2015 Ford Explorer Steering

I encountered intermittent stiffness in the steering while driving. It felt like it might not steer. And then it loosens up and is okay for a moment or two. I took it to my local mechanic. At first, they thought it to be a lubrication issue. The situation increased. I took it back. They explained previous years of my model had a recall related to the power steering assembly. And that is what they believe it to be. I did reach out to Ford directly, but they are not going to do anything. There are no warning lights or additional inspections. I do see this has appeared on forums.

My steering column was fine one day, and then very loud the next. We took the car to our dealership. They figured out what was wrong... the steering gear went out which caused the complete steering gear assembly to be replaced. But, then they could not get the part from Ford. They said it was a "known issue" and Ford was not releasing the necessary part to have this repaired. They had my car four weeks before Ford agreed to ship the part. I am guessing they had to make sure the parts in inventory would not have the same issue. They would not release my car back to me because they deemed it "unsafe to drive". Finally five-six weeks later, I have my car back repaired.

The power steering in my 2015 Ford explore completely locked up due to the steering gear going out. I am fortunate enough that it happened that low speed and no one was harmed. I could only imagine what would’ve happened if I were on a highway or interstate. It has been inspected and diagnosed by a Ford dealership, and they concluded that it was indeed the power steering gear. At the time it went out. There were no warning signs or lights on the dashboard that would have made me think it would go out.

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 07/15/2023, and we haven't been able to get it to a shop yet they are all closed until Monday. No one at this time has taken a look at it seeing how it was in the driveway of family. 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.

Last year I had to have the electric power steering pump replaced as it completely locked up almost causing an accident while trying to turn, this year now the steering shaft froze up while driving in traffic. Totaling $3,100.00 to fix when I was told this is something that should never need to be replaced and I drive my vehicle very carefully with my children in it .

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH and turning the vehicle to the left, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The contact stated that the steering wheel was also jerking while attempting to steer through the turn. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent but recurring. The contact stated that the failure occurred mostly at slower speeds while turning. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the intermediate shaft needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.

EPS unit started clunking loudly when turning right in a parking lot. Replaced by a mechanic and clunking no longer present.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH and making a right turn, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and had the rack and pinion replaced on two separate occasions. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The contact continued to experience the failure. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 91,000.

Vehicle use an electrical power assist. Vehicle became hard to steer leading to unsafe condition.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated the vehicle was very difficult to steer while in park or while driving at slow speeds. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 139,000.

We have had power steering loss upon starting our 2015 Ford Explorer front wheel drive with park assist. This evening 2/13/2023 my wife called me to tell me the steering has stopped working again and she could not turn the wheels. The power rack has totally failed and I AS A STRONG MAN COULD HARDLY turn the wheels. I limped it home and it was all I could do to turn the wheels even going down the road. I am upset that Ford would of made this type of self sealed power rack that can fail and one will lose all control of the steering. Because it is so hard to turn the wheels. No woman can turn when in this situation and can wreak their Explorer because of this failure. Ford need to fix this issue and not just put the same part back into the Explorer. So anyone that owns a 2015 Explorer be aware of this issue!!

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 5 MPH down the driveway, the steering wheel was turned to the right and the contact heard an abnormal grinding sound. The contact stated that the steering wheel failed to return to center after completing the turn. The contact had to manually turn the steering wheel to center and heard the grinding sound again. The contact also felt a vibration in the steering column. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer or independent mechanic. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 107,657.

the steering makes a loud pop noise when turning sometimes locks up

After several instances of intermittent loss of steering, the steering is now suck in manual mode (very stiff if not impossible to turn wheel). Luckily my wife was just pulling out of the driveway and not attempting to make a turn in traffic!! The dealer said it needs a new rack but at my expense!!?? $2500-3200. I am appalled that Ford has not addressed this issue yet. 2013/14 models covered, 2016 models covered. Why not 2015 models?? Its THE SAME EXACT ISSUE!!! Now I have a $12,000 brick sitting in the driveway. HEY, FORD!!! PLEASE HELP!! this is a very scary safety issue!

