— Ford Explorer rear axle bolt recalls and other actions have caused safety regulators to close an investigation into rear axle bolt failures.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened the 2023 investigation after receiving complaints alleging 2020-2022 Ford Explorers lost power and torque to the rear wheels.
The complaints were filed after the vehicles had been recalled for rear axle bolt fractures.
One Ford Explorer rear axle bolt recall was announced in April 2022 for these SUVs:
- 2020-2021 Ford Explorer Police Hybrid Electric
- 2020-2021 Ford Explorer Police 3.3L
- 2020-2022 Ford Explorer 2.3L RWD
- 2020-2022 Ford Explorer Plug-in Hybrid Electric 3.0L
- 2020-2022 Ford Explorer Hybrid Electric 3.0L
- 2020-2022 Ford Explorer ST3 3L
The Explorer rear axle bolt recall was issued because the bolt could break and cause the driveshaft/half shaft to disconnect. This resulted in a loss of transmission torque to the rear wheels necessary to hold the transmission in PARK.
An Explorer was at risk of rolling away if the parking brake wasn't engaged.
Ford dealers were told to replace the bushing and axle cover, and technicians were to provide a software update to the powertrain control module.
Another Ford Explorer rear axle bolt recall was announced in May 2023 for Explorers that didn't receive an update to automatically engage the electronic parking brake when the vehicle is shifted into PARK.
Then a third Ford Explorer rear axle bolt recall was ordered in October 2023 for vehicles equipped with 3-point mounted axle designs.
"Ford stated that the cause of the bolt fracture is due to joint design not robust to peak axle input torques and manufacturing variability. The primary contributor is insufficient bearings for maximum joint loads. This can result in bearing deformation, increasing bending stress on the bolt, which may lead to fatigue failure." — NHTSA
In addition to the recalls, Ford will conduct a customer satisfaction program for 2020-2022 Explorer vehicles with the following powertrains: 2.3L AWD, 3.3L Gas Retail, 3.0L Gas AWD Platinum and King Ranch, produced from October 22, 2018, to July 6, 2022.
NHTSA has closed its Ford Explorer rear axle bolt investigation for now, but the investigation could be reopened if the situation changes.
