Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL - STORAGE - TANK ASSEMBLY | |||||
| 042115 | 10/31/2005 | 05213 | 10013388 | Fuel gauge slow to update after refueling. *eh | 04/18/2005 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER - STORAGE - FUEL GAUGE SYSTEM | |||||
| 06167 | 10021052 | Mil on with dtc p0463 or erratic fuel gauge operation. *kb | 02/27/2007 | ||
| 05213 | 01/01/2006 | 06212 | 10019379 | Malfunction indicator lamp on with pcm diagnostic trouble code p0463 and/or ic diagnostic trouble code b1201 - fuel gauge drops to empty or slow to update after refueling. *tt | 03/13/2006 |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE | |||
| 01/07/2010 | 68000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that the check engine light was illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where they advised him that the fuel sensor board failed and needed to be upgraded. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 68,000 and the current mileage was approximately 91,400. kmj | |||
| 01/07/2010 | 68000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that his check engine light had been illuminated for a while. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and they advised him that the fuel sensor board had failed and needed to be upgraded. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was contacted and they offered no assistance. the failure mileage was approximately 68,000 and the current mileage was approximately 91,400. tb | |||
| 07/12/2011 | 58084 | ||
| While driving, when i applied the brakes, the car lurched and made a noise. about 1 minute after that, a warning light that stated engine fail safe mode and a little wrench showed up on the left of the instrument panel. i was driving home, and the car started to speed up without my increasing the speed using the gas pedal. the car continued to lurch off and on until i got home. i researched this problem on the internet and it seemed to be the throttle body assembly that had failed. upon taking it to the mechanic, that is exactly what is was. the car was dangerous to drive, i could have been killed had the car's speed kept increasing. the repair was $1026.00. | |||
| 06/23/2008 | 100000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated while putting fuel in the vehicle the filler will over flows the gasoline back out. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated they have to replace the cannister in the tank due to oil and dirty that was coming up in the cannister. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 100,000 and the current mileage was 142,202 | |||
| 06/07/2011 | 135000 | ||
| Was driving down the road about 200 miles from home and car was doing fine. all of the sudden i lost my gas gauge and the miles to emply reading ---. i have never had this problem. then about 8 miles from my 314 mile destination it worked again, in which it read half a tank. then after refueling, the gas gauge did the same thing. it has been that way for a day now and i try to go about 200 miles and then top it off again. | |||
| 11/05/2009 | 60000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated that the check fuel cap light was continuously illuminated. the contact replaced the fuel cap but the failure persisted. the contact also had the dealer reprogram the computer but to no avail. the failure mileage was 60,000 and the current mileage was 72,000. | |||
| 11/05/2009 | 60000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. the contact stated the check fuel cap light keeps illuminating on the instrument panel. the contact has replaced the fuel cap, but that did not repair the issue. the contact also had the dealer reprogram the computer, but the failure keeps returning. the failure mileage was 60,000 and the current mileage was 72,000.rl | |||
| 04/06/2011 | 90000 | ||
| Check fuel cap light elluminates in '00-'05 ford explorers. there have been hundreds of reports of this issue occuring, and it is the result of emission failure parts in these vehicles. each inspection and replacement of these parts is costing owners thousands of dollars in repairs, and is clearly a default of the company. almost every report has shown trouble codes of p0455 or p0457, or both simultaneously. you can follow this thread and others at http://explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=244624 to see numerous occurances of this same issue in multiple ford explorers. if the problem is not fixed right away, the check engine light or service engine soon lights illuminate as well. after ford replaced my fuel cap and said this would solve the issue, my check fuel cap light illuminated a week later again. ford then inspected my vehicle again and said nothing was wrong with the fuel system. it came on yet again, and now they are charging me over $1,000 in repairs including a $108 diagnostic check on my vehicle for codes p1000 and p0457. i do not have the money to continuously bring my vehicle to ford for the same issue. this is the third time i've taken it to them, and they still cannot guarantee me this is the problem. ford explorer owners are asking for an investigation to be launched, and for ford to recall their explorers and fix this issue as soon as possible. i took my vehicle to the watertown ford in watertown, ma. | |||
| 03/02/2011 | 76306 | ||
