2010 Ford Explorer
The Verdict
The 2010 Ford Explorer has 114 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. The most reported issues are body (41 complaints) and engine (24 complaints). With a Klunk Score of 71/100, it earns a "Solid Pick" rating. If you're shopping for a Ford Explorer, consider the 2024 model year which has 83% fewer complaints.
Safe Bet
The 2024 has 83% fewer complaints
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Klunk Score: Solid Pick
Fewer complaints than most vehicles. Generally dependable, but check the top problems below.
How is this calculated?
The Klunk Score ranks this vehicle year against all others in our database based on total owner complaints filed with NHTSA. 100 = fewest complaints (top tier), 0 = most complained-about. Scores above 60 are better than average; below 40 means more problems than most.
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Under the Hood
Each number is a complaint. Darker = bigger problem.
| Year | Body | Brakes | Electrical | Engine | Transmission |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 591 | 60 | 179 | 136 | 137 |
| 2001 | 414 | 51 | 96 | 95 | 97 |
| 2002 | 1356 | 127 | 286 | 322 | 1518 |
| 2003 | 677 | 48 | 116 | 137 | 332 |
| 2004 | 672 | 39 | 86 | 155 | 450 |
| 2005 | 279 | 14 | 53 | 129 | 93 |
| 2006 | 76 | 28 | 26 | 244 | 261 |
| 2007 | 76 | 10 | 31 | 39 | 51 |
| 2008 | 49 | 6 | 37 | 27 | 28 |
| 2009 | 20 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| 2010 | 41 | 11 | 15 | 24 | 23 |
| 2011 | 864 | 21 | 121 | 131 | 54 |
| 2012 | 572 | 19 | 73 | 112 | 39 |
| 2013 | 1512 | 31 | 158 | 397 | 91 |
| 2014 | 1114 | 24 | 139 | 304 | 64 |
| 2015 | 1143 | 26 | 152 | 351 | 57 |
| 2016 | 1496 | 13 | 176 | 554 | 156 |
| 2017 | 1116 | 16 | 100 | 329 | 85 |
| 2018 | 465 | 7 | 48 | 133 | 34 |
| 2019 | 186 | 4 | 19 | 32 | 32 |
| 2020 | 378 | 60 | 154 | 157 | 406 |
| 2021 | 172 | 16 | 40 | 69 | 95 |
| 2022 | 101 | 9 | 32 | 50 | 51 |
| 2023 | 62 | 6 | 11 | 14 | 6 |
| 2024 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 45 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 13 |
By Category
By Severity
Worst Problems
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Complaints
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2010 Ford Explorer. The contact discovered a mileage discrepancy after the purchase. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the mileage was 135,902. The contact stated that while the vehicle was being serviced, it was later discovered that the mileage on the Title was 224,283. The information was from a Carfax Report.
Thing accelerate by itself while on highway od light blinking at high speeds and then when you come to a complete stop and try to takeoff it goes really slow with the RPMs high then it will kick into gear, unsafe on the road. Truck willjump in gear then out on takeoff.
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2010 Ford Explorer. The contact discovered a mileage discrepancy after purchasing the vehicle. The vehicle was a dealer sale. At the time of purchase, the mileage was approximately 150,000. Most recently, the contact downloaded the Ford App, and when the maintenance history was checked, it was later discovered that the mileage on the Title was approximately 243,000. The contact stated that the date listed on the Ford App was June 2025.
3 times this has happened. I brake and it seems like I'm pressing the gas pedal and the brakes feel like they aren't stopping the vehicle. The third time put me in incoming traffic and the vehicle was totaled as it already had a rebuilt salvage title when we bought it.
The contact owns a 2010 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 45 MPH, the anti-theft, roll stability, and fuel filler messages were displayed with an audible alarm before the vehicle suddenly shut off. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drove to the residence. However, the failure reoccurred, and the vehicle was towed to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the PCM and ECM had short circuited and failed. The contact was informed that the short circuit was caused by water drainage from the moonroof onto the PCM and ECM computers. The contact stated that the moonroof had previously failed and failed to properly close. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealer and manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact was informed that the ECM and PCM computers were no longer available. The failure mileage was 48,000.
