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Just bought 2015 sport, loss of power

Brian41

Member
Joined
July 18, 2017
Messages
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City, State
Cincinnati, OH
Year, Model & Trim Level
2015 Ford Explorer Sport
I just joined the forum after just purchasing a 2015 Sport with 38,000 miles on it. Been wanting one for a while and was grinning ear to ear when I got it. After driving it for several days, the engine began acting odd, very sluggish and almost felt as if the turbos were gone. I read several threads on here about hoses coming loose, fuel filter, vacuum hose, etc. I could not find anything loose, although I had no idea what I was looking for. The problem became worse, and at one point almost felt as if the car was in limp mode for a little while then that disappeared, but it continued to feel as if the turbos were providing no boost. I also noticed an occasional humming noise while accelerating, but it only occurs intermittenly and for a couple seconds at a time and I haven't narrowed down where its coming from.

So I just took it to the dealership and they had 3 mechanics drive it for a total of 30 miles, including their most trusted mechanic and said they hooked it up to all the computer stuff and found NOTHING wrong. I came to the dealership to pick it up, mad as a hornet's nest, and as I drove away I shockingly found that most of the power seemed restored. I still often find that on the highway, if I floor it, it will not downshift and the acceleration feels no different then a 4 cyclinder minivan.

Around the city, for the most part it is starting to act close to normal, and I'm wondering if I got a bad batch of fuel, I had put 89 octane it. Is there anything else I can check? Has anyone had bad fuel cause these type of problems? Can I rule out something like hoses coming loose, etc, if the problem has noticeably improved? I just feel the car is not operating at a 100 percent power and I'm no car expert and the dealership seems like there not going to be much help. I've never had a car with turbos, but I understand how they work and turbo lag etc, and I checked simple stuff like the air filter, which looked new. The humming noise also still occurs. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 



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All my hoses were loose but not slipped off, I tightened every single one, just don't overdo it, it will crack the plastic pipes. Some of them are easier to access from under, but make sure every one is checked by actually turning the screws.

The other day I wanted to see if 87 octane was acceptable for these turbo dealy cars, its not if you want all the power, the computer will actually take out power under high loads at the upper rpms, but in no way it should feel sluggish. It was around 7-8 degrees of timing the computer pulled, probably at least 20-30hp lost there at the flywheel.
 






My experience with bad fuel was a noticeable shudder when starting the vehicle.
This was the case on every startup until I burnt all of the fuel and filled up a gain with the "good" stuff.
 






I had a situation where my turbo's were not engaging right away or cutting in and out when I applied the power (like sputtering). It tuned out to be a split vacuum hose that went into the throttle body. On another note. I'm trading in my POS for the new redesigned Chevy Traverse when it comes out next month.
Word of warning. Purchase an extended warranty while you still can. My 14 Explorer Sport is 3.5yrs old, 93K KM (75K miles), and I'm going on $13,000 in repairs. 4 repairs were over $2K each and there was also 2 body work jobs $1K each that required fixing of premature corrosion and a bunch of other little stuff. Currently it needs a steering rack because of squeaking when I turn the wheel but cost is $2200 ($2500 with HST taxes). I'm not getting it fixed, just trading it in and getting rid of this nightmare.
Oh, FYI. Did anyone see the news article on CNN of police departments temporarily removing some Explorers from their vehicle fleets becasue of the Carbon monoxide poisoning issue. Guess that wasn't all in our heads Ford!!! Luckily my vehicle was never effected by the Carbon monoxide issue but lots of people here complaining about it.
 






I had a situation where my turbo's were not engaging right away or cutting in and out when I applied the power (like sputtering). It tuned out to be a split vacuum hose that went into the throttle body. On another note. I'm trading in my POS for the new redesigned Chevy Traverse when it comes out next month.
Word of warning. Purchase an extended warranty while you still can. My 14 Explorer Sport is 3.5yrs old, 93K KM (75K miles), and I'm going on $13,000 in repairs. 4 repairs were over $2K each and there was also 2 body work jobs $1K each that required fixing of premature corrosion and a bunch of other little stuff. Currently it needs a steering rack because of squeaking when I turn the wheel but cost is $2200 ($2500 with HST taxes). I'm not getting it fixed, just trading it in and getting rid of this nightmare.
Oh, FYI. Did anyone see the news article on CNN of police departments temporarily removing some Explorers from their vehicle fleets becasue of the Carbon monoxide poisoning issue. Guess that wasn't all in our heads Ford!!! Luckily my vehicle was never effected by the Carbon monoxide issue but lots of people here complaining about it.

