Problems with 2005 Ford Explorer POWER TRAIN

From park, delay from 1 to 7 seconds for engagement for reverse (automatic trans), worse in warm weather. serious safety issue, as you may press on gas thinking you're in reverse, and then accelerate!! heard 1st hand from ford dealer this is well known, and sometimes severe. something with solenoid pack? happens often!

My explorer transmission just stopped working going down the highway, almost got hit by a truck. electrical system kept going in and out. checked with a ford dealership they said it was a common problem with explorers and there was no recall. i checked online and there was over 10,000 complaints made. i am in the military have 14 combat tours, and come home to have my life put in danger again on something that you all know about. when are you going to step in?

Transmission just failed on the highway. no forward or reverse gears. the occurrence of transmission failures for this vehicle is extremely high and well documented. the transmission on this vehicle is unreliable and unsafe because of poor engineering. my family was luck to not get rear ended on the highway resulting in injury or worse.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. while attempting to reverse the vehicle, the reverse gear shifter became inoperable. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 135,000.

The gear shifter/lever broke off into my hand when attempting to shift from park to reverse. the gear shifter/lever broke at the base, inside the steering column. the broken part seems to be a cast metal part, that the gear shifter/lever rotates to change gears. the fracture surface appears rough -- it is not clean. fortunately the car is stuck in park, not another gear, and in a safe place (parking garage). should this have happened when in any other gear i would have to turn off the car in that gear, if i had enough room to maneuver the car to a safe place. otherwise it would just have to sit wherever it was left, no matter how inconvenient to other drivers. i called ford and they state this is not a documented issue, therefore no recall or reimbursement is available. however, an internet search reveals this is has happened to many people, with pictures of the same exact break point that i have experienced. also, there are after-market replacement parts for this exact part, further hinting this is a known problem.

Vehicle engine while traveling, generally at high rates of speed greater than 40mph, will randomly turn off. there are no warning lights, no indication on the instrument panel. the engine just turns off. the only way of knowing is once the gas pedal is depressed to increase speed and then realized the car had turned off. this is happening more frequently. i had to by a new car. explorer just sits in the driveway. this happen randomly with no notice and generally while traveling at speeds above 40 mph

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that the transmission warning light randomly flashed and the vehicle shook and jerked violently at any rate of speed. the failure occurred for months. the vehicle was taken to a mechanic who stated that the transmission needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 69,000.

Vehicle transmission begining to slip, soon will ahve no 4th gear or reverse. the vehicle is up to date with matinanace and everything mileage is still below 95,000 miles. this is an outrage that the ford company is aware of this problem and no recall has been reported.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. while attempting to reverse, the vehicle suddenly jerked backwards while the brakes were applied. the failure occurred on numerous occasions. there were no warning indicators illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the issue could not be duplicated. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified. the failure mileage was 93,434. *tt updated 7/2/18*jb *tr

Transmission grinds/slips going from 2 to 3 gear.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. while driving at 20 mph making a turn, the 4 wheel drive warning light illuminated and failed to turn off. in addition, the wheels seized and emitted an abnormal noise. the contact stated that the vehicle stalled and restarted shortly afterwards. the failure recurred several times. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was unknown. the vin was not available.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that while trying to reverse at a low speed, an abnormal noise was heard before the vehicle suddenly jerked backwards. the failure occurred constantly. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. the contact mentioned that the gear lever in the reverse position failed to operate after three months of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 94,000.

In nov of 2014 we took the car to the local ford dealer for 100k mile service. we told them to check the drive train because when you put the car in reverse there would be a slight hesitation then a clunk then the car would begin to move. they said there was no issue and they installed a computer upgrade to improve the shifting. they also changed the tranny fluid. then in march of 2015 when you put the car in reverse the transmission began slipping and got worse in a couple of days. we took it to the local dealer again and they took 2 weeks to figure out the transmission needed replaced. they said $3500 for a remanufactured transmission and i would have to pay for all of it. *tr

Im not sure if this should be with engine section but i didn't see a transmission part. i was driving my suv and transmission light in the message center came on and said , over drive on /off kept flashing . took to a body shop nearby they diagnosed the problem to be the transmission. with further investigation mechanic told me that second / third gear was gone . i ended up spending $4500 for new transmission to be installed. the mechanic informed me that it is a common problem with the 2005 ford explorers. *tr