Transmission , Wheel Hub
Runs for about 25 minutes then just dies while driving. Starts back after sits for about an hr and does same thing.
Oil leak in both valve gasket covers oil on the crossmember it started slow then it was traced by Ford to the gaskets(fire hazard) 120 k on odometer
The air bag light will not go off. I have checked the the wiring, cleared the area, and checked all fuses. All checked out okay. I'm a new buyer and can't register the car until it passes inspection. My only conclusion is that it possibly has a defect or has been previously been deployed. There is no record of a previous collision as of yet, although that may not be factual as the car has had a drivers door panel replaced. Can you help with the air bag information? Also, Is there a financial aid grant or some help in obtaining/repairing the problem for low or no income families? Thank you for your time in this matter. Sincerely, Kelly F. [email protected]
The contact owns a 2010 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 mph and attempting to stop, the brake pedal extended to the floorboard causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle and crash into a guard rail. During the crash, no injuries were reported. A police report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 92,600
Rsc alarm keeps going sounding alarm and the abs alarm keeps sounding as well. Seen a ton of owners having this same error
Driving 65 mph on I95 and it just shut off. The yellow wrench on dash came on. I somehow was able to Pull over to the shoulder without being killed. I cranked once then tried it again and it started. Drove all the way home and it’s running fine now. This is a common problem and Ford should be contacting me to warn me and fix it. By the way I had a baby in the car. Thanks Ford for the warning.
While driving on the highway, my Explorer did a sudden jolt and I had no control over the vehicle. It acted as though it was no in gear. I almost crashed going 60 mph on a 4 lane highway. It then did another large jolt and revved high into the red line. I took it to Firestone and they recommended that I take it to the dealership to check the transmission. I called the dealership and they advised me to drive it over. They told me it was "probably the transmission as Explorers are notarious for transmission issues." The dealership inspected the Explorer and confirmed that it was a known transmission issue involving codes P0798 and P098. The dealership advised that there were MULTIPLE pressure code errors [that never did a warning] and that the transmission required replacement. I asked if it was covered under warranty and the dealership advised me that Ford had no issued a recall yet, even though it was a known and serious transmission issue. The dealership recommended that I call Ford Customer Care at 1-800-392-3673 and request that Ford cover the replacement. I called Ford Customer Care and spoke with Bruno who advised me that it was indeed a known issue and that I "was not the only one with this issue" and that "there will be a recall soon so [I] can get reimbursed." Bruno was to have a supervisor call me within 24 hours. It has been almost 2 weeks and there has been no response from Ford. This is a well known issue that Ford knows of. There has been recalls of other Explorers for the same problem but my VIN is not included for some reason. If you go online, there are thousands of complaints. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE BEFORE SOMEONE DIES OR IS SERIOUSLY INJURED. I have the telephone recordings of Ford but I am unable to upload them here.
BACK HATCH WINDOW INTERMITTENTLY OPENS WITHOUT USING REMOTE HAD THE ACTUATOR REPLACED DID NOT FIX THE PROBLEM LEAVES MY VEHICLE VULNERABLE TO THIEVES!
SERVICE RSC LIGHT COMES ON WITH THE WRENCH LIGHT WHEN DRIVING THE VEHICLE. REPLACED THE TCM AND THE PROBLEM DID NOT GO AWAY. CODES U0101 AND U1900 ARE POPPING UP. VEHICLE GOES INTO LIMP MODE. REPLACED IGNITION COILS ON THE LEFT BANK AND IT DID NOT GO AWAY.
