2026 Ford ExplorerRecalls, problems, MPG & safety

“I purchased a new 2026 Ford Explorer and had owned the vehicle for approximately three days when the driver-side front power window failed at approximately 315 miles. The failure occurred on the evening of October 23, 2026, while the vehicle was parked in my driveway. I operated the driver-side window normally and heard loud crunching/mechanical noises from inside the driver door as the window went down. The glass went fully down and then would not raise. When I attempted to operate the window switch afterward, additional crunching noises could be heard from inside the door, but the glass would not move. Because the Ford service department was already closed, I was unable to have the vehicle inspected that evening. With possible rain, I had to cover the open driver-side window with painter's plastic and tape to protect the interior of a vehicle that was only three days old. I took the vehicle back to the selling Ford dealership the following morning, October 24, 2026, as soon as the service department opened. The vehicle had approximately 328 miles when it was documented by the dealership. The Ford dealership subsequently verified the failure. According to the…”

“- Driver seat back reclines by itself when vehicle is approached by key fob. As acknowledged by Ford, this situation could result in harm to a passenger sitting behind the driver. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. - This issue was demonstrated to several dealer service personnel as early as June 12, 2026, at which time there was no service recall or known fix available. A repair order dated August 28, 2026 indicates that seat was operating normally but that "easy exit" was turned on; service tech notes "easy exit" has been turned off. - We received a notice from Ford in late September 2026 that an open recall--26S53--has been issued. Took vehicle to dealer on September 30, 2026 and repair order states that they updated the driver seat module per the recall (Software validation #R47CF90GJUHMR. 26s53b-0.3). Issue continues after this update.”

“On several occasions when trying to drive from a stopped position I press the gas and the car will move slowly but not shift into gear and then after turning off it struggles to restart. The check engine light is solid but goes away by the next day. This has happened after sitting idling in a parking lot most often but recently it happened 2 times as I was turning left onto a street where I luckily was able to slow roll to the side and not get hit. I brought it in once for service and they struggled to find the issue for hours and eventually said pins in the fuel injector were lose and replaced but it is continuing to randomly happen.”