You spent too much money repairing your Explorer so you're going to buy a freshly redesigned Chevy? You might want to look around a little more than that unless you want to put yourself through the same thing again. With every issue I've had with my Explorer, my best friend who is a mechanic at a GM Dealer said "At least you don't have one of these things!"
 






I had a situation where my turbo's were not engaging right away or cutting in and out when I applied the power (like sputtering). It tuned out to be a split vacuum hose that went into the throttle body. On another note. I'm trading in my POS for the new redesigned Chevy Traverse when it comes out next month.
Word of warning. Purchase an extended warranty while you still can. My 14 Explorer Sport is 3.5yrs old, 93K KM (75K miles), and I'm going on $13,000 in repairs. 4 repairs were over $2K each and there was also 2 body work jobs $1K each that required fixing of premature corrosion and a bunch of other little stuff. Currently it needs a steering rack because of squeaking when I turn the wheel but cost is $2200 ($2500 with HST taxes). I'm not getting it fixed, just trading it in and getting rid of this nightmare.
Oh, FYI. Did anyone see the news article on CNN of police departments temporarily removing some Explorers from their vehicle fleets becasue of the Carbon monoxide poisoning issue. Guess that wasn't all in our heads Ford!!! Luckily my vehicle was never effected by the Carbon monoxide issue but lots of people here complaining about it.
Receipts of all the repairs you stated...or it didn't happen. LOL
 






Luckily my vehicle was never effected by the Carbon monoxide issue but lots of people here complaining about it.
Carbon Monoxide or exhaust smell?
 






You spent too much money repairing your Explorer so you're going to buy a freshly redesigned Chevy? "
So, I did not spend that money myself. All the repairs were under warranty. I'm getting rid of the vehicle because of my concern on long term reliability.
Every time I had a problem I had the service person show me on their screen the parts cost and labor time for the job so I could keep a log of the repair cost if I would have been out of warranty. I've had the following issues. The famous HVAC air blend door motor issue requiring the removal of the entire dash, the water pump failure and replacement, leaking rear heater line requiring the dropping of the drive shaft and rear differential assembly to get the pipe off the bottom of the vehicle, 2 separate body shop paint repairs for premature corrosion on the inside of the rear door seams and 2nd one paint worn off down to the bare metal all along the bottom door edges from rubbing on the rocker panel in the frame of the vehicle. Required new seat skin from premature tearing, throttle body vacuum hose which resulted in cutting out the turbos, GPS module replacement, power seat motor for rear incline, leaking PTU, front wheel bearing, squeaking steering rack when turning the wheel (requires new steering rack). This all within 3.5yrs and 93K (75K miles).

The other issue is that for almost every repair listed above I had to bring back the vehicle a second and sometimes a third time because of poor mechanic workmanship to have stuff corrected. i.e. when they repaired the leaking heater line and had to drop the driveshaft they didn't even torque the hanger bearing bolts and within a week I was getting heavy shuttering under the floor of the vehicle when hitting the accelerator. The removal of the dash was crooked and lower by over an inch on the passenger side because they didn't align it properly before torquing the bolts holding it in place through the fire wall. They also scuffed and damaged the inside of the driver door panel when removing the dash. They damaged and had to replace the trim on the center console where the cup holders and shifter is. These are just small examples of the poor service and brain dead mechanics at this dealer.

When I was at GM they ran a "car Proof" report on my vin assessing a trade in...the car proof report was 3 pages long...dozens of line items showing service, service, service!

Where I'm at right now is I have not repaired the steering rack. The squeak is just getting worse and worse but I'm not fixing it ($2500 with HST tax), because it's out of warranty.
I'm in an equity position on the Ford given the trade in trade in amount (which they put in writing), but I think I will lease the Traverse, that way I can walk from it should it turn out to have issues as well being a new redesign. Just waiting for the Traverse to come out so I can trade in the Ex Sport.
 






Receipts of all the repairs you stated...or it didn't happen. LOL
Here is a screen shot of my vehicles car proof report. I visit my dealer on average every 1800miles (3000km). Oh, and "all" of these service dates are not regular maintenance like oil changes, They are repairs! because since I'm there so often if I'm due for that oil change I get that done while it's in the shop anyway
Carproof_zpsrevaryk1.jpg
 






Here is a screen shot of my vehicles car proof report. I visit my dealer on average every 1800miles (3000km). Oh, and "all" of these service dates are not regular maintenance like oil changes, They are repairs! because since I'm there so often if I'm due for that oil change I get that done while it's in the shop anyway
Carproof_zpsrevaryk1.jpg

Pic doesn't work.
So, you time your visit for repairs with oil changes also?
 






