, MD, USA

problem #85

Oct 012023

Explorer

  • miles
During the past 4 months or so, I have noticed burning sensation in my eyes and tightness in my throat and lungs whenever I get into the vehicle even when the ignition is not even turned on yet. Recently, it got to the point that I am experiencing headaches while driving. I don't feel these sensations when driving my old 2016 Honda Civic or being inside any other car. Last December 2023, I brought and left the vehicle for a week to Future Ford of Clovis dealership in Clovis, CA for diagnostic tests. They did not find anything wrong and no report was made since they did not find anything that might have caused any issues. As of this writing, the problem persists and I do not feel safe anymore being inside this 3-year-old vehicle, let alone drive it.

- Fresno, CA, USA

problem #84

Nov 172023

Explorer

  • miles

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

The front driver's and passenger side wheel well liner is hanging down on my tires. They constantly rub against tires and on driver side it has created a hole in liner. I feel they will eventually detach from wheel well and damage my vehicle or possibly someone else's vehicle. I am afraid it could also fall off in traffic and cause an accident. When I turn my steering wheel the scrubs on liner as well.

- Roanoke, AL, USA

problem #83

Aug 012023

Explorer

  • miles
The adhesive to the sunroof headliner has failed causing the headliner to sag. The sunroof is almost the size of the entire top of my vehicle, which concerns me because I have two young children in the back and if this falls down on them while I-??m driving or even on myself while I-??m driving this would be dangerous. This issue is not specific to me. At my dealership there are actually a couple of escapes and explorers going through the same thing. The cost to repair is 6 hours of labor so about $1200. I don-??t believe the consumer should pay when this poses a safety risk and also seems like a manufacturing defect. Another thing is that my sunroof will still open but it crunched up the headliner, and if i don-??t stop it from opening in time then my sunroof will jam and I will have an open top.

- Abilene, TX, USA

problem #82

Jan 312023

Explorer

  • miles
January of 2023, 30,000 miles took the car in for oil change and for a complaint of exhaust noise and smell coming from just behind the engine. Dealer checked and stated they found no issues. December of 2023 43,000 miles on a cold day noticed exhaust vapors coming from under the car in the area of the noise. Found the pipes, NMZ-5G203-A and dash -B to be broken at the expandable joints. This corresponds to both my wife and I experiencing head aches/excessive sleepiness while driving long distances. Made an appointment for January 04, 2024 at Tom Peck Ford Clinton WI. The pipes were found defective and replaced at a cost of~$600. Given the left side had a recall on the police version 3.0L, why was a recall not made for the passenger models with the same engine? Have noted the issue reported on the NHTSA sight often. Recall 21E11. Ford also issued a CSP TSB 21B35 which referenced the Police and ST models with the 3.0L engine, but the parts are the same for the Platinum version. Also noted the -B part as now been updated to a dash -C. It is clear from the reports on the NHTSA and various Explorer forums the flexible connection is a failure point that could lead to an accident or death. The is a far more serious issue than the chrome pieces on the window up and down buttons causing some cut fingers. I cannot download the documents or pictures.

- Roscoe, IL, USA

problem #81

Apr 282023

Explorer

  • miles
How does a canadian vehicles imported april 24th allowed to be titled april 28th when it was bond released in Sept "?"

- Saratoga Springs, NY, USA

problem #80

Apr 012023

Explorer

  • miles

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

Overwhelming amount of exhaust gases blowing in through ventilation system. One vehicle is in motion very little, but when stopped and extreme amount of exhaust gases, enter through the vent system. Creating burning, sore throat, at certain times nauseating it-??s actually unbearable. Reported it to the dealership they had mentioned it was oil on the exhaust pipe from the transfer case? Transfer case was repaired. Sorry to say I know the difference between burning oil and exhaust gases.. All passengers also as witnesses will agree. On long trips it will create headaches. Even if the exhaust system has a leak, it should not come up through the ventilation system. It-??s actually really bad. I noticed there were recalls on older vehicles even related in accidents in police cruisers. I was never issued a recall for the situation yet I have the same situation that have been complained about and documented.

- Manasquan, NJ, USA

problem #79

Oct 162023

Explorer

  • miles
Our 3rd car (used by our daughter) has started to smell like mold. I then noticed the back seat behind the driver side was wet. All windows were up and fully closed - never left open. I soaked up the water. Days later the water returned. I did some research online and found this is a recurring issues were weld joints breakdown and then leak. In that same forum the post referenced water built up where the spare tire is keep. I just opened up the spare tire area and noticed 3" of water and the mechanism for holding down the tire is rusty, suggesting the water has been there for sometime. As reference, here is the forum I mentioned above: https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/Discussion-t51317_ds819498

- Mansfield, MA, USA

problem #78

Oct 022023

Explorer

  • miles
the pre collision assist came on 10/09/2022 then On 10/02/2023 the pre collision assist warning light flashed 3 times on dash then went out drove to work when i started the car again the hill assist light came on abs light came on collision warning light came on4wheel drive light came on and little wrench light came on i could not change drive modes while driving the vehicle home the reduced power light came on and the vehicle ran slower got the vehicle home did feel safe driving it with system telling me failures and everything not working and called ford dealership asked if it was ok to drive with everything going on was told it was ok to drive was told i had to wait 3 weeks I called another ford dealership was told not to drive it and it had to be towed because it was unsafe and undriveable to dealership where it is being repaired for safety issues

- Orange , MA, USA

problem #77

Sep 182023

Explorer

  • miles
Complete loss of audio when using navigation system. All audio from built-in sound sound system is not available, which occurs intermittently and lasts for up to 3 days or more.

