Problems with 2002 Ford Explorer EQUIPMENT

This is the second time in less then two years i have had to have the transmission rebuilt. it was bought on 8/14/04 as is no warranty from a dealer (demo) unit it had 38547 miles on it, 10/13/04 the transmission blew with 41675 miles on it. the dealer wouldn't give me no help as well as ford customer service, i paid 2181.03 to have it rebuilt including the torque converter replaced, and the solenoid pak (which was replaced 2 more times shortly after being installed each time) it needed a ls kit, bas hing kit, 5 forward steels, filter and fluids. march 8th 2006 i find myself spending another 1412.56 to have it rebuilt yet again now only having 64460 miles on it, it needed an overhaul kit, filter and trans fluids, intermediate band, od servo piston, int servo piston and another solenoid pak as well as the transmission case repaired. i have owned several cars in my life time and never had to replace a transmission especially twice in less then two years, this is my first ford and will be the last ford i own! i can't afford to spend this much money every two years and shouldn't have to the way i see it!*jb

Steering column jammed twice. first time under the warranty, then 1 year later not covered by warranty. father has same vehicle make and model year, he had two put in his also. rear end went. had to replace two axles already. *jb

Purchased new 2002 ford explorer. i had the original transmission replaced at 63,658 miles due to its failure. the rebuilt one that cost $2,974 is now slipping @77,853 miles. it will have to be replaced soon and the company that did the work is now out of business, thus the warranty is worthless and i am probably going to have to junk the vehicle and buy a foreign vehicle. *tr

2002 ford explorer rear differential clutch part failure. consumer wants assistance from ford to cover the repairs. *nj the consumer stated numerous parts failed on the vehicle. those failures included: the differential compass, hvac blower motor, one of the rear window lift motors and one of the seals on the rear differential failed. *jb

While driving down the road the air conditioner quit working. i heard the coolant and compressor still working, but no fan blower on levels 1,2 and 3 level 4 still worked luckily. i also have a howling sound coming from the rear end under light acceleration and hard shifting when accelerating and letting off of the gas during a shift. the air conditioner was caused by a faulty resistor, the rest has yet to be determined. i notice a number of complaints on this site for the same symptoms, a recall should be issued.*jb

I brought truck on 02/27/2004. the salesman at bill heard chevrolet made me sign some papers. in two weeks i had to go back to sign some more papers because they said they had made a mistake. they told me that i would finish paying for the car in three years the cost was supposedly $24,000. in two weeks after that i started having transmission problems. i told the dealership but they didn't want to fixed the problem so i had to pay out of my own money to fix the problem. after that they put an insurance on the truck which brought my payment to $518.00. my air conditioner didn't function since i brought it. my car has no direction at all. also, when i run the truck more than 65 mph it just starts shaking. in three months after i brought the car i read the papers and realize that the truck did not cost 24,000 like they had told me it actually cost 37,000. *nm

Dt: the contact stated the instrument panel cluster was no longer working. the service dealer did not state why the panel was no longer working. the electrical components failed, such as the radio, blowers, windows, airbags, and all of the safety equipment. the dealer stated it was a common problem within this type of vehicle. the part to repair was no longer available. the consumer contacted the manufacturer; they referred him to the dealer to find an aftermarket product to repair the problem.*ak

I have had my transmission in my 2002 ford explorer rebuilt by a local ford dealership at 53,000 miles and a ford re-manufactured transmission installed at this dealership at 69,000. this local dealership has replaced the transfer case twice, drive axle, and universal joints between 69,000 and 74,000 to correct an ongoing reported shifting problem with the transmission. my transmission failed at 109,000, again, much to my dismay. the dealership responded that it was a manufacturer's issue and suggested that i contact ford. upon contacting ford motor company, i was told that it was a dealership issue as the dealership had installed the transmission and may had done so incorrectly. i took my vehicle to an independent transmission specialist who replaced the transmission and indicated that the previous transmission was, in fact, defective. *jb

2002 ford explorer experiencing problems with the 4wd, the over drive light illuminates on the dashboard and the vehicle is giving off a rotten egg smell. *mr there were front end problems. the 4wd module wasn't working. the driveshaft and both front wheel bearings were replaced. the rotors were out of round. the service engine light illuminated along with the over drive light. the transmission experienced the same problem on two occasions and possibly a third time. a large puddle of transmission was found under the vehicle. the torque converter was noisy. the acceleration pedal would pull back. when the vehicle was accelerated, it would whine. the left rear wheel bearing was gone and caused damage to the axle, brakes and the tire was barely holding on. the error code for the service engine soon light was due to the solenoid which had been changed before. the a/c was inoperative. *sc *jb

