Complaint volume
711 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2018 Ford Explorer Complaints
711 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2018 Ford Explorer, grouped by component category.
711 Total complaints
14 Crash reports
7 Fire reports
12 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are structure, unknown or other, engine. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 14 crash reports, 7 fire reports, 12 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 284 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 53,609 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to structure, unknown or other, engine?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2018 Ford Explorer?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2018 Ford Explorer
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2018 Ford Explorer complaints?
14 Crash
7 Fire
12 Injury
0 Fatality
30 Towed
5 Medical attention
What are the most common 2018 Ford Explorer complaint categories?
STRUCTURE 250
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 114
ENGINE 57
POWER TRAIN 27
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 21
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 18
SUSPENSION 15
BACK OVER PREVENTION 12
STEERING 11
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 11
711 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2024 | STRUCTURE | The contact owns a 2018 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at approximately 65 MPH, the passenger side A-pillar detached from the vehicle. The contact called the dealer and informed the contact that the parts were not yet available for the NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V031000 (Structure). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | Heat stopped working in Dec. Had it checked by local mechanic coolant very low but couldn’t find leak. Heat was working and no check engine light ever went on. About month later had car back for oil change and mechanic found leak, again no check engine or warning ever came on. Finally got appt at ford dealer $3000 to repair and was told would take 11 hrs. Ten days later car was supposed to be fixed. Pick up car. Next day when heat was put on there was a terrible burning rubber smell and now a very load noise which wasn’t there when vehicle was dropped off | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Received letter for FORD Recall #20N11 Roof Rack becoming unattached while driving. Went to viva ford and dealership said there was no remedy for it at the moment. Roof rack has already started lifting, was only instructed they can put glue which is useless due to glue not adhering in the hot temperatures. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2024 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | On February 9, 2024 I was headed to work as a ICU Charge Nurse. I was driving about 65 mph on the highway and suddenly my engine failed. My engine completely turned off. I wasn’t able to press the gas to accelerate. My steering wheel also locked so I had no control over my vehicle anymore. Eventually, smoke started to come from my engine. I nearly lost my life with no control over my vehicle. Someone could have hit me from the spontaneous failure of the engine. This was extremely traumatic for me. I bought this car from a Ford dealership and get all my services done through Ford. On January 24, 2024 I took my car to Ford for a multi-point inspection, oil change, and tire rotation. I also got a fuel system change. I had no warning lamps, messages, or any symptoms that the vehicle would fail prior to the incident. I got my vehicle towed to the dealership of purchase. They reported that it was an internal failure of the engine from a broken water pump. This is an ongoing issue that Ford is aware of. How does a water pump fail with no indication? Why hasn’t there been a recall on Ford’s water pump and engine failure. How many people have to lose their lives before a safety recall is issued. I was lucky to survive that but others may not be. Please help! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Unknown | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | In addition to this recall on my vehicle, NHTSA Recall Number: 24V031. This is not the only problem around the windows but the pillars on the driver and passenger doors are coming off as well. When we were looking at other Ford explorers on 1/1/23. We noticed that this is a common issue with all the Ford explorers that we looked at. Please look into fixing that as well! I am attaching 4 pictures to show the already recalled parts as well as driver and passenger doors. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | STRUCTURE | I have a 2018 Explorer that may be involved in the Ford recall for the windshield trimpieces that may come loose. I may not have that issue but I have an issue with trim pieces separating from both the drivers and front passenger doors. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | While driving on the interstate the piece of trim along the passenger side windshield flew off. No warnings. I am unsure if it caused any damage to anyone driving near me. It took me a moment to realize what had happened. I took the car to Ford repair where they had to replace the pillar molding, pillar molding hardware kit, and pillar molding mount bracket. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | STRUCTURE | Was driving on the high way and the B pillar trim detached and was hanging by the wire. No damage was done to this area prior and appears the adhesive gave out. Due to incident back lift gate is inoperable and displays as open. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | STRUCTURE | On the exterior this car has a plastic A-pillar cover on both sides of the windshield, i already had one fly off on expressway ( luckily didnt hit anyone or cause an accident) i replaced the one, but now the other side is coming loose as well, not sure if its a defect in the clips or the design , but the dealer doesnt acknowledge this to be a problem, there happily charging 600.00 to replace each A-pillar and they keep coming loose | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | STRUCTURE | I was driving on the freeway when one of my A pillers flew off and cause the person behind me to loose control of their car. About 5 min later the other a piller flew off almost causing an accident with a semi and trailer. | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | My screen went black for my Ford Explorer. I have no access to climate controls, backup Camera, radio, GPS, etc. My local Ford dealership said there was a recall pending but that’s been a few months now. It’s very dangerous driving like that with my 4 and 2 year old in the car. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | STRUCTURE | The passenger windshield trim piece blew off my vehicle on the interstate yesterday and caused the vehicle behind me to swerve to try to avoid it. Looking through my rear view mirror, the driver appeared to lose control due to over correction. The driver avoided a collision and crash, but it looked hairy for a few moments. The driver's side trim piece blew off my vehicle last year. After Googling, I see that this is a very common problem that should be addressed, in my opinion, with a recall due to safety. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | POWER TRAIN | January 2023 - vehicle shifts hard, revs high between shift points, almost jumps between shifts. Trouble code p0757- shift solenoid “b” stuck open. 85,000 miles. Cost to fix $900. December 2023 - same code, same symptoms. Now entire transmission needs to be replaced at a cost of $6600. 100,000 miles. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | SUSPENSION | After dealer inspection of my 2018 Ford Explorer, I was informed that the rear knuckles needed replacement due to cracked bushing. I was informed that this is a safety issue that needs to be addressed immediately, at a cost of $2400.00. After some cursory research I found that there was a recall for 2011-2017 Ford Explorers with the same issue, but not for 2018. This is obviously a known problem and should be addressed for 2018 vehicles. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2024 | STRUCTURE | The contact owns a 2018 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 MPH, the passenger’s side trim detached from the vehicle. The trim struck the front windshield of another vehicle, causing the other driver to lose control of the vehicle and the vehicle spun out. The contact was unsure if the front windshield was cracked due to the impact. There were no reported injuries. The contact called the local dealer and was referred to a Collision Center for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The Collision Center was contacted and provided an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was contacted, opened a case, and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 99,800. The VIN was not available. | Crash: No Fire: No | 99,800 |
| Dec 2023 | STRUCTURE | Windshield cowl (trim) had deteriorated, possibly due to common heat and sun damage. 1. We do not know whether or not the deteriorated cowl will affect windshield stability or water leaks. If windshield stability is affected, it would affect safety. 2. Other complaints have noted that pieces of deteriorated cowl/trim have impacted safety of nearby vehicles. 3. The vibration, humming, and buzzing are irritating to drivers and passengers. // This observed deterioration occurred when the vehicle was 5 years old, however, we know of the same problem occurring in a 2019 Explorer at about 3 years. // The local Ford dealer stated it would cost over $650 to replace the cowl. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2023 | POWER TRAIN | The contact owns a 2018 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle shuddered and hesitated to respond. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure also occurred while driving with Adaptive Cruise Control mode engaged. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the transmission fluid was flushed. The contact stated that the failure recurred increasingly after 4,000 miles. The contact stated while at a complete stop and depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle shuddered significantly as if the vehicle was attempting to drive forward. The contact stated that he applied more pressure on the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 115,631. | Crash: No Fire: No | 115,631 |
| Dec 2023 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Driver door keypad detacted from pillar. Rear lift gate will not open with button on lift gate, key fob or switch in dash board. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2023 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | Torque converter issues as outlined here: [XXX] Almost was in accident due to loss of power and slow take off from issue with transmission torque converter. Engine shaking bad when in drive or reverse while stopped. Caused two motor mounts to be damaged. One split open and leaked fluid. Those have already been replaced. Less than 60k miles this should not be an issue. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | ENGINE | I purchased this used vehicle from Carmax 1/2022. Prior to my purchase it was a fleet vehicle. On 09/18/2023 I experienced EcoBoost engine failure.Mileage is currently roughly 49k. Incident occured 2 months outside of Powertrain warranty. The engine light would come on intermittently when driving. Took the car for a diagnostic to diagnose issue and had #3 ignition coil replaced due to misfire message. Few days later, light would come back on. After 3rd time of me going back and forth to the repair shop because of the light coming back on and vehicle drive not being as smooth as it usually is, I took the car to Ford dealer service center, where I was advised that this is a known issue, but no recall has been issued at this time. In addition, I was told that this engine is on back order and will not ship out until March 2024. A loaner car has not been provided and my extended warranty covers 5 days at $35/day, that is it. I will be without a vehicle for 6 months. Prior to this incident in 2022 I had a transmission issue. Powertrain warranty was still in effect so Ford covered it. I was without a vehicle for about 3 weeks for that repair. This has been a very dissapointing experience for a vehicle that is 5 years old and under 50k miles. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | POWER TRAIN | Torque converter and transmission problems cause the vehicle to stutter upon acceleration or not accelerate at all. Gear shifts can be erratic. No CEL or DTCs appear in the OBD system. I was barely able to proceed through an intersection until the transmission finally engaged fully and I was able to accelerate correctly. Ford is aware of the problem as proven by TSBs 20B27 and 20N07 but refuse to fix my vehicle as I am just outside of the expiration window and apparently my VNI does not fall within the TSB program, even though my car's problems are identical to the TSB description. This transmission problem is a huge safety concern for anyone driving Ford's using the 6F35 transmissions. The contact stated it was confirmed the torque converter failed and shed debris throughout the entire transmission. This cause multiple non-accelerations at stop signs and red lights, gear slipping when trying to accelerate, failure to engage first gear, and random RPM drops while lightly accelerating. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Windshield molding is defective due to cracking and splitting. Whistling sounds while driving. Danger of molding coming off and causing an accident. I took it to the dealer and having it replaced. Very costly. I understand this is under investigation but not recalled yet. Please advise. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Windsheild trim is breaking into pieces on the sides and coming off.The bottom trim going across the hood is getting wavy and cracking and not laying flat on the surface anymore. It is also starting to break away. Dealer said no repairs for this are covered under warranty and if I want it fixed its very expensive. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Nov 2023 | STRUCTURE,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Cowl trim on front windshield is detaching from the windshield and flapping while vehicle in operation. Concerned this will fly off the vehicle snd possibly land on another traveling vehicle and possibly cause an accident. This just started making a buzzing noise approximately two weeks ago and after further investigation the trim is literally coming off the windshield in pieces. No warning lights just a noise from the dash. Pictures can be provided. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |