IllustrationMY 2006 FORD EXPLORER FEELS LIKE ITS BEING REAR ENDED. I DIDN'T START FEELING THIS UNTIL I DROVE OFF THE DEALERSHIP LOT WITH MY NEWLY PURCHASED VEHICLE. I'VE TAKEN IT BACK TWO TIMES TO DEALERSHIP TO BE FIXED . *TR
2006 Ford Explorer
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2006 Ford Explorer do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 609.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Explorer years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
960–25K
13925–50K
13950–75K
8575–100K
67100–150K
21150K+
547 reports with mileage · 83 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Power Train. Review the 296 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 164 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine. Review the 58 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
13 crash reports7 fire reports10 injury reports
Power Train complaints
296 reportsCAR SHIFTS HARD FROM 2ND TO 1ST GEAR, A HARD JOLT LIKE SOMEBODY HAS HIT YOU IN THE REAR END. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 FORD EXPLORER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHENEVER THE VEHICLE WAS SHIFTED INTO REVERSE, IT WOULD JOLT BACK EXTREMELY HARD. THE FAILURE ALMOST CAUSED THE CONTACT TO SUSTAIN A WHIPLASH. THE FAILURE OCCURRED NEARLY EVERY TIME SHE SHIFTED INTO REVERSE. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION NE…
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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 FORD EXPLORER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHENEVER THE VEHICLE WAS SHIFTED INTO REVERSE, IT WOULD JOLT BACK EXTREMELY HARD. THE FAILURE ALMOST CAUSED THE CONTACT TO SUSTAIN A WHIPLASH. THE FAILURE OCCURRED NEARLY EVERY TIME SHE SHIFTED INTO REVERSE. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPROGRAMMED. SHE PLANNED TO THE VEHICLE REPAIRED IN THE LATTER PART OF JUNE 2009. THE MANUFACTURER ADVISED HER TO CALL NHTSA AND FILE A COMPLAINT. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 78,244 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 75,000.
WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK ABS,TRACTION AND WRENCH LIGHT CAME ON. A GRINDING NOISE STARTED AND FELT LIKE THE BRAKES WERE BEING USED EVEN THOUGH I WAS TOUCHING THE GAS PEDAL. COULD HAVE CAUSED A ACCIDENT IF I WASN'T DRIVING IN A NEIGHBORHOOD. WE NOW HAVE A CAR SITTING IN OUR DRIVE BROKEN DOWN THAT WE STILL OWE OVER 15,000 FOR. C…
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WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK ABS,TRACTION AND WRENCH LIGHT CAME ON. A GRINDING NOISE STARTED AND FELT LIKE THE BRAKES WERE BEING USED EVEN THOUGH I WAS TOUCHING THE GAS PEDAL. COULD HAVE CAUSED A ACCIDENT IF I WASN'T DRIVING IN A NEIGHBORHOOD. WE NOW HAVE A CAR SITTING IN OUR DRIVE BROKEN DOWN THAT WE STILL OWE OVER 15,000 FOR. CALLING FORD MONDAY TO HAVE IT TOWED OVER. WHAT I HAVE READ ONLINE, IT LOOKS LIKE I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH THIS PROBLEM. I HAVE A 5 YR OLD AND A 2 YR OLD AND WANT A CAR THAT IS SAFE. THE BRAKES FAILED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO AND FORD TOLD US THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG. *TR
I HAVE A 2006 EXPLORER V-6 EDDIE BAUER. MY VEHICLE HAS 35,302 MILES. I WAS OUT RUNNING ERRANDS ON A SATURDAY MORNING WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. THEN WITHOUT WARNING THE VEHICLE JUST STARTED JERKING AS THE CAR CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP. THEN AS I BEGAN TO DRIVE (AFTER THE RED LIGHT) I NOTICED THE RPM'S JUST SEEMING TO GO UP AND DOWN AS …
