22 of the 519 complaints about the 2020 Ford Expedition are about the driver-assist systems — 4% of everything reported for this model year. Half of the failures with a mileage on record happened before 52,500 miles.
22
Complaints
1
Crashes
0
Fires
3
Injuries
Filed with NHTSA, in their own words.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
At highway speed of 70 mph vehicle briefly went into park and shut entire vehicle down, vert traumatized and injured my head from the brief shutdown, could have caused a fatal accident
NHTSA complaint #11748374 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
I was driving at highway speeds and parking suddenly engaged forcing vehicle to lose all power. While I was able to get the vehicle off the road it could have ended much worse. Ford recognizes this as a recall but because it it is not officially active they will not fix it unless I pay for it. Manufacturer Recall Number26S48 NHTSA Recall Number26V402
NHTSA complaint #11748021 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that while reversing, the rearview camera image was distorted or blank. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V442000 (Back Over Prevention). There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who was unable to diagnose or repair the vehicle. The manufacturer was contacted, but no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
NHTSA complaint #11696149 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
Hello, my name is [XXX] and I’m writing in regards to the transmission issues with my Ford expedition. I have reached out to the customer service line and currently my vehicle is at confidence Ford in Norman, OK. I’ve had issues with this vehicle since I bought it New and I’ve tried multiple times to have the transmission repaired. It has been to Patriot Ford in Purcell, OK(No longer in business), Zeke Ford in Purcell, OK (No longer in business) Woody Ford in Madill, OK.I’ve tried multiple times to get it into other dealerships, lastly it has ended up at Confidence Ford, Norman, OK. Due to the nature of the transmission, it has caused multiple problems and almost deadly situations. This vehicle has been stalling out and losing power since the day we bought it. CUSTOMER SERVICE said that they cannot help us because it is over the hundred thousand miles mark, but I have continued to seek Support and Repair Services since I bought it new in 2021. If you recall during this time, it was after Covid when there was limited resources for repairs and dealerships to offer loaner vehicles or to even rent loaner vehicles. So in the situation of not being able to keep it in service they would give it back. Before I bought this vehicle new, I owned the exact same vehicle that I had bought preowned from Seth Wadley Ford in Pauls Valley, OK. The previous vehicle had the exact same issues and was a Complete LEMON. The previous vehicle had to be traded in for a new one. We thought that buying a new one hoping It would not be a lemon, and with a warranty that we would not have a problem and that the previous one was a fluke. Sadly it was not. I have almost been T-bone, rear ended and hit head on with my 3 young children in the car on multiple occasions, too many to count. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
NHTSA complaint #11643052 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS
My park aid sensor fault comes on without cause and a picture of a car blocks the view to the screen that displays directions from google maps. It comes on suddenly and sporadically and has almost caused an accident several times as I don't know where I am going when this happens. I took my car to the dealership to get this fixed. The dealership charged me $213.79 for the diagnosis and stated that this happens to alert me to a problem related to when a vehicle is approaching on the left or right and the audio component does not work. In other words, when a vehicle is approaching, the lights on the mirrors flash on but the noise does not present. They then told me that to stop the dangerous flashing of the car blocking my view of the map, that I would be charged almost $800 to repair. I told them I couldn't afford it and asked if they could just stop the random car display from happening and covering my map. To me, this is much more dangerous than the main quality defect preventing the sounds. I was told that they were not allowed to disable this malfunction and that it was not considered a quality defect or recall issue. I am currently driving in an unsafe vehicle due to a design flaw in a vehicle that is not yet 4 years old that I can't afford to fix myself. The fields below don't allow me to enter information. I have not been in an accident yet due to this. It happens at various speeds. My vehicle has about 52000 miles on it.