As i was driving in traffic, the panel suddenly started beeping and flashing lights and my car would not change gears. the o/d light came on and the information center indicated there was something wrong with my transmission. now the car will not shift into 3rd gear until it reaches very high rpm and when it does shift it is very hard. i drive the car to and from work a total of 6 miles a day and almost never on the highway. it is almost 10 years old and it only has 70,000 miles. i've heard this has been a problem with ford transmissions for over 10 years but they refuse to take responsibility for the defect. i have been buying ford cars since 1995 but this will be my last. too many other problems that they refuse to fix. *tr

Car suddenly quit and the engine fail safe light came on. computer scan showed the throttle actuator/control was stuck closed, and could clear any codes. vehicle would not move at all.. i had to have it towed back to my home. engine would not run at more than an idle with the accelerator fully depressed, and there would be no change in the rpm. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact was driving 40 mph on an incline when the vehicle stalled without warning. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for inspection where the contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced or rebuilt. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the issue. the approximate failure mileage was 121,000.

On september 26, 2013, i took my 2005 ford explorer to the ford dealer (freeway ford in bloomington, mn) because i was having problems when i put the vehicle into reverse. at times it hesitates to go into reverse and then clunks into the gear. this has been happening for about 1 year. the diagnosis was of course my transmission solenoid. i cant afford to have my vehicle repaired at the cost of $1,300 plus taxes and i don't feel safe driving my explorer in this condition, but i have no choice at this point. i went online to carcomplaints.com and found 94 complaints with the same issues on the 2005 ford explorers. in one of the complaints sent to carcomplaints.com - a woman wrote that she sent a complaint letter to the dept of consumer affairs about the issues with the 2005 ford explores, they get back to her to tell her that the ford dealer will put the repair under some type of warranty program and just charge me $100 bucks to replace the solenoid. this seems to be a defect in the ford explorers made in 2005, so why have the vehicles not been recalled and why should i have to be responsible for the repair cost? [xxxx] *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)

Our 2005 ford explorer has only 60 thousand miles and we have had to replace the transmission. our mechanic has told us that this should not have happened at 60 thousand miles, and another mechanic told us that ford vehicles are starting to become known for the bad transmissions. after reading some complaints online, i have decided to report this, as many ford customers have had to have transmissions replaced at very low mileage. ford should consider a recall. *tr

The vehicle shuts off while driving causing loss of power steering, power brakes with a complete loss of power. this is an ongoing problem and has happend during highway high speed driving. it happens on cars built 11/24/04 and prior. the codes are p2106 and p2135. it's caused by a faulty throttle position sensor and requires a powertrain control module reset b36.11, b37.2 or higher. this has been an ongoing problem thar ford readily ackowledges. they have ugraded the throttle position sensor twice without solving the problem.

Gearshift lever can be moved from park without stepping on brake pedal. it can be moved into any position, even when key is removed. *tr

Driving along and vehicle seemed to slow way down, in traffic. tried to give it more gas, but realized that it seemed to be out of gear and then all of a sudden it clunked really hard into gear and sped up. very dangerous in florida interstate highway traffic!!! *tr

My 2005 ford has been in the dealership service center 3 different timesfor the same problem with the transmission. first time 2006 second 2010 this 2013. i'm told the solenoid pac the od bands are to blame all three times.i'm getting very frustrated with this car and ford motor companies inability to take care of this problem or to atleast except some responsibility for this.with this last failure they have given me to options rebuild again or put in a new transmission. why would i want to replace a crappy transmission with a new crappy transmission. is their any help with this? *tr

Transmission continues to go out and an investigation is needed for all 2005 ford explorer transmission problems after 120,000 miles. *tr

Complete transmission failure at 99k miles and cost to completely rebuild is $2400. car has been maintained according to ford recommendations. transmission repair indicated this is a common issue with these transmissions used in ford explorers during these years. ford should perform a recall as this could cause accidents given the lack of warning before failure occurs. *tr

Transmission failure - driving home and the transmission failed. no drive, no reverse, does not go. i purchased this vehicle brand new and have had all of the recommended services performed by my local authorized ford dealer. after it failed, i searched the web for complaints, i should have done this before buying it. not very happy about the fact that ford is not doing anything for this very common failure!! i will warn all potential buyers of any ford products. *tr

Just bought this car. transmission was having trouble shifting gears and is now slipping. this should be a recall, as i have found too many complaints about this transmission falling apart. ford should fix this issue and replace with a different transmission. i don't want to spend thousands of dollars on a transmission that is bound to fail again. this is a blatant missed recall. the trans is model 5r55s. please recall this. *tr

