Problems with 2000 Ford Explorer POWER TRAIN

Vehicle shifted from 2nd to 3rd harshly & od light started flashing. did not do it every time it was driven. called dealer and was told no recalls were listed on this type problem. researched online and found a lot of complaints for 2000 explorer with same problem. transy mechanic repaired otv valve on transmission, resolved problem at my cost of $350. something definitely wrong when this many reports are filed for same issue. vehicle also weaves when speeds of 60 mph+ are reached as if would roll over. shocks do not seem to be set right, very rough ride for such a luxury fitted out vehicle. first ford i have ever owned in the 30+ years i have driven...not happy....i am selling. give me a pontiac anyday! ford, take ownership! *nm

on 12-27-04 our 2000 ford explorer started to shift poorly and the over drive light stayed on, the light shows the car will not go into over-drive. i took the explorer to the repair shop and was told the trans. had a crack in the drum in the valve body of the trans. vehicle was repaired cost 2229.62 vehicle only has 56,000 miles. i looked on the net and found many complaints with the same problem two people said it occurred twice same problem. to me it sounds like a major problem with the 2000 explorer my wife drives this vehicle very carefully never doing anything but going to work or going grocery shopping. i am very mad i think ford is making a lot of junk this tranny for one. maybe ford should have a recall on this tranny. *jb

I was told in dec 2004 by my mechanic that my transmission was failing (my vehicle had only 32k miles at the time), but because my 2000 ford explorer was too old, there was not any thing that i could do other than pay for a repair. regardless of age, i don't think any transmission should fail with only 32k miles on the car. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2000 ford explorer. while driving approximately 20 mph, the vehicle jerked when the contact shifted gears. the failure occurred intermittently at any speed. the failure also occurred while the vehicle was in reverse gear. the vehicle was taken to an authorized three times but the failure could not be duplicated. the solenoid was replaced, but the failure continued to occur more frequently over time. the vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. the vehicle had not been repaired. the failure mileage was 16. the current mileage was approximately 53,000. the vin was unavailable.

While driving vehicle makes a clanking noise. the vehicle takes up to 2-5 seconds upon changing gears to reverse. going up hill it will down shift very hard as if the floor board is being knocked out. the differential, and rear end were replaced. *ak

While test driving the vehicle consumer saw a blinking over drive light on dash board. vehicle was taken to another dealer, who found that the transmission needed to be replaced. *ak

On the evening of june 7, 2004, as i was driving on 85s, my car began shaking violently. as i was trying to get out of the way of the traffic, there was a huge boom from my vehicle and the car stopped. initially, all of the service people around thought that it was my transmission that fell out. i had the car towed to my mechanic who later confirmed that it was my transfer case that had fallen from the bottom of the car. there was absolutely no prior warnings (no service lights appeared in the vehicle) of this happening other than a slight shaking in the car a day or two before. my mechanic is in the process of creating an estimate for this work.*ak

My 2 year old son was standing on the seat and was able to pull the vehicle out of park and into drive. the car was not running, the key was not on. the vehicle rolled down a hill and upon striking another vehicle, my son fell out. there is significant body damage to the vehicle, only minor injuries to my son. i was standing next to the open passenger door when it happened. i have been told that this it is not possible for the vehicle to be taken from park to drive without the brake on (the vehicle is equiped with this safety device). no repairs have yet been done. *ak

In march of 2004, i took my 2000 ford explorer xlt for general service, the mechanic found that the front pinion seal, and torque converter seals leaking. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for repairs. thank the lord that i took out and extended warranty on the vehicle when i purchased it sept, 2002. the repairs where completed, i also took it back to my mechanic to check and make sure the work was done. on 10/26/04 i took the vehicle back in again for work to be done and the mechanic again found the front pinion to be leaking, also found that the upper and lower ball joints were needed and that the power steering pump was chattering. just some background information: the vehicle was originally owned by my sister, when i purchased the vechicle, she was turning in her 2 year lease. when i took the vehicle over it only had 11,681 miles on it. the first repairs were at 37126 miles, second time miles were 45721 miles. i also have several area's on the vehicle that have rust. i can remeber a few years ago when the 3 major car companies talked about rust not going to be a problem. one of the places with rust is on the radiator support. i just wonder how ford or any of our other us car companies can expect us to keep buying inferior products and pay alot more money. *jb

