Problems · by component
2012 Ford Explorer air bags problems
27 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2012 Ford Explorer cite air bags, 3% of all 830 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
27
3% of all complaints
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
Reported by owners
What owners say about the air bags
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“Airbag lights kept going on and off and now stays on giving code B1212. It is a safety issue since it has to do with the Driver seatbelt buckle pretensioner circuit. Airbags may not deploy incase of an accident. Apparently it is a problem with ford explorer vehicles which ford has failed to rectify or have a recall for it. I need to know the fix or resolution for this before anything unfortunate happens.”
“Airbag light suddenly comes on for the last few weeks. I did some research and found that when the airbag light is on that it is disabled. If the vehicle was to be involved in an accident the airbag would not deploy. I am concern that this vehicle is a family vehicle. I have taken the vehicle to two Ford Dealership and was told they are so backed up that it would take at least two weeks before I can get an appointment. One of the service tech even joke about making sure to wear my seatbelt because the airbag is not working. I tried looking for a recall but have not found one. I also learned this is a very common problem with most Ford vehicle and there is not permanent fix.”
“WHEN ENGINE IS STARTED, THE AIRBAG LIGHTS GO OFF BUT COME BACK ON AND STAYS ON. THIS STARTED A MONTH AGO AND THE WARNING LIGHT STILL SWITCHES ON WHEN THE CAR IS STARTED”
“AIRBAG LIGHT HAS BEEN ON FOR A WEEK NOW. TOOK IT IN TO THE FORD DEALERSHIP TO FIND OUT THE WIRING IS MALFUNCTIONING. ACCORDING TO THE DEALERSHIP IT IS A COMMON ISSUE WITH 2012 MODELS. I WAS TOLD THAT SINCE THE AIRBAG LIGHT IS ON, IF I GOT INTO AN ACCIDENT THE AIR BAGS WILL NOT DEPLOY. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY CONCERN. NOW I AM HAVING TO PAY UPWARD OF $400 TO REPAIR.”
“AIRBAG LIGHTS HAVE COME ON AND OFF ON MY CAR FOR THE PAST FEW YEARS. FORD FIXED ISSUE ONE TIME UNDER WARRANTY. FAULTY WIRE CONNECTION IS WHAT I WAS TOLD AND EVERYTHING ELSE WAS FINE, ACCORDING TO FORD DEALERSHIP. MY AIRBAG LIGHTS ARE ON ONCE AGAIN AND IT APPEARS THIS IS A BIG PROBLEM WITH THE FORD EXPLORERS. IT SEEMS THAT 2011-2018 ARE AFFECTED BY SOME SORT OF AIRBAG MALFUNCTION. FORD IS NOT HELPING ANYONE AND PEOPLE ARE PAYING FORD HUNDREDS, IF NOT THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS TO FIX THE PROBLEM ONLY FOR THE PROBLEM TO STILL EXIST. IT IS WIDE SPREAD AND NOT JUST AN ISSUE IN CERTAIN CLIMATES. AT WHAT POINT DOES THE MANUFACTURER BECOME LIABLE FOR FAULTY SAFETY EQUIPMENT? WE ARE ALL BEING TOLD THAT OUR AIRBAGS WILL NOT DEPLOY IF IN ANY ACCIDENT, LARGE OR SMALL, AND TO ME THIS IS A HUGE PROBLEM. HOW MANY LIVES NEED BE LOST OR IN JEOPARDY BEFORE SOMEONE CAN HOLD FORD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR OBVIOUS DEFECT? THIS IS MY ONLY VEHICLE AND I SIMPLY CANNOT AFFORD TO HAVE IT IN AND OUT OF THE SHOP FOR REPAIRS THAT SHOULDN'T EVEN NEED TO BE DONE IN THE FIRST PLACE. I HAVE SEVERAL SMALL CHILDREN THAT RIDE IN MY VEHICLE DAILY AND NOW I FEEL THEIR LIVES ARE AT RISK WHENEVER WE GO TO THE…”
“THE SAME COMMON PROBLEM WITH EVERY SINGLE 2012 FORD EXPLORER. THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON AND POSSIBLY DISABLED THE AIRBAG SYSTEM. ACCORDING TO HUNDREDS OF EXPLORER OWNERS THIS ISSUE IS AN ENDLESS MONEY PIT BECAUSE THERE IS NO PERMANENT FIX AND FORD REFUSES TO RECALL THE VEHICLE FOR THIS PROBLEM. THE COST FOR TURNING OFF THE LIGHT AT A FORD DEALERSHIP WILL BE UPWARDS OF $400 AND WILL ONLY TURN THE AIRBAG LIGHT OFF FOR A SHORT WHILE. I WAS PROMISED BY LOCAL FORD DEALER "THERE'S A HIGH PROBABILITY I'LL HAVE TO BRING THE CAR BACK IN FOR THIS ISSUES DOWN THE ROAD AND THEIR APOLOGIES BUT THERE'S NOTHING FROM FORD TO HELP ME COVER THE COST OF THIS REPAIR". UNSAFE RIP OFF.... PURE AND SIMPLE”
Showing 6 of 27 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 4, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.