Vehicle started to hesitate when shifting, whining noise from rear end as well. over drive light on, then finally vehicle stopped engaging gears. 2002 explorer has been sitting in driveway for one year due to transmission failure. ford not willing to fix the problem. vehicle has 58000 miles. prior to this incident rear hatch window blew out two times with the second time glass blew off so violently it damaged paint on new vehicle (dealer and ford manufacturer refused to pay for repair and instructed me to file insurance claim) damage to other car was clearly due to defect in window hatch mechanism and they should pay. nothing has been done. *jb

I own a 2002 ford explorer xls bought new from the dealership. there was a recall issued in october 2004 for the rear lift glass hinge (04s20). i have been waiting over 2 months for parts to be available. it was finally repaired on 1/6/05 at keating ford dealership. today 1/9/05 my wife had driven to the gym and was called to the front desk. crackling had been heard by fellow gym members prior to the rear glass shattering to pieces and metal frame is buckled. no evidence of vandalism was present. the new parts must have been defective or installed improperly. i have filed a claim with my insurance company, liberty mutual. the representative stated she had a call a few days ago about a similar incident from another ford explorer owner. i have contacted my dealer and left a message but unfortunately, being a sunday, it is closed. *ak

1.events leading up to the failure -on more than one occasion while having my car at the dealer while in warranty i made note to the service individual,that some thing felt wrong when my car would shift in to another gear while moving .nothing was ever found wrong or any documentation was made. 2.failure and its consequences-as my vehicle reached 43,900 miles my transmission started to shift even more harder and sometimes would not go in to gear.the rear would vibrate to the point where it shook the vehicle hard. 3.what was done to correct the failure-when vehicle was taken to the dealer it was quickly brought to my attention that my vehicle was out of waranty and after diagonosing the problem that the trans assy solenoid had to be replaced. i had no choice but to fix this problem because the vehicle was up on a lift . this cost me a total of $976.91. i feel that i was led on until my warranty expired and that ford should covered the cost of this problem because this is a fairly new vehicle and it was not my fault that this part went bad.this part should be recalled.*ak

October 2001, i purchased a new 2002 ford explorer from don reid ford maitland, florida. i experienced one problem after the other with my windows and doors. first, the back half door came open and refused to close. the dealer repaired it. next, the replacement refused to work; the dealer ordered the part and repaired it. next, the entire back window, crashed to the ground. i placed the dragging part in the back of my truck and stopped at greenway ford. greenway refused the repair and sent me where i purchased it. don reid kept the truck a few days and repaired it. next, screws on the passenger side door came out, that door wouldn't close. fed up with repeated trips to don reid i had my husband fix it, the door came loose again. i'm at the limit on what i'll endure from a vehicle i'm paying nearly $500.00/mo for. it's not worth the pain i am experiencing. i almost died on august 26, 5:30 to 6:00 pm, when the locked driver's door suddenly swung open and closed on my arm. i was leaning on the armrest. the seat belt kept me from being thrown. i nearly ran off the road. my arm hurt and started to swell. the door refused to latch. i held the heavy door shut with my swollen arm and controled the truck with the other. i crawled 35 minutes to orlando. my hand was numb and i was scared to death. i pulled over to rest my numb arm. i pulled into winn dixie's parking lot and a customer, reversed into the back of my truck, adding to it's damages. still holding the door, i made it home. don reid, whom i had previously called, had closed. my arm hurts more than it did yesterday. fortunately, some of the swelling went down. my adjuster asked me to keep the truck. he's making towing arrangements. i'm seeing my doctor tomorrow for stronger meds. as a graduate i cannot afford time off. the door cannot close or lock. my husband has to leave work early to collect our daughters from school. enough is enough!*ak

13jan03-rear windshield washer inoperative reinstall rear washer hoses. 5nov03-clicking noise from rear a/c; replace motor assembly temperature blend. 5nov03&13nov03-l/r power mirrors inop; fuse blows; replaced mirror rear view outside sail mount 13nov03-fuel guage inop read 1/2 tank but tank was full; 20nov03-instrument cluster fuel gauge inop; 24nov03-removed and replaced instrument cluster; 18mar04-fuel guage inop & l/r power mirrors inop, fuse blows; could not duplicate problem at this time about fuel guage; tested bce for short, traced to mirror switch, replaced switch and blown fuse; 20 july 04-l/r power mirrors inop; replaced fuse; 20 july 04 - rear winshield washer inop; access washer hose and reconnect; 20 july 04- air conditioner not cooling properly; replaced blower motor for poor operation; motor assembly-heater-a/c blower replaced. 20 july 04 - mechanics broke the drivers door switch cover- 23 july 04 -reordered door panel and replaced drivers door switch cover.*ak

My ford explorer transmission it was at 36000 miles, my car was tuned and serviced as shudule, and it cost a total of $1700.00 to fix. which the car is only 2 year old. the air condition stop working in december of 2003 and at the time my car was barely 1 year old thier has been many other concern with my explorer that i am making $500.00 payment on. i belived i have purchase a defected car. *ak