On the 27th of march in 2004, my 2000 ford explorer transmission went out in chicago. the vehicle malfunctioned while stopped at a stop light. the car then would not move. the vehicle does have 59,000 miles on it. when i moved the vehicle back to my hometown via my own hauling capabilites, the dealership where the car has been serviced since the time of purchase, refused to help me with any repairs even though it had been in their shop only five days before the transmission went out. when i asked them what they suggested, they informed me that i needed to contact ford myself and start talking with them. after talking with ford several times i realized taht i was no where. they refused to help and did absolutely nothing to make me satisfied. i have received no assistance whatso ever from them. ia m persoanlly aware that other car companies take care of situations like this for their consumers. i hope that by submitting this, ford will be required to recall a product that they know to be defective. *la

Consumer's 2000 ford explorer caught fire. consumer stated he would like reimbursement for personal items which were in the vehicle at the time of the fire. *kb prior to the fire, the engine would not start. the consumer received a recall notice regarding a potential fire concerning the speed control deactivation switch. the transmission had been replaced a month earlier. *jb

When engaging the 4 - wheel drive low the vehicle locked up without warning. as a result, the steering becomes inoperative. the cause has yet to be determined. *la

2000 ford explorer transmission slipping 2nd and 3rd to overdrive. od kicks off & will not reset. dealer charged us for replacement of "separator plate" and "valve body". gasket material found lodged in valve body by dealer. this is a ford design flaw, but we had to pay over $900 to get it fixed! vehicle has only 66,000 miles on it.*ak

Independent shop replaced twice the automatic transmission. dealer notified. *ak

Transmission failed prematurely. transmission was replaced three times. *ak

Gear shift will not move out of park. vehicle can be turned on ,but cannot be put in gear.*ak

O/d light flashing. griffen ford could not id problem. unaccustomed to how this transmission should handle, i had no idea how the lowest gear ratio should feel and assumed what it did feel like was normal. at 110,000 a/tran failed and had to be remanufactured. used private shop. outstanding re-build and that is when i found out that i never had a low(est) gear but did after the transmission was rebuilt. faithful change and cleaning of trans fluid, no towing ever, and excellent maintenance record did not prevent a transmission failure which is evidence of ford poor quality control at the manufacturing or assembly level. obviously no one ever picked up the fact that the low gear never worked, not at the ford factory, at the dealership, by sales, or service, and was never properly road tested. poor reflection on ford motor corporation. *tr

While car is shut off and in park, and without warning vehicle would pop out of gear into reverse. consumer had been to the dealership on two separate occasions, but problem still occurring. *ak

Purchased explorer xlt with automatic transmission. repeated problems holding gears, lack of power. twice was brought to dealer for diagnostics, which were inconclusive. problem continued and eventually transmission was replaced by dealer. no problems for first eight months with the new transmission, but now when travelling at high speeds, the overdrive dis-engages causing a loss of power. upon re-start of car, problem subsides. the car was examined at the dealer two more times, but they were unable to replicate the failure and no work has been done.*ak

One year ago i started my car and pressed on the gas and it wouldn't go. the dealership corrected the problem under my warranty. in july 2003, my explorer began slipping between 2nd and 3rd gear. took to dealership and they stated that by replacing the gaskets this seems to correct this problem in other ford explorer vehicles. the cost was $500. replacing the gaskets did not correct the problem ,and the dealer said that i needed a new transmission. they also stated that my car was no longer covered by a warranty. i had 41,000 miles and the warranty ended at 36,000. i contacted ford's customer service and they said that it was my responsibility to fix since my warranty ended. they also said that there is no recalls. my vehicle began slipping between 1st and 2nd and 2nd and 3rd. i took my explorer to aamco transmissions knowing that i would have to pay but i didn't have confidence in ford fixing my vehicle. apparently, the torque converter came apart and pieces were thrown throughout my transmission--total cost this time was $2,800. *ak

At 3807 miles 1st transmission found to have been sent from factory missing gear, transmission replaced. was not told with a refurbished transmission at time of repair. 2nd transmission stuck in 3rd gear, replaced valve body gaskets and solenoid, ran for 48,000 miles, now 4th gear wrong ratio(resulting in overhaul)also overdrive band and clutches are damaged, manifold cracked, warranty over, and ford wants me to pay $2800 to fix it. transmission has failed in an intersection twice, and on a major highway at 60 mph. ford taking no responsibility for obvious transmission problems in this suv. another ford dealer had to tell me this was a refurbished transmission and to call them on it, which they admitted to on friday june 6th, 2003. dealer says they called ford hdq who said transmission my responsibility to fix now, and dealer will not stand behind vehicle either.*ak

Transmission fuel line broke and leaked fuel onto the muffler and catalytic converter while driving.*ak

The car while the day before ran fine,began by slipping while in reverse. would not work in reverse so i immediately returned the car to drive where it would not go smoothly into that gear either. the car will drive in second but with not much power. this is one of many incidents with this vehicle in less than 3 years having also replacing the brakes three times in as many years, twice had to replace the rotors. *nlm

Transmission went on my 2000 ford explorer with only 37,431 miles on it. only 1,400 over the warranty!! *nlm

The vehicle increased in speed with out warning, the dealer stated there was a recall issued regarding the problem, however the consumer's vehicle identification number was not included.*jb

4-wheel drive does not work with only 38,770 miles on 2000 ford explorer and ford will not fix it under covered expenses even though we don't know how long it has been broken. high and low light up on dash board and when put in drive, it makes the thump as though it is in 4 wheel drive. we thought all along it was working until we got hung up 2 weeks ago in a drive way and the front wheels would not move. i think it was broke before the 36000 mile warranty expired. but ford will not consider fixing it without us paying for it. *jb

Transmission fluid was leaking from the vehicle. please furnish additional information. dealer is aware of the problem. ph

Transmission slips and delays engagement shifting 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd. o/d light flashing. just out of waranty and ford quoting $1200 to fix manufacturer defect.

Consumer states, vehicle is unable to shift gears properly. dealer notified. please provide additional information. ph

Transmission seems to slip before engaging, o/d light is flashing

Consumer stated that while driving at any speed and without warning the transmission failed causing the vehicle not to accelerate. dealer notified. ts

When placing the vehicle in reverse it will not move. consumer has to floor the accelerator all the way down before it will move.*ak

The vehicle experienced a hard jerk, when driving at highway speeds. at times, the vehicle would jerk three to four times in a row. dealer was notified and couldn't diagnose the problem.*jb

Consumer has had three automatic transmisions installed. the problem is still ocurring. please provide further information. *mr

Trandsmission failed, replaced by dealer, failed again, now currently at dealership with another failure. *ak

When shifting into reverse transmission would simultaneously shift into forward. dealer and manufacturer have been notified. *ak consumer contacted world ford and they refused any adjustments. they acknowledged that there is a problem and that the design has been changed to correct it. *jg

While driving and with no warning, the left rear tire sidewall started to separate, causing a tire blowout. dealer notifed. size p235 175r15, dot6#m6hlfnwr2801. *ak the vehicle started to sway to the left-2 times. the consumer's husband then started to decelerate, and on the third time the left rear tire exploded. the vehicle was very difficult to control, and damage was done to the panel(vent peelings), and the tires/rims needed to be replaced. (other) problems in detail are as followed: the wheel/tires were out of round, there was a vibration from the drive shaft, steering/excessive tire wear, and the engine thermostat is sticking. *scc

When parking vehicle on an incline, gas gauge will read incorrectly. once vehicle is moving again gas gauge keeps reading incorrectly. vehicle has been taken to dealer 4 times. dealer insists that this is how the gas gauge works.*ak. also the power train control module was replaced, the fuel injection system was replaced, consumer states if she fills the gas tank up, 150 miles later it will be a half tank, and then if she hits a bump in the road the needle will read full, the fuel tank sender, sending unit and instrument cluster have been replaced.*jb

I think something is wrong with ford transmission because i only have this vehicle for 2 yrs and had to put a brand new transmission in this vehicle that cost me $1800.00. *ts *jb ****dimsii ivoq entry posted after 12-12-02 cut over to artemis****761914

When tried to put vehicle into reverse, made loud noise, as stepping on gas, car would not move. however vechile will go into drive. *ak

Transmission slips when shifting to overdrive at 50-55mph. *ak

At speeds over 60 mph vehicle intermittently bucks for a few seconds, feels like it's not shifting right. also difficult to steer at that time.*ak

While driving and making a left hand turn vehicle hesitates and vibrates in front end. driver states it feels like gears are not engaging properly. please provide any further information. *ak

The consumer heard a noise coming from transfer case while traveling at low speeds. the vehicle was serviced but the dealer couldn't duplicate the problem. *ak *ph *nlm

Vehicle was parked with engine running, park brake not applied, and vehicle suuddenly went backward, knocking consumer over , went 75 feet across street and hit a house. no injuries, damage to vehicle was $ 3000.00. *ak

