2014 Ford Explorer
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Steering is the leading concern among 1,678 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 6th highest complaint count among 26 Explorer model years with reports.
Of the 2014 reports, 32 involved a crash and 6 involved a fire. 38 people were injured and 2 people died.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Structure, body, roof and pillarsJan 19, 2024
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2011-2019 Explorer vehicles. The A-pillar trim retention clips may not be properly engaged, allowing the trim to detach.
A detached trim piece can fall off the vehicle, becoming a road hazard and increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect and replace the A-pillar trim as necessary, free of charge. This will be a phased campaign, with the remedy becoming available in different phases based on model years. Owner notification letters were mailed between July 18, 2024 and December 16, 2025. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 24S02.
Campaign 24V031000 on NHTSA.gov
Suspension, rearJul 15, 2021
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2017 Explorer vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. Exposure to road salt can cause the cross-axis ball joint to corrode and seize, resulting in a fracture of the outboard section of the rear suspension toe link.
A rear toe-link fracture can result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect and replace as necessary, the cross-axis ball joint (CABJ) knuckle, and replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. This recall is an expansion of previous NHTSA recall numbers 16V-245, 19V-435, and 20V-675. Certain vehicles previously repaired will need to return for the new remedy. An interim notification letter notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on September 10, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 16, 2022. Owners may contact Ford's customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S32.
Campaign 21V537000 on NHTSA.gov
Suspension, rearMar 12, 2021
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2017 Explorer vehicles originally sold, or currently registered in Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin that were previously repaired under a prior recall numbers 16V-245 or 19V-435. The outboard section of a rear suspension toe link may fracture.
A rear toe link fracture can result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the cross-axis ball joint (CABJ) knuckle attached to the rear suspension toe link and replace it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 27, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S62.
Campaign 20V675000 on NHTSA.gov
Power train, axle assembly, axle shaftNov 10, 2020
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2016 Explorer, 2014-2015 Taurus and 2014 Edge vehicles equipped with 2.0L or 2.3L engines and front wheel drive. The support bracket for the front drive axle halfshaft may fail.
The failed bracket could result in a loss of park function which can cause unintended vehicle movement, and loss of motive power while driving which increases the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the link shaft bracket, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. Owners received an interim notification detailing safety risk December 8, 2020. A second letter will be mailed when parts become available in January 2021. The recall began February 2, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S63.
Campaign 20V692000 on NHTSA.gov
Suspension, rearJun 10, 2019
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2011-2017 Explorer vehicles. The rear suspension toe links may fracture due to stress on the rear suspension.
A fractured rear toe link will cause a sudden change in vehicle handling and increase the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, and inspect both rear toe link ball joints, replacing the rear wheel knuckle(s), if necessary, free of charge. The recall began June 26, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S17.
Campaign 19V435000 on NHTSA.gov
Wheels, hubAug 28, 2017
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain Wheel Hub Bearing assemblies, part number HB5Z-1104-C, incorrectly listed as being for installation on the rear axles of 2011-2017 Ford Explorer 4X2 vehicles. These bearings assemblies were manufactured without a self retention feature, possibly resulting in the separation of the wheel or wheel end.
A loss of the wheel or wheel end can increase the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify the distributors of the hubs specifying that they are to only be used on drive axles. It is believed that none of the hubs were purchased from Ford dealers for the incorrect application. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332.
Campaign 17E048000 on NHTSA.gov
Suspension, rearApr 26, 2016
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Ford Explorer vehicles manufactured January 17, 2014 to May 31, 2014. The affected vehicles may have improperly welded rear suspension toe links that may fracture.
A fracture of the rear suspension toe link may result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. The recall began on November 18, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S18.
Campaign 16V245000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: steering
498 reports, newest first. Show all
Steering, Apr 5, 2023
Steering wasn't acting right kept pulling to left and right. Acted like it was locking up. Went to leave a parking lot and it wouldn't steer at all. A warning popped up and said Steering loss service immediately.