2002 ford explorer 1. abs sensor light came on in march 2003. took car to ford dealership and they replaced it. abs light went out for a short time. then, aug, 2003, abs light came on again. took into a dealership, they replaced the sensor. abs light went out. but it came back on again soon afterward. in the meantime, my warranty expires. 2. failure to adequately diagnose this problem in the first place has lead to a bad rear hub assembly. now i have a repair outside my warranty that should have been taken care of in the first place. 3. ford refuses to acknowledge responsibility for their faulty problem. they require that i pay for a diagnosis to find out what the problem is. being that this is related to something that they have a history on during my warranty period, they should be responsible for the repairs and costs. *ak

The automatic gear shift broke. could not change gears. electric windows stopped working both driver and passenger. air conditioner broke - air conditioner clutch make rubbing noise when engaged.

The rear axle seals at the gear case have failed twice causing axle fluid to leak. the dealer has replaced each time saying that "ford has an issue" with these seals but they do not have a lasting repair. not all 2002 ford explorers have this problem. *jb

Vehicle runs at idle for approximately 20 with ac on either auto or recycled air. the external temperature starts to count down to 50 degrees and stays there until vehicle is traveling again. this causes the auto temp to adjust.

Within four months from date of purchase my 2002 ford explorer xlt 4wd start having problems. they are: 1. vibration inside including physical movement inside when driving with rear window crack over 30 mph. the faster you drive the grater the vibration. i took the explorer to several dealers, they inform me that this is normal and it's refer to as helicopter effect. 2. the digital keypad stop working. 2. the keys don't open the door 3. the transmission slip, kick and delays when put in drive or reverse. 4.transmission delays going into overdrive. 5.the passenger side quarter panel glass shatter twice, at first i taught someone had broke it and my son reported it to the police. the insurance company replace it and few months later in my garage it shatter again and that's when it all came together. this time my son fix it for me. 6.theres also a winding some coming from under the suv and my son thinks it have something to do with the diff, keeping the vibration in mind. 6. the latch that secure the rear where the jack handle is located broke. *tr

The smell of mold is coming out of the a/c. all the dealership did was deodorize the vents. the musty odor persists. i have read that others have the same problem with their 2002 ford explorers. *la

The roof rack (which was factory equipment) separated from the roof of the vehicle. the consumer felt that the rack was liable to come off and cause damage to motorist driving behind his vehicle. also the abs light illuminated intermittently and stayed on. the consumer had the abs problem repaired several times already. the manufacturers was aware of the problem. *jb

The roof rack (which was factory equipment) separated from the roof of the vehicle. the consumer felt that the rack was liable to come off and cause damage to motorist driving behind his vehicle. also the abs light illuminated on intermittently and stayed on. the consumer had the abs problem repaired several times already. the manufacturers was aware of the problem. *jb

I am currently involve in a dispute with ford motor compny regarding repairs to my 2002 ford explorer. in brief, the truck was diagosed by ford with internal engine failure, ford claims that sent the truck to them with (5) five quarts of oil missing, i have doucumentation showing that ford did the last oil change within the timeline of maintanence as per ford maintantience manual. ford is claiming that i am responsible for thefull amount verbally estamated at $5000.00.

Dangerous crack occurred in 2002 ford explorer rear liftgate in dec. 2002, was repaired. recurred in sep. 2005, and ford refused to repair 2 weeks after warranty had expired, even though part was defective and vehicle had only 28,000 miles. applique may come off, threatening structural integrity of liftgate and glass. internet shows dozens of customers had exactly the same problem. *jb

While driving the vehicle at 15mph the spare tire cable split and the tire collapse, dealer has been notified. nlm

Consumer states of having problems with the air conditioner. dealer was contacted. mr

Consumer stated that every time he cuts on the air condition, it blows out a bad smell. ph

I have had 4 wheel bearing/hub assembly units fail on my 2002 ford exployer. the first to go was after only 20k miles. the car now has ~70k miles and in the shop now for the same repair. a very costly repair and very dangerous situition. ford will not even acknowledge it is a probelm but understand is has been an on-going problem with many customers.

Excessive problems with transmission jerking, and shifting problems, purchased vehicle as brand new after 4 months contacted dealer where care was purchased regarding problem. brought vehicle in at least twice before problem was found.the transmission was replaced has since had the same problem along with other problems, vehicle stalling while driving, cd player power shuts off. rattling when hitting brakes. filed a complaint dealer refuses to buy car back ask me to trade car in with more money down. the dealer repair persons confirmed that they have had replaced at least 10 transmissions on the same style vehicle prior to my visit and recognized a pattern. but nothing has been done!!