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I HAVE A 2006 EXPLORER V-6 EDDIE BAUER. MY VEHICLE HAS 35,302 MILES. I WAS OUT RUNNING ERRANDS ON A SATURDAY MORNING WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. THEN WITHOUT WARNING THE VEHICLE JUST STARTED JERKING AS THE CAR CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP. THEN AS I BEGAN TO DRIVE (AFTER THE RED LIGHT) I NOTICED THE RPM'S JUST SEEMING TO GO UP AND DOWN AS I WAS DRIVING. I HAD ABOUT 5 MORE TIMES THAT I NEEDED TO STOP (STOP SIGNS) MY VEHICLE BEFORE I GOT HOME AND IT CONTINUED TO JERK AS I CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP. I DID NOT FEEL SAFE AT ALL DRIVING WITH MY KIDS IN THE CAR. AFTER THE CAR FIRST JERKED WHEN I WENT TO STOP THE WRENCH ILLUMINATED STATING POWERTRAIN PROBLEM. I STARTED DOING RESEARCH ON THIS PROBLEM AND I HAVE FOUND HUNDRED OF THE SAME OR VERY SIMILAR PROBLEMS. WHY HAS FORD NOT LOOKED INTO THIS PROBLEM, COME UP WITH A SOLUTION AND ISSUE A RECALL. *TR
EXCITER RING DAMAGE. REPLACED REAR AXLE. *TR
MY 2006 FORD EXPLORER HAS A MAJOR TRANSMISSION PROBLEM. FORD REFUSES TO DO ANYTHING BUT REPROGRAM IT. IT HAS BEEN DONE 5+ TIMES. IT JERKS AND LUNGES INTO UPCOMING TRAFFIC. *TR
I TOOK MY WIFE'S EXPLORER TO THE DEALERSHIP AND DESCRIBED THE ISSUE WITH THE VEHICLE POPPING INTO GEAR LATE, OR DELAYING BEFORE IT GOES INTO GEAR. I CAN EVEN FEEL IT WHEN IT CHANGES GEARS WHEN DRIVING. SOMETIMES MORE SUDDEN THAN OTHER TIMES. THEY SAID THEY KNEW EXACTLY WHAT IT IS....SO THEY KEPT MY CAR FOR 6 HOURS TO TELL ME THA…
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I TOOK MY WIFE'S EXPLORER TO THE DEALERSHIP AND DESCRIBED THE ISSUE WITH THE VEHICLE POPPING INTO GEAR LATE, OR DELAYING BEFORE IT GOES INTO GEAR. I CAN EVEN FEEL IT WHEN IT CHANGES GEARS WHEN DRIVING. SOMETIMES MORE SUDDEN THAN OTHER TIMES. THEY SAID THEY KNEW EXACTLY WHAT IT IS....SO THEY KEPT MY CAR FOR 6 HOURS TO TELL ME THAT I OWED THEM $89 FOR TELLING ME WHAT'S WRONG, AND THEN TOLD ME ITS $1,300 TO FIX IT. THEY SAID SORRY ABOUT YOUR LUCK, NO RECALL YET, SO YOU HAVE TO PAY FOR IT YOURSELF. I WOULD BE HAPPY TO PURSUE THIS FURTHER... THIS IS DANGEROUS, AND SHOULD BE ADDRESSED BY FORD BEFORE PEOPLE ARE HURT. *TR
MY FORD 2006 EXPLORER LIMITED JOLTS ALMOST EVERY TIME I COME TO A STOP. I HAVE TAKEN IT TO THE DEALER TO GET REPROGRAMMED, BUT THE PROBLEM STILL EXIST. THE VALVE BOX IN THIS PARTICULAR VEHICLE IS DEFECTIVE AND NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED UNDER A RECALL. *TR
2006 FORD EXPLORER. TRANSMISSION WILL NOT STAY ENGAGED. DRIVING ALONG (HAPPENS AT ALL SPEEDS) AND CAR SLIPS OUT OF GEAR (AS THOUGH IT IS IN NEUTRAL). ENGINE WILL "REV" WHEN THE PEDAL IS PRESSED BUT THE GEAR WILL NOT RE-ENGAGE FOR 30 SECONDS OR SO. AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS THIS IS INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS! I HAVE COASTED OFF THE ROAD, WHILE…
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2006 FORD EXPLORER. TRANSMISSION WILL NOT STAY ENGAGED. DRIVING ALONG (HAPPENS AT ALL SPEEDS) AND CAR SLIPS OUT OF GEAR (AS THOUGH IT IS IN NEUTRAL). ENGINE WILL "REV" WHEN THE PEDAL IS PRESSED BUT THE GEAR WILL NOT RE-ENGAGE FOR 30 SECONDS OR SO. AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS THIS IS INCREDIBLY DANGEROUS! I HAVE COASTED OFF THE ROAD, WHILE DODGING TRAFFIC ON APPROXIMATELY 50 OCCASIONS. THE DEALERSHIP HAS ATTEMPTED TO REPAIR IT 7 TIMES AND HAS BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL. VEHICLE IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE. *TR
Official recalls
105V520000 · Visibility:windshield Wiper/washer:motor
Nov 9, 2005
ON CERTAIN TRUCKS, PASSENGER CARS AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES, THE WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR MAY HAVE BEEN PRODUCED WITHOUT GREASE BEING APPLIED TO THE OUTPUT SHAFT GEAR.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: AFTER A PERIOD OF CONTINUOUS USE ON THE HIGH SPEED SETTING, LACK OF GREASE ON THE OUTPUT SHAFT GEAR MAY CAUSE THE GEAR TO DISTORT OR FRACTURE DURING OPERATION RESULTING IN A LOSS OF WIPER FUNCTION. INOPERATIVE WIPERS UNDER INCLEMENT WEATHER CONDITIONS COULD CAUSE A CRASH DUE TO IMPAIRED VISIBILITY.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE WIPER MOTOR FOR THE PRESENCE OF GREASE AND GREASE THE WIPER MOTOR GEARS IF NECESSARY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 22, 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-392-3673 OR LINCOLN/MERCURY AT 1-800-521-4140.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.