I was driving at about 50 mph and didn't have control of steering luckily I didn't panic and got safely off the highway. Never showed any signs that it was malfunctioning and it just went out. Took it the dealership and they told me it would be $2300 to repair.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The contact turned off the vehicle and allowed the computer to reset itself. The failure persisted. The power steering assists warning light was illuminated. The dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 79,000. The consumer stated that the vehicle was repaired but soon failed again. At the time of the second failure, the "Steering Assist Fault" was displayed on the dashboard, and it took multiple tries to get the vehicle moving again.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the steering became very difficult to turn. The contact was able to steer the vehicle; however, extra effort was needed. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was driven back to his residence and the vehicle regained power steering functionality after turning off and then restarting the vehicle. The contact stated that he recently started hearing a grinding noise coming from the transfer case. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the PTU transfer case needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V286000 (Steering). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.

My 2015 Explorer power steering failed while I was driving and resulted in no control of my vehicle. The Ford dealer has indicated that the Rack And Pinion Assembly, Part Number: E5BZ3504AM needs to be replaced. This is a serious safety concern. I had replaced this part a few years ago but fortunately that time I only experienced creaking noise while turning. Now Ford is telling the dealer there are no parts nationwide and my car is sitting at a dealership and has since August. This needs to investigated as Ford Motor Company will likely supply the service department with another one of these dangerous parts.

Steering locks up while driving, no warnings or anything just cannot steer the vehicle.

Steering wheel becomes stiff, and at times locks up while vehicle is in motion no matter the speed. I almost lost complete control when the wheel locked briefly while exiting the highway on a curved off ramp. Thankfully my wife nor my teenage daughter where operating the vehicle, I was. Having had experience in vehicle operations while in combat, I was able to regain control without further incident. This unpredictable malfunction should truly be looked into and rectified by manufacturer.

Power Steering Assist Fault on 10/17/2022. Steering wheel would not move (or was very difficult to turn the wheels at all). Had this occurred while driving it would have been near impossible for my wife to steer the car and likely would have caused an accident. Fortunately it happened first thing in the morning when starting the car in our garage. Towed to repair shop and they confirmed the entire steering rack needs replacement (electric steering). Warning light for same problem occurred 11/23/2021, but after restarting vehicle the warning indicator went away and the steering unlocked. Took to service shop but they could not replicate the problem and cleared the codes, and the code did not come back. This time however there is no solution other than to replace the entire steering rack at great expense.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The Power Steering Assist Fault and Service Advance Tract messages were displayed. The contact veered to the side of the road and waited. The contact continued driving the vehicle using extra effort to steer the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.

Driving down the road and making a right turn into a gas station, I heard a popping noise coming from the front, passenger, tire area. I let it go for a couple days but the noise didn't go away. A day earlier, I picked up the vehicle from Ford (had the recalls addressed). Never was informed of a problem with the front end what so ever...I decided to take the vehicle to Firestone. They checked and found the "rack and pinon" needed to be replaced because the popping noise was coming from inside the system. The repair was estimated to cost $2600.00. Firestone informed me that they called Ford for replacement cost and Ford said they didn't have any to sell. I've read various chat rooms for 2015 Ford Explorer issues and found NHTSA was aware of the problem but no recalls had been issued by Ford. NHTSA, I urge you to push the manufacturer, Ford, to issue a recall on 2015 Ford Explorers and have the rack and pinon issue fixed. This must happen before unsuspecting drivers and their passengers (let alone other drivers and maybe even pedestrians if the car's steering wheel was to lock up as has been reported by other drivers in chat rooms) are hurt or killed. I hope this complaint will be the one that compels NHTSA to act on a recall. After 20+ years working for DOT, I have hope that NHTSA will push Ford to act. Thank you.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Explorer. The contact stated that while driving at highway speeds, the steering wheel seized in a certain position with the "Steering Assist Fault Service Required" warning message on the instrument panel. Upon restarting the vehicle, the power steering failed to operate as needed and excessive force was needed to steer the vehicle. The contact was able to reset the vehicle and drove to the dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed with a defective electric steering rack. The manufacturer had been notified of the failure and was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The vehicle had yet to be repaired and remained in the possession of the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 145,000.

Vehicle lost power steering while driving on highway. My self along with 4 other passengers was in danger of running into other vehicles . I was able to get vehicle to repair and the dealership service department has t replace the Electronic Steering gear and program. There were no prior warning before we lost control.