Drove the vehicle to work and went to leave and i had no reverse. the transmission had been slamming into reverse and then engaging prior to this-but no slipping or anything else. i had the fluid changed and there were no teeth or any metal in the filter or pan-but this did not fix the problem. spoke with 3 transmission shops in my town and all told me the 05 explorers had junk transmissions. that the fluid in part of them from the factory was bad and the tranny itself was just a big mistake. this needs to be recalled- $1338 later, i have a rebuilt 'junk' transmission. i have owned fords in the past and loved them, but my explorer ended this lover affair. everywhere you look online there are complaints about this vehicle- and no one is making ford do anything about it. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that the vehicle was stopped and the gear shifter was shifted into park when it rolled forward until crashing into another vehicle. the vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and the contact was awaiting a response. the failure and the current mileages were 90,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated the gear shift was able to be moved from park to reverse and drive without the keys in the ignition or the vehicle being on. the contact stated that a child was able to move the gear shift while it was turned off and the vehicle rolled backwards. the contact was able to be stop the vehicle, get into it and apply the brake pedal. the manufacturer was notified of the defect and advised the contact the vehicle would not be inspected because there was no correction to be made or recall related to the vin. the vin was not available. the failure and current mileage was 100,000.

Took our 2005 ford explorer to service dept. before warranty expired-previously alexander ford, now ford of murfreesboro. the transmission had been slipping periodically at the time. they drove it & said nothing was noticeable. i indicated to them that it slipped maybe once or twice every month or so. now vehicle is out of warranty. i was driving in traffic and the transmission slipped on me. i had a car in front of me & when it finally let up, i almost hit the vehicle in front of me-with a baby in a car seat in the back seat. when i slammed on my breaks after the transmission kicked in, i suffered whiplash. it scared me to death. there appear to be so many transmission problems with the 2005 explorers. this is dangerous and someone should do something about it for a recall. they should have checked my vehicle out more extensively rather than barely drive it for a few minutes when it was under warranty. i could have injured a child & i did injure myself. *tr

While driving on the highway, transmission slippage occurred switching suddenly from drivinig to neutral, gear could not be changed unless vehicle was parked and brake pedal was pressed down. scary situation considering that i could be driving on the left lane. please consider this as a safety complaint and request for safety recall. *kb

While shifting into reverse sometimes there is a 3-4 second delay. it is also slamming into reverse at times. more frequent as time goes on. this is a know issue from tsb 05-15-4 causing by the ford factory failing to put an additive in the transmission fluid. this should be covered by ford. i'm now looking at a costly repair. *tr

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We bought our explorer new july 4th 2005, have had several problems but this is the worst. i have had the transmission checks done on time at 40,000 and 60,000 miles. i told them twice before the transmission was not right it was slipping. now that i finally paid them $200.00 for their test it shows the bands are about to break and it will be $3900.00 for a rebulit one. i have checked out the list of problems with there transmissions,so where is the recall,come on we can't all be wrong. looking for help in these hard times,being disabled and wife about to retire this price is absurd,because of all the other complaints. bought last two cars from ford ,don't think it will happen again. thanks for letting me vent. *tr

I have 2005 ford explorer that i was driving in freeway with speed of 60mph with 3 kids in the vehicle and my wife and just tranny failed and speed drop almost get in accident now i am without the car and without the work i did change my toyota to the american vehicle 2 years ago to help economy of usa and now i have no idea that where i get $3000.00 to replace the tranny. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer xlt. the contact stated that the gear shifter would sporadically move into neutral from park or drive without the key being in the ignition. the vehicle was not inspected by a dealer nor repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they advised him that there were no recalls for the particular failure. the failure mileage was 90,000.

On july 12, 2013, i took my 2005 ford explorer to the ford dealer where it was purchased because i was having problems when i put the vehicle into reverse. at times it's very difficult to put into reverse and when i put in reverse the vehicle jerks or lunges into gear. this has been happening for about 2 1/2 years. the diagnosis was of course my transmission. i cant afford to have my vehicle repaired at the cost of $3946.20 and i don't feel safe driving my explorer in this condition, but i have no choice at this point. i went online to carcomplaints.com and found 94 complaints with the same issues on the 2005 ford explorers. in one of the complaints sent to carcomplaints.com - a woman wrote that she sent a complaint letter to the dept of consumer affairs about the issues with the 2005 ford explores, they get back to her to tell her that the ford dealer will put the repair under some type of warranty program and just charge me $100 bucks to replace the solenoid. this seems to be a defect in the ford explorers made in 2005, so why have the vehicles not been recalled and why should i have to be responsible for the repairs?? *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that the vehicle failed to accelerate when the transmission was shifted into reverse. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the vehicle was repaired. the failure mileage was 53,000 and the current mileage was 70,000.

