Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
My Ford Explorer 2007 has very low mileage (56,000 miles). Its engine started to shut off intermittently under all types of conditions, streets and highways. It was indeed very dangerous. Indeed my daughter, driving this car, had an accident on sept. 4, precisely because of the engine shut off. Fortunately it happened in a stop-and-go traffic which did not result in any injury. I hate to think of consequences of this happening in fast moving traffic. My research showed that this problem is very common for these autos, and it seems that it is not taken care of. After having my mechanics check every conceivable problem, I was referred to the Ford dealership. Their diagnosis determined the internal PCM failure to be the cause. It turned out that this part is believed to be defective because of its design, and a new one is developed which is on back order. …
OK where can I start besides that I've come to hate my truck I have spent thousands of dollars fixing it constantly first off light in the car go on and off while driving whenever you hit a bump than I get random little leaks all the time and had my transmission worked on a year ago because it was messed up and here it goes again I don't know what the [redacted] is wrong with it but sometimes I swear I just wanna throw the [redacted] car off a bridge every other day there's another problem not my ac has stopped working I was drinking home from the gym yesterday morning at a red light he car shut off locked my steering wheel locked my doors locked my brake started beeping on my dash wouldn't let me do anything that's dangerous it was a major road with the light just turning green I'm stuck can't even put it in neutral and roll it out of the intersection I turned it off and turned it off …
Passenger side exhaust manifold bolts have broken at 65K miles. After researching this seems to be a known problem Ford has avoided recalling. I easily found 25 plus cases of Explorer sporttrac owners with the 4.6 v8 reporting this exact problem. Ford charges over 3K to fix what seems to be a faulty design that happens on the majority of these vehicles.
(year 2011 to 2013 all this happened lemon) the wheel bearings went on the vehicle...had to have all three replaced...both front ...one drivers side back. It wasn't the tires because they were brand new.( $2.100 including labor) the mechanic stated that never should have happened. This seems to be an on going problem with Sport tracs ...I am to have the right rear passenger side done soon ...no one has over $700...to put towards a vehicle in this day and age with the economy the way it is. This Sport Trac has been with so many issues to do with wheels, transmission (one month in the repair shop, reverse and drive gone on the tranny( $6897.65), radiator (replaced 3x due to rupture of the, cooling and heating system $1017.), hoses breaking ($200)...no wonder they quit making them total pain in the keester and very hard on the pocket book. …
Issue feb 2018 - present I bought my 2nd- hand 2007 Ford Sport Trac in February 2018, from the original owner. We had experienced 2 cat-five hurricanes; power and internet was almost nonexistent, so I could not research the truck. On the second day after my purchase, while driving down a street at about 30 MPH, it stalled. I had very little breaks and no steering. When I tried to crank it, it would turn over but not fire. For the last two years, I have had no luck fixing the issue. Upon research, there are hundreds of blogs/ questions / attempts to repair from owners trying to fix the same issue. One blog said that it had been requested for Ford to do a recall, but Ford denied that there was an issue. It May drive great for 3 weeks and then when you are driving straight down a steep, curvy mountain in traffic, it turns off with no way to stop quickly or control the steering. …
Radiator is leaking coolant. Coolant leaks the from aluminum core, pools up at the bottom in the plastic and drips out from the bottom of the plastic on both the driver and passenger side. Talked to Ford about the issue and they said there was a TSB issued for this (which I realize does not extend the warranty) and that when the truck was made, the fan that cools the radiator was not programmed correctly. It wouldn't run when it necessarily needed to or for as long as it needed to which is causing the radiator to overheat and the aluminum to separate at the seam...thus causing a coolant leak and leading to the vehicle overheating. Unfortunately, the only fix was just to replace the radiator with an "updated" radiator and have the programming updated for the fan to function like it should have in the first place. …
Stopped to get fuel and truck would not start. Engine would turn over, but would not start. I had vehicle towed to the Ford dealership. Told by the Ford service manager that it was the fuel control module located by the rear spare tire and they have replaced many of them. The Ford dealership confirmed it and replaced the fuel control module. My cost $386.93. We had purchased a extended motor vehicle service agreement (national protection plan, inc.) from capital Ford in madison, wi. We were told when we purchased the policy it was a bumper to bumper and the company will not stand behind policy.
I had misfires on cylinder 7, tried to replace plugs had four break in manifold, found that speciality tool had to be bought to replace plugs that break, also found that Ford service was well aware of problems with plugs and they charge extra to remove and replace broken plugs. Ford engineered a faulty product and because the ntsb has not slapped their hands they will not make any amends to their customers for replacement of plugs. Something should be done to make them replace the plugs for a non defective part.
Tl contact owns a 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac. She stated that she noticed rust inside the engine compartment, and the drive shaft mechanism. She also noticed rust under all the seats of the vehicle. The dealer stated that this was surface rust due to the corrosive environment. They also stated this is a normal occurrence for new vehicles manufactured by Ford. The dealer instructed the contact she could wipe the rust off using a towel. The failure mileage was 360 and the current mileage was 700.
Without any indication why, the temperature indicator began to rise and the engine became rather loud. No indicator (idiot lights) lights came on at all. Pulled over to check the engine, left the engine running and the heat indicator returned to normal immediately. Started to drive and the same issue started again. This time I pulled over and shut the engine down completely. Restarted the engine 2~3 mins later, which appears to have re-set the system, as I have not have a similar problem since.
Engine complaints in other Explorer Sport Trac years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac?
NHTSA has 21 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac, 21% of the model year's 100 complaints. The component named most often is cooling system (4 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac engine problems?
No. NHTSA lists no engine & cooling recall for the 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac, though it has 1 recall for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2007 Ford Explorer Sport Trac engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 72,000 miles, and 15% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 0 injuries to engine & cooling problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.