With Ford’s passenger car lineup going the way of the Dodo bird, its crossovers and utility vehicles are more important than ever. The Blue Oval beats on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past. And that past is littered with poor quality control and fundamentally defective transmissions. The problems concern early examples of the new Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator. It seems there are teething issues with the platform. To make matters worse, Chicago Assembly itself is part of the problem.
To say that the initial launch of the Explorer did not go according to plan is a bit of an understatement. The problems associated with the new platform contributed to a massive loss in sales for the nameplate, which plummeted 48 percent this year compared to the same period in 2018. Model changeovers almost always contribute to a decrease in sales, but generally not on the scale that the Explorer experienced. In recent years the Explorer repeatedly sold well over 200k units annually, so any bottleneck for the three row isn’t good. And the problems sound pretty grisly. From the Detroit Free Press:
A source involved with Explorer repairs at the plant said problems include:
- Explorer chassis issues. X-rays are being used to try to diagnose problems.
- Explorer transmission-related questions that prevent the vehicle from going into park or properly sensing the vehicle is in park. Some transmissions are not going into park and the computer is automatically activating the parking brake. Also, the computer cannot determine whether the vehicle is going into park properly and then not activating the brake, which means the vehicles are rolling away.
- Explorer and Aviator air-conditioning systems that blow heat only.
- Aviator suspension issues. The new system has auto leveling, which drops the vehicle down slightly when it’s unlocked and approached. But they’re arriving with suspensions in failure mode.
Ford sources say they’re puzzled by even mundane situations, such as missing emblems and trim pieces and having the wrong wheels.
Ford shipped many of the troublesome models to Flat Rock Assembly Plant, which ostensibly produces the Mustang and Lincoln Continental. Having Flat Rock sort out quality issues isn’t anything new. Early versions of the 2013 Lincoln MKZ were diverted to the plant to prevent defective models reaching dealerships. There were never any widespread issues with that sedan, but from personal experience, learning about these issues when you’ve got a list of customers interested in the car can be very frustrating. Especially when those shoppers end up buying at the larger dealerships that get prioritized when supply is tight.
Things are a little bit different with the Explorer. The plant required a significant overhaul due to the shift to a completely new rear-wheel drive platform. The incredibly toxic work environment hasn’t helped things either. From Bloomberg:
Ford spent a combined $1 billion upgrading its 95-year-old assembly plant and 63-year-old stamping factory in Chicago, outfitting them with advanced manufacturing technology to produce the Explorer, Aviator and Police Interceptor Utility.
Those investments included $40 million to upgrade lighting and add security at the plants, where some employees have experienced sexual and racial harassment. In August 2017, the company agreed to pay as much as $10.1 million to settle claims following an investigation by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Ford faced similar charges at the Chicago factories in 1999 that led to a $17.5 million settlement.
Consumer Reports recently purchased a new Lincoln Aviator that’s been a bit…quirky. They now own a Lincoln with a wonky digital dash and they’ve talked about it repeatedly on their podcast.
To be fair to Ford, every automaker experiences issues with new or redesigned vehicles. And by all accounts the 2020 Escape/Corsair launch is going smoothly. Based on a cursory inventory search of all the local Ford dealers in my area, the bottleneck issues appear to be a thing of the past. But the company’s recently received a lot of press about the poor reliability of their products. The Explorer is one of Ford’s most popular vehicles, right behind the Escape in sales and ahead of a whole bunch of other stuff. If Ford can’t get the basic stuff right, why should customers give Ford a chance on something they’ve either never built before, like the upcoming fully electric SUV, or a product which they haven’t produced in a long time, like the Bronco?
Unfortunately, it seems like Ford remains committed to the F-150 and F-150 adjacent vehicles only, while sidelining everything else. The Expedition and Navigator didn’t experience any issues upon their debut. But they have the advantage of being built right alongside the F-250. And it seems all hand are on deck when their is a problem in the F-Series lineup.
The question is, does any of this matter? As I mentioned in my earlier piece, the Explorer has shrugged off negative press and middling reviews in the past. Car And Driver, Edmunds, and Motor Trend all performed their own comparison tests pitting the new Korean siblings against the 2020 Explorer and the Ford lost every time. That being said, the Explorer received positive reviews from all three of those publications, and some other reviewers were even more enthusiastic about the three row. The Lincoln Aviator earned even higher accolades.
Even if the Explorer and Aviator are unreliable in their current forms, it might not be a big deal. Vehicles seem to do alright if they offer something customers want. A good looking vehicle that has decent cargo capacity, drives well, boasts a cabin where buyers want to spend time, and is priced competitively has a solid chance at succeeding. How else can you explain FCA’s ability to move metal? Both J.D. Power and Consumer Reports consistently show that the company makes unreliable vehicles. Yet Jeep is doing better than ever. And the Ram 1500 recently booted the Silverado to third place in the full size pickup segment.
It seems like desirability is the path to success, at least for automakers. If the Big Three developed cars with average reliability, cheaper interiors, and less refined rides but constantly updated or redesigned them, would they have lost as much market share as they did? From the 1980s onward, the American models that received the least amount of updating were the ones that did poorly. The fourth generation Taurus experienced a substantial drop in sales after the 2002 model year, which is when Honda and Toyota introduced newer versions of the Accord and Camry, respectively. But the Fusion brought back a lot of customers into the fold. The third and fourth generation Explorers hemorrhaged sales during their runs but buyers responded positively to the fifth generation to the point where it vaulted to the top of its class.
FCA bucked this trend with its older vehicles, most notably the Jeep Grand Cherokee, Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, and Dodge Durango. And it’s not like those vehicle improved their reliability over time. They’re still ranked poorly by Consumer Reports for their build quality. But they’ve also been consistently updated. That really seems to be the key to keeping customers. Obviously, reliability has played a role in the past and will continue to do so in the future. But appeal seems to matter most, at least in very broad terms.
Anyway, that’s what I think. What’s your take on vehicle reliability/dependability/whatever you want to call it? Any new vehicles cool enough to earn your business, despite their poor track record?
Related Reading:
COAL/QOTD: 2005 Scion xB – What’s been your most reliable car? – Paul Niedermeyer
Consumer Reports Predicted Reliability for 2017 – Paul Niedermeyer
The F-150 has plenty of woes as well. The 5.0 drinks oil, the 3.5’s timing chain rattles, door latches freeze, dashboards warp, sunroofs leak. They’ve had very basic issues, some of them for five years on the current generation that they have not fixed. It’s not “all hands on deck”, it’s more like “if it will make it out of warranty we don’t care.”
I bought my F-150 knowing Ford quality isn’t great because the only reliable option in a full size truck is badly outdated. But even accepting that, I expected better.
All in all, Ford quality is as bad as its been in decades. From my experience, their fit and finish is way worse than FCA right now. But that’s anecdotal.
My 2014 F-150, with the 5.0 has not had any problems. Do you think I got lucky?
It’s the revised 2018+ 5.0 that is problematic.
Carmakers may be able to sell a less-than-reliable car to a customer, but it’s unlikely that customer will come back for seconds.
My wife and I used to be loyal Ford buyers — at one time we owned three Fords at once. However, our last experience was a poor one, with a long list of problems. I eventually sold that car with only 77,000 mi. on it, which is the lowest-mileage car I’ve ever sold. My brother-in-law, and some family friends have also had poor experiences with new Fords… lots of stuff going wrong that just shouldn’t.
Given that, I’m much less likely to consider buying a new Ford now — and in fact we didn’t last time around. So Ford may have saved some money by using cheap materials, by rushing development, etc., but they lost a customer in the process.
“Carmakers may be able to sell a less-than-reliable car to a customer”
… but not to Law Enforcement. If your personal vehicle has issues, you drop it off, get a loaner or rental, and go on with your life.
If 10% or more of your Law Enforcement fleet is down, that’s fewer cops on the beat. I’m hearing rumors of some blowback from Law Enforcement fleet operators.
Ford is big in Law Enforcement vehicles. That’s a good chunk of business they can ill afford to lose.
But last enforcement is a low-bid, low-margin segment where a dollar one way or the other on the bid can mean you get the sale or don’t,
The low bid, low margin is the dealer’s problem, who is cutting his bid to beat out the other Ford dealer who is putting in a bid for that year’s contract.
Not really, they’re able to put as many “heart” things as “head” ones into the bid contract as any retail buyer spending their own credit. Otherwise you’d be seeing Mitsubishi Mirage police cars everywhere.
Yes there are some fleet buyers that aren’t happy, but so far what I’ve heard is they were complaining about is the fact that they missed the promised delivery day and hadn’t given them a firm date of when the vehicles would be delivered.
But the fact is uptime is important to LE fleets and the Crown Victoria’s reputation will only get them so far. This needs to be at least as good as the outgoing Utility if they intend to keep their domination of this market.