Today, i started our 2005 ford explorer to drive my two children to the bus stop. the electronic throttle control light on the instrument cluster went on out of the blue. i've had many cars but this is the first ford and since august we've put in an alternator, new engine and now the electronic throttle control light. our prior suv was a 1999 dodge durango and we didn't have to put any of these repairs into it. *tr

Repeated failure of 2005 ford explorer transmission model 5r55s. 3 total failures requiring complete overhaul in 3 years. repairs performed by same qualified independent and ford dealer recommended repair alternative facility. ford wouldn't provide a warranty at 90,000 mile first failure. most recent repair 2/24/2011 and 3rd costing $2500. mileage between 2nd and 3rd repairs-38,000 miles. present mileage 130,000 on vehicle. chassis mileage is high but 3 failures in 3 years on low mileage transmission between overhauls is not normal. *tr

2005 ford explorer transmission failing with mileage of 65k miles! was told by ford it would cost approximately $3500 plus tax to fix. called fmc and was told i had to work it out with the service dept at the dealership. no acknowledgment of other complaints by fmc main office or dealership; dismissed notion of any validity to complaints showing up online; was told that they would simply make note of it in their system and that was it! so far nothing serious has happened, but apparently others have not been so lucky. had a few close calls on the highway when trying to drive home from a funeral out of town. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated when shifting the gear selector there was a delayed response and the vehicle would lunge forward. the failure occurred intermittently. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the contact planned to notify the manufacturer regarding the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

2005 ford explorer. consumer writes in regards to steering column gear shifter problems. *smd the consumer stated on december 10, 2010 the steering column was replaced. unfortunately, the gear shift broke again for the third time. the consumer stated the entire steering column had to be replaced each time. *jb

2005 ford explorer front wheel bearings bad at 87,000 miles and ball joints have slack in them. ridiculous that a car this nice has such problems. lots of complaints about the same thing on the internet, rear end has a roar in it too, of course i can't afford to get this stuff fixed. ford should recall these auto and fix all these problems. this should not be happening on a new vehicle which has never pulled anything, only driven to work and back 12 miles a day and top speed is 45 miles per hour. last ford i will ever own. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer xlt. the contact stated that while driving 5 mph the right and left front rings on the axle fractured and locked up the brakes. the vehicle was inspected by a independent mechanic who repaired the left front axle ring. the front right ring has not been repaired. the failure mileage was 57,000.

This incident refers to a 2005 ford explorer eddie bauer vin # [xxx]. after making an investment to purchase a vehicle, one should not have to worry about the safety of himself or family because the gear shifter broke off of the steering column. this is what has happened to me, then going to the ford dealer for a part and being told it cost 1300.00 dollars to replace the entire steering column. when the cheap white metal that held it together just sheared off. does a death need to occur to do something about this? information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Bought 2005 ford explorer with only $5700 miles on vehicle. by the time i had 60k miles, o/d light started flashing and i had to get new transmission. now my vehicle has 125k miles and o/d light is on again. will need another transmission. both times, vehicle does not shift gears correctly and sounds like your transmission is going to fall out while driving down the road. *tr

While traveling on vacation from california to oregon on i-5, the vehicle began to shake, shutter, then clunk. "od off" light came on, along with a warning indicating check transmission. loud whirling noise coming from transmission. it felt like there was no power, and the vehicle was going to stop. i was able to get over to the offramp, to get off the freeway. i did not feel it was safe to try to get back up to freeway speeds, as there seemed to be little power. due to the sudden loss of power, i had the vehicles behind me, right on my bumper. vehicle was purchased new, and has been serviced at all required intervals. vehicle has 48,000 miles. made it into a ford dealer in oregon, and was told after placed on a diagnostic machine, and all warning codes cleared it may be safe to drive back to california. went about 300' from the dealership and "od off" light came on, "service vehicle soon" light came on, and check transmission warning came on. drove it back into the dealership, and they removed the transmission pan, and diagnosed the problem as internal transmission failure. found metal, and clutch material. cost to replace transmission $3,657. *tr

I drive a 2005 ford explorer. for the last 6 months or so, when i shift the car into drive or reverse, the car jumps while i have my foot on the brake *tr