MY VEHICLE HAS BEEN SUFFERING A RADEK TRANSMISSION AND POWER TRAIN ISSUES AND I AM I AM TOLD THAT I WILL NEED TO REPLACE IT. AS WELL WHEN I LOOKED UP THE RECALL FOR THIS VEHICLE UNDER GENERAL YEAR AND MODEL IT DOES COME UP THAT THE TRANSMISSION IS UP FOR RECALL HOWEVER WHEN I TYPED THE PARTICULAR VAN AND AT STATED ON YOUR WEBSITE THERE ARE NO OUTSTANDING RECALLS AGAIN CONFLICTING WITH THE FACT THAT THE RECALLS ON TRANSMISSIONS HAVE BEEN NOTED AND NOTEWORTHY IN PREVIOUS C 2011 EXPLORERS SUCH AS MY OWN. PLEASE ADVISE AND LET ME KNOW IF IT IS COVERED BEFORE MY TRANSMISSION GIVES UP COMPLETELY THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR ATTENTION. MY VEHICLE BOTH HAS A TENDENCY TO JUMP YOURS AS WELL AS IDLE HIGH AND TRANSMISSION FLUID IS PROPER AND IN GOOD CONDITION PLEASE HELP ME.
WHEN I DRIVE THE ABS LIGHT COMES ON, THE BREAK SYSTEM LIGHT, ENGINE LIGHT, AND AIR BAG LIGHT ALL CAME ON AT THE SAME TIME AND THE RADIO WILL SHUT OFF ALONG WITH ALL THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS. WHEN I DRIVE SOMETIMES THE CAR WILL STOP CATCHING GEAR AND STOP ACCELERATING RANDOMLY. THE VEHICLE FAILS TO ACCELERATE AT ALL SPEEDS. THE TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN REPLACED AND WE WERE TOLD THE PCM WAS BURNT OUT AND UNREPAIRABLE AND FORD HAS THE PRODUCT ON BACK ORDER AND DOESN'T KNOW WHEN IT WILL BE AVAILABLE. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 FORD EXPLORER. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS ENGAGED IN PARK, THE KEY BECAME STUCK INSIDE THE IGNITION. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THAT HE MANUALLY PUSHED A PIN IN THE SHIFTER TO REMOVE THE KEY. THE CONTACT ALSO MENTIONED THAT THE GEAR WAS ABLE TO BE REMOVED OUT OF PARK WITHOUT THE KEY BEING IN THE IGNITION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO SHULTS FORD LINCOLN (10401 PERRY HWY, WEXFORD, PA 15090, (724) 934-2388) WHERE THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE SHIFTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR REPAIRS. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 127,000.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2010 FORD EXPLORER. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS UNDERGOING AN OIL CHANGE AT CHUCK COLVIN AUTO CENTER (1925 OR-99W, MCMINNVILLE, OR 97128, (800) 223-5099), THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE REAR DIFFERENTIAL WAS LEAKING AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS CURRENTLY AT THE SAME DEALER AWAITING REPAIRS. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 38,200.
AUGUST 16, 2018 I HAD AN ACCIDENT AS A RESULT OF MY 2010 FORD EXPLORER ACCELERATING WHILE MY FOOT WAS ON THE BRAKE. I WAS ALMOST COMPLETELY STOPPED AND OUT OF NO WHERE MY VEHICLE SURGED FORWARD SO FAST. THE SOUND COMING FROM THE ENGINE WAS EXTREMELY LOUD. MY DAUGHTER HAD UNBUCKLED HER SEAT BELT SINCE WE WERE ALL BUT STOPPED AND HIT HER HEAD ON IMPACT. MY VEHICLE ACCELERATED VERY FAST AND HIT THE REAR END OF A LARGE YUKON TRUCK WHICH WAS PARKED IN FRONT OF ME. THE YUKON THEN WAS PUSHED FORWARD AND BROAD SIDED AN OLDER TRUCK WHICH WAS PARKED AT A GAS PUMP. THIS WAS ALL A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. I WAS ATTEMPTING TO PARK ON THE SIDE PARKING LOT OF A STORE. MY VEHICLE WAS ALMOST STOPPED, WITH MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE. I HAD TO ALMOST STAND ON THE BRAKES WITH BRAKES NOT RESPONDING. *TR
114 total