2011 - 2018 Explorer Power Steering Issue

[blwnsmoke]

Everyone needs to continue to file NHTSA complaints on this who are experiencing the issue. They need to know because only they can force Ford to do a recall.

 

[Connie Gable]

Let’s get this documented for you, RSNovi. Please, PM me with your VIN, dealer, mileage, full name, and best daytime number.


Thanks for the PM, charliepapa! Will you please also send your full name, dealership, and best daytime number as well?

Deysha

Deysha I am new to the forum & am so thankful I read everything. I live in GA & drove to FL for vacation which is a 6 hour drive. About 30 minutes before we got here both the power steering & the system failure light & said service power steering now. Thankfully I was visiting my Dad & could man handle it to the Ford Dealership only 5 miles away. I was told they reset it & it "may or may not" get me home. I am only traveling with my 2 year old son & daughter, so I'm not willing to take a 50/50 chance. My Dad is going to have to drive it back while I follow him in his vehicle. We will have to have the replacement part put in at $1700 & I have had my Ford Explorer since November 2014 when we bought it brand new from the dealership in GA. We have 42,000 miles & the fact that there were recalls for the SAME ISSUE in earlier years ONLY thru 2013? If Ford has continued to have the same issues with the 2014 & 2015 why has there not been a recall. Wish I would of read this prior to our purchase. 40k for a brand new vehicle that we have had for a year & a half & something major like this happens. Can I send you my info & dealership etc. to escalate the problem?

 

[scottfab]

Deysha I am new to the forum & am so thankful I read everything. I live in GA & drove to FL for vacation which is a 6 hour drive. About 30 minutes before we got here both the power steering & the system failure light & said service power steering now. Thankfully I was visiting my Dad & could man handle it to the Ford Dealership only 5 miles away. I was told they reset it & it "may or may not" get me home. I am only traveling with my 2 year old son & daughter, so I'm not willing to take a 50/50 chance. My Dad is going to have to drive it back while I follow him in his vehicle. We will have to have the replacement part put in at $1700 & I have had my Ford Explorer since November 2014 when we bought it brand new from the dealership in GA. We have 42,000 miles & the fact that there were recalls for the SAME ISSUE in earlier years ONLY thru 2013? If Ford has continued to have the same issues with the 2014 & 2015 why has there not been a recall. Wish I would of read this prior to our purchase. 40k for a brand new vehicle that we have had for a year & a half & something major like this happens. Can I send you my info & dealership etc. to escalate the problem?

I had asked that question before with no reply.
THANKY YOU FOR POSTING your experience !
Tells me I need to avoid 2011 - 2015 and maybe even new ones.
Now I know Ford is not waiting for fatalities to really get on this one.
That would be criminal.

 

[peterk9]

Deysha I am new to the forum & am so thankful I read everything. I live in GA & drove to FL for vacation which is a 6 hour drive. About 30 minutes before we got here both the power steering & the system failure light & said service power steering now. Thankfully I was visiting my Dad & could man handle it to the Ford Dealership only 5 miles away. I was told they reset it & it "may or may not" get me home. I am only traveling with my 2 year old son & daughter, so I'm not willing to take a 50/50 chance. My Dad is going to have to drive it back while I follow him in his vehicle. We will have to have the replacement part put in at $1700 & I have had my Ford Explorer since November 2014 when we bought it brand new from the dealership in GA. We have 42,000 miles & the fact that there were recalls for the SAME ISSUE in earlier years ONLY thru 2013? If Ford has continued to have the same issues with the 2014 & 2015 why has there not been a recall. Wish I would of read this prior to our purchase. 40k for a brand new vehicle that we have had for a year & a half & something major like this happens. Can I send you my info & dealership etc. to escalate the problem?

Welcome to the Forum.
Sorry to read about the issue you're having. Send the info to FordService using this link; http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/index.php?conversations/add&to=FordService
It is also important that you file a report with the NHTSA.

Peter

 

[jlrohio]

Does anyone know the specific code that a power steering failure is supposed to leave behind?

I searched back through the thread but didn't find any info.

I've been having multiple intermittent power steering lockups upon starting the Explorer. The rack is basically locked, but after moving a couple feet it works fine again. Doesn't happen all the time. I'd like to see if there is a code left behind so I don't have to argue with Ford about the repair that is needed.

I don't know if you got a response yet...and I've got about 5 more pages to go through...but just to document...I just got back from the dealer after having my 2011 serviced for this recall (15N01).

