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2020 Ford Explorer: common problems and reliability
· 6th generationOne of the worst Explorer years.
One of the Ford Explorer years to avoid. All Explorer years
1,233 owner complaints, most about power train. 35 recalls.
Should I buy a 2020 Explorer?The 2020 Ford Explorer has 1233 owner-filed NHTSA complaints and 35 recalls on record. The most-reported areas are power train and electrical system. Owners most often flag infotainment/sync freezing, blank screen, unresponsive screen, or need for frequent resets.
Safety record for the 2020 model year
Source: NHTSA complaints and recalls filed for 2020 Ford Explorer vehicles (US, public record).
The Year Score compares this year with other Explorer years only. How we score it
Is 2020 a good year for the Explorer?
Across the 31 Explorer model years we track, complaint volume runs from 33 (2009) to 7,244 (2002). With 1,233 complaints, the 2020 Explorer sits above the model's median of 829.
These are raw NHTSA complaint totals, not adjusted for how many cars sold or how long each model year has been on the road. Older and higher-selling years accumulate more complaints.
Where owners report problems
Recalls affecting the 2020 Explorer
fuel system, gasoline:delivery:hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
Campaign 19V859000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer and Lincoln Aviator vehicles. Over time, the protective sleeve on the vapor fuel line may chafe through the plastic liquid fuel line and cause a fuel leak.
engine
Campaign 20V788000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Explorer and Lincoln Aviator vehicles. The right hand motor mount fasteners may have been incorrectly tightened, and may loosen over time.
suspension:rear
Campaign 21V154000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Lincoln Aviator and Ford Explorer vehicles. The rear lower control arm (RLCA) bolts that attach the rear lower control arms to the wheel knuckles may not have been heat-treated, which could cause them to break.
back over prevention:software
Campaign 21V735000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Explorer, Lincoln Corsair, and Lincoln Aviator vehicles equipped with 360-degree cameras. The video output may fail, preventing the rearview camera image from displaying.
Show 26 more recalls
seat belts: rear/other:buckle assembly
Campaign 20V549000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with second row center seat belt buckles that may not be properly secured to the seat.
power train:driveline:driveshaft
Campaign 20V693000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer and Lincoln Aviator vehicles equipped with a 2.0L or 3.3L engine and a 10 Speed Automatic Transmission with the All Wheel Drive package. The drive shaft may fracture along the weld seam.
back over prevention: sensing system: camera
Campaign 20V575000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Ford F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, F-550, Explorer, Mustang, Transit, Expedition, Escape, Ranger and Edge, and Lincoln Nautilus and Corsair vehicles. Due to a poor electrical connection, the rearview camera may intermittently display a blank or distorted image. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."
fuel system, gasoline:storage
Campaign 20V730000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer vehicles equipped with 2.3L engines and 19 gallon fuel tanks. The fuel tank inlet check valve may not be fully welded to the fuel tank shell.
air bags:critical fasteners
Campaign 20V497000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer and 2020 Lincoln Aviator vehicles. The side air bag and/or seat back module attachments may not have been properly tightened in the front seat backs.
seats:front assembly:recliner
Campaign 19V633000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2018-2020 F-150 and 2019-2020 F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 Super Duty pickup trucks, and 2018-2019 Ford Explorer, 2019-2020 Expedition, and 2020 Escape vehicles equipped with driver and/or passenger's manual front seat back recliner mechanisms. Also included are certain 2020 Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator vehicles equipped with rear outboard seats and manual seat back recliner mechanisms. The recliner mechanisms may be missing the third pawl required for seat back strength, resulting in a loose seat back. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) numbers 202, "Head Restraints" and 207, "Seating Systems."
electrical system:wiring
Campaign 19V687000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Ford Explorer vehicles equipped with 2.3L or 3.3L engines. The wiring harness may not have been properly secured and may contact the air conditioner compressor (A/C) pulley, potentially damaging the harness or the A/C belt.
power train:automatic transmission:gear position indication (prndl)
Campaign 19V575000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer and Lincoln Aviator vehicles. The Manual Park Release (MPR) cover may not be installed. In addition, the vehicles may be in Factory Mode, which disables warning alerts and does not display the transmission gear selected. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) numbers 114, "Theft Prevention" and 102, "Trans Shift Lever Seq/Starter Interlock/Trans Braking Effect."
back over prevention: sensing system: camera
Campaign 23V022000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2023 Explorer, Lincoln Aviator, and 2020-2022 Lincoln Corsair vehicles equipped with a 360-degree camera. The video output may fail, preventing the rearview camera image from displaying.
power train:automatic transmission:control module (tcm/pcm/tecm)
Campaign 23V069000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer vehicles equipped with a 2.3L engine and 10R60 automatic transmission. An unintentional powertrain control module (PCM) reset may occur while the vehicle is in motion and result in park system damage.
power train:automatic transmission:control module (tcm/pcm/tecm)
Campaign 23V199000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer vehicles equipped with a 2.3L RWD, 3.3L GAS, 3.3L FHEV, or 3.0L ST powertrain. The previous powertrain control module (PCM) update completed under recall 22V-255 did not include the automatic electronic parking brake feature when the vehicle is shifted to park, as intended. In addition, the rear axle horizontal mounting bolt may fracture and cause the driveshaft to disconnect.
