Complaint volume
78 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
2025 Ford Explorer Complaints
78 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2025 Ford Explorer, grouped by component category.
78 Total complaints
6 Crash reports
0 Fire reports
3 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 unknown or other, power train, visibility/wiper. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 6 crash reports, 0 fire reports, 3 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 12 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 3,799 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to unknown or other, power train, visibility/wiper?
- 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 2025 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.
2025 Ford Explorer
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2025 Ford Explorer complaints?
6 Crash
0 Fire
3 Injury
0 Fatality
1 Towed
2 Medical attention
What are the most common 2025 Ford Explorer complaint categories?
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 9
POWER TRAIN 8
VISIBILITY/WIPER 5
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 3
STEERING 3
STRUCTURE 3
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,VISIBILITY/WIPER 2
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 2
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 2
78 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2026 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | While driving on a clear road, the vehicle suddenly applied automatic emergency braking with no obstacle present. The braking was extremely aggressive and unexpected, creating a significant rear-end collision risk and causing physical discomfort (neck strain). Immediately following the event, the vehicle displayed a “Lane Keep Assist Off” message. There were no other vehicles around me at the time, so there was not a risk of a collision this time. However, it could have caused an accident if someone was behind me. Also, the sudden braking could have easily caused me to loose control of the vehicle. I am also concerned because my vehicle has already had Recall 26S21 performed (related to the camera/ADAS system). I took the vehicle to the dealer and said Ford is working on a fix for the 4th quarter this year, but not sure what to do in the meantime. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2026 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The gear shifter gets tight to put it from park to drive and drive to park, but doesnt stay constant. Brought it in and was told that I am spinning it to fast to spin it slower. I told the dealer I do spin it slow with the same issue. They told me they will not do anything until it gets stuck. Upon doing research, I have found several others have had the same issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | POWER TRAIN | 2025 Hybrid PIU/Explorer) for a CEL with PCM codes P0A1E:00:A8 for a starter/generator control module fault. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | POWER TRAIN | Vehicle shut down while driving. Stop safely now, red triangle on IC, and engine disabled. PCM code P1A0C:00:28 Hybrid Powertrain Control Module - Engine Disabled. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | POWER TRAIN | Hybrid Fault - Service charging system fault displayed. Verified concern. Hooked up IDS and checked for codes. Multiple codes in multiple modules present for engine restart, battery, and low voltage conditions. Hooked up Ford battery tester and performed battery test on both the 12-volt main and auxiliary batteries - main 12-volt battery failed at 70cca. Received warranty code: 11VBE9140L3K and ACES code: HG1HR. Replaced 12-volt main battery and reassembled vehicle. Performed BMS reset, cleared codes, and retest, OK. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | I was driving on the Highway and all the sudden for absolutely no apparent reason the Passenger side door window completely shattered into small bits of glass. I check the vehicle for any damage other than the window not a scratch on the door at all I have no idea what caused the window to shatter. | Crash: No Fire: No Injuries: 1 | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Front side windows (driver and passenger side) have a quality issue that creates a distorted, wave-like view when looking out the window. This results difficulty viewing objects seen in the side mirrors. Also, when viewing anything out the side windows (ie. cross traffic) the view is distorted. Further, this makes the driver and passenger nauseated. The issue is constant and does not depend of environment, temperature, weather, or time of day. No warning lamps or messages appear. The dealer confirmed the issue, but stated nothing could be done because other Ford Explorers on-site also have the issue. The issue has also been confirmed on other Explorers in the market. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | SUSPENSION | Alignment went bad 23489 miles and took to dealer. It was inspected and found out the front cam bushings and bolts were already worn out and had to be replaced both sides. Plus realignment after. Cost was 544.00 dollars had to pay because alignment from factory only goes to 12000 miles , how convenient on fords part , nothing would wear out that soon or shouldn't under normal wear. So , I had to pay. asked my service advisor and he said he has gone round and round with ford and to no end , basically ford said to bad. My advisor said ford knows and knew of this for the last few years on explorers , broncos and f150 trucks and doesn't care to want to cover the cost of repairs and or fix the problem. here's the main point , my advisor said ford knows they put less quality , inferior parts made from less strength material made parts and doesn't care. My advisor told me the after market parts are made of better material and better quality and I will never have this problem again. That said , YES , this is a safety problem if , the parts were to break or come apart , could cause an accident , crash and worse case could kill someone if this were to fail on the highway at high speeds. So , I feel Ford needs to correct this , recall all the vehicles involved and , I and many others so far should be repaid for customers having to fix this problem. As my advisor said , many others so far and ford corp doesn't care. WHERES THE RECALL. Before someone gets killed! No option but to fix as to replace the parts and get realignment to save the tires from wearing out and having to be replaced , of course at my cost! Per my work order of inspection and required repairs. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2026 | STEERING,LANE DEPARTURE | My 2025 Ford Explorer pulls hard to the left, the steering wheel feels heavy, stiff, and gets hard to steer my wife and I are constantly fighting with the car to get it to steer right and stay in the lane. If I let it, I can keep the steering wheel straight and the car will just veer to the left Into the left lane, it’s dangerous, my wife won’t even drive it anymore. Then there are times while driving on curvy roads, the wheel or the cars steering will get stuck and if I wanted to, it will stay turning on its own around corners or curves. Also when we take a turn onto another street sometimes it gets stuck again, doesn’t come back like most cars do. We have had it in the shop more than 3 times for these problems. They have replaced the steering rack/gear, done alignments, but the problem still persists we are afraid that the steering is going to get stuck, that we won’t be able to pull it back into our lane and cause a major accident. We have brought it to the dealer but say they have done what they can and need direction from Ford. I don’t know if it’s related but there has been warning lights but it said it was for the parking brake. I have even been on rides with a service manager from a ford dealership and it has happened but, without an answer from ford they could not do anything. This problem has going on for months now and the dealership can’t fix it I bought it September 2nd, 2025 I can’t remember when it started exactly, October or November but it has gotten worse and worse it seems by the day. The first time we brought it in was in December 31st, 2025 that’s when the dealership changed the steering rack/steering gear I tried to upload files to this form but they are too big | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2026 | ENGINE | The contact owns a 2025 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle started shaking violently. The check engine warning light came on, and the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The contact used a scanner to identify an error code. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drove to the residence while driving 20 MPH with the vehicle shaking abnormally. Upon arriving at the residence, the vehicle lost power. The contact called Ford Customer Service and spoke with a Ford Roadside Assistance representative to retrieve the vehicle from the residence. An appointment was scheduled for the dealer to pick up the vehicle at the residence. The vehicle was taken to Ciocco Ford, but was not diagnosed or repaired; however, the spark plugs were replaced but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 9,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 9,000 |
| Mar 2026 | POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | On March 2nd 2026, while operating my 2025 Ford Explorer ST at highway speeds of approximately 78 MPH, the vehicle experienced a sudden, uncommanded shift from Drive into Neutral. This resulted in an immediate and total loss of motive power in live traffic, creating a life-threatening safety hazard as I was unable to maintain speed or accelerate away from surrounding vehicles. Notably, the dashboard displayed no warning lights, wrench icons, or error messages during or after the event. I was forced to coast across lanes of traffic to reach the shoulder. This is the 7th significant warranty-related issue this vehicle has experienced since purchase in May 2025, representing a substantial impairment to the vehicle's safety, use, and market value under Wisconsin Lemon Law. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE | I am writing to formally report a series of catastrophic and life-threatening mechanical and electronic failures in my 2025 Ford Explorer Active (VIN: [XXX] ]), purchased in Bogotá, Colombia. Despite immediately notifying the Ford Post-Sales Support Line after the first incident, the technical response was insufficient, leading to a second, more severe event that nearly resulted in a fatal high-speed collision on February 9, 2026. Incidents Summary: 1. Total Power Loss: Engine and all electrical systems shut down while in motion (40 km/h), losing steering and braking assistance. 2. Brake System Failure: At 70 km/h, The vehicle presented a multi-system failure of sensors, audible alarm and illumination of warning lights (ABS, Traction Control, Pre-collision Assistant, hill start assist not available, check brake system, BRAKE, ESC check, driving modes not available). the vehicle experienced a total loss of brake pedal response followed by a sudden, uncontrolled autonomous "hard braking" event. This happened on a high-traffic highway (Autopista Norte). Global Safety Concern: I am formally requesting a Global Technical Investigation into this unit and the 2025 Explorer Active series. The failure of the electronic brake booster and the total system shutdown represent a "Product Liability" risk that could lead to mass-casualty events. I demand: • Direct intervention from Ford Global to Ford Colombia. • A formal safety alert or recall investigation for similar units. Sincerely, [XXX] MAIL [XXX] bogota colombia phone [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2026 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,BACK OVER PREVENTION,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The vehicle failed the inspection related to Recall 25C42. Since owning the vehicle, I have experienced repeated intermittent failures of multiple safety and driver-assistance systems, which raise serious safety concerns. The Pre-Collision Assist system has activated without any apparent reason on four separate occasions, including situations where there were no vehicles, pedestrians, or obstacles present. These unexpected activations are alarming and could increase the risk of a collision. I fear for my safety when driving the vehicle due to these unpredictable safety system activations. Additionally, the Rear Cross Traffic Alert system functions intermittently and does not activate consistently when vehicles are present, further reducing confidence in the vehicle’s safety systems. While driving, the vehicle’s phone connectivity system has disconnected unexpectedly, and during these events the GPS/navigation system became unavailable, preventing the use of turn-by-turn directions. These failures occur while the vehicle is in motion and contribute to driver distraction and safety concerns. The vehicle was inspected for Recall 25C42, and I was informed that the required repair cannot be completed because the replacement part is on backorder until June. As a result, the vehicle continues to be operated with known and unresolved safety-related defects for an extended period of time. These issues occur intermittently and without warning, making them difficult to reproduce or diagnose. Due to the ongoing malfunction of critical safety systems and the delay in recall repairs, I fear for my safety while driving this vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2026 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE | While using Ford Blue Cruise, the Blue Cruise system failed to maintain lane control and fought the driver's steering wheel input, resulting in the vehicle colliding with a traffic cone. I have had 3 other instances where Blue Cruise has randomly jerked me toward the shoulder or an exit ramp, this is the first time colliding with anything. Only damage to the vehicle from this incident is a ripped fender well liner, there are some markings on tire sidewall but no damage. Certainly could have been worse. The cone collision happened on Interstate 79 Northbound at MM101 in West Virginia. I have had lane jerking happen with Blue Cruise twice Northbound at MM105, and once Southbound at MM118. The system is on by default, I am trying to figure out how to turn it off to prevent future safety issues. | Crash: Yes Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Ever since I bought that vehicle, it's had system malfunctions. I received three letters directly from Ford explaining the problems this vehicle had or could have. But he and the dealerships, where I took my vehicle for repairs, never did them. They always denied that it had any problems and said that my vehicle was new and had nothing wrong with it. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Feb 2026 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Car was parked on a driveway, decent grade, with 50 miles left to empty (no low fuel light on). Facing downward. Car did not turn over. Had to use manual override to put vehicle into neutral and coast to a more level area and start it up. Seen this issue posted on the Explorer ST Facebook group multiple times, so I was lucky I knew what the issue is. Most other people would be stranded. There is a flaw in the Explorer's fuel tank system that will not allow the car to start if fuel level gets below a certain threshold when parked facing down a steep street or driveway. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | The contact owns a 2025 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that on the first day after the vehicle was purchased, the pre-collision camera failed to function as intended. The contact stated that the alarm failed to beep as intended when a person or an object was in front of or passing by the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. A diagnostic test was performed, and it was determined that the pre-collision camera worked as designed. The contact stated that the manager at the dealer took the vehicle home and confirmed that the pre-collision camera sensor had failed to function as intended; however, the vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to Biener Ford; however, no cause for the failure was found. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while driving at an undisclosed speed in the snow, the message "Pre-collision Camera Blocked" was displayed. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 11. | Crash: No Fire: No | 11 |
| Jan 2026 | VISIBILITY/WIPER | Since new. Thousands of dots or specs are visible in the window upon sun up of sun down. This is not the snow flake safety campain that Ford has. Others have the same complaint on social media. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING | First, we took this vehicle to a dealer because the rear window buttons were not working. They wouldn't roll down. Second, the dome lamps inside only work part of the time, when we take the vehicle to the dealer or another Ford dealer that we decided to try, they say they can't do anything because they see no issue as the lights are working AT THAT TIME. Third, while connected to a trailer, an error message appears several times stating that the trailer has been disconnected. It just flashes and pings, and then disappears. This is a safety issue, as it has caused me to make sudden stops as I am made to believe that the trailer has became disconnected. All these things are stated in the recall we received on this vehicle, and we just want the body control module replaced as it says they should do, but both dealers(Bruce Walters Ford - Pikeville KY) and the dealer we switched to to try and remedy the issue (Freedom Ford of Wise VA) say that there is no issue, and refuse to do the control module replacement. This vehicle has been inspected at the least 6 different times for these issues, and still nothing has been fixed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | Parked vehicle on snowy driveway, went to back to unload personal items from liftgate, and vehicle began sliding backwards towards me. Ran to the driver‘s door, got in, put on brakes, started vehicle and pulled it forward. Put it in park, and as I was exiting the vehicle, it began sliding backwards again. Rear wheels were locked. However, the front wheels were rolling. Apparently the transmission park pawl did not engage. I took pictures of the tires after the last roll. Front tracks show clear tread in the snow (rolling); rear show lines and pushed show (sliding) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | STRUCTURE | I brought my 2025 Explorer in on 12/19/2025 for a recall check. I mentioned to the Service Advisor that the left rear inner wheel well skirt was detached from the quarter panel. After the car was looked at, he came to me and said that they can be replaced at a cost of $600...XXX. He said it is from the snow and ice tearing them because of the larger tires on the vehicles now....NO XXX..we live in WNY. This is a brand new-ish vehicle with 15,000 miles. How is this something that is my cost, there is obviously a problem with parts or engineering. Basically I will have to replace these after every winter season for the reason that was given....AGAIN...why is this not covered. I regress, he did say Ford MAY help the first time...REALLY?? What happens the next winter and the one after that?? $40K+ for the vehicle and this | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | AIR BAGS | Front and side curtain air bags failed. Was side swiped and hit a guard rail head on at 60-70 mph. I was going on the far left lane on the interstate 85. When a lady in the center lane hit the side of my car not paying attention that I was in my lane. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | SERVICE BRAKES | My remote start would not work from inside of a restaurant so I went out to manually start the car. It started fine. It was very cold out so I thought that I would drive up next to the building to get close to the entrance. The parking lot was not slippery at all , when I applied the brakes I had absolutely no brakes and the car bumped into the building. No damage to the building but my license plate bracket was broken and the bumper had minor damage. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | SERVICE BRAKES | We purchased a 2025 Ford Explorer Active RWD and had a couple of issues with it. Twice when starting the car, foot on brake and when putting it into D the brake pedal drops a notch. It had some error codes as well and OF Course the dealer could find anything wrong. So we trade it in in less than a month for this model 2025 Ford Explorer Active 4WD. The brake has done the same thing to me twice. We purchased this second vehicle on 10/31/2025. Today was the second time this happened. It happened approximately a week ago as well. It's always when putting it into Drive. I have never ever owned a vehicle where the brakes fall a bit...has a rough notch as it falls!! It does not fall to the floor, it is as though a firm brake pedal just falls an inch or so and it's rough, like it's broken. After it happens I drive very slowly and carefully to make sure my brakes are still working. Not normal by any circumstances and the best I can describe this. We drove three Explorers before choosing this one and all three, four with other one purchased the brakes felt different! Brakes should not feel softer or firmer on new vehicles. Our dealer is about 50 miles away and I can almost guarantee they will not find anything because they can't or won't be able to reproduce it as it only happens once in a great while. Like I mentioned, today 12/8/2025 is the second time this has occured on this second Explorer. They would need to drive it everyday for weeks on end and only while putting it Drive as it hasn't happened in Reverse on either vehicle. I do use the park brake while at home, but all times this occured the park brake was not being used and on a flat level surface. Very scary driving a new vehicle around not knowing what is going to go wrong with it especially with brakes! We should feel SAFE in our newly.purchased vehicles. I sure hope Ford figures these issues out before someone gets hurt or dies. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | SEATS | My wife found an article about this, so I guess it happens to other people as well. I will leave the link that she sent to me in this report. To put it very simple there seems to be a problem with the seat, memory module in the door of some Ford Explorers. So many times when my wife has had to move my car from the driveway she gets in the car. She pushes the number two button for her seat settings, and she begins to drive the car. While the car is in motion, at any random interval, the seat will reset to my position without any notice. This means the seat begins to move while the car is in motion. In our case, I am about a foot and a half taller than her so when the seat goes back to my position, even though she’s driving, she can no longer reach the brake. Several times while in motion she has had to just hit the power button and shut the car off. This is bad for the car, but it is also best for her safety. I can see this situation causing an accident. It seems Ford knows about it, and they have fixed it in some cars, however until it happens to you I don’t think you’re going to be aware of the problem if you’re moving quickly, it could be a huge problem. I think this is something that Ford needs to address with expediency Here is the article where she found a similar experience of another customer online [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |