2004 Ford Explorer transmission problems
331 complaints about transmission have been filed for the 2004 Ford Explorer, which is 20% of all its NHTSA complaints. It is the 2nd most reported problem area for this model year.
At a glance
- Complaints
- 331 20% of this year's complaints
- Typical mileage
- 40,000 miles 274 complaints with mileage
- Crashes and fires
- 15 and 2
- Injuries and deaths
- 4 and 0
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
When transmission problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 93 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 44 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 50 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 46 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 24 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 8 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 4 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 3 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 1 |
What the data shows
Of the 274 transmission complaints that report mileage, the median is about 40,000 miles, and 68% were reported before 60,000 miles.
These complaints mention 15 crashes, 2 fires, 4 injuries.
What owners wrote
Transmission got stuck in neutral when column shifter was put in the park position. As my wife got out to help her sister with her new born and baggage the explorer started rolling, my niece (in the back seat) got scared and jumped out of the vehicle and got ran over. The vehicle hit a pole and trapped my niece under the rear tire. I have since taken it to dealership 3 times so far, and it is still not fixed.
Transmission does not engage in reverse from park when put in reverse,than after 5-10 seconds will jerk into gear,transmission does not upshift correctly,seems to hesitate between gears.
Other problems reported for the 2004 Ford Explorer
- Body & structure 439 complaints
- Drivetrain & axles 142 complaints
- Wipers, windshield & visibility 114 complaints
- Engine 113 complaints
- Cruise control 76 complaints
- Electrical system 57 complaints
- Brakes 54 complaints
- Steering 42 complaints