My wife and I have also given up on Ford.
We both liked Ford for political reasons – they got no government bailout. And I still like Ford for the rich history.
She had the last generation Explorer and wanted a replacement this summer. We looked at the new one. We saw the misaligned trim on the Aviator and the price of the Explorer. And we knew about the problems.
I tried to buy one of the last Focus STs from a dealer that had six or seven of them on the lot but I couldn’t make a deal I liked
Wife ended up with a 2019 Highlander; I ended up with a 2019 Corolla hatchback (6 speed manual). We’re both pleased with these new Toyotas and not looking back at the Fords we didn’t buy.
Ford did get a bailout of sorts, but not the same as the other two. It was mostly in the form of grants for manufacturing technology development.
Ford is very much unique in that it has an American royal family that is still very much in charge of business. It was the risk of the Ford family’s control of the company that was an obstacle to a government bailout. Had Ford just had just common shareholders to satisfy, they’d have been sucking Uncle Sam’s tit just like GM and Chrysler.
The Ford family didn’t have anything to do with it. Ford had a near death experience in 2004 and hocked everything including the Ford trademark to establish a line of credit that was still in place when the economy tanked. Chrysler and GM couldn’t borrow when they needed it because the banking system was broken and couldn’t make new deals.
“And the Ram 1500 recently booted the Silverado to third place in the full size pickup segment.”
That seems like even bigger news. I vividly recall Iacocca saying in his book that when he was at Ford and they were doing the planning of the light pickups, it was only Chevy they were concerned with; Dodge wasn’t even on their radar. Looks like those days might be long gone.
That’s a bit deceiving. 25% of Ram sales are the old “classic” model selling for a 30% or so discount. That’s probably not sustainable and I don’t expect them to keep manufacturing it indefinitely. They are also still well behind Ford and GM as a whole.
Ah, that makes a bit more sense, sort of like how the old Grand Caravan, Journey, and now-discontinued Jeep Patriot enjoyed some of their best-selling years towards the end of their lifetimes, simply due to some massive discounting.
Also, the Ram “Classic”, with shades of GM in that name, is even more attractive to fleet buyers right now. Sitting at work, there is a line of five brand new Ram Classics about to go into service, and they are far from the only ones purchased this year. A good indicator would be FCA’s fleet sales of light duty trucks versus that of GM. We purchase a lot of pickups where I work and they’ve all be Ram as of late.
Ram just brought back the Laramie trim in the Classic line so I think they are still selling extremely well and people want to spend more money on the old trucks. Seems like a win to me. It’s possible that the old trucks are more profitable than the new ones.
Every truck they sell, new or old-style, is one more truck that the others don’t sell.
The other thing you have to consider with GM is that you really need to sum together the Silverado and the GMC Sierra. If you do that, then things aren’t so bad for GM.
You can use the discount to pay for the repair of busted exhaust manifold studs in the future.
Consider that a good thing I guess. When you pay to much for a Tacoma, and the frame rusts out from underneath the bed, you just suck it up Buttercup. That’s what I had to do anyway. That pile of crap went through a car wash at least every other week. WTF?
Reliability is not the number one discriminator, as we saw with the 84 first generation Chrysler minivans. Poor power trains, but they sold like mad because they had space and features the customer wanted badly.
A year from now, no one will remember today’s problems on the Explorer.
As pointed out in the article, Jeep products routinely are at the bottom of any reliability surveys, yet they also manage to be top-sellers with little or no discounts or incentives and high resale values.
To be even more specific, the Jeep Wrangler falls into that ‘lifestyle’ vehicle class which doesn’t seem all that far removed from any kind of recreational vehicle purchase like a boat, RV, or motorcycle (i.e., Harley). I don’t know if the Explorer can make it into that same emotional-type category where owners will willingly overlook their shortcomings, but it’s certainly worked for Jeep.
Our Wrangler is at 40k with nary a problem, so as long as it keeps doing what it’s doing, it’ll have a home here and if it doesn’t it’ll be sold for close to what we paid for it (the best part). It’s driven daily in all conditions, not really like a Harley, boat, or RV.
What year is your Wrangler?
2015 https://www.curbsideclassic.com/cars-of-a-lifetime/coal/
I wonder what would happen to Ford and Chevy if the SUV and pick up truck popularity wanes. All those people today who drive coupes, sedans and convertibles most likely would not consider buying from a company that abandoned the market. Bailout 2.0?
