Problems with 2016 Ford Explorer STEERING

The steering makes popping and grinding noise when turning left or right. had vehicle inspected at a trusted garage i use, they said that the rack and pinion was shot. the vehicle has approximately 53165 miles on it. the majority is highway miles.

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. the contact stated that while driving at 5 mph, making a left turn the steering wheel ceased with the remote hill start assist not available service advance trac, power steering assist warning light illuminated. the contact veer to the shoulder of the road placed the vehicle in park turned the vehicle off and back on which failed to resume normal operation. the vehicle was towed to bommarito ford located at (675 dunn rd, hazelwood, mo 63042, (314) 895-0600 where a diagnostic test was still pending. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 28,000.

Loss of ease of steering driving in frigid wind chill night time north dakota weather. my wife was strong enough to strong arm steer and drive the vehicle the 40 plus miles home. a definite safety issue- an internet search revealed numerous complaints and complete steering failure on the electronic steering apparatus installed on this make and model. the repair costs could amount to $3000. the fact that these problems and steering apparatus failure is occurring on lower mileage vehicles is very concerning. our vehicle has 56,700 odometer miles. this issue is definitely a safety issue and ford motor company must be held accountable. the nearest ford dealership is 75 miles away from our rural farm location- i expect i will have to transport our vehicle to the dealership for repairs.

While driving 70 mph on i81 in va the power steering on our 2016 ford explorer with less than 70,000 miles died. the only warning was a message on the dash saying "lane keeping syst malfunction" and "steering assist fault." after wrestling the car to a safe site i shut if off. upon restarting the car the steering returned to normal. while driving to the nearest ford dealer to have it checked out if failed again. the dealership performed pinpoint test b for u3000 code stored in the pscm. their recommendation was replacement of the electric power steering gear asy (p/n fb5z3504w) at a cost of $2,300. i inquired if there were any recalls or safety bulletins issued regarding premature failure of the power steering in which they indicated there wasn't. this is a safety issue, the car is difficult to control at high speeds and almost impossible to control at slow speeds especially if your making a turn. without strong upper body strength, you can easily have an accident. based on my experience with this issue, i strongly recommend a safety bulletin and a recall be issued.

I purchased this 2016 for explorer limited in august of 2016 with 18,000 miles on it. now at just below 60,000 miles in january of 2020, i had the experience of my steering gear going out which in turn cost me $2200.00. who would of thought that after only 3 years, the steering gear would go bad in a practically brand new vehicle? while driving the vehicle, the steering wheel would lock up and i would have to forcefully turn it to veer back in my lane on the city streets as well as on the highway. in michigan, that was really dangerous especially in the snowy conditions. i don't understand how there is not a recall on the obvious defective parts. there is no way a driver can brake the electronic steering gear.

When turning the steering wheel to the right there is a distinct clunking sound. i have read multiple blogs where many similar stories are being told and it seems there's a defect in the steering gear expierencing internal failure prematurly. owners are saying their vehicles will drift in the lane and the steering becomes loose and uncontrollable. ford dealers are charging $2,500 to replace the parts causing this extreme safety issue. this needs to be recalled and fixed now, who can afford such an expensive repair on something this critical. ford needs to step up and take responsibility. we took our vehicle in at 56,000 and they said nothing was wrong. at 68,326 miles we took in again because it got worse. this happens when you turn to the right and i hear it at slow speeds when parking or just right turns.

While operating the vehicle, approximately 45mph, the car started to jar, then the power steering was lost, moments later the dash lit up with a slew of traction and steering warnings.less than a mile from home i wrestled it home. no leaks observed, my husband started it, and tried to turn the wheel, seized completely. towed it to northhampton ford in massachusetts the following morning. after diagnosis the steering rack and computer control has to be replaced. $2800+ to repair. ford knows of this, please issue a recall..help..

