Engine complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
Was driving the vehicle when I noticed smoke coming out from under the hood. I pulled over as quick as possible into a strip mall parking lot. Before I got out flames were coming out of the engine compartment. I ran into a store and got a fire extinguisher to try and put out the fire. I failed, as the whole front of the Explorer was in flames as well as the interior. The vehicle is a total loss. The fire department put it out. I had the vehicle for 7 weeks. The used dealer will not take any responsibility. Should they? I purchased the vehicle on mar. 3,2014 at oc auto expo in westminster, ca.
In February of 2006, I took my 2003 Ford Explorer in to have it fixed. At the time, my vehicle only had app. 36,300 miles on it. I had to have all the spark plugs replaced because they had gone bad. I was told the spark plugs should have lasted for 90,000 to 100,000 miles. In April of 2007, with app. 43,000 miles on the vehicle, the check engine light came on. I took it in for repair and was told the spark plug wires were arcing and were burned. I was told that the wires were routed badly and that they lay against hot areas of the car. I now have to replace all the wires. The garage has called all the dealers and distributors in my area for the wires and was told that they can't get the wires, that they seem to have been pulled off of the shelf. If the wires are routed badly and lay against hot things, I would think eventually that would start a fire. …
Riding in a car in cold weather...all we can figure at this time is that there is some kind of exhaust leak..in the Ford Explorer....the passenger shared with the drive the symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning...the driver larger in stature was getting drowsy and not thought much about since it was after midnight, but the other person ended up getting in another car traveling with them and ended up stopping three or more times due to the symptoms....
My father-in-law has the same problem. He bought his 5 days after me, his stalled 5 times to this date. Remember the news, (fog and major pile up with numerous deaths) what was the reason ? I don't want this to be our accident waiting to happen. "intermittent" , couldn't "reproduce" the problem. Not good enough to keep my family safe. Please help. Dt
Dt: owns 2001 Ford Explorer, both driver and passenger are pregnant. Had just entered interstate and was driving about 70 MPH and tried to slow down to about 65mph. Tried to tap brake but heard engine rev up and it immediately sped back up. Tapped brake again and knew something was wrong. Engaged hazard lights and tried to pull off road. Down shifted to 2nd gear,then to 1st, and slowed to about 50 MPH. Tried to engage emergency brake with no luck. Was using both brakes while traveling in the grass uphill. When it slowed to about 15-20 MPH passenger jumped from vehicle. Vehicle continued to rev up, driver let off brake while trying to escape and was slung from vehicle. The Explorer went back and crossed 4 lanes of traffic, entered onto service road where it struck a tree. From there the vehicle accelerated up the tree up-rooting it. …
Tl contact owns a 2001 Ford Explorer. While driving at speed at 15 MPH, the vehicle lost electrical power and the engine stalled. The steering became very difficult to maneuver and the contact was unable to maintain control of the vehicle. The vehicle rolled over as a result of the failure. The police arrived on the scene and the driver sustained minor injuries. The vehicle was taken to a local body shop to be serviced. The failure recurred intermittently and was then taken to an authorized dealer for service. The failure continued to recur intermittently. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 1,500 and the current mileage was 40,000. Updated 05/21/10. The consumer stated the failure would happen when first starting to drive. Updated 10/14/10
No events LED up to the crankshaft failure. Our 2000 Ford Explorer was being driven as a daily routine trip in town. The car died at a stop light. I was able to restart the car . The car made a loud clunk. I drove the vehicle into a parking lot and shut it off. We had a certified Ford mechanic come out to look at the car. He was very familiar with this v6 engine. He stated to us that the crankshaft Ford used was a cast iron crank and not a forged steel crank. What happens is the crankshaft will develop cracks in it and eventually break apart. His comment was it was a bad idea and bad design by Ford. This mechanic worked for Ford for 18 years and stated that this particular engine was used from 1995-2001 and I believe he said it was a cologne v6 .our 2 options at this point is to put in a new motor or junk the car. This vehicle is a 2000 Ford Explorer Sport 2 door. Two wheel drive. …
There is a customer complaint recall on Ford Explorer sports that Ford customer relations said information was sent out on and people I talk to have not received this information. I am currently having this problem with my vehicle and when taking to the dealership I am told yes there was and Ford knows that the tensioner chain is bad and they have a quiet recall on them and mine was covered but because of the miles on mine it is not and Ford will do nothing about it. They know this is a problem and they should fix it and in all vehicles not just a complaint. The vehicle rattles and does not want to run with this problem. …
NHTSA investigations
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
On September 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 Ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or…
Frequently asked questions
Which Ford Explorer Sport years have engine problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 2001 (21), 1998 (12), 1999 (10), 2000 (10) and 1997 (8) model years. Engine complaints make up 11% of all complaints for the 2001.
Is there a recall for Ford Explorer Sport engine problems?
No. NHTSA lists no engine & cooling recall for any Ford Explorer Sport model year. A widespread problem may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin, so ask a dealer.
At what mileage do Ford Explorer Sport engine problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 62,000 miles; 40% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the engine (22 mentions), followed by the engine › gasoline (11).
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.