Steering, Apr 4, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while making a left turn from a complete stop, the steering wheel failed to return to the center. The contact stated that he manually steered the steering wheel back to the center. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the failure was related to Ford Campaign Number: 14S06 and referred the contact to the dealer. An unknown dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under Ford Campaign Number: 14S06 as the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 108,000. The VIN was not available.
Steering, Suspension, Mar 22, 2023
Steering became very difficult, car would not track straight and turning was delayed. The dealer said teeth in the steering box had broken off. Also had a broken suspension strut - front right.
Steering, Power train, Mar 10, 2023, fire
My 2014 Ford explore Set fire and lost control of steering on the highway the transfer case set fire, which made the driveshaft explode and twist. There were no warning signs of this. And we are very lucky that we were not hurt in this we have lost so much money and time there is no way that this was not due to a recall when I contacted Ford they pretty much told me the car was totaled and I was going to have to pay a lot of money depending on how much damage the fire did.
Steering, Mar 6, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at approximately 10 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
Steering, Suspension, Wheels, Mar 3, 2023, crash
My Ford Explorer had a rear suspension toe link Recall, and in December I took my vehicle to the Ford dealership to get it fixed. At that time, they did a full vehicle inspection, fixed the part, and told me everything looked great. Shortly after the service, we had a snow storm, and my SUV would fishtail in Icy/snowy conditions. Every time it'd snow, it made me so scared to drive, because I'd essentially not have control over my vehicle. The issue wasn't present when the roads were clear. Within the two months since that service, my back tires have gone completely bald, down to the wires. I recently got in a car accident because my car wouldn't complete a turn and ended up t-boning a Tundra on a residential street. Luckily I was going slow so the damage to the other vehicle was minimal, and no obvious injuries have resulted from the accident. I was able to remove some of the plastic pieces around the fender, in order to still drive it, so I took it to the Ford dealership that originally serviced my car for an inspection. Now that the dealership has inspected my vehicle, they're claiming that it's not on their liability and that they're not responsible for any of the damage. Now the alignment is off on both the front and back, and the strut is bent (whether that's from the accident or not, we don't know). The Manager admitted that when servicing my vehicle they were only allowed to perform a rear alignment, but a front alignment was never suggested or offered to me. When aligning a vehicle (especially in the winter) the whole vehicle should be aligned, not just half. They of course claim zero liability or responsibility, even though I was having issues with it fishtailing shortly after it being serviced at their shop, for a part on the suspension, which affects alignment.
Steering, Feb 24, 2023
The steering gear failed. The vehicle's steering wheel was locked in the fully right hand turn position and could not be moved. Luckily, this happened in my driveway. If this happened on the road, a crash could have occurred, possibly causing injury to myself or others. The problem has been confirmed by my mechanic. The component has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representatives. There were no warning lamps but the steering was jerky about 1 week prior to completely locking up.
Steering, Feb 24, 2023
Turn off vehicle one day and that next started it and cannot turn the wheel what so ever. Was able to start vehicle and remove keys from ignition. Steering did release a day or two later, but seized up and cannot remove keys or use the vehicle.
Steering, Feb 21, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that on several occasions while making a right or left turn, there was a loud sound coming from the steering wheel. The contact stated that the failure persisted. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the steering rack assembly needed to be replaced; however, the parts for the repair were on backorder. The vehicle remained at the dealer awaiting the parts for the repair. The contact was informed the vehicle was inoperable. The contact was made aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 99,000.
Steering, Feb 17, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the steering wheel inadvertently turned to the right and then seized. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
Steering, Feb 17, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that after stopping at stop sign, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The contact stated that after driving a short distance the vehicle regained power steering functionality. The contact stated that whenever the vehicle came to a stop the failure would reoccur. The contact stated that a message to check the charging system was displayed. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer to diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 170,000.
Steering, Feb 7, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Escape. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. In addition, while reversing out of a parking space, the failure recurred with the ABS warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle then lost motive power. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where and diagnosed with power steering failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 132,000.
Steering, Feb 2, 2023
Lost all power steering while driving with absolutely no warning. Took to dealer and it is the electronic steering assembly. After further investigation and talking to people this seems to be a major issue with this year of explorers. And it is very expensive to fix.