As a general truism, the worst quality cars today are better than the best quality cars twenty years ago. Social media and a multitude of car sites widely broadcast the failings of manufacturers. I’m not a Ford guy, but I have to give them credit for keeping the Explorers and Aviators out of customer hands until they get sorted. This is something that the dealers used to have to do.
A comment on the Ram Classic. FCA just announced they would continue building it indefinitely. The tooling and development costs are written off, so they can discount the things and still make a LOT of money.
Twenty years ago was 1999. There were some great cars on the market then with fewer problems and better materials and finishes than what is available today.
+1, more like 40 years ago. A 1999-2000 RAV4 is absolutely better quality and more reliable than a these new Explorers.
I agree. I still believe the ’90s were the high point for reliability and build quality. Today’s vehicles are pushing the limits of efficiency and have far more safety, comfort, and performance features, all of which add complexity and increase maintenance costs.
Compare a 1999 CRV to today’s CRV, whose 1.5 GDI turbo dumps gas into the oil. I know which engine I’d bet on to last longer.
“The worst quality cars today are better than the best quality cars twenty years ago”
Is that saying that a 2019 Fiat 500 ( an infamous pile of garbage) is superior to a 1999 Lexus (a highly regarded masterpiece of automotive excellence)?
Great article!
I’d have to be in a different universe where reliability isn’t near the top of my list.
I’d accept some quirkiness from an Italian sports car, Jeep or something, you know, COOL.
But to put up with that drama just to have a pickup truck, or a cookie-cutter SUV?
No thanks. How is a reliability problem even a thing in 2019? Get the basics right before adding all the doo-dads and shiny objects. Duh!
Fool their customers once, shame on them.
Fool them dozens of times and your customers must just be dumb.
Meanwhile I will enjoy my reliable 260,000 mile Avalon. It did just need it’s first replacement alternator…
I finally saw a brand new Ford Explorer out and about yesterday (Lake Oswego) which surprised me since until then the only new Explorers I had seen were at Landmark Ford. I think the rear end and face are a slight improvement over the outgoing model. I don’t have the time and patience for an unreliable brand new vehicle since I have dealt with quirky used vehicles before.
I bought several Big 3 cars new in the 80s and 90s and learned the hard way that car troubles are a huge waste of time, money and sanity. Got my first new Honda in 02 and I’ve had a run of several cars that never broke.
So I took the plunge on a 15 wrangler with eyes wide open, a calculated risk. I knew if I hated it there would be no depreciation bath to be taken. Well it’s worked out fine so far, other than the passenger window failing. A crank window!
Of course the Jeep is backed up by 2 Hondas, I’m not completely crazy.
Lincoln has problems with auto leveling suspension? Jeez, you’d have thought they’d have sorted that out after the Mark VIII
Reliability and quality can be two very different metrics unless the latter directly effects the former. Much of the reported FCA product quality defects I see in something like a Wrangler or a Challenger are entirely superficial that are mostly overlooked buy buyers since the vehicles are interesting enough to put up with something like panel gaps or soso materials. Automotive critics pride themselves on nitpicking these things in first impression reviews but for most people they really don’t matter. Reliability is another story, and it’s impact is two fold when the product is average as is, permanently damaging the brands for those who purchased them.
For Ford it’s quite sad, and unfortunately you can set a watch to their rises and falls in reliability and quality. Ford may have avoided the bailout, for which many buyers exclaimed in pride, but in effect they never got the kick in the butt to the toxic corporate structure they needed to be a truly stable company for longer than a ~7 year period. I used to defend them just as an enthusiast but their product line has nothing much to offer me, nor is there much I could safely recommend to friends and family going car shopping.
What ever happened with Jeep Wranglers with badly-welded frames?
Ok perhaps not the latest Wrangler then lol ( was speaking to the usual criticisms of the model over the years, I’m not as privvy to the latest)
I am so disappointed with Ford with the Aviator. I am driving a low mileage Explorer limited and believed I would be riding the Aviator to no avail. I cannot see this is happening. I am looking at the BMW truck now.
All the popular kids are doing ’70s-retro; this is obviously that.
Or, um-uh…maybe it’s, ah, 2018-retro. Ahem.
♬♩Qualiteee izzzzzz…JobOne!♩♬
What late model, computer controlled vehicle isn’t a pile of shit? My brothers FCA RAMs are a joke, and you couldn’t get me on a 737 MAX if the ticket was free, despite the fact I am a life long Boeing man.
