2016 Ford Explorer Complaint Log

Vehicle power stalled on acceleration after pulling onto lane of travel. Road traffic heavy in both directions. Vehicle would not shift beyond initial gear of automatic transmission. Available travel speed of 40-45 mph only. Wrench light/powertrain light came on. No prior warning lights. No prior operational issues detected. After stopping vehicle, would not operate in reverse. Warning light indicator and manual reported to get to dealer asap. Dealer indicated transmission issue. Transmission was replaced. Vehicle had 56,418 miles (within 60,000 warranty) but beyond 5 year warranty.

My vehicle have been leaking coolant which causes the engine to overheat. I had the same issue in 2020 and had it repaired, which cost a lot of money to repair. I have not driven the vehicle as much since the last leak. Now 2 years later, it's the same issue. I don't have money like that to continuously repair a defect Ford has on it vehicles. Now I'm afraid to even drive my vehicle not knowing what might happen.

Driving at 20mph, going through a moderate turn and lost Power Steering. No warning lights, no noise, just total loss of Steering and I felt as if I couldn't overpower the steering until 2 seconds later I regained power steering. The same problem occurred at 10mph while coming to a stop. Once again I did not have the ability to overpower the wheel and straighten it when I tried. Luckily once again power came back and I was able to control without issue. Several complaints on the same issue and NO RECALL has been issued by Ford. If the same issue occurs at highway speed I don't know what I'll do. Ford had a Service Bulletin out for 2013-2016 Explorers that stated they would simply reprogram the module. They did not extend the coverage beyond 2018 nor did they actually replace a faulty steering rack with the coverage. This is a severe safety concern and one that should have a recall out as it puts the driver and all other motorists at risk. If you can't steer your car, then everyone is at risk.

On October 17, 2021 the steering system on my 2016 explorer completely shutdown. The ABS, Hill Assist and Service Advance Trac lights all went on. The steering wheel would not turn either way. Luckily, this incident occurred in a parking lot and no injury or damage happened. I had AAA tow the car to Porter Ford, Newark DE.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact’s wife stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the steering assist and traction control warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with needing rack and pinion to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 84,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the driver's side front window detached. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the thread was replaced; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the contact noticed that the engine coolant temperature warning light was illuminated, and the vehicle started to shudder. The contact pulled the vehicle over to the side of the road and waited a few minutes before restarting the vehicle and continuing driving however, the failure persisted. The contact took the vehicle to a local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the water pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but consumer feels it should of under a recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 77,000.

Complete loss of basic steering of the car while under operation.

Beginning of day; felt like I was in a major windstorm & in a constant battle with the car steering. Middle of day: Power Steering Fault light came on and feeling like I was in a major windstorm & in a constant battle with the car steering GETTING WORSE. End of the day: Then Power Steering Failure "Pull over Safely" came on.. I didn't just lose power steering. I lost TOTAL STEERING capability at 57,400 miles... Car is at dealership now. Had my 90yr old mother been driving there would have been an accident. This is gonna get someone killed. I had just dropped off my Grandson before I lost total control.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his son was driving 40 MPH, the power steering failed, and the steering wheel was stiff and difficult to steer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed with steering rack failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 123,000.

When I turn right there is a popping noise. Sometimes the steering wheel gets stuck and I have to pull it hard to go back straight. It’s very scary, especially going around a curve.

2016 Ford Explorer 3.5 Liter (non-turbo) front wheel drive, 52k miles. We noticed coolant puddling on the ground and took the car in to the dealer for an inspection. The dealer pressure tested the cooling system and confirmed the internal water pump is failing. This issue could lead to engine overheating and engine shutdown at any given time, causing unknown safety issues. Dealer quoted $3,400 to repair.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the windshield plastic trim piece detached from vehicle. There were no reported injuries. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and the contact was informed that the plastic trim piece needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. While driving the other plastic trim piece detached. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was approximately 153,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V537000 (Suspension) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