NHTSA complaint #11618722 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
My park aid sensor fault comes on without cause and a picture of a car blocks the view to the screen that displays directions from google maps. It comes on suddenly and sporadically and has almost caused an accident several times as I don't know where I am going when this happens. I took my car to the dealership to get this fixed. The dealership charged me $213.79 for the diagnosis and stated that this happens to alert me to a problem related to when a vehicle is approaching on the left or right and the audio component does not work. In other words, when a vehicle is approaching, the lights on the mirrors flash on but the noise does not present. They then told me that to stop the dangerous flashing of the car blocking my view of the map, that I would be charged almost $800 to repair. I told them I couldn't afford it and asked if they could just stop the random car display from happening and covering my map. To me, this is much more dangerous than the main quality defect preventing the sounds. I was told that they were not allowed to disable this malfunction and that it was not considered a quality defect or recall issue. I am currently driving in an unsafe vehicle due to a design flaw in a vehicle that is not yet 4 years old that I can't afford to fix myself. The fields below don't allow me to enter information. I have not been in an accident yet due to this. It happens at various speeds. My vehicle has about 52000 miles on it.
NHTSA complaint #11618722 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
LANE DEPARTURE: ASSIST
My park aid sensor fault comes on without cause and a picture of a car blocks the view to the screen that displays directions from google maps. It comes on suddenly and sporadically and has almost caused an accident several times as I don't know where I am going when this happens. I took my car to the dealership to get this fixed. The dealership charged me $213.79 for the diagnosis and stated that this happens to alert me to a problem related to when a vehicle is approaching on the left or right and the audio component does not work. In other words, when a vehicle is approaching, the lights on the mirrors flash on but the noise does not present. They then told me that to stop the dangerous flashing of the car blocking my view of the map, that I would be charged almost $800 to repair. I told them I couldn't afford it and asked if they could just stop the random car display from happening and covering my map. To me, this is much more dangerous than the main quality defect preventing the sounds. I was told that they were not allowed to disable this malfunction and that it was not considered a quality defect or recall issue. I am currently driving in an unsafe vehicle due to a design flaw in a vehicle that is not yet 4 years old that I can't afford to fix myself. The fields below don't allow me to enter information. I have not been in an accident yet due to this. It happens at various speeds. My vehicle has about 52000 miles on it.
NHTSA complaint #11618722 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? APIM issues causing GPS, Bluetooth, radio, settings and camera to mess up. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Getting lost on the road without GPS. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? The vehicle has been to a Ford dealership. They were able to recreate the issue. They state the APIM is bad. We had to have the APIM reset with less than 9k miles on the vehicle. They are now saying resetting the APIM is not resolving the issue. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No, this started about 2 months ago. We were just able to get the vehicle looked at this week.
NHTSA complaint #11570842 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
Transmission failed multiple times. Caused loss of forward movement and inability to move out of the way of traffic. Caused blind spot sensors to become inoperable. Vehicle would not move and had to push it out of the road and was almost struck by multiple vehicles. Repaired under warranty replaced transmission. Second trans mission has started doing it again. It fails at highway and city speeds. No warning lights Pryor to failure.
NHTSA complaint #11570890 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
There are 3 issues going on with my SUV. Each item has been identified or verified at my local dealership. My main issue is that the car occasionally will not go into the correct gear. This mostly happens when I haven't driven the car in a couple of days, and it's cold out. It also shifts hard for no reason. I was informed that there is some sort of transmission issue with my type suv. I never received a recall notice or anything. Second, my alarm goes off in the middle of the night randomly. The dealership said this was due to a faulty latch on the back of the car. They also said this was a newer issue that other customers have had. Last, my pre-collision assist will activate when there is nothing around to trigger it. This has happened one time so far.
NHTSA complaint #11570676 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
APIM failure which results in loss of screen and information that has safety related items. Ford should provide a recall on all failed units. Customer forums have many complaints about this item.
NHTSA complaint #11555518 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION
The contact owns a 2020 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that upon shifting into drive (D) after he had reversed, the rearview camera remained activated, then the screen turned black. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving and had caused the infotainment system to become inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the Accessory Protocol Interface Module (APIM) had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000.
NHTSA complaint #11546641 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
The APIM is malfunctioning causing backup camera to remain on, not allowing GPS location of vehicle, inhibiting cameras from working properly. No WiFi functionality, cannot connect phone and I cannot stream music
NHTSA complaint #11544874 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
LANE DEPARTURE: BLIND SPOT DETECTION
My transmission shifts very hard while driving. Mainly from 4th to 5th gear while going 50MPH on a decline. The car has been in the shop for it a couple times and have yet to “replicate” the issue or repair it. The blind monitor system keeps saying it’s having an issue responding to the transmission. I get notified on my app constantly, yet the dealership has told me they can’t replicate it therefore no repairs have been made.
NHTSA complaint #11508002 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
The transmission has now had over 5 shifting stall and power loss events while on the highway when attempting to downshift when accelerating. This loss of power causes a drastic reduction in speed and delay in actions. These events have nearly cause accidents at highway speeds. Additionally the radar sensor for the collision avoidance system went out and the car now shifts harshly in any gear with jerking and clanking. Multiple service lights are now illuminated. This first happened around 20k miles, but is has been increasing in frequency and now the car is not safe or driveable. This is the same transmission that is affecting other ford cars, like the ford 150 which has been subject to recalls. From publicly available information Ford thinks it’s a shifter and transmission disconnect but has not been able to implement a fox.
NHTSA complaint #11497851 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS
The transmission has now had over 5 shifting stall and power loss events while on the highway when attempting to downshift when accelerating. This loss of power causes a drastic reduction in speed and delay in actions. These events have nearly cause accidents at highway speeds. Additionally the radar sensor for the collision avoidance system went out and the car now shifts harshly in any gear with jerking and clanking. Multiple service lights are now illuminated. This first happened around 20k miles, but is has been increasing in frequency and now the car is not safe or driveable. This is the same transmission that is affecting other ford cars, like the ford 150 which has been subject to recalls. From publicly available information Ford thinks it’s a shifter and transmission disconnect but has not been able to implement a fox.
NHTSA complaint #11497851 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
2020 - Expedition collision avoidance should be investigated. Background: 05-08-21 Traveling south at 6 pm near Oxford Michigan on M-24 (grassy-median 4-lane highway) at the posted 55 MPH limit in clear weather. Ford Co-Pilot360 & 360 Assist active with 360 deg camera. Speed control set to normal mode with “collision avoidance” set to max and auto braking. I am (1st car) in the right lane with a 2nd car following also in my lane. A 3rd car (waiting to enter the highway) stops ahead (on right- from west) at an intersection where left turns (north) are prohibited. That 3rd car safely turns right (south) in front of us quickly crossing both active southbound lanes and over into the short left turn-around lane north. That 3rd driver had cleared the two active lanes quickly and safely. As our vehicles approached him we had an open traffic lane on our left, a clear shoulder to the right and nothing in front of us, no safety issue yet. Issue: When I drive past that 3rd vehicle my Expedition dashboard shouts “collision warning”. My vehicle applies the brakes while my 360 degree cameras ignore that a car is closing fast behind me. I need to accelerate and do it now! I’m shocked to find that flooring my gas pedal or even pumping it has no effect. Ford has taken my throttle away from me, I can’t help that 2nd car behind me. The 2nd car brakes and swerves hard into the open lane barely missing me. It was just luck that the driver was responsive and the lane was open. No, I did not hit or touch the brake by mistake. The 2nd car now angry at me accelerates hard, passes and swerves back into my lane then hits his brakes! My Expedition “collision warning” doesn’t appear, so my “auto brakes” fail to activate and I’m forced to brake hard in response. After successfully avoiding another Ford induced accident, I backed-off a great distance to encourage a justifiably angry citizen to move away. I didn’t want a third attempt at my life if he pulled a weapon
NHTSA complaint #11485128 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