1st transmission was found to have been sent from factory with no 2nd gear, which resulted in 3rd gear being destroyed, this was after 2 visits with could not verify comments. so at 3807 miles transmission 2 was put in, i was never told this was a refurbished transmission. oct 30,2000 back in for a chirping sound while idling.jan 19,2001 back in for oil in air filter, and transmission sticking at 20 mph.seatbelts also on recall list.jan 23,2001 back in, still sticking at 20mph. car found to be staying in 3rd gear, repairs made with gasket-trans v, mercon r v aut,gasket asy - tra, processor asy, and pats key all being replaced. mar 9,2001 2nd key set will not start car, car reprogrammed.7/19/01 car back in shop, whines when turning,slowing down,accelerating, could not verify. hesitate, then surges at 50mph,could not verify, passenger window will not roll down, replace switch.radio lights suddenly go off, radio stays on, replace radio. 6/05/2003 car seems to lose power, still running but wont drive, 60mph on a freeway!! car returns to normal for a few mins. then o/d turns off, and light starts flashing about o/d turned off. get to dealer- 4th gear wrong ratio, needs overhaul of transmission,o/d band & clutches are damaged. cracked upper intake manifold, manifold & iac valve need to be replaced.car is now at 59,700 miles,warranty expired, and ford and dealership say i have to pay to fix transmission with documented problems, and i find out it was refurbised at that! dealer and ford will not stand behind vehicle because it has worked for 48,000 miles, calls in to ford regional manager, and complaints being filed any where i can.

I have a 2000 explorer with the sohv v6. about two years ago while on vacation we had a problems starting the truck. i found that if i fully depressed the accelerator the truck would start but would stall right after. if i held the gas down a little after starting, the truck would run but stall if i let off the gas pedal fully. this problem has plagued us for 2 years and the dealer has looked at it several times but found nothing. i was finally able to fix the problem myself after doing some research on a ford truck owner web site. the problem was a faulty iac valve. i know this for sure because the truck repeated the problem and wouldn't idle until i replaced this valve. after that the truck started right up. i went back to the dealer and reported the results. they claimed they can't reimburse me for that part cost (~ $80) because they never could get an error code from the diagnostics they ran. if they refunded my cost, ford would charge the dealership for the part (ford's policy according to the dealership). my issue is when i bought the part, the person behind the counter said they stock at least 6 of these devices because they go through them like water. if that's the case, my dealership should have replaced ours to start with and my repair would have been covered under the warranty and we would have had two years of worry-free ownership. ford should step up and accept responsibility for a problematic part. *jb

I was driving down the busy highway @ 55 mph, the transmission went into neutral and it stopped moving. the car behind me just narrowly missed rear ending me. there was traffic in front of me, in back of me as well as along side of me. it could have been a very serious situation. called nelson ford and they attempted to fix it, but could not find out the problem. it happened again on aug. 6, 2001 and they wouldn't even look at it again. the transmission was repaired jan. 6, 01, because it didn't shift properly into 2nd gear, june 8th, it was brought back in, because the overlight flashed on and off. on july19th i brought it in , cause it now shifts in and out of overdrive, erratic shifting and surge. today 8/9/01 it doesn't shift into overdrive correctly, there is several seconds delay before it shifts. the ford company was contacted about the second stahl on the highway and the overdrive not shifting properly. they will not take it apart again. and they can not verify that the car stalled for me so they will not acknowlege the problem. who is responsible if i am in a serious accident. ford stated that they will sell me another ford at cost, they will take my explorer as a trade in and ford will kick in some money. "you,may be happpy and then maybe not ." the man i am to deal with is on vacation, so i agreed to wait to talk to them on monday. i am not safe in this car. i mailed a certified letter to ford telling them that i want it considered a lemon. they stat that it does not meet the lemon standards, it was only repaired 3 times. there is not a ford product that i want to buy at this time. i just want out of this dangerous vehicle. please help me with options. i do not want the same situation as in california. thank you, [xxx]. *ak parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).

Consumer's child was sitting between bucket seats and turned key slightly. he hit gear lever, and the vehicle rolled , causing damage to vehicle. consumer took vehicle to dealer, they stated there was nothing they could do. vehicle didn't have such a feature.*ak

While driving about 40 mph transmission got stuck, and vehicle could not accelerate. when trying to pick up speed vehicle start shaking like it was going to cut off. dealer was contacted, and fixed it under warranty.*ak