2015 Ford Explorer Steering

I had just pulled out of my driveway when I heard a "clunk" and the power steering seized up. Dash lights indicated "Steering Asist Fault Service Required" and "Service Advance Trac". I had to drive around the block (pulling very hard on steering wheel) to get it back in my driveway. It was frightening not having full control of the car. There is a Recall for Ford Explorer Steering Issues (NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V286000 and NHTSA CAMPAIGN# 21V537000) "Cross axis ball joint to seize" but my VIN is not in the recall but should be. This is a SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE that needs to be addressed by Ford Manufacturing.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while reversing 3 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The power steering fault warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the power steering failure was caused by a rack and pinion failure. The contact was informed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V530000 (Steering). The manufacturer and dealer confirmed that the VIN was not included in the recall and referred the contact to NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 187,800.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering failed to function as intended, and the turn signals were inoperable. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, the failure could not be duplicated due to a signal stating dealer locked. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with steering column failure. The contact was informed that the steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 55-60 MPH, the “Service Track Error” message was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact continued to drive to the destination where the vehicle was parked for several hours. After restarting the vehicle, the “Service Track” and “Steering Loss - Stop Vehicle” messages were displayed. The vehicle was inoperable and towed to the residence. An independent mechanic arrived to the residence and inspected the vehicle, diagnosing that the steering motor and module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The dealer was contacted, and it was confirmed that the VIN was not included in a recall relating to the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 240,000.

Vehicle will Randomly flash service track soon and a steering assist fault while driving down the highway. This will cause the steering to completely lock up and you are unable to turn at highway speeds.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while attempting to turn the vehicle to the left or right, an excessive amount of force was needed to turn the vehicle. The contact believed that the power steering had failed. The contact stated that while turning the vehicle to the right the failure seemed more pronounced than while turning to the left. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The vehicle had not been diagnosed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure where it was confirmed there was no recall associated with the VIN. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to file a safety complaint. The failure mileage was 102,000.

Steering rack failed while driving and locked the steering wheel. There was no early signs of failure nor any indications in the dashboard or any abnormal behavior prior to the failure of the steering rack. I was on a road with little traffic and was able to stop and turn the car off and back on while applying force to the steering wheel, whic eventually allowed me to turn the wheel. This happened at ~106,000 miles which seems to early to have this kind of catastrophic failure. I got lucky this time.

The contact owns as 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering failed. The service advance track and terrain system management fault lights were illuminated. The contact drove the vehicle home unrepaired. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired a year prior due the power steering failure. However, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 109,000.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH, the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who was unable to diagnose the failure. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, who diagnosed failures with the steering gear and outer tie rod. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 148,000.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 30 - 35 MPH, the steering suddenly seized. The contact had to use an excessive amount of strength to maneuver the vehicle. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle and waited for a while before restarting the vehicle. After restarting the vehicle, the power steering regained proper functionality and the contact drove to the destination; however, once arriving at the destination, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The message “Steering Fault - Contact the Dealer” was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the rack and pinion and steering assembly had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired. The contact learned of NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering) that was related to the same failure; however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 34,971.

My steering lost all power and basically froze going straight. I was almost home, within 500 feet and managed to strong arm it into my driveway. I have 2 warning lights on, Service Advance Trac and Service Power steering Now. Something with in the steering system is not right. My safety was not a concern when it happened as I was slowing down to turn into my driveway Looking online, this seems to be a major problem for many people No inspections as yet, since I would need to have it towed someplace I mentions those 2 warnings above.

The electric power steering shuts off at random times. The power steering goes out and the steering may lock according to the Sonora Ford Dealership. The dealership said that the car is not safe to drive without the steering rack replaced. The dealership also noticed a clunk in the steering rack when turned lock to lock. When the steering turns off a red warning signal appears on the dash with a Battery symbol and a message to check charging system.

Vehicle power steering failure, causing locked steering. After reading, am finding this is a major problem with many Ford models. There has been recalls on many other models. No warning at all just locked up. Luckily did not happen to my wife at highway speeds. DTC codes U3000-96 U2011-61 C1B00-2F U3003-68 U0415-00

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering assist failed to operate as needed. Additionally, the "Steering Fault Assist" message was displayed on the instrument panel. The contact stated that excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle due to the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic; however, the mechanic could not determine the cause of the failure. The contact continued driving the vehicle until the ABS and traction control warning lights were illuminated on the instrument panel. The steering wheel seized, and the vehicle was towed back to the independent mechanic. The contact was informed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Part became loose in the steering rack. The metal piece that came loose was lodging itself in-between the teeth on the rack and would prevent steering to move without additional force. It appears that a washer or metal round piece came loose and then randomly becomes lodged/stuck in the steering rack. Pictures and full details are available upon request. My safety was affected by reduced steering capability. Problem is reproducible. No warning lamps or messages.

Power steering rack failure

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while accelerating from a parking lot and starting to make a turn, the contact heard a loud grinding sound coming from the steering wheel while completing the turn. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with rack and pinion gear failure. The contact was informed that the rack and gear needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised the contact to call the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 78,000.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the power steering failed, and the steering wheel was difficult to turn in either direction. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The manufacturer was not yet notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 96,000.

The steering wheel was no longer operable(loss control of vehicle) We were turning into a gas station to purchase gas and the steering wheel failed I was able to miss the car at the pump next to the one I was attempting to park at. I purchased this vehicle 3/10/2023 I was not aware of any recalls or anything until tonight. I did not have any lights on indicating an issue but I had been reaching out to the dealer because I sensed something was wrong with the vehicle. My attempts to get it diagnosed went ignored until 4/25/23 when this incident occurred.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle steering wheel had become firm. The power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the failure was due to a faulty sensor that was integrated into the steering column. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and filed a case. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.

I was driving my 2015 Ford Explorer SUV and the wheels locked into going straight and I was unable to turn. This happened with no warning at all. We had the car looked at by a mechanic and they stated it was the power steering, and that the electronic module went out and the whole steering rack and pinion would need to be replaced. They suggested we contact Ford as there were recalls from the 2011-2013 models of the Ford Explorer for the same exact thing. Ford could not help us and suggested we contact the NHTSA to see if our VIN number had been missed for a recall. My safety and the safety of everyone else on the road around me was definitely put at risk. If I had been anywhere else, or going faster I would have crashed.

I own a 2015 Ford Explorer. While turning out of the driveway the steering locked up and i cannot get it to unlock, we were lucky to get it out of oncoming traffic. We were terrified!!! After reading multiple complaints it seems to be a recurring problem for many. It happened on 9/14/2023. We had no warning of any type before it malfunctioned. Please help us Ford owners out, as Ford has already been aware of it happening many times.

The contact's son owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized while starting the vehicle. While driving at various speeds, the steering was making an abnormal sound. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who informed the contact that the electrical motor, steering column, strut, and front end had failed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V530000 (Steering). The manufacturer was contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000. The contact stated the vehicle is a 2014 not 2015.

Clients steering locked up driving down the road. Had to stop and get a tow. Looking at the issue, found the electronic steering rack and pinion was locked, able to break it free but grinds bad. See other recalls for earlier and later years but not the 2014, seems to be the same issue, client could have been killed or killed others on the highway with no warning for a faulty part.

when you hit the gas the steering turns when you let go it straightens back out please look into this i might cause an accident or loose control of the car