- Landing, NJ, USA

problem #76

Jul 262023

Explorer

  • miles
Back up camera stays on after selecting Drive and moving forward, it will either stay on showing what-??s happening behind me or will stay on for 20-40 seconds than go to a blue screen or blue than black screen and stay in that screen. While this is happening I have no control over the display, sound, radio or heat. There has been time the back up camera has stayed on while in park. I have several pictures and videos of these incidents. In the incidents I was able to reboot my display it would be unresponsive and not update time these issues only happened when the back up camera would not properly shut off

- Augusta , ME, USA

problem #75

Nov 072022

Explorer

  • miles
The exhaust started making excessive noise about 07/15/2023. I had around 42,000 miles on the vehicle when the noise started. That means it was about 2 months and 6,000 miles out of warranty. Ford has a recall on the exhaust system (recall 21E11) for -??thermal mechanical fatigue-?? of the welds on the left-hand side of the exhaust system. This is an emissions systems recall. I took the vehicle to my dealer, Serra Ford, Farmington Hills, MI on 07/19/2023. They did a repair per the recall but the excessive noise continued after I picked the vehicle up. I subsequently took my vehicle to a Midas muffler shop on 07/31/2023. They inspected my exhaust and found that the system was still leaking at the area where the exhaust system has been recalled and repaired and in addition the exhaust was completely broken and separated (weld failure) at the area at the right-hand muffler/tail pipe connection. Both problems are obviously the same type of failure. I have an inspection report and photos of the failed exhaust system from Midas. I took the vehicle back to the dealer. My repair invoice shows their diagnosis -??found weld after exhaust on passenger side failed-??. This is the right-hand side of the exhaust system. They determined that I needed a complete new exhaust system. I have my dealer repair invoice and photos of the failed exhaust system taken by Serra Ford. Ford has declined to repair and replace the exhaust system as part of my new car warranty or pursuant to the recall. I have obtained documentation relating to the above mentioned recall and to a -??Customer Satisfaction Program 21B35-?? sent to all Ford dealers on November 7, 2022 showing that Ford knew on November 7, 2022 or earlier that it had problems with both the left-hand side and right-hand side exhaust system on vehicles like mine. This was well before my new car warranty expired.

- Novi, MI, USA

problem #74

Sep 112023

Explorer

  • miles
When the car is placed into reverse, it automatically starts launching back with foot on the brake. To stop the car from continuing to reverse, we must pump the brake 2-3 times to take control of the car and in order for it to stop launching back, the car must be put into park and then turned off. This is extremely unsafe and has put our children at risk and is a concern when parking in populated areas. The problem is sporadic (often occurs 1-6 times per month since 2021) therefore, it is never known when it will launch back however, this has occurred on both flat and incline surfaces. The problem has been inspected from a Field Service Engineer who noted that it occurred in their procession and stated it was "normal operating conditions" but then stated they would continue to monitor the issue which is contradictory of the "normal status". This is not normal operating conditions when you have no control over the reversing mechanism.

- Renton, WA, USA

problem #73

Jan 012023

Explorer

  • miles
I purchased my 2020 Ford Explorer ST in 2020. Since then, I've had several warranty issues and recalls. Presently, this "blue screen" issue when the car is placed into reverse cannot be resolved by Ford who offers no solutions other than platitudes. This is a significant safety issue with the vehicle as the exterior camera assist does not work ("blue screen") and beeps intermittently when the vehicle is in reverse, which is a distraction. I cannot comprehend how/why a vehicle has had so many issues and believe action should be taken against Ford to remedy these problems.

- Holland, OH, USA

problem #72

Jun 152023

Explorer

  • miles
Good Afternoon, the problem that I have encountered for is is that the rear camera does not work all the time a blue screen appears and I am not able to see what is behind me and that can cause me to have an accident. I do not feel safe

- Hiram , GA, USA

problem #71

Aug 122023

Explorer

  • miles
Backup and 360 camera have not worked since shortly after purchasing this vehicle in Aug 2020. They state issue is intermittent. It is not, it is constant. It rarely works. This has not been fixed since original recall in Sept 2020. They continue to update the recall which seems to be an attempt to hide the true length of time this recall has been outstanding and unresolved which is 3 years. I have young children and no reliable backup camera increases the risk of accidental injury due to backing into a child. It increases risk of accident due to being unable to see surroundings. I have attempted to resolve the matter with the dealership and the manufacturer. I am never given a response other than a canned answer that there is no fix at this time. I have owned the vehicle for 3 years. It is unacceptable to have this be unresolved with no action or accountability from Ford. I hope to see this situation escalated and the issue thoroughly reviewed to include how Ford has handled this. They have repeatedly ignored customers requests for assistance and resolution. They've deleted comments on social media pointing out the continued issue and lack of assistance from Ford in an attempt to keep selling vehicles with these issues they can't seem to fix. I firmly believe the "reasonable" timeline to repair a safety recall has been beyond exhausted. If they can't fix it, they need to find an alternative for the impacted customers. In learning they knew of the issue in May 2020 and I was allowed to purchase in Aug 2020 with this defect, I feel as though they were not following the 2018 law requiring backup cameras in new vehicles. There are significant concerns with the integrity of this company and their lack of concern for maintaining vehicle safety.

- Cache, OK, USA

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