2008 Ford Explorer

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 FORD EXPLORER. AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT, WHETHER THE VEHICLE WAS IDLING OR MOVING, THE SERVICE ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND THE VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER. THE CONTACT WOULD HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THE VEHICLE'S COMPUTER SYSTEM REBUILT ITSELF IN ORDER FOR THE POWER TO RETURN SO THE VEHICLE COULD BE FUNCTIONAL. THE CONTACT'S HUSBAND, A CERTIFIED MECHANIC, REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION AND RECONFIGURED THE WIRING ON THE VEHICLE, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. A CERTIFIED MECHANIC DIAGNOSED THAT THE VEHICLE'S PCM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 156,000.

WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE STREET MY SUV COMPLETELY SHUT OFF, STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP AND I COULDN'T STEER IT AND THE BRAKES LOCKED UP. THE SUV STOPPED DEAD IN IT'S TRACKS. I DRIVE 95% ON THE HIGHWAY AND HAD THIS HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY I WOULDN'T BE HERE TODAY TO WRITE THIS. TOOK IT TO A REPAIR FACILITY AND HAD TO PAY $1200 TO REPLACE THE PCM ( POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE) OR THE BRAIN TO MY SUV. THIS IS WHAT TELLS THE TRUCK TO RUN BASICALLY. TERRIFIED ME TO THINK I COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED.

VEHICLE LURCHES IN AND OUT OF GEAR. VEHICLE LURCHES INTO REVERSE FROM PARK, AND IS DELAYED FROM PARK TO DRIVE. VEHICLE FEELS LIKE IT HAS BEEN BUMPED HARD FROM BEHIND AS IT IS DOWNSHIFTING. IN SNOW ESPECIALLY, THIS CAN CAUSE A SIGNIFICANT SDAFETY HAZRD AND RISK OF ACCIDENT. THESE EVENTS OCCUR WHEN VEHICLE IS STAIONARY, AND WHILE IN MOTION THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT DELAY IN TRANSMISSION ENGAGEMENT, WHICH CAN CAUSE A COLLISON. DEFINITE HAZARD WHEN PULLING OUT IN TRAFFIC, WHEN IT DOES NOT RESPOND NORMALLY. THE FIX FOR MOST UNITS IS EXPENSIVE, REQUIRING REPLACEMENT OF VALVE BODY IN THE TRANSMISSION. MY PARTICULAR VEHICLE WAS 5 YEARS OLD AND HAD 63000 MILES ON IT WHEN THE PROBLEM OCCURRED. FORD REFUSED TO ASSIST WITH THIS REPAIR.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 FORD EXPLORER. WHILE DRIVING AT 35 MPH, THE VEHICLE JERKED VIOLENTLY WHEN SHIFTED INTO GEAR AND DECELERATED WHEN SHIFTED INTO DRIVE. THE ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE FAILURE RECURRED NUMEROUS TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE SHIFT SOLENOID NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED TWO MONTHS LATER. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,000.

TRANSMISSION STARTING SHIFTING HARD GOING INTO 2ND AND 3RD. I'VE TALKED TO A NUMBER OF FORD EXPLORER OWNERS . THEY ALL HAVE EXPERIENCED SIMILAR PROBLEMS. TRANSMISSION HAVE BEEN REPLACED . ALL OUT OF WARRANTY. GOOGLED FORD TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS AND SEEMS LIKE FORD DOESN'T WANT TO RECOGNIZED THAT THEIR 5 SPEED TRANSMISSIONS HAVE A PROBLEM. *TR

UPON DRIVING DURING THE MONTH OF MAY AND JUNE, I WOULD NOTICE A BURNING SMELL FROM THE ENGINE AND THE DASHBOARD WOULD DEMONSTRATE ELEVATED ENGINE TEMP, EACH TIME I WOULD CHECKED UNDER THE HOOD AND I NOTICED THAT MY COOLANT RESERVOIR WOULD BE EMPTY. AFTER SEVERAL WEEKS OF THIS, I TOOK IT IN TO FIRESTONE AND I HAD TO GET THE RADIATOR HOUSING, THERMOSTAT AND HOSES REPLACE BECAUSE OF A BAD LEAK. NOW AS OF SEPTEMBER, I STARTED NOTICING THAT SMELL AGAIN AND NOTICED MY COOLANT RESERVOIR WAS EITHER LOW OR EMPTY AGAIN, I HAD TO REFILLED IT SEVERAL TIMES SINCE THE JUNE 2014 REPAIR, NOW AFTER ANOTHER VEHICLE CHECK BY FIRESTONE IS WAS NOTED THAT I NEED TO HAVE MY RADIATOR REPLACE BECAUSE I HAVE A LEAK FROM THE RADIATOR NOW. I CURRENTLY HAVE ABOUT 87000 MILES ON MY VEHICLE, THIS TOO SOON TO BE REPLACING A RADIATOR. FOR SEVERAL MONTHS NOW ALSO WHENEVER I SHIFT FROM PARK TO DRIVE OR REVERSE TO DRIVE, IT IS HARD TO MOVE THE GEAR SHIFT, WHEN THE GEAR SHIFT IS FINALLY MOVED IT THE TRICK GIVES A PULL FORCE AND THEN MY TRANSMISSION SOUNDS LIKE IT IS IN OVERDRIVE OR ON 3, IT TAKES UP TO 25 MINUTES FOR THE TRANSMISSION TO CLICK OR SHIFT OVER. *TR

I WAS DRIVING MY EXPLORER DOWN THE ROAD WHEN ONCE AGAIN THE ENGINE SHUT DOWN. LEAVING ME WITH OUT POWER STEERING OR POWER BRAKES. THIS IS MY 2ND TIME REPORTING THIS TO NHTSA. THIS PROBLEM OF SHUTTING DOWN WHILE DRIVING HAS HAPPENED TO ME MANY TIMES BEFORE MOSTLY ON BUSY HIGHWAYS. I HAVE HAD THE EXPLORER TO THE DEALER 3 TIMES THE FIRST 2 TIMES THEY SAID THE CAN NOT FIND THE PROBLEM. ON THE THIRD TIME I ASKED TO SPEAK WITH THE SERVICE MANAGER, AND HE FINALLY ADMITTED THAT IT IS THE POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE. HE ALSO SAID THAT MY EXPLORER IS NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH THIS PROBLEM, AND THAT THE PART IS IN SUCH HI DEMAND THAT THE ARE BACKORDER FOR MONTHS. I ASKED IF FORD WAS PLANNING A RECALL AND HIS ANSWER WAS "NO THE PART IS VERY PRICEY AND NO ONE HAS BEEN KILLED YET" NHTSA PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER, SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE BEFORE SOMEONE IS INJURED OR KILLED BY THIS PROBLEM THAT FORD KNOWS ABOUT, BUT WILL NOT DO ANYTHING TO FIX IT. *TR