Receipts of all the repairs you stated...or it didn't happen. LOL

I hardly think anyone purposely bashes their Explorer, in fact I think most owners would really like to brag about their Explorer. Unfortunately there is reality, this generation of Explorer has significantly build quality and design issues.
 






I hardly think anyone purposely bashes their Explorer, in fact I think most owners would really like to brag about their Explorer. Unfortunately there is reality, this generation of Explorer has significantly build quality and design issues.
Except this is the Internet and I trust no one...LOL
It was a rhetoric question and I was just busting his balls.
 






So, you time your visit for repairs with oil changes also?
No, I do my oil changes anytime between 0-25% left on the oil life monitor. What I'm saying is I've always been in that 0-25% oil life window during one repair or another so since it's up on the hoist anyway do and oil change even though I may still have lets say 15% left...I don't want to come back to the dealer any more then I have to.
 






I hardly think anyone purposely bashes their Explorer, in fact I think most owners would really like to brag about their Explorer. Unfortunately there is reality, this generation of Explorer has significantly build quality and design issues.
Agree, I really did like the vehicle. It looks sharp, handles really nice, a heck tonne of power in my 3.5 ecoboost, lots of room, interior is laid out well. But, the reliability has been ridiculous and who knows the long term reliability. I have a coworker with the Taurus with same 3.5 ecoboost engine and at 120,000km had to replace his turbos $2k CDN per turbo, parts & labor. Then at 165,000Km had to do it again. The famous airblend door motor which is almost $2k since you need to remove the dash...he had to do that twice as well.
I joke that my wifes 13yr old Honda pilot has been in the shop way, way less than my explorer...oh, and it also has less rust & corrosion on it too!
 






No, I do my oil changes anytime between 0-25% left on the oil life monitor. What I'm saying is I've always been in that 0-25% oil life window during one repair or another so since it's up on the hoist anyway do and oil change even though I may still have lets say 15% left...I don't want to come back to the dealer any more then I have to.

At any point did you try getting help from CAMVAP?
I also have a list of issues, albeit all minor to get addressed before my 3yr bumper to bumper is up and trying to get it in on one visit is quite challenging (hard time trying to book in with the "paint" guy).
 






Here is a screen shot of my vehicles car proof report. I visit my dealer on average every 1800miles (3000km). Oh, and "all" of these service dates are not regular maintenance like oil changes, They are repairs! because since I'm there so often if I'm due for that oil change I get that done while it's in the shop anyway
Carproof_zpsrevaryk1.jpg

Carproof_zpsrevaryk1.jpg
 






At any point did you try getting help from CAMVAP?
.
No, I decided not to pursue this because I wouldn't qualify anyway as all my repairs and issue's were honored under warranty so I'm really not out of pocket and $$$$ yet other than my time and headache of practically living at the dealership.
Currently I need a steering rack (major annoying squealing every time I turn the wheel). This is out of warranty and the repair cost is $2500 CDN with taxes...but I'm not getting it fixed as I'm trading in the vehicle in a few weeks, I'm just waiting on the new Chevy Traverse which is officially released tomorrow Aug1 and they're trickling in at dealerships now. I've already got a trade in amount in writing for the Explorer and that's with them taking car of the steering rack issue.
My advise is if you plan to keep your Ford beyond the manufacturers warranty, buy an extended warranty package. You can still get one if you're the original owner just gets more expensive the longer you wait.
 






No, I decided not to pursue this because I wouldn't qualify anyway as all my repairs and issue's were honored under warranty so I'm really not out of pocket and $$$$ yet other than my time and headache of practically living at the dealership.
Currently I need a steering rack (major annoying squealing every time I turn the wheel). This is out of warranty and the repair cost is $2500 CDN with taxes...but I'm not getting it fixed as I'm trading in the vehicle in a few weeks, I'm just waiting on the new Chevy Traverse which is officially released tomorrow Aug1 and they're trickling in at dealerships now. I've already got a trade in amount in writing for the Explorer and that's with them taking car of the steering rack issue.
My advise is if you plan to keep your Ford beyond the manufacturers warranty, buy an extended warranty package. You can still get one if you're the original owner just gets more expensive the longer you wait.

ESP is a must!
 






ESP is a must!

After reading multiple posts on repairs, it's probably fair to say very few owners will make it to 125,000 miles without a minimum of about $5,000 in repairs unless they have an ESP. This is most expensive generation Explorer to maintain to date, by far.
 



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