Observed white smoke from exhaust, Took vehicle to for dealership, dealership said coolant was leaking into cylinder head and cylinder head was cracked. Car is 6 months and 1000 miles out of Ford Powertrain warranty. Ford TSB advisors I need a new engine. Looked at vehicle history report and discovered numerous other mechanical issues with the engine including a transmission replacement and turbo replacement all under 50 k miles on vehicle.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the rubber from the windshield was flapping and making noises, almost causing a collision. The contact inspected the windshield and saw that the front passenger’s and driver’s side rubber on the windshield had deteriorated. The contact glued the rubber to the windshield to repair the failure. The dealer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there was no recall related to the failure and the contact had to pay for the same part already installed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to file a complaint with NHTSA. The failure mileage was approximately 26,000.

When driving made horrible noises but took into the dealer Purvis Ford, we showed them the recall letter but then stated it was only the control arms which we ended up paying for .

Component - passenger side rook rack rail cover. Safety of others - part flew off as I was driving vehicle between 55-60 mph. Not sure if it hit any other vehicles. Have not taken vehicle to dealer or other service center. Vehicle has not been inspected by any third party. The only symptom prior to the problem, was loud noises heard while driving. Waited until I could find an exit ramp to inspect the vehicle, but did not find anything. It was only after I arrived at my destination that I noticed the cover had fallen off. No warning lamps, messages, or indicators of any other kind were displayed to me.

Passenger side piller trim detachment this has been an issue on the 2013 thru 2015 models and was issued a recall. Same thing is happening on the 2016 model. Drivers side is also loose. Many 2016 models are having this same problem

The driver seat advanced forward after hitting the preset button but did not stop. I was crushed between the steering wheel and the dash. There was only 3 inches between the seat and the dash for my knees. This is a major safety issue that caused bodily injury. It happened twice. I have video showing this issue but can’t seem to upload it to this site.

Plastic drivers seat mounting components have failed causing drivers seat to rock back & forth. Concerned that remainder of seat mounting system will fail and I will go through the windshield during a hard brake stop or cause me to swerve and hit or kill someone else.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle without warning. The contact then took the vehicle to an independent mechanic where they informed her that the electrical rack and pinion needed to be replaced, followed by an alignment. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed her that the vehicle was not under recall or warranty. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 48,000.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that previously the air bag warning light was illuminated however, the warning light disappeared independently. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where the diagnostic trouble code: B141B was retrieved. The contact was informed that the connector for the second-row seats needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to NHTSA. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.

The front pillar cover has blown off my 2016 Explorer 3 times in the 4 years I’ve owned the vehicle. Two of the 3 times this occurred, I was traveling in heavy traffic on a limited access highway causing a hazard for the other drivers. I don’t know where the piece landed or if it hit other vehicles. I have complained about the flawed design to Ford, calling their Customer Service number and the tech told me he didn’t see any other complaints related to this from other Ford Explorer owners. What will it take for Ford to fix this design flaw to prevent repeat occurrences? Or at least acknowledge it in their database? The only risk to me is the distraction caused by the sudden noise which drew my attention from the road while I triaged the cause. I hope no motorcycle or convertibles were hit by the debris. I wouldn’t replace the trim but now the windshield is probably impacted. The windshield gasket is exposed and flapped in the wind for the entire trip home after this last time. It was like riding in a helicopter without ear protection.

Extreme sulphur/rotten egg smell coming into the cabin. It also reeks of exhaust fumes that are making me nauseous and light headed. This comes out of the A/C and you can smell it when you exit the vehicle too.

Power Steering Assist Failure indicator appeared on dashboard resulting in inability to steer car. Vehicle was towed to dealership and reprogramming was attempted with no success. Requires replacement of EPS steering.

At approximately 102,000 miles, vehicle started making loud grinding noise when turning the steering wheel in either direction, very noticeable both inside and outside the vehicle, both when stopped and when driving. The steering wheel sticks in certain positions while driving, requiring extra force to maintain the vehicle's direction. Issue is worse at highway speeds, creating a dangerous condition that was getting progressively worse. Made it to a Ford dealership who indicated that a new rack and pinion assembly is required at $2,900. They also recommended not driving the vehicle in that the condition was unsafe.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the 2nd row seating air bag warning light was illuminated. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 39,000.