They listed on my receipt that they found codes C200B62 & C200B61. It appears they replaced two steering gears (is there one on each side???) and they changed a gear assembly, a nut and gave it an alignment.

 

[jaratt02]

Hello, first post here. I am having the same "Power Steering Assist Fault" issue with my 2013 Explorer that so many others have (55K miles). Today is the first day this happened and the issue occurred while I was driving. Can someone help point me in the right direction for the next steps I should take? I hope to come back and read all 45 pages of this post at some point but child care is needed at this moment. Thank you so much.

 

[peterk9]

Hello, first post here. I am having the same "Power Steering Assist Fault" issue with my 2013 Explorer that so many others have (55K miles). Today is the first day this happened and the issue occurred while I was driving. Can someone help point me in the right direction for the next steps I should take? I hope to come back and read all 45 pages of this post at some point but child care is needed at this moment. Thank you so much.

Welcome to the Forum.
Start reading on page 5 of the Combined Recalls thread,
http://www.explorerforum.com/xenfor...ined-recalls-for-2011-explorer-models.413095/
You should also file a report with the NHTSA http://api.viglink.com/api/click?fo...www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/Vehicl...nt/index.xhtml

Are you the original owner? Apparently notice of the recall was sent out in June 2014.
There is also a thread in the 'List of Useful Threads' that you can use to check if there are any outstanding recalls for your Explorer.

Peter

 

[scottfab]

I have been following this issue for sometime now.
Sad to see it still happening.
Does anyone know if MY 2016 still has the issue? What about 2015?
Any word on "root cause" ?
materials?
user error?
sensor error?
design error?
????
Oh, and I did some digging and found how the software "upgrade" delays the reporting of the sensor and how that did not really fix anything.

 

[peterk9]

Does anyone know if MY 2016 still has the issue? What about 2015?

I don't believe so but it's easy to check for any reports in this thread since the model years are shown in the margin profile.

Peter

 

[scottfab]

I don't believe so but it's easy to check for any reports in this thread since the model years are shown in the margin profile.

Peter

sure, that's "easy". hmmm

 

[flowergirl1978]

Good Morning, I too struggled with my power steering on my 14 Explorer Sport but my problem was that the steering felt tight and choppy. The dealership reset the computer, replaced the electric steering and double checked all the joints. I was told that that was the way the electric steering felt - BS. The X had 35K, was only driven by either my wife or me, never been in an accident and was serviced by the same dealership where I purchased it from.

After several attempts and test drives with a variety of techs, the senior tech decided to change the steering knuckle (CV joint) and low and behold the steering was repaired. It was odd that he did not think of this earlier. My son in law is a seasoned mechanic and he told me he would check the knuckle first - it is an easy and inexpensive repair.

For everyones info I did not get any warning lights or indicators, the steering simply became tight.

I am happy now but will definitely sell the vehicle once the warranty is finished. I cannot afford to pay a dealership for maintenance guess work.

 

[jaratt02]

Welcome to the Forum.
Start reading on page 5 of the Combined Recalls thread,
http://www.explorerforum.com/xenfor...ined-recalls-for-2011-explorer-models.413095/
You should also file a report with the NHTSA http://api.viglink.com/api/click?fo...www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/Vehicl...nt/index.xhtml

Are you the original owner? Apparently notice of the recall was sent out in June 2014.
There is also a thread in the 'List of Useful Threads' that you can use to check if there are any outstanding recalls for your Explorer.

Peter

Thank you for the info. I am not the original owner. Just purchased pre-owned in May 2016. I have never filed a report with NHTSA before. I will definitely do this. Is it better for me to take this to the dealer first to have it inspected. The only warranty left on the vehicle is the original factory powertrain, I'm assuming this power steering issue will not be covered under this, correct?

I also checked the outstanding recall link and it says that there are not any for my vehicle. Does this mean I should expect to come out of pocket for repairs or are there other ways to go about this?

Thanks again, sorry to hear this has been an issue for so many.

 

[peterk9]

Thank you for the info. I am not the original owner. Just purchased pre-owned in May 2016. I have never filed a report with NHTSA before. I will definitely do this. Is it better for me to take this to the dealer first to have it inspected. The only warranty left on the vehicle is the original factory powertrain, I'm assuming this power steering issue will not be covered under this, correct?

Thanks again.

