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2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 78 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac, most often about the engine (15% of complaints, typically around 47,500 miles). It is 5th of 11 Explorer Sport Trac model years by number of complaints.
Most common 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac problems
Engine
12 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 47,500 miles. Parts named most often: engine.
The vehicle expelled gasoline everytime the consumer was refueling the tank and the gas pump automatically shut off, as it is designed to do. The process of filling the tank increased five fold, taking approximately 25-30 minutes, because the pump repeatedly shut off and expelled gas. The manufacturer was notified and…
Vehicle engine missing and lost power while attempting to accelerate onto on-ramp. Attempt to restart failed. Had to call for tow. Dealership couldn't find anything wrong.
Fuel system
11 complaints · 14%Half of these problems showed up before 43,500 miles. Parts named most often: storage, delivery.
While driving on the freeway vehicle decelerated 5 MPH before regulating speed. After exiting freeway, vehicle died at stop light. Vehicle towed to dealership where they informed me the inertia switch, located under kick plate on passenger side, was damaged and thus cut off the fuel pump. Once fixed, vehicle ran fine.…
I have had fuel tank issues for a year now and they are getting worse. My gauge stopped working about 13 months ago which was no big deal. Now I am unable to put more then 4-5 gallons of gas in at a time. The safety sensor stops the pump from filling up my tank and if I try to do it a little at a time it just shoots…
Electrical
11 complaints · 14%Half of these problems showed up before 25,000 miles. Parts named most often: ignition, wiring.
Dt: the consumer stated that 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac special edition with avalanche on the back was having a stalling problem. The anti-theft device light blinked on the dashboard, and then the vehicle shut off the power. The consumer took the truck to the repair shop seven to eight times for this problem. The…
On july 28 while my wife was driving our new Explorer Sport Trac it just stop running. She started it up and it ran for about 1min then cut off again stranding her in the middle of a highway in a turn lane we reported it to Ford it took over 2 hrs for them to get a tow truck to tow the truck to the dealer it also…
Body and structure
10 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 30,500 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
My aunt's vehicle was involved in an accident where the vehicle rolled several times. The front pillar on the driver's side collapsed allowing the roof to collapse almost down to the level of the steering wheel. There was also a lack of availability of side curtain airbags on the vehicle. The accident resulted in the…
Body mounts prematurely deteriorating and crumbling. Body rides loose on frame, which can impact safety of the vehicle and handing in an accident. All body mounts for the cab of the vehicle have failed and fall apart to the touch. Since this vehicle is a body on frame design, failed body mounts cannot keep the cab…
Brakes
8 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 32,000 miles. Parts named most often: antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip.
2003 Ford sport trac safety parking brake release malfunctioned. Five year old daughter pulled gear shift into neutral without pressing the brake. Car rolled backwards into lake and submerged. I was able to get her out befor it sank.
Cruise control does not engage most of the time. I power the system on, but when pressing the set button, the system power quickly blinks on and off. Brake pedal is not depressed, it occurs at any speed.
Transmission
8 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 96,500 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, driveline.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac. The contact was driving with the vehicle speed control engaged at 68 MPH when the failure occurred. The vehicle began to decelerate and some smoke was present underneath the vehicle. When the contact opened the hood there was no evidence of smoke in the engine area.…
My Ford sport trac has failed to lock when the gear shift is put into the park position. When you start to get out the vehicle will roll and you will hear a clicking noise in the transmission. It has done this for some time and I had it fixed once but it is doing it again.
Suspension
7 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 26,500 miles. Parts named most often: front.
1) improper alignment specifications 2) destruction of all 4 goodyear tires 3) Ford denied to replace tires although there is a technical service bulletin (05-11-11) pertaining to this issue.
The vehicle was purchased new with a bent frame and a bent rear axle. The vehicle was difficult to steer. 6 sets of tires were used and replaced during this defect. The consumer took the vehicle to dealer where it was diagnosed as a bent frame. However, the dealer will do nothing about the problem. There was a…
Wheels and tires
6 complaints · 8%Parts named most often: sidewall, lugs/nuts/bolts/studs.
1) improper alignment specifications 2) destruction of all 4 goodyear tires 3) Ford denied to replace tires although there is a technical service bulletin (05-11-11) pertaining to this issue.
It started with humming vibrating noise in the front end left tire ending with front wheel bearing failure and small fire to the wheel bearing rubber boot and hard pulling to the left too dangerous to drive this is a major mechanical failure after inspecting I fount that only the one nut was holding tire on.
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac recalls
NHTSA lists no recalls for this model year.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Vehicle rollaway allegations
Summary
In response to an information request (ir) letter sent by the office of defects investigation (odi), ford stated consumer reports of higher than expected efforts when shifting into and out of park could be a result of a groove being worn into the swing arm ramp of the steering column. The swing arm is a component bolted to the steering column that assists in shifting through the transmission gears.an engineering evaluation conducted by ford of returned steering columns found the groove could be created over time if consumer shift more quickly from the drive or reverse to park than the brake shift interlock (bsi) solenoid pin retracts after the brake pedal is applied. In november of 2004, for
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
Summary
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehi
Questions about the 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac
- What are the most common problems with the 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: engine (12 complaints, typically around 47,500 miles); fuel system (11 complaints, typically around 43,500 miles); electrical (11 complaints, typically around 25,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac have?
- NHTSA lists no recalls for the 2003 Ford Explorer Sport Trac. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls in case one is issued later.
- Is the 2003 a bad year for the Ford Explorer Sport Trac?
- It is 5th of 11 Explorer Sport Trac model years by number of complaints, with 78 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.