I have had to replaced two separate times my windshield trim pieces that cover the hardware on windshield. Every time I have lost them it has occurred on the highway where I was going a speed of 65-70mph. When I have had a professional reinstall new parts it has cost me almost $350.00 The parts are coming directly from ford nothing aftermarket and they are being reinstalled by a professional. I should not have keep paying for the same parts. All due to the fact they don’t stay adhered to the vehicle properly and they’re the parts coming directly from Ford manufacturer. I know no accidents have been reported but we shouldn’t wait until one happens either. Ford needs to correct this issue and stop costing the consumer so much to replace and deal with same problem.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 MPH, the power steering and power steering assist failed. The contact was able to drive the vehicle home, however, the steering was manual making it more difficult to maneuver the vehicle. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

Was driving on I-40 at approximately 75mph and vehicle lost all acceleration, wrench icon came on in dash. Pressed. Gas pedal to the floor, no acceleration. Had to pull over on side of road. Pulled over vehicle stared shaken. Cut off vehicle for about 1min. Tried to retest vehicle, vehicle did not want to restart/crank. Tried again vehicle stared up. Vehicle power is not the same. Thank God I was on the right side of the highway instead of the middle so I could get off the road. This could have been worse.

The tie rod on my 2016 Ford Explorer BROKE. Luckily my husband was just backing it out of our garage He heard a loud noise sounding like he had run over something metal and the car would not move. He got out to take a look and the right front wheel was turned completely sideways The dealership told us to bring it in. We had to hire a flat bed truck to get it there.so that was at our expense.When the flat bed truck driver came from another repair shop to help us, he immediately said "Oh,you have a broken tie rod huh?" We did not know. He said there is a rubber boot around the tie rods and our tie rod broke.My husband told the garage dealership this.They said they had never heard of that. BUT in taking it apart they discovered that was the case. We were without a car for 3 weeks as they had troubles locating a part. I wanted both sides fixed but they only fixed the one. They did give me the old part. It is a rusty, horrible looking piece of crap. It looks like it is 100 years old. It absolutely BROKE. Here is my concern. What if my husband and I and our friends would have been in the car driving 65 down the highway? I know what would have happened. There would have been deaths and severe injuries.THANK GOD it happened in our drive at home. We had no warning.Had there been an accident the report would have been "the driver and his passengers were killed after the driver lost control of the car". Never probably would have found this MAJOR LIFE THREATENING flaw in the car. How many accidents have there been with that conclusion. Did the driver really lost control or was there a major safety issue? I am scared to death to get in this car and go anywhere,Now we get a recall notice regarding possibility of a rear toe link fracture. REALLY? AND PARTS ARE UNAVAILABLE ACCORDING TO THE LETTER? Are we to park the car and wait for the parts to become available? we need a car to drive. Ford needs to replace or reimburse for these damaged vehicles. I feel very, very unsafe.

Lost steering all at once could not turn wheel luckily i was in my drive way when it happened i paid yes ford 1600.00 dollars for a new rack and pinion on 8-13-21 was given a release date on part for 8-24-21 then 8-25-21 and now 9-3-21 this is an emergency order thru ford they was quick to take my money but cant deliver part.I have turned in a complaint to ford and it has not helped no calls back from ford. Looks like this is a huge problem ford has with its explorer rack and pinion failure I guess there waiting on somebody to get killed with faulty racks before they do anything. My explorer has 65000 miles on it and it looks like this is a common failure for this vehicle.

On my 2016 Ford Explorer, the A Pillars on both the passenger and driver's side completely detached from the car while driving and flew back into the road while driving on the highway. The A pillars that detached could have easily hit another car/person and caused serious damage. My local Ford dealership inspected the car and pillars and confirmed this as a common failure. They have informed me that there is now a new version of this part because of this common failure. However, the part is currently back ordered and cannot be repaired on any timeline. They are currently duct taped onto the car to protect the car from any further damage. I believe since Ford acknowledged the failure and there was a need to create a new system/part, then this should be a recall of the current parts. There were no warnings or previous issues with the A pillar trim pieces before they just came completely detached, both within an hour of one another. A quick google search can find that this is a very common failure with many Ford explorers. I hope Ford would do the right thing and recall this part.

Rear a/c lines and evaporator damaged due to corrosion from elements. Was told it would cost $2000+ and not covered under warrenty or extended warranty. This is odd because Ford knows its a problem and has issued other recalls for the same reason in the same location (rear) just to different parts.

Vehicle started to feel heavy, and vibrate harder through the gas pedal and steering wheel. I took it to my local auto shop and the wheel bearing needs replaced.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an unknown speed, she started to smell exhaust fumes and the vehicle started to hesitate and became difficult to shift into other gears. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the power transfer unit to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and had the power transfer unit replaced. The contact also stated while driving at various speeds on 10/4/52021, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to drive to her destination. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the power steering to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired but was pending repairs. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 67,800.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 MPH, the side panel on the passenger’s side detached from the vehicle. On another occasion, the plastic front pillar section on the passenger’s side suddenly detached from the vehicle. The contact indicated that the failed body parts were attached to the vehicle by glue. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 47,000.

NY CAR OVERHEATED AND SPILLED ALL THE COOLANT DUE TO THE ENGINE BLOCK HEATERS IT HAS. I TOOK IT FOR AN INSPECTION AND THEY TOLD ME THESE ARE VERY DANGEROUS AND NEED TO BE CHANGED ASAP, I CALLED THE DEALER AND THEY TOLD ME MY CAR DOES NOT HAVE THIS RECALL AND THEY WANT TO CHARGE ME WHEN CLEARLY IT IS THE EXACT PROBLEM WITH RECALL # 16S14 FROM FORD. I NEED THIS FIXED ASAP AT NO CHARGE TO ME AS IT IS FORDS PROBLEM. I NEED MY CAR BACK TO GET TO WORK PLEASE

Over the last year or so, my 2016 Ford Explorer would suddenly out of nowhere say on the dashboard that there is a steering fault that needed to be serviced. The steering would be a little off but after turning the car on and off, it would reset and wouldn’t happen again for a week or two. I took it in to the dealership to get a recall fixed and had them take a look at my actual steering issue (with videos and pictures of the problem) but they could not replicate the problem as the dashboard would reset. Fast forward to last Thursday when the problem was more persistent than normal. A few times in the last couple months or so, my steering wheel would LOCK UP completely because the power steering would give out and a few times I was ON A FREEWAY. I had to manually hand crank a very very stiff steering wheel and pull over which was extremely dangerous. Once I would, I would turn the car on and off again which then it would reset. The dashboard warning about the steering fault would come on more often than the steering wheel locking up but the several times it did lock it, proved a very dangerous situation. It happened again this past week which I had to drive slowly to my local mechanic. Due to it being a power steering/programming issue, the recommended me going back to the dealership. At that point, my car would no longer reset the issue and I was unable to drive home that day because the power steering permanently gave out. Thank god I was at the mechanic already. Currently, I have the car towed to the dealership and they are working on the problem. Because my extended warranty ended 2k miles ago, I am supposed to pay $3800 out of pocket for this?? It should be a RECALL situation. Extremely dangerous. Forum related issue that I did research on and it seems to be a common problem!!! : https://www.carproblemzoo.com/ford/explorer/2016/steering-rack-and-pinion-problems.php Please help make Ford do a recall for this dangerous issue!!

The system that failed is the seat belt buckle on the 40 seat (of the 60/40 second row seating). The clip inside the seatbelt broke while securing my child in the seat. This faulty belt buckle put my child's safety at risk. We could not travel, delaying our trip on the day we were to leave. If an accident occurred, this could have resulted in serious injury to my child. The belt buckle was removed and taken to the closest Ford dealership. A new belt buckle was ordered, costing $115. The seatbelt buckle was removed and brought into Ford to examine. No concern was observed by the service parts employee as he glanced over broken buckle to ensure he ordered the correct part. No warnings or "symptoms" were present previously to the failed seatbelt buckle. A cheap piece of plastic to hold my child in a seatbelt buckle failed. The broken buckle is available for inspection. A new one is being installed.

Electronic steering assist seems to fail on rainy days. Starts like a sound grinding on the bottom like it needs lubrication. Afraid to drive this thing because of other owners comments regarding the steering assist causing accidents.

It appears Ford had a prior recall for certain model year 2011-2013 Ford Explorer vehicles manufactured May 17, 2010, through February 28, 2012 for a power steering failure. The recall was due to vehicles experiencing a loss of power steering assist and required extra steering effort at lower speeds, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash. I have a 2016 Ford Explorer and the issue appears to be occurring in later models like mine. I experienced it on July 21, 2021. I was driving on the freeway at 70mph and with no prior warning I my power steering goes out and I see the message "power steering module failure". Luckily I was able to fight the car to the shoulder, but I can only imagine what would have happened if my wife or daughter had been driving at the time. Ford needs to have a system failure alert added or better yet fix the issue from occurring, especially in a fairly new vehicle.

Vehicle displays airbag warning light. Dealership diagnostic test determined there is a faulty connection to the 2nd-row inflatable seatbelt sensor. Ford issued a service bulletin to replace the wire harness pigtail connection. When the airbag light is illuminated due to this faulty connection, all of the airbags in the vehicle are deactivated. Directly from site: Https://Ford.oemdtc.com/1203/air-bag-warning-light-illuminated-with-dtc-B141B-B141C-2014-2016-Ford-Explorer tsb 16-0001 airbag warning light illuminated with diagnostic trouble code (dtc) B141B and/or B141C. This is not normal wear and tear but a safety item design by Ford that has failed in the vehicle. Ford dealership claims that this is not warranty failure. Cost to repair $1085 plus $230 diagnostic test charge.

While driving around a corner at a speed of 45 miles an hour the power steering quit working. The message on the instrument panel stated steering fault. I no longer had power steering and it was very hard to pull the vehicle over. I shut off the motor and then restarted the vehicle and i now had power steering. It is currently at Varney Ford in Newport Maine having the whole steering assembly replaced at a cost of 2300.00. From my research I have found that the steering assembly is located near the catalytic converter which gets every every hot, and can damage the internal circuit board. This is a very scary safety concern! I do not have the invoice for the repair, as it is being worked on July 19th or July 20th

Using the FORD PASS ap, I have two recalls for my 2016 Ford Explorer Sport. Recall 21S22 for the roof rack trim detachment and 21N01 for high speed cooling fan motor relay. I use Miracle Ford in Gallatin, TN. They have made incident reports on two separate occasions for my car. First, they lost the report in July and then the manager, Robert, brought me back in for a second report. I keep getting text messages that my service is complete, but it hasn't been completed. They haven't called me to bring my car back in for repair and I get the run around every time I call. I've attempted to reach supervisor and Robert, the manager, with no success. I'm starting to get worried!

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact received a recall notification for NHTSA Campaign number: 21V316000 (Structure) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available.

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while yielding to merge onto the highway, the vehicle would not accelerate above 3 mph, with the accelerator pedal depressed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and diagnosed with transmission failure. The independent mechanic informed the contact that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the independent mechanic. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the Vin for the transmission. The failure mileage was 104,000.

Driving on express way going 70 mph and vehicle dash started lighting up and beeping with a bunch of different things and lost power steering. It said “power steering fault” was in construction and it was extremely scary. Thankfully there was a dealership on the exit and they said it was the power steering rack.

The Contact owns a 2016 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while attempting to turn the steering wheel, the steering wheel was firm. The power steering assist warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was not provided a cause for the failure but was informed that the steering wheel needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 62,000.