Photo: Ford / edited
Back in April 2022, the Ford Motor Company issued a ginormous recall for the 2020 to 2022 model year Explorer. A whopping 252,936 units were called back over a rear axle horizontal mounting bolt that may fracture after repeated peak torque events. By that, Ford is referring to launching hard from a standstill, as you would do in a quarter-mile drag race.
Too many hard launches may lead to a bolt failure, which – in turn – leads to the rear axle's housing moving out of position. This condition is easily identifiable by means of clunking, grinding, and binding noises. The bad news doesn't end here, though. The half shafts may also become loose, resulting in loss of transmission torque to the Explorer's rear wheels.
In other words, the vehicle may roll away. As per the report filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the joint's design isn't robust enough to handle peak torque events. More specifically, the bearing area isn't large enough. The insufficient bearing area opens the way for deformation, thus increasing bending stress on the bolt.
How did the Ford Motor Company fix this design-related issue? Believe it or not, preferentially. Law enforcement vehicles received a replacement bushing and axle cover, whereas private customer vehicles received a powertrain control module software update with code designed to engage the electronic parking brake after selecting park. Said private customer vehicles range from the lowly 2.3-liter EcoBoost with rear-wheel drive to the 3.0-liter EcoBoost of the ST.
Fast forward to June 2023, and my criticism of Ford's preferential remedies for this condition is under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The Office of Defects Investigation within the NHTSA received two complaints alleging rear axle bolt failure on private customer vehicles that had received the software update.
One owner alleged that they rolled into a utility pole. As per complaint number 11517162, Ford agreed to repurchase the vehicle. Complaint number 11499008 appears to have been filed by a lawyer. The contact had taken their Explorer back to the dealer due to problems while reversing, as well as lurching and jumping forward in drive. The dealer couldn't do anything more than update the PCM, as instructed by FoMoCo. The vehicle in question had only 23,000 miles (37,015 kilometers) on the clock back in December 2022, when this complaint was filed with the Washington, D.C.-based federal watchdog.
The NHTSA investigation's summary clearly highlights that Ford didn't address this issue properly. The remedy for private customer vehicles doesn't address the root cause, which is why a bigger recall may be issued by the Ford Motor Company in the near future. ODI estimates that 710,253 examples of the 2020 to 2022 model year Explorer may be called back.
In the meantime, Ford is working with the agency to resolve this matter ASAP.
In other words, the vehicle may roll away. As per the report filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the joint's design isn't robust enough to handle peak torque events. More specifically, the bearing area isn't large enough. The insufficient bearing area opens the way for deformation, thus increasing bending stress on the bolt.
How did the Ford Motor Company fix this design-related issue? Believe it or not, preferentially. Law enforcement vehicles received a replacement bushing and axle cover, whereas private customer vehicles received a powertrain control module software update with code designed to engage the electronic parking brake after selecting park. Said private customer vehicles range from the lowly 2.3-liter EcoBoost with rear-wheel drive to the 3.0-liter EcoBoost of the ST.
Fast forward to June 2023, and my criticism of Ford's preferential remedies for this condition is under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The Office of Defects Investigation within the NHTSA received two complaints alleging rear axle bolt failure on private customer vehicles that had received the software update.
One owner alleged that they rolled into a utility pole. As per complaint number 11517162, Ford agreed to repurchase the vehicle. Complaint number 11499008 appears to have been filed by a lawyer. The contact had taken their Explorer back to the dealer due to problems while reversing, as well as lurching and jumping forward in drive. The dealer couldn't do anything more than update the PCM, as instructed by FoMoCo. The vehicle in question had only 23,000 miles (37,015 kilometers) on the clock back in December 2022, when this complaint was filed with the Washington, D.C.-based federal watchdog.
The NHTSA investigation's summary clearly highlights that Ford didn't address this issue properly. The remedy for private customer vehicles doesn't address the root cause, which is why a bigger recall may be issued by the Ford Motor Company in the near future. ODI estimates that 710,253 examples of the 2020 to 2022 model year Explorer may be called back.
In the meantime, Ford is working with the agency to resolve this matter ASAP.
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