When turning the steering wheel to the right there is a distinct clunking sound. i have read multiple blogs where many similar stories are being told and it seems there's a defect in the rack and pinion. owners are saying their vehicles will drift in the lane and the steering becomes loose and uncontrollable. ford dealers are charging at least $2000.00 to replace the parts causing this extreme safety issue. i know of the recall for the rear suspension but this is very different. this needs to be recalled and fixed now, who can afford such an expensive repair on something this critical. ford needs to step up and take responsibility. my vehicle has 65,000 miles. this happens when you turn to the right and i hear it at slow speeds when parking or just right turns.

When turning the steering wheel to the right there is a distinct clunking sound. i have read multiple blogs where many similar stories are being told and it seems there's a defect in the rack and pinion. owners are saying their vehicles will drift in the lane and the steering becomes loose and uncontrollable. ford dealers are charging at least $2000.00 to replace the parts causing this extreme safety issue. i know of the recall for the rear suspension but this is very different. this needs to be recalled and fixed now, who can afford such an expensive repair on something this critical. ford needs to step up and take responsibility. my vehicle has 65,000 miles. this happens when you turn to the right and i hear it at slow speeds when parking or just right turns.

I was driving down the highway and i got errors saying my advace trac system needed to be serviced. also that my power steering failed and i needed to pull the vehicle over safely. i was going about 65mph and my power steering went out!. i had to take an offramp shortly after (i was on my way to work) and it was difficult to steer the vehicle. very dangerous!

The power steering was inoperative when stationary and the vehicle was parked overnight in my garage and temp was below freezing. the steering was locked up and you could not turn the steering wheel. after the vehicle was running for about 20 to 30 minutes (trying to move steering wheel back & forth) it would let you then to turn the steering wheel. it did this 3 times and i had a ford dealer check it out. they replaced the steering sector and it repaired the problem. one of the times the steering locked up it also was binding when i started moving and turning the steering wheel. i feel if the steering sector failed in about 4 years is safety item and should be recalled and owners refunded for this type of failure. it cost about $2300.00 to have it repaired. if this failure happened when driving i would have lost 100% of the steering.

Steering locked up while driving, was able to slow down safely but could have been really bad if going at higher speed or around a curve. was able to stop and really force wheel to turn a bit. dealer stated i needed to replace rack and pinion. $2500, but more of a safety issue to me

Loud knocking in the front end when making turns. assumed it was the sway bar bushing needing replacement based on searches, however after having the vehicle a week the dealership has determined that it is a faulty steering gear. i'm submitting this complaint so that there are more of these documented out there. my vehicle was still operational when i took it in, however reading similar stories and problems of other owners, it could have been worse and resulted in a loss of steering control. additionally when talking with ford customer relations department they said at 37,500 the vehicle is out of warranty and they will not do anything to correct it. i'm concerned with such low mileage there appears to be a large risk to other owners.

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. while driving 60 mph, the steering seized for approximately 20 minutes and the traction control and steering assist fault warning indicators illuminated. the contact veered to the shoulder of the road and turned off and restarted the vehicle; however, it did not resume normal operation. the vehicle was towed by an independent towing company to the contact's residence. arundel ford (1561 portland rd, arundel, me 04046, (800) 889-7171) was contacted and scheduled a diagnostic appointment. the vehicle was not repaired and the failure recurred multiple times. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and did not assist. the failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

My car was completely totaled in an accident on 10/21/19. i received very serious multiple brain bleeds, facial lac, facial & head fx's & a severe tbi. my mom rec a concussion, facial lac concussion & a fx clavicle. we stopped at the stop sign & moved to the center between the 4 lanes & stopped again & we were hit by a large roll on roll off rock carrying dump truck in the middle of the lanes. the car was completely totaled & i was in a coma & airlifted to a trauma ctr approx 40 mins away, but i was in resp arrest & not expected to live. it is unknown exactly what caused the unsafe conditions, however i never cross straight across the traffic & we had been on a very very bumpy intersection the fri before the acc on monday & the car had not been driven since that 5 hr trip of extremely bumpy rough road conditions on interstate 95 coming through part of nc, all of sc & part of ga.

At around 75k miles the steering began to making popping/grinding noises. the sound resolved within the same trip and stopped. it's been two months and the grinding sound returned while driving this weekend on a winding road with my two year in the back seat. while driving around a corner at moderate speed (35-40 mph), the steering wheel briefly stuck and brought my vehicle to the edge of the pavement before i gained control again. the sticking persisted around corners and while turning both directions. once unstuck, the steering felt loose and near unpredictable. the vehicle is now at a local ford dealership who confirmed it's a result of rack and pinion failure and quoted around $2500 to repair. they confirmed this is common in explorers. my research also shows hundreds of reports and complaints exactly as mine, often in frightening and life threatening circumstances. there is serious potential for fatal outcomes with the nature and frequency of this malfunction.

The first time my steering wheel got stiff was on 09/13/2019 while trying to make a left turn on a city street. in the process of making the left turn the steering wheel got stiff, and the steering fault hill start and trac lights went on. i was unable to control the wheel which cause me to get onto of the side walk almost hitting a tree. i had to hit my breaks in order to avoid the accident. my kids body jerk back and forth really hard. i turn my car off and back on, and the steering wheel was working again. i was able to drive home safely. the second time the steering wheel got stiff was on 10/05/2019. while on the a curve of ramp to get out out the freeway the steering wheel got stiff again, and the steering fault , hill start and trac lights went on as well. once again i had to hit the breaks hard in order to avoid hitting the rail, as i was not able to control the steering wheel. i try turning my car off and back on again to see if the steering wheel would work again but it still did not work. i had to call my husband to come and pick me up. i took the car to the dealer and i was told that they had to replace the whole power steering equipment which cost me a total of $2350.39.

Within the past 2 weeks, on 2 separate occasions, the power steering has gone out while driving. ford has stated that there is no recall. the ford dealership in phoenixville, pa stated on 9/25/19 that the issue is with c200d code for motor rotation angle sensor. they gave an estimate that the part is 1500 and labor 500.

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. while driving 35 mph, the steering wheel seized without warning. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the contact was informed that the rack and pinion motor was seizing. the vehicle was not repaired. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing or repairs. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 72,000.

My 2016 explorer just reached 85,000 miles when i started to hear a popping sound from the front end of my vehicle, while i was parking, the next day as i was turning onto a city street the steering wheel locked for a second followed by a loud pop. i took the car to sanderson ford dealership and they advised me, my rack and pinion needs replaced. ($2,500) repair cost

My vehicle intermittently displayed 'steering fault. service now' message on my dashboard. unfortunately at first, i didn't think much of it since it happened so infrequently and the steering wasn't too noticeable. had i known then what i know now, i would have recorded it the first time it occurred. it wasn't until i hit around 25,000 miles that the steering was slightly difficult. i was driving through my town and found it noticeably harder to turn the steering wheel around corners. the same warning appeared on the dash, to which i scheduled an appointment. when i took it in to be serviced for the previous recall, i requested for them to look into the message. turns out i have a faulty epas in my vehicle, estimating around $2,200 to replace. when i contacted ford customer service, they reviewed my case and denied any coverage for this replacement.

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. when making left or right turns or slightly turning the steering wheel, the steering wheel seized without warning. the contact had to jerk the steering wheel in order for it to turn. on another occasion, while driving, the contact had to depress the brake pedal quickly because the vehicle pulled to the left, the steering wheel seized, and the engine turned off. the vehicle was restarted and was able to drive normally to the contact's residence. the contact stated that the vehicle did not have power steering fluid. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to nhtsa. the approximate failure mileage was 92,000. *bf *tp

2016 ford explorer xlt. electric power steering gear failure. has 82,000 kms on it. $1900 for part. total repair quoted at $2700 + tax in canada.

At just 36,300 miles the electronic steering rack has failed. a simple google search shows numerous ford vehicles with this electronic steering system having issues with as many or less miles. of course it is out of the bumper to bumper coverage at this point. the steering mechanism felt as though it was a manual steering system when it failed as i was on my way home from work on a very busy highway. the wheel doesn't return to center after turning and needs to be brought back manually. i'm glad this didn't result in a crash but easily could have. ford should issue a recall before someone gets killed. at a cost of over $2000 dollars for the repair, i haven't been able to afford it and have had to rely on others to get back and forth to work.

2016 ford explorer xlt, 86000 miles. steering sticking while turning left/right while traveling at all speeds. there is also a popping noise when turning right at low speeds. after investigation i have found the is a rack & pinion problem that ford refuses to recall. many instances of steering wheels locking while driving which could potentially be fatal. repair costs for replacement are $2000-$3000. this should not happen on a 3 year old vehicle, and definitely not to amount of vehicles that are showing the same issue. consumer safety is definitely not being taken into consideration for this defect. it appears money is the driving force for not recalling this issue by ford.

Traveling south on hwy65 in alabama, we stopped at a rest stop. when we started the explorer back up, the power steering assist fault error message came on and we did not have power steering at all. we drove to another exit and turned off the explorer and the error message was gone and we had power steering back. we traveled back home and i call my local ford dealer for an appointment. i was just informed that i need a new electronic steering gear at $2500. my 2016 explorer has about 47,000 miles. this is unacceptable to have a power steering issue on an explorer with low mileage. i believe this is an on-going problem with ford and the earlier recalls of this same issue with explorers. accidents are going to happen, which will be tragic knowing ford could recall and repair this issue before someone is killed when their power steering just goes out!

My vehicle was in motion, when i heard an odd noise. i stopped and decided to move only to hear a grinding noise any time i turned steering to left or right. went to the chantilly ford dealership in virginia. it was diagnosed as a steering rack pinion problem which cost just over $2000

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. while driving 30 mph, a buzzing noise occurred and the power steering assist fault warning indicator displayed "service now". in addition, the steering wheel seized. the contact press the ok button and continue to drive without power steering to his residence. the contact stated that the failure recurred on three several occasions. the contact called grove city ford (1 taylor plaza, grove city, pa 16127, (724) 748-4790) and butler county ford (400 s main st, butler, pa 16001, (724) 287-2766) and scheduled an appointment. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for diagnostic testing. the manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided case number: crs242007579. the approximate failure mileage was 53,110.

I was parked, when a loud sound came from the motor area of my 2016 ford explorer. the service advance track and the steering failure light came on about. i brought the car to dealer and they said that the rack and pinion is leaking, evan that only had 32, 000 miles is not covered by warranty because expires a few months ago, and is going to cost $2,230.00 for the parts and labor. the day before i was with all my family having fun and driving around, i'm thinking if this part breaks while we was at interstate 70, that the speed limits is 70mph, and you lose control of the vehicle, it will be a really bad or fatal accident. there being a lot of reports with this issue. what ford and the nhtsa are waiting to take accion, that more incident ocurred or people died to do a recall. like they are doing with the air bags after a many people died. please take action today, don't wait until is to late.

At approx 65k miles i noticed the steering wheel becoming stiff and a noise of plastic rubbing in the steering column. today at 67k miles i took vehicle into ford dealer for another recall to be told the rack is bad. seeing as this is such an abundant issue with these vehicles, i'm trying to understand how this isn't a safety recall. if this part fails while driving it could lead to a catastrophic crash. honestly i'm afraid to have the dealer replace it with an identical part since there is obviously an issue with the part is it is currently being produced.

My husband was driving down the road when a bunch of errors started popping up including steering assist fault, service advance track, service hill descent, etc. the steering on my car immediately locked up and he could barely get the car turned off the road before it shut down. it almost caused an accident as we were nearly rear-ended. i travel the interstate daily and had this happened on the interstate instead of a city street it could have resulted in a deadly accident. i use this car to transport my infant around and it is not safe at all. an error like this could kill my whole family.

We experienced popping noises on the front end while turning at intersections, pulling in and out of driveway and parking spots. due to having to replace worn tires at 32k, we took to local quick lane at our st joseph ford dealership. we reported the popping noises at this time and requested it be looked at while they replaced tires. there were no finds at this time regarding what was making the noises. we continued to experience occasional popping noises while turning at intersections, pulling in/out of driveway and parking spots. on 8/8/19, we took to same dealership service department to perform fsa19s17, a recall where the rear suspension toe link was replaced at 38205mi. a 4-wheel alignment was also done at this time. on 8/23/19, we noticed the popping had gotten worse. on 8/26/19, the steering briefly seized rounding a corner at approximately 30-35mph. it scared my wife, as she felt a brief loss of control of the vehicle. on 8/28/19 we dropped it off at the same dealership and reported that popping was worse and the steering had seized. after the test drives and assessment they called to report that the steering rack was failing and would need replaced. they quoted $2900.00 for repairs. we have not agreed to pay for this repair. we have since discovered this is a well known issue by ford and other vehicle owners of the same make and model. we are reporting in hopes that ford will recall to rectify this serious safety issue.

While taking a 250 mile trip up the coast of california, we stopped for gas. when the 2016 ford explorer was turned back on, a "steering assist fault" error message appeared on the dashboard and i realized i no longer had power steering. the power steering never returned after that. i had to drive the vehicle 250 miles back home with no power steering. i took it to the local ford dealer, and i was told the repairs would not be covered under any warranty since my vehicle now has just over 50,000 miles on it. i am waiting for the estimate on the repairs.

I was driving down the highway and all of a sudden all the warning lights for the power steering starting flashing on my dash and my steering locked up. i almost had an accident going down the road. the garage i have taken it to have told me that the power steering control module and the rack and pinion are what needs replacing and it's $1950.00. i've read hundreds of other people's stories about this exact same thing happening to them and costing them anywhere from $2-$4000 to fix. and it's always happening when the vehicles are around 20-40,000 miles and it's always been ford explorers 2016-2018 models. my explorer is at 102,000 miles. there needs to be a recall on these parts asap before someone dies from this happening!

Issues started with several electrical glitches that occurred and still occur consistently with no resolution. battery was "fried" and replaced, sync module was replaced, now the glitches include a frozen steering column while driving and a "charging system service now" light that comes on and off while stationary and driving. also passenger side view mirror gets stuck outwards, interior electrical malfunctions. truck is no longer under warranty and i am tired of paying $150 diagnostic fees with no resolution.

Driving and lost full power steering control of vehicle. ford had to replace power steering with only 47,900 miles on vehicle.

While driving my 2016 ford explorer, the power steering became loose and making a grinding noise in the front end. the vehicle was taken to a local ford dealership and was diagnosed with a steering rack issue. needs to be replaced. ford motor co will not pay for the repair. this is clearly a safety issue. more importantly, while my vehicle was being diagnosed, two additional ford explorers were brought to the same dealership for the same problem. ford needs to recall these vehicles and make these safety repairs. prior to bringing the vehicle to ford for diagnostics i took a video of the damage and the grinding sounds in the front end.

My steering problem started while driving, which began with a popping noise when backing up and then a grinding noise while turning left or right when driving forward. the problem quickly progressed and the vehicle became difficult to turn left or right when i was driving in traffic at around 30 mph. i had to muscle the steering wheel to turn the vehicle and managed to drive to the nearest garage. this same garage was very aware of this problem with the ford explorer and repaired my vehicle at a cost of $2417.74. from the time the steering problem began to the time the vehicle could not be driven was less than four hours. this problem is very dangerous and there should be a recall for it asap!!.

