Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (door latches, locks, hood and tailgate latches).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 1999 Ford Explorer owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 Ford Explorer. While driving 75 MPH, the hood opened and cracked the front windshield. The contact pulled the vehicle over and tied the hood down. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact also stated that, while driving, the speed control would engage or not engage without warning. The dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failures. The failure mileage was 100,000.
I am having problems with my 1999 Ford Explorer drivers side door. It worked fine up until a few months ago. It stopped unlocking with the remote then it eventually stopped unlocking with the key. I have to now reach through my passenger door to open my drivers door. I am afraid of getting into an accident and the only way to get rescued is for someone to open my drivers door to get me out. If it is locked, and it normally is because it locks automatically when start to drive, no one would be able to get me out. This is a very serious problem if this were to happen. I have looked it up online and have found that quite a few people have had the same problem. To make things worse my back door has done the same thing except I can not get it to open at all. I have two very young kids and I would hate for them to get trapped inside. …
1999 Ford Explorer - the doors lock become stuck - neither opening with the key manually, key code, or remote from the inside or the outside. The drivers side door and the door in the back on the drivers side just stopped working the door in the rear on the passenger side opens from the outside; the drivers side door does not open at all. In attempt to free myself from the car I broke the internal door handle. This is a common complaint and it is unsafe and expensive for the owners to fix. Please reference this website to see the numerous other Ford consumers that are effected by this problem just on this one forum there are more forums than this for almost all the Ford models: http://www.carcomplaints.com/Ford/Explorer/1998/accessories-interior/drivers_door_wont_unlock.shtml.
The passenger door lock stopped popping up on the first press of the unlock button on the door. This began almost 2 years ago. It required multiple presses on the unlock button to get the door to unlock. The problem has now occurred on the driver' s side door. Only this time it required many more depresses to unlock. I have to physically pull the handle and pull up on the door lock knob to force it to open if it will open. My fear now is if I am in an accident or the truck catches on fire I May not be able to unlock either door.
Tl contact owns a 1999 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the rear passenger doors will not open. When the failure began, she was able to open the door from the inside or from the outside by rolling down the window. The dealer has not diagnosed the failure. There were no warning indicator lights present. The contact will follow up with the manufacturer on NHTSA campaign notice number 03V280000 (vehicle speed control:cables) she received. The failure mileage was 100,000 and current mileage was 170,000.
I have a Ford Explorer sport 1999, the door locks won't unlock with the keys (both side doors, the hatch works fine) or the keypad, when they lock after starting, the drivers door won't unlock with the handle or the unlock button. It does however if you hit the unlock button, pushing the unlock button several times while pulling up on the lock - which is hard to get a hold of, or the handle (for now) I believe this is a safety issue. If I happened to get in an accident, the door would not open if needed.
The door locks on the drivers side(both front and rear) will for a period of days not unlock with the power lock or the key on the front door. This leaves the person sitting on that side having to crawl to the other side of the vehicle to get out. Then after a period of days seems that it will start working again for no apparent reason. There is a spring in each of the latching mechanisms that was found to have broken.
Tl contact owns a 1999 Ford Explorer. While driving 50 MPH the vehicle stalled. There was a recall for the fuel system. However, the dealer stated that this vehicle was not included due to the VIN. Also, the hood on the vehicle will not open. The failure has not been diagnosed. The driver's door will not open with the key. The failure and current mileage was 190,000.
The driver side door lock has stopped working. The door will not lock at all at this point. I hope to god that no one steals my car! One occasion it decided to work and if I didn't have keyless entry, my kids would have been locked in the car with the car running. I have not attempted to have it fix. This is a huge problem, along with all the other problems that I am having.
1999 Ford Explorer drivers door lock/latch will not open. Broken spring found inside door, not fixed, expensive to fix. Deathtrap for trapped drivers in accident, very inconvenient feeling trapped inside due to faulty door latch/lock. Not safe, especially with already recall of instant fire at anytime due to recall of cruise control.
Related recalls
Latches/locks/linkages › Hood › Latch
Vehicle description: sport utility vehicles. The secondary hood latch May corrode at the latch pivot and stick in the open position.
Remedy: Dealers will install a secondary hood latch with components that are coated prior to assembly for improved latch pivot corrosion protection.
Door Lock & Latch complaints in other Explorer years
Frequently asked questions
How common are door lock & latch problems on the 1999 Ford Explorer?
NHTSA has 33 complaints about the locks & latches of the 1999 Ford Explorer, 2% of the model year's 1,348 complaints. The component named most often is doors › latch (13 mentions).
Is there a recall for 1999 Ford Explorer door lock & latch problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 99V-164 (latch, Jun 29, 1999). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 1999 Ford Explorer door lock & latch problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 109,000 miles.
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.