| I'm the origonal owner and have 76,306 miles on my explorer. i noticed a gas smell.i took it in to the dealer. dealer found a gas leak where the filler hose attaches to the gas tank. the plastic piece that is part of the gas tank had many cracks/fractures that allowed fuel to leak out.the only repair option is to replace the entire gas tank at a cost to me of $2,009.00. i feel this is a design flaw and a safety issue. the gas tank holds 22.5 gallons of fuel that could flow onto the hot exhaust pipe if the plastic filler piece failed completely. | |||
| 11/17/2010 | 97218 | ||
| Gas hand does not function properly, sometimes you may fill the vehicle up and the gas hand will show empty. since the gas hand stopped working properly the service engine soon light stays on.no way of knowing if i'm almost out of gas..so i have to keep filling it up so i won't be stranded on the side of the road. | |||
| 02/11/2011 | |||
| 2005 ford explorer and every time we fill the tank with gas the gauge stops working until it reaches half a tank then shortly after that it drops to almost empty. so we never know what the amount of gas we have it. been happening for about 2 years and can not afford to have it replaced. but the problem is getting worse. | |||
| 02/07/2011 | 80520 | ||
| I purchased a 2005 ford explorer xlt 4x4. the day after i purchased it, i filled up the gas tank and 20 miles later my gas gauge all of a sudden read e and my service engine soon light came on, the repair shop states the fuel sending unit is bad and the repair is going to be expensive to fix. i went online and found out this is a very common problem with ford. why has there not been a recall for this? i sure hope i am not left stranded on the side of the road. | |||
| 02/11/2011 | |||
| 2005 ford explorer and every time we fill the tank with gas the gauge stops working until it reaches half a tank then shortly after that it drops to almost empty. so we never know what the amount of gas we have it. been happening for about 2 years and can not afford to have it replaced. but the problem is getting worse. | |||
| 02/07/2011 | 80520 | ||
| I purchased a 2005 ford explorer xlt 4x4. the day after i purchased it, i filled up the gas tank and 20 miles later my gas gauge all of a sudden read e and my service engine soon light came on, the repair shop states the fuel sending unit is bad and the repair is going to be expensive to fix. i went online and found out this is a very common problem with ford. why has there not been a recall for this? i sure hope i am not left stranded on the side of the road. | |||
| 01/08/2009 | 60539 | ||
| Refueling problems. vehicle will accept only a very small quantity of fuel at a time, causing automatic shut off on fuel nozzle to activate. it takes 15-20 minutes to fill the tank. | |||
| 07/20/2010 | 35000 | ||
| Have owned 2005 ford explorer since new. after 35,000 miles the gas gauge started to bottom out on empty followed by a service engine soon light staying on. the gauge will start working again off and on but it's not reliable. tried running a fuel cleaner through it a couple of times and did nothing for it. also the tire pressure monitor says it's reading a bad sensor in one of the wheels. this vehicle is well taken care of and babied by my wife. there seems to be alot of consumers having the exact same troubles with the same vehicles. why is ford not held liable for these defects? this was not a budget low cost car. we paid over $36000.00 for this suv. please help us in any way you can. | |||
| 12/11/2009 | 100000 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer suddenly stopped accepting fuel at all ca gas stations ....must hold pump nozzle at very low volume for extremely long periods of time to fill tank completely and then backwash spills out without warning. still ongoing problem ...thank you *tr | |||
| 07/21/2007 | 45000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. when attempting to start the vehicle, the engine began to sputter. she restarted the vehicle to resume normal vehicle operation. on another occasion while driving, the power steering and brakes failed without warning, which caused her to crash into a fence. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for inspection on two separate occasions. the failure was contributed to the fuel sensor and throttle position sensor. the throttle position sensor was replaced. the repair did not remedy the failure. the failure mileage was 45,000. the current mileage was 80,000. the vehicle identification number was unavailable. | |||
| 10/01/2009 | 58500 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer has intermittent problem of engine cutting off and lack of throttle response while driving. vehicle then has problem starting. computer is showing numerous fuel related codes. dealer has repaired numerous parts and problem still exits. *tr | |||
| 09/01/2009 | 50500 | 1 | |
| I have a 2005 ford explorer limited. 50500 miles. the fuel gauge reads empty regardless of the amount of gas in the tank. the 'service engine soon' dash light is also on. the dealer quoted me ~$800 to fix the problem (thinks it's likely the 'fuel level sending unit'). $200 for the part and 4hrs labor. i have not done the repair, i researched the issue on line and found that many people have had the same problem. this seems to me to be a known problem and should be a recall issue. *tr | |||
| 06/01/2008 | 70000 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer fuel gauge malfunction: started about a year ago. was intermittent at first, but is now constant. fuel gauge registers empty until tank is about half full, after which the gauge works properly. service engine light stays on. a scan of the internet indicates this is a very common problem and ford has no program in place to fix it. since the gauge is causing the service engine light to stay on, that light cannot alert me to other potential failures. cost to repair is approximately $500. *tr | |||
