Problems with 2002 Ford Explorer POWER TRAIN

I just purchased the vehicle in a private sale on 11/09/12 and on 11/10/12 went to shift from park into reverse on a flat surface and my shift lever broke off and i am not able to shift my vehicle. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while driving 2 mph and attempting to shift into park, the gear shift lever became detached, leaving the vehicle stuck in reverse. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the contact was awaiting diagnosis of the failure. the dealer and manufacturer were not notified. the vin was unavailable. the failure and current mileage was 167,000.

Transmission is junk, it slips really bad, whines and chatters. *tr

On the afternoon of october 22nd 2012 my pregnant wife was leaving the speech therapist with my son went to put the car in reverse and the shifter snapped off in her hand. the car every since we had it when u put it in park as a delay and rolls for ward a bit i feel that this is a recall that ford should issue for this car. its just not fair to have to pay over 1200 dollars to fix something that is not my fault.what if this would have happened in the street luckily my wife knew to shut the car off and apply the emergency brake. this problem really could end up in serious injury or even fatality to an individual. *tr

While coming off a freeway my car suddenly jerked and the transmission failed. causing my vehicle to stop. when trying to move forward the car began to try to roll backwards into the car behind me. i was lucky i was coming to a stop rather then going full speed on the freeway. after much research i have found that this is an all too common problem with this make model and year. the transmission now needs to be completely rebuilt according to 2 mechanics. *tr

Went to put car in drive from the park position and the shifter completely broke and was hanging. also, i was not able to get my key out of the ignition. we were planning to make an out of town trip the following day, however, had to change plans due to this situation. after searching online, i have discovered there has been numerous complaints for this exact defect for the exact type of vehicle. it seems that since there has already been so many same situations, that a recall would have taken place by now. not has it only been inconvenient, but could also be potentially dangerous! *tr

Transmission failed on the highway at 70mph pulled off exit and continued on city roads to our jobs parking lot and is no longer drive able. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while attempting to shift from park to drive, the gear shifter lever fractured. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and denied assistance with the repair. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileage was 64,549.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while driving in reverse, the gear shift lever failed. the contact tried to shift the vehicle in park but the gear shift remained stuck. the contact stated the vehicle continued to move and the emergency brake was used to stop the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to a mechanic for inspection where they stated that the aluminum house that connected the shift lever to the steering column failed and would need to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the manufacturer was notified and have not responded. the failure mileage was 135,000.

Parked on hill or flat ground it happen before,but the gear shift gets stuck. you can turn the steering wheel right,left to get it to unlock but it want, no locked brakes.but i kept on trying to get my truck in gear to point of doing dangers things as of sticking one foot out of the door and rocking it back and forth.to get the lock to brake but that did not work then i tried again and the gear shift broke a aluminum part on the inside broke and i have saw three more like this and some more reports of this and nothing has been said or done about this,that i am not the only one. *tr

When accelerating on a start, car doesn't shift into 2nd and 3rd gear....unless there is a push or jump into it. *tr

While driving car would not shift passed 3rd gear. i had to pull over on a busy highway because i was afraid the engine would explode. i later found out, after researching, that the risk of it shifting into reverse is a common problem with the po745 error code in 2002 explorers. *tr

I have a 2002 ford explorer and the over drive light started flashing and the check engine light is on and the transmission started slipping from 2-3 gear and i found out with my 2yr and 3yr kids in the car if i need to pull out on to a highway with cars coming the suv don't want to do so and will rev up and might slam into gear when you let off the gas. i love my explorer great family car but with this problem i will not have my kids in it at all. and not knowing if it will make it or not. ford do something about this. im not the only one. *tr

Drive train, bucks, grinds, is slipping. makes alot of noise. had the rear end replaced and it did not work, paid $1000.00 or so and did not take care of the problem. *tr

This is an update to complaint no. 10459987. after looking at the car records, we discovered that during a service of my transmission, ford factory required the dealership to cut the metal transmission line and installed a rubber line with a filter. if they did not install the filter, then the warranty would have been void. after installing, no one ever inspected or replaced the line or filter. it was simply forgotten. 75,000 miles later the rubber line was resting on the exhaust, which burned a hole and caused transmission fluid to leak and spray onto the catalytic converter and caught fire. we were lucky in that we saw the smoke early and no one was injured. i am concerned there are more cars out there with this retro-fit filter on the transmission that no one is inspecting or maintaining because it is not on an official maintenance schedule. *tt

The o/d light flickers on and off and there appears to be no third gear, according to three mechanical transmission inspections. researching websites indicates that this is a known prevalent problem for this vehicle. need to know: 1. was there a recall? 2. what, if anything, ford is willing to do to fix or compensate for the considerable expense involved to repair this obvious defect. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated the gear shift detached while shifting gears from the park to drive. the vehicle was towed to the dealer and the manufacturer was contacted. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileages were 121,000.

Vehicle transmission has suddenly quit at only 120,000 miles. because of a code p0775 "pressure control solenoid". shopped the fix (which all repair shops say is very common on early 2000 ford's) and it will need a $2500 rebuild. did some online research and found more complaints on this than i can account for. i contacted ford customer support line and was transferred to my local dealer. local dealer said i fall outside of any customer appreciation programs and there is nothing they can do than fix it for me for $3200. with the amount of complaints on this issue along with the cracked tailgate that i see on all ford explorers i drive by, there should be some sort of forced recall. *js

Transmission failure - stupid design doesn't allow you to check fluid level, leak at transfer case seal seems to have caused loss of fluid and cannot be added without some special pump to fill transmission back up because it's a sealed unit. designed so only ford dealers can do service and then it just goes out and you're driving 65 mph down the mountain and unable to control speed. ford needs to recall these piece of crap transmissions yet won't even acknowledge there's a problem although every dealer & tranny mechanic knows of the issues. *js

Been jerky and jumping for 2 years but today the transmission would not upshift when starting out or down-shift when slowing down. the engine went to high rpm with little or no forward progress.all this was preceded by the over-drive light flashing on and off followed next by the check transmission light. next the check engine light came on. the forums on this vehicle will tell you that this 6 speed automatic transmission on the v-8 engines are just junk. way to many complaints. will ford fix this on an out of warranty vehicle? after pulling. *js

The transmission is having trouble shifting from 2nd to 3rd, engine light and o/d off lights are on. local mechanic says that the intermediate band on the transmission is broken. this is a sealed unit with no way to service without a rebuild.

Out transmission isn't out yet, it's on its way out. when accelerating it stops at 25-35 mph and the rpm rev up to the red limit if you don't take your foot off the gas and it wont switch gears for a minute or so. sometimes you hear a loud dropping sound and the entire car jerks when it switches gears. this first happened when speeding up on a busy main road near detroit, almost causing us to be rear ended. we took it to a transmission garage and were informed it would be $2,000 or there abouts to fix. had the other driver not been paying attention or had this happened on a highway myself, my fiance, our four children would have been seriously injured or worse. apparently the transmission is a recurring problem with this model of vehicle and the manufacturer should be made responsible for this blatantly dangerous defect. *tr

I had to replace transmission and solenoid, costing over $2500. *tr

My wife started our explorer and tried to put the vehicle in reverse and the gear shift handle snapped off in her hand. only to find out that this problem has happened to many other ford owners! unbelievable! so now i have to have my vehicle towed to a repair shop to have this "ford problem" fixed! and also shell out over $1000 dollars just so i can get my explorer back on the road!!! and when i called the local ford garage to ask about this defect, they acted as if this problem has never happened before! bs! *tr

I was driving my 2002 ford explorer about 25mph when i felt the rear end drop down. pulled over to the side of the road and all 5 studs had sheared off. the second time it happened i was only backing out of my driveway when i put it into drive & started to accelerate the opposite side studs sheared off. this time only 4 studs broke so i limped the truck back onto my driveway. the third time this happened i was driving about 15mph going around a turn & 4 studs broke off again. if i was going any faster the truck could have flipped over. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. while attempting to shift from park to the reverse, the contact noticed that the column shifter had separated from the steering column. the vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. the current and the failure mileage was 228,000. updated 04/11/12*lj the hear shifter broke and the key would not come out of the ignition. the serpentine belt was cracked and had to be replaced. updated 04/20/12

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while driving 70 mph, the over drive warning light illuminated as the vehicle started to skip gears. there was an abnormal increase in engine rpms and the vehicle would not shift into gear. the vehicle was taken to a local mechanic but the vehicle was neither diagnosed nor repaired. the failure and the current mileage was unknown.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer eddie bauer edition. the contact stated that at engine startup, the gear shifter detached from the vehicle while attempting to shift into gear. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not contacted. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileages were 120,000.