Yes, your dealer should be the one to go to but file a report in any case so that there is a record of 'another' failure. If it falls under the 'recall' then I don't believe the warranty or lack thereof should make a difference. There have been several recalls issued by other other manufacturers on vehicles years after production and those are done at the manufacturer's expense. Have you checked to see if there is an outstanding recall for yours?

Peter

 

[jaratt02]

Yes, your dealer should be the one to go to but file a report in any case so that there is a record of 'another' failure. If it falls under the 'recall' then I don't believe the warranty or lack thereof should make a difference. There have been several recalls issued by other other manufacturers on vehicles years after production and those are done at the manufacturer's expense. Have you checked to see if there is an outstanding recall for yours?

Peter

I edited my post above, but unfortunately it does not look like there are any outstanding recalls on my VIN. I assume it falls outside of the manufacture date/locale for the 2013 models that were recalled.

 

[peterk9]

I edited my post above, but unfortunately it does not look like there are any outstanding recalls on my VIN. I assume it falls outside of the manufacture date/locale for the 2013 models that were recalled.

I edited my post above, but unfortunately it does not look like there are any outstanding recalls on my VIN. I assume it falls outside of the manufacture date/locale for the 2013 models that were recalled.

It is something that should be looked at in any case. If it turns out you will be paying out of pocket for the whole repair you can always try to see if there is some agreement that can be reached but you won't know until the dealer checks it out. You can't go on driving it the way it is.

Peter

 

[SHUMAX]

Add me to the list. 2014 Sport with just under 57k on it. Have had random advance track warnings before but they want away. Went in today for clunking/rattling I've been chasing - detailed in another thread. They ran the codes and the steering gear came up. I have ESP, so it's a $50 deductible, which is good. No, great! Though, they could not say if it would fix my clunking/clanking. They wanted to start here. I remain completely unimpressed by the suspension in the Explorer. It rides/sounds worse than my wife's Edge that has 120k on it.

 

[peterk9]

Add me to the list. 2014 Sport with just under 57k on it. Have had random advance track warnings before but they want away. Went in today for clunking/rattling I've been chasing - detailed in another thread. They ran the codes and the steering gear came up. I have ESP, so it's a $50 deductible, which is good. No, great! Though, they could not say if it would fix my clunking/clanking. They wanted to start here. I remain completely unimpressed by the suspension in the Explorer. It rides/sounds worse than my wife's Edge that has 120k on it.

Likely different suspensions. Different types of vehicles.

 

[SHUMAX]

Other than the EPS in the Explorer, they are about the same. Strut on knuckle, held by control arm with rear compliance/hydro bushing. Sway bar and stab links connected to strut. Very much the same. The issue, I believe is the Explorer is too heavy for the platform it's based off of, which is the Taurus. It's unfortunate, really...

 

[Maggie Ruby]

I'm experiencing this issues with my 2011 explorer with 97k on it. We bought it pre owned. Had it for about a year before the problem started happening with the power steering. It happened 2 or 3 times and we turned the vehicle off and back on and it worked. The times it did happen we were taking a sharp turn.

My husband called our local ford dealership and they told him the power steering issue is warrantied through 150k miles so we are going to take it in and see if they will fix it. Before this they ran my VIN and it did not come up with any current recalls.

I am wondering though if there is any connection between the steering issue and my next one:

Then about 2 months ago, the batter died and then when my husband replaced it the TCS warning lights, TCS off light and brake lights all came on at the same time.

I'm a new member so I haven't read through everything.

Any advice?

 

[peterk9]

I'm experiencing this issues with my 2011 explorer with 97k on it. We bought it pre owned. Had it for about a year before the problem started happening with the power steering. It happened 2 or 3 times and we turned the vehicle off and back on and it worked. The times it did happen we were taking a sharp turn.

My husband called our local ford dealership and they told him the power steering issue is warrantied through 150k miles so we are going to take it in and see if they will fix it. Before this they ran my VIN and it did not come up with any current recalls.

I am wondering though if there is any connection between the steering issue and my next one:

Then about 2 months ago, the batter died and then when my husband replaced it the TCS warning lights, TCS off light and brake lights all came on at the same time.

I'm a new member so I haven't read through everything.

Any advice?

Welcome to the Forum.
As for the power steering issue, please file a report with the NHTSA. See post 1108 for the link.
Did the lights all go off after starting the vehicle? Remember that when you start it, all lights come on briefly as a system check and that is normal.

Peter