| 11/01/2008 | 94000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2005 ford explorer that when you put gas in it at a gas pump it keeps shutting off and spitting fuel back out of the fuel neck all over the place. i have been seeing others complaining about this very same thing. this is most definitely a safety hazard to be having gasoline spray all over the ground in a crowded gas station. not to mention have to take 15 - 20 minutes to fill your vehicle up. thanks, jamie a. jones *tr | |||
| 03/15/2009 | 52000 | 1 | |
| When you fill the tank the fuel gauge goes to empty and does not return until you have about half a tank. ford says this is a common problem and it is a faulty fuel sensor that requires the entire fuel pump to be replaced for a cost of about $1,100.00. this problem is all over the internet with this particular make and model - why was there no recall? *tr | |||
| 12/05/2008 | 60000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2003 ford explorer. i have had so much trouble with the check fuel cap light coming on, it has been replaced twice, then the technician reset the warning light. in december 2008 the car just stopped taking fuel, it seemed like it was full. it would take me a half hour to fill the tank. i took it to the ford dealer, they said they cleaned all the sensors in and around the fuel tank, i paid a bill of $370. the next time i filled it with gas, it did the same exact thing again. i took it back to the dealer, they put a new filler neck on it and charged me $260. it worked for a short time, then in february it started doing it again! i did not want to put any more money in it, after about a month of that, it fixed itself. now, the check fuel cap light is on again, and also the service engine soon light. this has been, without a doubt, the worst car i have ever purchased in my entire life, i purchased it new and it has been trouble from day one. the service manager said i was having this trouble putting the gas in it because i have put a lot of gas in it....excuse me, you can bet he wouldn't have said that to my husband if he took it in for service! *tr | |||
| 09/10/2008 | 76000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. whenever the contact fills the fuel tank, gasoline sprays out of the tank. the fuel nozzle stops even though the tank is not full. the failure occurs without warning. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for inspection and they stated that the failure was common, and possibly related to the fuel system filler neck. the vehicle has not been repaired. the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 76,000 and current mileage was 76,500. | |||
| 08/15/2008 | 52000 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer, gas gauge quit working. sits below empty, service engine light stays on. for a few days it would go up and down then just went down and has never moved again. this has been for at least 3 months now. have to use tripometer to know when to fill up. had it looked at by a mechanic hoping it was a loose connection. he said it was in the fuel tank and to check if others were having the same problem. amazingly there are alot! *tr | |||
| 11/19/2008 | 42000 | 1 | |
| Fuel gauge suddenly drops to empty and service engine soon light comes on. happened in july '08 and came right back on. thought it was a fluke thing with my fuel float in tank. happened again last week and this week. decided to do some researching and came to the conclusion that this is common with this year/make/model. not happy! purchased new and only has 42,000 miles! *tr | |||
| 04/17/2007 | 25800 | 1 | |
| Last year the fuel gauge began having intermittent failures, and would not read out the correct amount of fuel in the tank. notified the dealer, who supposedly reprogrammed the pcm in the vehicle. after the vehicle was out of warranty coverage, the fuel gauge began malfunctioning again. i have spoken with other explorer owners who have had the same problem, even after the dealer has replaced hundreds of dollars worth of components. i feel this is a serious safety related design flaw, as operating a vehicle without knowing the correct fuel level can be very dangerous. the only way we maintain a safe fuel level in our vehicle is by keeping the tank topped off frequently, and keeping track of the miles on the odometer. a newer vehicle, with modern electronics, should not have this many problems. *tr | |||
| 07/01/2008 | 27000 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer xlt 4.0l v6 28,000 miles purchased new on july 7, 2005 we started having problems with the fuel system in the end of june 2008 (intermittent loss of fuel gauge and service engine soon dash light) called the ford dealer on or about july 1, 2008. we were driving and the truck engine died, no warning no steering no brakes, (the wrench light and engine failed test mode light came on) she managed to get it to the side of the road where it started up as if everything was ok, moments later it happened again, this time she put it in neutral and it started again while moving. she drove it to my house and took my car home. *tr | |||
| 04/26/2008 | 48000 | 1 | |
| My vehicle started to have the fuel gauge act erratic . it would go up and down , then it would go to below empty . in late may the fuel gauge quit completely and the check engine light has been on the entire time . i have no warranty and now the fuel pump looses pressure after sitting over night . today it started to stumble while i was driving it . i am disabled and i cant afford 770 $ . the vehicle only has 52000 miles on it . i am told by ford dealer that the pump/fuel sender/ gas cap sender unit needs to be replaced . i believe that this should be a recall situation , because a vehicle this new should not be having this problem . *tr | |||
| 05/05/2008 | 35000 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer gas gauge failure. 2nd time it has happened in two years. the first time it happened i took it back to the dealer and they had it fixed. now it has occurred again. the gas gauge all of a sudden drops to empty and the 'service engine' light comes on. i am driving with my kids in the car and don't know how much gas i have left in the tank. *tr | |||
| 04/30/2008 | 57500 | 1 | |
| Continuous and repetitive malfunction of gas gauge. it occurs very often and is a well known problem in ford explorers. additive has been added to no avail, i think ford just wants owners to have to pay for this and purposely continues to design vehicles like this. it is a major safety concern...what if i run out of gas in the freezing cold with two babies? *tr | |||
| 04/30/2008 | 36000 | 1 | |
| I recently purchased a near new 2005 ford explorer. the vehicle is in pristine condition and has very low mileage to the point where it is below the industrial average. since i purchased the vehicle, i have fueled it several times, always filling the tank to the top. every time i have filled the vehicle up, the fuel gauge has dropped to empty and the mileage till empty indicator shows just dashes. in addition to the gauge dropping to empty my service engine light comes on immediately following the fuel gauge dropping. at first i thought it was possibly just a problem with my vehicle so i figured i'd have it fixed. then out of curiosity i decided to check online and with other fellow owners of the 2002-2005 ford explorer model to see if they were having this problem as well. and to my surprise i found that it was a very common problem. this issue disturbs me mainly because it is a safety issue. god forbid my wife is traveling down the road with my 14-month-old son and runs out of fuel due to a faulty fuel gauge on a deserted dark highway. since this was such a common problem i thought i would be able to come online and find out that there was a recall. but i did not find that. all i found was a bunch of people complaining about the same exact thing. now my question is, why hasnt there been a recall yet with an updated part for replacement? if someone could contact me and assist me with this matter i would greatly appreciate it. thank you *tr | |||
| 04/15/2006 | 13000 | 2 | 03/28/2006 |
| Gas guage failure.on the way home from buying the suv,the gas hand would not work.returned car to dealer.the dealer furnished me a new car until the car was fixed. two weeks later the same thing happened.went to a different dealer and the mechanic had a bulletion that ford had issued saying there was a problem with the gas guage because sulfur in the gas was causing the problem. ford recommends using chevron additive in the gas to solve the problem.the mechanic said the vehicle had 13000 miles on it the frist time the gas hand quit working. the car had 17000 miles when the hand quit working for the second time. the mechanic installed a new guage inside the fuel tank. this will only help for a period of time.if this happened on the freeway and you were out of gas it could be serious. *nm | |||
| 07/14/2005 | 2200 | 04/16/2005 | |
| My gas gauge all of a sudden read e and my service engine soon came on, on a three month old 2005 ford explorer with 2200 miles. i have to guesstimate how much gas i have and if something does go wrong with the engine i will not know as the light is perpetually on. the dealer states the fuel sending unit is bad and the part is backordered, i 've been waiting 3 weeks already. the dealer states they are waiting on 20 of them for this same problem. i've contacted the manufacturer and they claim to have no knowledge of the problem, that my situation is the first they've heard of it. this can't be true as the dealer i took my car to is waiting on the part to fix 20 explorers with this same problem. i've also found this problem posted in numerous forums online. i don't think it's safe to drive around not knowing for sure how much gas you have or whether or not your engine is also malfunctioning. ford should issue a recall and expedite the manufacture of this backordered part. *nm | |||
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - DELIVERY - FUEL PUMP | |||
| 01/20/2006 | 10989 | 2 | 10/25/2004 |
| I was driving my 2005 ford explorer which i purchased brand new in october 2004, when all of a sudden my gas gauge was reading e and my service engine soon light was on. this happened may 13, 2005. i immediately brought it to the dealer and was told that the fuel pump needed to be changed. since i had filled the tank the day before they wanted me to drive around and use the gas up. i refused and the wound up draining my tank. well after filling my tank up on january 20, 2006 again my gauge is ready almost e and the dash keeps telling me i have a low fuel level. this time i wasn't even driving it happened after restarting my car when they finished pumping my gas. back to the dealer i go and again i am told that the fuel pump needs to be checked out and or changed again but this time they drain the gas and since the tank is full i am supposed to drive the vehicle until i use most of the gas. i am told they do have the part in stock to make the repair. i don't like the idea of having to drive around not knowing how much gas i have. this is ridiculous. *nm | |||
| 09/20/2005 | 12000 | 1 | 06/30/2005 |
| Dt: the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. safety complaint was that light came on that said have your vehicle checked immediately. the contact took vehicle back to dealer to have the fuel pump fixed. dealer fixed the fuel pump. no crashes. no police reports. no fires. the contact was driving on road when light came on. also, before the gas gauge was not working properly. *ak | |||
| FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER | |||
| 02/27/2011 | 70000 | ||
| Gas cap light comes on triggering the check engine light. | |||
| 04/09/2011 | 51000 | ||
| 2005 ford explorer - everytime i fill the gas tank full - the fuel gauge sticks and goes down to empty. | |||
| 11/17/2010 | 97218 | ||
| Gas hand does not function properly, sometimes you may fill the vehicle up and the gas hand will show empty. since the gas hand stopped working properly the service engine soon light stays on.no way of knowing if i'm almost out of gas..so i have to keep filling it up so i won't be stranded on the side of the road. | |||
| 09/21/2009 | 59000 | 1 | |
| We fill the truck up. the next day the gauge shows full. great for a long distance trip. *tr | |||
| 12/20/2008 | 35000 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer fuel sensor failure. *tr | |||
| 03/06/2008 | 52000 | 1 | |
| When i fill my gas tank, occasionally the arrow does not go to full. i also have an electronic notification on my dashboard that tells me how many miles i have left to drive before i am on empty. this also does not change. this has happened no more than five times and takes a day or two for gauge to read full. *tr | |||
| 05/04/2008 | 32800 | 1 | |
| 2005 ford explorer - fuel pump failure while driving vehicle shuts off and also fuel gauge reads e then emission light comes on. this is a safety hazard and a known defect. my vehicle had this to happen at 32,800 miles and i almost was involved in a major highway accident. by my chacks ford is aware but is not concerned should be a recall. *tr | |||
| 10/25/2007 | 37000 | 4 | 04/10/2007 |
| The fuel gauge suddenly drops to empty even when the fuel tank is full. i have a 2005 ford explorer that had this repaired under warranty because it happened before 36000 miles. my husband has a 2005 ford explorer that we just bought in april 2007. his just hit 37,000 miles and this has happened to him as well. it also happened in my coworker's 2003 ford explorer. there is a recall on the 2002 ford explorers with v6 engine covering this exact same problem. however the 2005s are not in the recall and should be. *tr | |||
| FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER - STORAGE - FUEL GAUGE SYSTEM | |||
| 07/15/2007 | 2 | 07/05/2005 | |
| Fuel system, check engine light. i just filled my car up with gas and i drove for less than a mile and the fuel gauge failed to empty and the check engine light came on. after i drove to the dealership to have the problem check out, they were unable to duplicate the problem that day and the next day it went back to normal. *tr | |||
| 04/30/2007 | 2 | ||
| Service engine soon light comes on and says i have no gas when there is a full tank or less. *jb | |||
| 09/20/2005 | 12000 | 1 | 06/30/2005 |
| Dt: the contact owns a 2005 ford explorer. safety complaint was that light came on that said have your vehicle checked immediately. the contact took vehicle back to dealer to have the fuel pump fixed. dealer fixed the fuel pump. no crashes. no police reports. no fires. the contact was driving on road when light came on. also, before the gas gauge was not working properly. *ak | |||
| 07/14/2005 | 2200 | 04/16/2005 | |
| My gas gauge all of a sudden read e and my service engine soon came on, on a three month old 2005 ford explorer with 2200 miles. i have to guesstimate how much gas i have and if something does go wrong with the engine i will not know as the light is perpetually on. the dealer states the fuel sending unit is bad and the part is backordered, i 've been waiting 3 weeks already. the dealer states they are waiting on 20 of them for this same problem. i've contacted the manufacturer and they claim to have no knowledge of the problem, that my situation is the first they've heard of it. this can't be true as the dealer i took my car to is waiting on the part to fix 20 explorers with this same problem. i've also found this problem posted in numerous forums online. i don't think it's safe to drive around not knowing for sure how much gas you have or whether or not your engine is also malfunctioning. ford should issue a recall and expedite the manufacture of this backordered part. *nm | |||
| 06/28/2005 | 100 | 06/25/2005 | |
| Purchased new 2005 ford explorer after first 100 miles fuel gauge went falsely to empty and service engine light came on. dealership advised the fuel sending unit for my vehicle is defective. ford has already issued a tech bulletin on the issue in may 2005 yet they are still selling the vehicle knowing the units are failing. will require them to remove my gas tank and replace unit. i beleive this should have been done prior to selling this vehicle or i shouldhave been notified of the potential problem prior to purchasing. | |||