back over prevention:display function
Campaign 23V305000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer Police Interceptor Utility vehicles equipped with a 12.1-inch Integrated Computer Screen (ICS). When the Display On/Off Button is used to turn the display to "Off" prior to placing the vehicle in reverse, the backup camera rearview image will not appear on the display. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
back over prevention: sensing system: camera
Campaign 23V342000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2023 Explorer, Lincoln Aviator, and 2020-2022 Lincoln Corsair vehicles equipped with a 360-degree camera. The video output may fail, preventing the rearview camera image from displaying.
electrical system:propulsion system:traction battery
Campaign 23V626000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Lincoln Aviator and Ford Explorer vehicles equipped with 3.0L PHEV engines. A manufacturing defect in one or more of the high voltage battery cells may result in an internal short circuit and battery failure.
power train:driveline:driveshaft
Campaign 23V675000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer vehicles. The rear axle horizontal mounting bolt may fracture and cause the driveshaft to disconnect.
back over prevention: sensing system: camera
Campaign 24V188000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020 Explorer vehicles. Due to a poor electrical connection, the rearview camera may intermittently display a blank or distorted image. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
engine
Campaign 24V598000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer vehicles equipped with the Police Interceptor Utility Package. In the event of an engine failure, engine oil and fuel vapor may be released into the engine compartment and accumulate near ignition sources such as hot engine or exhaust components, possibly resulting in an engine compartment fire.
equipment:other:labels
Campaign 24V852000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2025 Explorer, Lincoln Aviator, 2020-2024 Escape, Lincoln Corsair, 2018-2024 F-150, Expedition and Lincoln Navigator vehicles. The air bag warning label may be missing from the dashboard. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirement Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
seat belts
Campaign 25V093000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Explorer and Aviator vehicles. The seat belt buckle anchor bolts at one or more seating positions may be improperly secured. Additionally, vehicles may have an improperly secured seat belt retractor anchor bolt and/or seat belt anchor bolt at the second-row center seating position, if equipped.
back over prevention:software
Campaign 25V159000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2023 Explorer, Lincoln Aviator, and 2020-2022 Lincoln Corsair vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall number 23V-342. The video output may fail, preventing the rearview camera image from displaying.
power train:driveline:driveshaft
Campaign 25V166000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall numbers 23V-199 or 22V-255. The rear axle horizontal mounting bolt may fracture and cause the driveshaft to disconnect.
seats:mid/rear assembly
Campaign 25V393000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2025 Aviator, and Explorer vehicles. The switch for the easy-entry second-row outer seats may bind or stick, resulting in the seats unlatching, folding, or sliding unexpectedly while driving.
back over prevention:software
Campaign 25V442000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2018-2022 Transit Connect, 2019-2020 MKZ, MKX, Edge, Continental, F-150, Nautilus, Fusion, 2019-2023 Ranger, Mustang, 2020-2021 EcoSport, Expedition, Navigator, 2020-2022 Escape, F-250 SD, Corsair, 2020-2023 Aviator, Transit, 2020-2024 Explorer, 2021-2024 Bronco Sport, and 2022-2024 Maverick vehicles. A software error may cause the rearview camera to display a blank image, or the image may remain on the display after the backing event has ended.
equipment:electrical:engine block heater
Campaign 25V685000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2019 Lincoln MKC, 2016-2023 Explorer, 2019-2020 Fusion, 2019-2024 Ranger, 2020-2022 Lincoln Corsair, Escape, 2021-2024 Bronco, Bronco Sport, and 2022-2024 Maverick vehicles. The engine block heater may crack and develop a coolant leak, causing it to short circuit when the block heater is plugged in.
visibility:windshield wiper/washer:motor
Campaign 26V117000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Explorer, Escape, Lincoln Aviator, and Lincoln Corsair vehicles. The windshield wiper motor may fail and prevent the windshield wipers from operating properly.
back over prevention:software
Campaign 26V123000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Escape, Lincoln Corsair, 2020-2024 Lincoln Aviator, and Explorer vehicles. The image on the center display may flip or invert, resulting in an incorrectly displayed rearview image when the vehicle is placed in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
5 more recalls are on record. Check nhtsa.gov with your VIN for the full list.
What owners report on the 6th generation Explorer
Owner sentiment for the sixth-generation Explorer is mixed and heavily dependent on model year.
- Very frequentInfotainment/SYNC freezing, blank screen, unresponsive screen, or need for frequent resets
- Very frequentApple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity problems, often traced to cables or the media hub
- RecurrentTransmission failure or replacement, including cracked torque converter
- RecurrentHeated seat failure, typically the heating element
- RecurrentCamera issues, including intermittent or blue backup camera
Owner insights for the 6th generation Explorer. Read the full 6th generation owner report.
Typical used price
Used Explorer listings typically run $15,520–$26,999.
Other Explorer model years
Compare every Explorer year side by side to see how 2020 ranks against the rest.
Compare the Explorer against its rivals
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