I bought my 2002 ford explorer xlt and within 1 week the transmission had gone out....have had it repaired and still no good. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while driving 35 mph, the gear shifter detached from the vehicle. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was not available. the failure and current mileage was 130,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while parked, it became difficult to shift gears. the vehicle was also slipping gears while driving at any speed. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing three different times. the technicians were unable to diagnose the failure. there was an investigation under nhtsa action number: ea09013 (power train: automatic transmission: lever and linkage: column shift steering: column steering: column locking: anti-theft device power train: automatic transmission: gear position indication (prndl)) that may be related to the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 146,000. updated 11/28/12 *cn

The vehicle began to shift oddly from second to third. the overdrive off light began blinking. shifting then began to be rough. i promptly took it to my mechanic who found it necessary to replace the transmission with a rebuilt unit. second gear casing had failed. *tr

I was putting my car in gear when the gear shift snapped off in my hand. *tt

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact started the ignition and immediately, the 4wd high and 4wd low warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. the contact attempted to depress the brake pedal and shift into the neutral gear, as specified in the owner's manual however, the warning indicators failed to disengage. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnosis and the contact was waiting upon a response pertaining to the malfunction. the manufacturer was not notified of the problem. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000. the vin was not available.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that the shifter handle fractured while attempting to exit a parking lot. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileage was 187,000. updated 03/05/12*lj updated 03/06/12

The service engine light came on and i was told there might be a transmission problem. after the service the light was off and i was going again. at 107,000 miles the light came back on and back to the service departmant and they said the #5 ring was having problems i could drive it and it would get worse. it was also mentioned this year explorer had many transmission issues. now they want a minimum of $3,500 to fix the suv and the trade-in is only worth $3,500 dollars. i now have 117,500 miles on it and it shifts hard and goes in reveserves slowly. i have talked to ford to no avail at all. the say sorry but we can't help with fixing it at all. there is no discounted rate for an issue that is well known on the blogs. this seems to be against the fact that ford says they have the bext trucks on the road if they think 117,000 miles is enough to replace the transmission. i do not understand the fact they think it is okay to charge that amount for a known issue on the 2002 - 2004 model explorers. i need help as i can't afford to fix it to trade it in and i don't see putting $3,500 plus into some thing that may only last one day to maybe a year. *tr

The transmission on my 2002 ford explorer xlt suddenly began to rev higher than normal. the overdrive light indicator on the dash began to flash and 2nd and 5th gear seemed to have stopped working. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that while shifting from park to reverse, the gear shifter fractured. a local mechanic inspected the vehicle and located the failure at the gear housing unit. the mechanic advised the contact that the gear shifter housing would need to be replaced.the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileage was 143,000.

I am a single mother of 4 driving 55mph in heavy traffic on a 4 lane highway, with my children in the vehicle when the o/d light flashed a few times and then the transmission just stopped working, as though the vehicle was in neutral i coasted safely to a stop thank god. i took it to a ford service center and they said it was caused by the servo boar????? never herd of this. it used to be a seperate line that could be replaced now it is built into the transmission and the whole transmission has to be replaced. is what i was told to me by the certified ford service man and that there was not a problem with the old style lines but he hears of this often with the newer transmissions. was this changed just for profit by ford motor company? because with this happening without warning someone could get into an accident and be seriously injured or killed depending on the situation. i am very upset that my family was put in this situation but we got lucky. if we were only lucky enough to have the money to fix it now, it is $2,400 for the new transmission and labor. *tt