Steering, Power train, Jan 26, 2023
Power steering will fail sporadically when at Highway speeds or City speeds and show error code. Advance Trac AWD system disabled, traction control disabled, unsafe.
Steering, Jan 25, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the steering wheel seized. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.
Steering, Jan 18, 2023
While driving at low speed, the vehicle EPAS shut down creating an unsafe condition with the steering system. The error cleared from the dash and no warning lights remained though the EPAS remained disabled.
Steering, Air bags, Jan 17, 2023
Airbag warning light randomly comes on and stays on! When Turing the steering wheel there is a loud annoying squeaky/squeal noise coming from the front end which is supper scary
Steering, Jan 11, 2023
I took my vehicle in for a recall repair for the toe kicks and a noise in the front of my car when I and upon inspection was told that I need a new left front tie rod replaced and a 4 wheel alignment after the job is completed. I came home and parked it , then when I was backing out of my driveway the camera stopped working it was black. I found it strange but thought maybe it has to reboot or something, I accidently hit the park assist button and the light came on see dealer. I called the dealer told them what was happening and they asked that I bring it in. I did and they did a diagnostic saying it was the sensors that need replacing. Fast forward I'm picking up my granddaughter at school and I hear a horrible noise when I turn the steering wheel. My granddaughter asked my why car was making that noise, I said I don't know but that I was not turning music or anything on just in case we need to pull over. I immediately take it to my mechanic on my way home, luckily he's a block away, I dropped it off and walked home. They found that its the Electronic Rack & Pinion Power Steering rack. They said they have seen so many of these with the same problem and that unfortunately the recall falls short of my year Explorer 2014 which should have been included, its not safe to drive and will be an expensive fix . The recall was only for the 2011-2013. This frightened me, because he said they don't have the capability to fix it because once the new rack is installed it needs to be programmed and the dealer is pretty much the only one that can do that. This is a dealer repair only and for my safety he recommended getting this done. It will lock while driving or break and has resulted in many accidents. Ford Motor Company should be held accountable for this ongoing safety issue with their faulty Steering Rack as this goes beyond the 2011-2013 model years. I'm petrified to drive this vehicle after researching this, knowing I'm not alone in this deadly problem with my vehicle.
Steering, Jan 10, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH and making a left turn, the steering wheel suddenly became very difficult to turn, causing the driver to nearly lose control of the vehicle. During the failure, the “steering assist fault" message was displayed. The vehicle was later driven to the local dealer who diagnosed that the power steering control module was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The failure mileage was 36,000. The VIN was not available.
Steering, Jan 9, 2023
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving various speeds, the vehicle was jerking and losing traction. The contact stated that after restarting the vehicle, the vehicle was difficult to steer. The contact stated that the wheels continued to spin but the vehicle was jerking. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the power steering assist gear needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the parts were on back order. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 122,000.
Steering, Jan 4, 2023
Electric power steering assist failed. This was a danger to myself, children and other motorist. Power steering assist fault appeared on dash. I have fault codes u3000-96 , u2001-49. Ford has issued recalls for ealier and later model years but not this one. I have done some research and it appears to be a known problem for this model and model year. Thank gosh my family wasn't injured because of this failure. I hope you can do something about this known issue. Ford customer service told me there is nothing they can do for me.
Steering, Jan 3, 2023
Premature power steering failure. Danger to operator and others on the road.
Steering, Jan 2, 2023
Steering has become “sticky” and did not feel right, felt completely unsafe to drive. Steering made a grinding type of noise when turning the wheel. Took my vehicle to my mechanic for inspection. Mechanic inspected and confirmed the “steering rack” needs replacement. I will be replacing the steering rack asap. No warning lights.
Steering, Dec 28, 2022
The steering began to make a rubbing sound and then turning became difficult. I also received a traction control failure warning. When the vehicle was taken to the Ford dealership where it was purchased I was told that it’s a common failure of the steering rack (over $2,000 repair) and that there were complaints but no recall. I have since taken the vehicle home and parked it until I decide whether to make the repair.
Steering, Dec 19, 2022
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving out of the driveway at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the power steering gear was faulty. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer, and the dealer replaced the power steering gear and reset the computer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 117,000.