My ‘15 RAM 2500 Tradesman is now pushing 38K miles. While it’s been a reliable truck (no breakdowns), I also have a folder full of recall notices (maybe a dozen? all have been done), which speaks more to quality issues. I primarily bought the RAM for its styling, and to move away from Ford brand trucks with far worse quality and reliability issues (full disclosure, they were both older and well worn when I got them).
You hit on a point I’ve tried to make – I don’t expect the product to be perfect but how do you handle it? That’s what makes the difference to me as a customer.
As TourX owners we know about the potential “throttle position sensor” but GM acknowledges the problem and gave us a 10 year 120,000 mile warranty on the part.
Well, Fiat and Alfa come to mind. And French cars.
Everyone seems to believe old saws that a Fiat means “Fix It Again, Tony”, Alfas will break down every three miles, and the chance of getting to your destination in a French built car is nil. Yet, the people who own a current one seem to find that they are just as reliable as anything else on the market.
Just as the myth of Toyota reliability was based on the facts of the past, we see current Toyotas with as many issues as anyone else. Hyundai went from crapcan to JDPowers top tier, but many still think they are of dubious quality.
Ford is at a crossroad, and I don’t know if they will choose the correct path. The fact that the PowerShift debacle has gone on as long as it has, that the Explorer/Aviator issues are happening to a model that is so important to sales, and the decision to abandon whole segments lead me to think that Ford’s days are numbered, even though not fully obvious to all. The tie-up with VW may work, or it may lead to a full on merger or buyout as consolidation in the industry takes hold.
In the meantime, Ford needs to get its act together. If your technology is not working, don’t use it. Go back to proven, refine in the lab, and then bring it to market when it is fully baked. Tesla fanatics are about the only willing beta testers buying cars right now.
Leased a new first year last gen Explorer for one of my salesmen a few years back. I was surprised how cheap it looked inside compared to the 2005 our sales manager had. Radiator fan self-destructed on the first day leaving him stranded. Nice!
Asking if vehicle reliability is important is like asking a race car driver if they want to race.
That’s an interesting comparison but it’s the best thing I can think of.
But honestly, don’t try to base your ideas on reliability off of a brand name. I learned my lesson that way, I used to despise Ford but the 2003 Taurus I had to buy actually ended up being a lot better of a vehicle than the last few non-Cadillac cars before that. Some brands make some issues, however quality of vehicles obviously change.(except for with eagle)
Transmission issues are no joke, as well as any other vehicle issue that isn’t something that’s just like a broken A/C or what have you.
I have 2014 Challenger SXT base with V6, owned since new, is about to cross the 100K mark. The only thing that ever broke on it was a HVAC blend door in the dashboard, preventing the heat from blowing. This was fixed under warranty, they gave me a loaner, and I’m happy. However, the build quality is another story. The dashboard has an uneven gaps on one side compared to the other, every exterior body panel is not even close, especially the rear light bar, the rubber is crap, including the bottom door seals, the strip between the hood and fascia (known issue for years), the trunk seal, all are shredding, finish on the rims bubbling, minor clunk in the right rear, can’t get anyone to reproduce, rust coming through in the corner in front of the rear wheel (known issue for years). But the engine sounds and runs wonderful, shifts perfect, drives dead straight, shocks still feel new, and is easily the most reliable car I have ever owned. I don’t think I’d trust them to make something truly fancy, like an Alfa Romeo or the latest fully loaded RAM with experimental features like air ride and mild hybrid, but as far as car per dollar, FCA cannot be beat.
I am the owner of a 1993 Ford Taurus LX wagon. I’ve had this car since new and will keep it for life.
I think the original Ford Taurus was one of Ford’s greatest design accomplishments ever.
Ford builds nothing nowaday’s that offers the comfort, convenience, smooth ride and relative simplicity of my old Taurus.
While I was vacationing last summer I rented a 2019 Explorer. I couldn’t believe how uncomfortable the seats in that thing were. My back, thighs and butt ached for hours after driving that Explorer for a few hours. It rode hard and stiff; the steering felt completely detached from the front wheels, with too much boost. My old Taurus has firmer feeling steering and better feedback.
The visibility (or lack of) on the Explorer was unnerving as well.
If the day comes and my Taurus ever needs anything major repaired, I’ll gladly spend the cash to fix it.
Turbos and weak transmissions and waterpump run off their timing chain and crappy suspensions and no more cars. Ford is run by idiots. The best cars they had the town car Marquis Vic and old rwd cougar and t bird long gone. Ford sucks. No one wants a compact Lincoln and you all never built a decent fwd midsize.