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. while driving approximately 45 mph, the steering seized. the contact regained control of the steering and drove to purvis ford lincoln (3660 jefferson davis hwy, fredericksburg, va 22408, (540) 898-3000). the dealer diagnosed that the rack and pinion failed. the manufacturer was contacted and provided case number: 23972804. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 33,000.

Had just returned to baton rouge,la from biloxi ms, stop to drop off our traveling guest at their home restarted the vehicle and a steering assist error code appeared alone with two other codes uphill start and one for traction. there was no warning or indication something was wrong

I was driving 55mph on the highway when my power steering stopped working. it was very hard to drive and control the car. i could of easily crashed and kill myself or someone else. i had just purchased this car less then a week before and i took it to the ford dealership i bought it from. they said they could not cover it and i have to pay over $2000 to get it fixed.

I was parked at the airport. when i started my car i received a warning "steering assist fault service required" the power steering was completely disabled and i was not able to drive the vehicle without great difficulty. i had to drive it home and it was extremely dangerous. the vehicle was parked when i got the warning.

Steering rack/steering gear failure causing car to lose control and run off road into shoulder/ditch. alloy wheel bent with running off road. no injury or bodily harm as this occurred in a low traffic area at about 30mph. steering wheel would lock into turns. car steering wheel very hard to turn car uncontrollable at any higher rate of speed. not covered under manufacture warranty or recall. mileage at failure: 53257 part # fb5z*3504*v gear asy- steering cost $1310.40 after labor and tax repair total came to $1826.60

On the highway with my family in the car "steering fault" light came on and the steering wheel got hard to turn. luckily i was close to home and started going home. juat as i pulled into my drive way "steering loss" light came on amd i could no longer turn my steering wheel. luckily no one was injured. having the vehicle towed to dealership.

While in motion the vehicles steering suddenly became "sticky" and making a grinding sound. shortly after the car became hard to control while in motion because it had lost power steering. the car is only 3 years old and the repair is very expensive as well as not guaranteed because the part is fatly and it can happen again.

Turning steering wheel makes a grinding noise. steering gets stuck when turning left or right and has to be forced back to center. does not return on its own. happens while sitting or driving. if you make a turn on the street it will send you off the road or into another lane if you do not force the steering wheel back. the steering rack is bad. 3 year old explorer. after researching more almost every other year of explorer in the teens has had a recall for the steering gear except 15/16. there are a lot of complaints for 2016 steering gears. are we waiting for someone to get killed first?

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. while driving various speeds, the power steering made a grinding noise while the vehicle was making a turn. also, the steering wheel became stiff and resistant without warning. ted britt ford of chantilly (ford building, 4175 auto park cir, chantilly, va 20151, (703) 454-0008) was contacted and stated that diagnostic testing was needed. the vehicle was diagnosed and repaired. the manufacturer was notified 5 times. the failure mileage was 37,000.

At 40,906 miles the steering totally failed. i was driving home from work and lost all steering capability, the wheel effectively locked up. towed to dealer. a steering module inside the gearbox failed. from what i have read, this is a common issue with the epds system. the entire gear assembly was replaced for a total of $2,234.22 with labor. after over a dozen different calls to fomoco customer service, they agreed to compensate me a total of $525.00 this is an extremely dangerous issue and i am concerned it will happen again.

Tl* the contact owns a 2016 ford explorer. while driving various speeds, the power steering malfunctioned and the steering wheel became very difficult to turn in either direction. in addition, the message "steering fault" was displayed. the vehicle was taken to keith hawthorn ford (617 north main st, belmont, nc) where it was diagnosed that the steering column needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 88,000.

Dash warning message states "steering system fault". power steering no longer active. extremely difficult to turn wheel. had to muscle car to safe lane. not drive-able.