2020 - Expedition collision avoidance should be investigated. Background: 05-08-21 Traveling south at 6 pm near Oxford Michigan on M-24 (grassy-median 4-lane highway) at the posted 55 MPH limit in clear weather. Ford Co-Pilot360 & 360 Assist active with 360 deg camera. Speed control set to normal mode with “collision avoidance” set to max and auto braking. I am (1st car) in the right lane with a 2nd car following also in my lane. A 3rd car (waiting to enter the highway) stops ahead (on right- from west) at an intersection where left turns (north) are prohibited. That 3rd car safely turns right (south) in front of us quickly crossing both active southbound lanes and over into the short left turn-around lane north. That 3rd driver had cleared the two active lanes quickly and safely. As our vehicles approached him we had an open traffic lane on our left, a clear shoulder to the right and nothing in front of us, no safety issue yet. Issue: When I drive past that 3rd vehicle my Expedition dashboard shouts “collision warning”. My vehicle applies the brakes while my 360 degree cameras ignore that a car is closing fast behind me. I need to accelerate and do it now! I’m shocked to find that flooring my gas pedal or even pumping it has no effect. Ford has taken my throttle away from me, I can’t help that 2nd car behind me. The 2nd car brakes and swerves hard into the open lane barely missing me. It was just luck that the driver was responsive and the lane was open. No, I did not hit or touch the brake by mistake. The 2nd car now angry at me accelerates hard, passes and swerves back into my lane then hits his brakes! My Expedition “collision warning” doesn’t appear, so my “auto brakes” fail to activate and I’m forced to brake hard in response. After successfully avoiding another Ford induced accident, I backed-off a great distance to encourage a justifiably angry citizen to move away. I didn’t want a third attempt at my life if he pulled a weapon
NHTSA complaint #11485128 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Driving on a 4-lane highway when a box truck directly ahead stopped quickly due to a stopped car ahead of it. The forward collision warning flashed and beeped, but when forcefully applying the brakes, the brake pedal only pulsed (like anti-lock brakes) but didn't slow the car even enough for the driver or passenger to feel any inertia moving forward in their seats or with their heads. The automatic emergency braking also didn't work, leading to a rear-end collision forceful enough to push the box truck into the car in front of it, apparently injuring the driver of the front car who was transferred by emergency personnel to a nearby hospital to seek medical evaluation/assistance. After impact, a message appeared on the dash stating "Pre-collision assist not available", but the forward collision warning worked, there was no prior warning of issues for the pre-collision assist, and the warning message was after impact, which significantly damaged the front portions of the vehicle (estimated damages exceed $24,000). There was a recall for the same model and year of this vehicle for pre-collision assist features/software not working properly, but it either didn't apply to this specific vehicle or was already addressed by the dealer, and the details aren't quite the same as what was experienced in this collision.
NHTSA complaint #11480016 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS
My car has been skipping between 3 rpm and up. The other day the collision assist pulled up and my car did a crazy jerking and almost cut off while driving. I drove slowly home with it constantly skipping and making it hard to accelerate. After it sat overnight the collision warning went off. It’s still skipping some and the power is not there like it once was.
NHTSA complaint #11462914 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Forward collision warning, dynamic brake support and automatic emergency braking do not work and the driver menu to to turn on/off and or adjust settings is inaccessible. Although not part of NHTSA recall #20V-262 issued in May 2020, my vehicle matches the exact vehicle configuration and problem(s) outlined in the recall documentation. The vehicle was brought to the dealership on 6/16/2020 where Ford claimed the vehicle did not have any of the aforementioned safety systems and therefore had no issue. [see attached paperwork dated 6/16/2020] After 1 entire month of back and forth, the dealership subsequently acknowledge the vehicle does indeed have the safety features and they need to further investigate with no commitments made on solution and or timeline. [see attached email dated The issue was spurred by a near miss collision when the systems did not activate.
NHTSA complaint #11424884 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
Forward collision warning, dynamic brake support and automatic emergency braking do not work and the driver menu to to turn on/off and or adjust settings is inaccessible. Although not part of NHTSA recall #20V-262 issued in May 2020, my vehicle matches the exact vehicle configuration and problem(s) outlined in the recall documentation. The vehicle was brought to the dealership on 6/16/2020 where Ford claimed the vehicle did not have any of the aforementioned safety systems and therefore had no issue. [see attached paperwork dated 6/16/2020] After 1 entire month of back and forth, the dealership subsequently acknowledge the vehicle does indeed have the safety features and they need to further investigate with no commitments made on solution and or timeline. [see attached email dated The issue was spurred by a near miss collision when the systems did not activate.
NHTSA complaint #11424884 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.