2014 Ford EXPLORER - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2014 Ford Explorer 4 DR SUV FWD has an impressive overall safety rating of 5 out of 5. It excels in various crash scenarios, with a 5-star rating for overall front and side crash ratings. Additionally, it comes equipped with electronic stability control as a standard feature, providing an extra layer of safety by helping drivers maintain control in difficult driving conditions.

For added safety features, the Ford Explorer offers optional forward collision warning and lane departure warning systems to assist drivers in avoiding potential accidents. These technologies can provide alerts and assistance to help mitigate collisions on the road.

In terms of complaints and recalls, the vehicle has had 1256 complaints filed and 6 recalls issued. While the number of complaints is notable, the recalls demonstrate that Ford takes proactive measures to address any safety issues promptly. Overall, the 2014 Ford Explorer proves to be a safe and reliable choice for drivers seeking a well-rounded SUV with advanced safety features.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

1,256

Recall Count

6

Investigation Count

4

Safety Rating

5/5

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Safety Features

2014 Ford Explorer 4 DR SUV FWD Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2014 Ford Explorer 4 DR SUV FWD

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

Optional
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

Optional

2014 Ford Explorer 4 DR SUV FWD Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2014 Ford Explorer 4 DR SUV FWD Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2014 Score 2022 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated 5 Not Rated
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 4 4 Not Rated
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 Not Rated

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2014 Score 2022 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated 5 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 5 5
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated 5 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated 5 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2014 Score 2022 Score
Rollover Rating Not Rated 4 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated 5 5

Complaints for the 2014 Ford EXPLORER

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"the contact owns a 2014 ford explorer. the contact stated while his wife was driving 60 mph, the power steering intermittently became inoperable and, after five minutes, returned to normal operation. the vehicle veered across the lanes of traffic. the failure occurred on several occasions. the vehicle was taken to the local dealer on three separate occasions, but the dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. the dealer reset the codes. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the nhtsa hotline. the failure mileage was approximately 91,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-01-06

Complaint:
"the contact owns a 2014 ford explorer. the contact stated while driving 35 mph, the "loss of power steering - pullover safely" message was displayed. the contact became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly. the traction control warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. the vehicle was not repaired. after investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to nhtsa campaign number: 14v286000 (steering) but the vin was not included. the manufacturer was notified of the failure but referred the contact to the nhtsa hotline for assistance. the failure mileage was 154,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2025-11-01

Complaint:
"the contact owns a 2014 ford explorer. the contact stated that while driving at 20–30 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to turn and became inoperable. there were no warning lights illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the power steering control module needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the nhtsa hotline. the contact stated that the failure was related to nhtsa campaign number: 14v286000 (steering). the failure mileage was approximately 90,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2024-02-01

Complaint:
"loss of steering going down the road. just like previous models of the explorer. wheel locks up and steering is almost impossible."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-01-10

Complaint:
"the contact owns a 2014 ford explorer. the contact stated while driving approximately 40 mph and making a right turn, the steering wheel seemed to seize. the contact stated that the steering wheel was difficult to turn. the contact stated no warning light was illuminated. the contact drove the vehicle to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the rack and pinion and electric power steering assist needed to be replaced. the vehicle had not been repaired. the manufacturer had been informed of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 138,000."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2024-03-09

Complaint:
"electric power steering failure, cannot drive vehicle steering is hard and stuck. power steering failure light light on dashboard."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-11-10

Complaint:
"when turning the wheel grinding noise and it jerks steering wheel at time was told it was probably the rack and pinion but have to wait to weeks to take it where i bought it from to look at and not until the end of oct for ford to look at it several people have this problem too what can i do why hasn't part be recalled"
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2024-08-09

Complaint:
"my steering went out like the 2011,2012,2013, 2015, 2016 so why does the recall not cover 2014. went out in may of 2022, and i have heard nothing since then and i reported this in june of 2022. its been over a year so why haven't i heard anything. the electric racket pinon steering had to be replace and the scary thing is the warning light did not go off till i had no control of the steering."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2023-12-05

Complaint:
"the rack and pinion steering gear is failing, it will loose power steering which makes it hard to steer. this part has been replaced five times in a year, they are defected coming from the factory. the dealer is aware of the problem. i have been in contact with ford about this ongoing issue asking for the manufacturer information but no one knows who makes this part."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2025-06-09

Complaint:
"while driving my wife’s vehicle it lost power steering and started hearing loud grinding noise coming from passenger side front. was going at low speed so was able to get the vehicle off the road. since losing power steering vehicle wants to pull to the right."
Components Involved: STEERING
Date of incident: 2024-01-09

Recalls for the 2014 Ford EXPLORER

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain 2011-2017 explorer vehicles. the rear suspension toe links may fracture due to stress on the rear suspension."
Consequence:
A fractured rear toe link will cause a sudden change in vehicle handling and increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy:

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, and inspect both rear toe link ball joints, replacing the rear wheel knuckle(s), if necessary, free of charge. The recall began June 26, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S17.

Component(s) Involved: SUSPENSION > REAR
Date of incident: 2019-06-10

Recall:
"ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 ford explorer vehicles manufactured january 17, 2014 to may 31, 2014. the affected vehicles may have improperly welded rear suspension toe links that may fracture."
Consequence:
A fracture of the rear suspension toe link may result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy:

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. The recall began on November 18, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S18.

Component(s) Involved: SUSPENSION > REAR
Date of incident: 2016-04-26

Recall:
"ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain 2013-2017 explorer vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virginia, wisconsin, and the district of columbia. exposure to road salt can cause the cross-axis ball joint to corrode and seize, resulting in a fracture of the outboard section of the rear suspension toe link."
Consequence:
A rear toe-link fracture can result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy:

Dealers will inspect and replace as necessary, the cross-axis ball joint (CABJ) knuckle, and replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. This recall is an expansion of previous NHTSA recall numbers 16V-245, 19V-435, and 20V-675. Certain vehicles previously repaired will need to return for the new remedy. An interim notification letter notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on September 10, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 16, 2022. Owners may contact Ford's customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S32.

Component(s) Involved: SUSPENSION > REAR
Date of incident: 2021-07-15

Recall:
"ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain 2013-2017 explorer vehicles originally sold, or currently registered in connecticut, delaware, the district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virginia, and wisconsin that were previously repaired under a prior recall numbers 16v-245 or 19v-435. the outboard section of a rear suspension toe link may fracture."
Consequence:
A rear toe link fracture can result in a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy:

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the cross-axis ball joint (CABJ) knuckle attached to the rear suspension toe link and replace it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 27, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S62.

Component(s) Involved: SUSPENSION > REAR
Date of incident: 2020-10-30

FORD Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

FORD ranks 1 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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