While driving my car to work, i came to a stop sign at the end of my road, like i do every morning. however, on this morning, as i tried to accelerate from a complete stop, my car bogged down which left me in the road for seconds longer then was safe. there was a car speeding around the curve, and my car would not accelerate like it should. finally, and thank god, it jammed into gear, and me and my one year old son were not injured. also, on that same day, my car starting skipping while in first gear, which also was a safety hazard because it was jerking so hard, it was hard to keep in under control, plus it also slowed my progression across highly congested areas down, which also put my safety at risk. we took my car to the shop, and the repairman stated that my transmission was having problems with first gear and overdrive. there had been no previous warning or indicators that something was wrong with my transmission until the day of. we had the fluid checked and the engine checked. nothing was wrong that we could have prevented. *tr

My name is[xxx] and i own a 2002 ford explorer xlt (v6). i have owned it for almost a year now (will be in jan 2012) and loved every minute of it until recently. about 4 months ago, i heard a strange loud whining noise. i immediately took it to my mechanic and found that rear wheel bearing was going. i was also told that if i would have took the interstate to work that evening i could have possibly died or caused serious injuries to others on road. very scary! mind you this bearing went with no warning. immediately after i heard the noise i took it in. well the bearing got fixed and i couldn't have been happier. however, about a month ago i was on the interstate with my two year old daughter doing about 70mph when my truck began to shake violently. i assumed i was in the process of having a tire blow-out and began slowly breaking and losing control of the vehicle. luckily i made it onto the shoulder of the interstate. my tire however was not as lucky. all 5 studs on my right rear tire snapped causing the tire to completely fly off and proceed down the road at a fast speed just passing the turn ramp and missing several other vehicles. in the process of losing the tire, it also caused damage to rear end of my suv. it looked as if the tire got caught and caused the rear to dent in.replaced studs and everything seemed fine. today (dec.15th) not even an entire month later, vehicle started shaking again. oh how i remembered that scary shake. examined tire and once again, studs snapped. 2 this time with a third one missing the cap. the tire was only held by 2 studs. thank the lord i noticed this problem before going onto the interstate and once again having my tire fly off! i have been doing research this evening to find that this is a common problem with the 02-04 explorers. please make a recall ford and others help me to get one made! this is a scary and dangerous situation! it can cause the loss of many lives as it has almost done mine and my daughters. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information a

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact was driving approximately 5 mph and attempting a left turn when the engine rpms raced excessively. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where they advised her that she needed to replace the transmission. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 54,500.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that the vehicle was parked and she attempted to shift into reverse, but the gear shift lever detached from the steering column. the vehicle was in the process of being towed to an independent repair shop to be repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure and current mileages were 141,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that the gear shift lever fractured while trying to shift from park. the vehicle was not inspected by a dealer nor repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure and the current mileages were approximately 135,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford explorer. the contact stated that the gear shift fractured when he attempted to shift into reverse. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure and the current mileages were 110,000.

Shifter broke off while shifting from park to drive,cannot shift vehicle. i read online there are numerous people that have had the same problem ,they were all wondering why there hasn't been a recall on this problem. has there? *tr

Rear spring cracked at 100,000 mil transmission failed at 120,000 mil body electrical not sealed well and keeps shorting in different places cruise gets stubborn and scared to use it , im afraid of it getting stuck in cruise. *tr

Aside from continuing transmission problems, the hatch of this ford explorer was recalled some years ago. however, the area below the window of the hatch on many explorers made in or around 2002, has begun to crack and extend to the edge of the hatch area. when closed, this can be a hazard that leads to further cracking, which can further lead to more cracking and then breaking of the area. this can lend itself to material projecting into someone's eye or projecting into a part of the body that requires surgical removal. please recall or issue a warning. ford has been contacted via their 1-800 number and this concern was documented. please recall... *tr

O/d off light flashing and service engine light on constant. transmission has a hard time shifting from first to second gear. it had approximately 140,000 miles when it first happened. i am not the original owner so i am unsure if this has happened before. *tr

The o/d light keeps flashing on and off. also the transmission does no longer want to shift gears; and when it does it shifts very hard. *tr