2002 Ford Explorer Automatic Transmission Problems
- 886
- Owner complaint records in our dataset
Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.
Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.
Among these 886 stored complaint records:
- 16 indicate a crash
- 7 indicate injury
- 2 indicate fire
What owners report
- Torque Converter · 2 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 60–100k mi | 328 |
| 100–150k mi | 203 |
| 30–60k mi | 158 |
| 1–30k mi | 58 |
| 150–400k mi | 28 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Automatic Transmission
2002 FORD EXPLORER FAULTY TRANSMISSION. *TR
ODI 10268457
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 ford explorer v6 and the o/d light has been flashing periodically for the past year. The 'check engine' light also comes on at various times. Recently, the transmission shifts 'rough' and at abnormal times. *tr
ODI 10308668
Automatic Transmission · Suspension
O/d light began flashing diving on a major highway - rpm's ran at 3rpm's no matter what speed i traveled. Transmission shifts very hard and i am experiencing a terrible clunking noise - piece of'!@#$% transmission - will have to replace the transmission according to the dealer and i have heard it is happening very frequently with the 2002 explorers. *tr
ODI 10258909
Automatic Transmission
I like many others was just informed that my 2002 explorer needs a new transmission. It only has 52,000 miles on it. I am on a fixed income, and bought this car believing that it would last me a long time if i took care of it which i have. I cannot afford this expense and very unhappy to find that ford knows of this defect, and does nothing about it. I am truly beginning to believe that ford stands for found on road…
ODI 10259176
Automatic Transmission
While driving o/d light started to flash and check transmission light came on. Original owner with 59k miles. Dealer states i need a new transmission. I have read numerous complaints about this transmission online. Nhtsa needs to investigate this type of closed system transmission design. Loss of drive power during entry to highway or lane changes could result in a major accident. *tr
ODI 10258332
Automatic Transmission
2002 ford explorer 4.0l sohc v6 automatic transmission. It has a problem shifting from 2nd to 3rd gear. While driving in traffic, car will not accel up to speed and doesn't shift out of 2nd gear into 3rd. Have had a few near accidents because of car not able to speed up. *tr
ODI 10260366
Automatic Transmission
O/d light continuously blinking, transmission slipping and engine revving up causing lots of jerking everytime i drive my 2002 explorer. In order for me to drive my suv i have to turn the o/d off...and sometimes the engine will continuously rev up even when the o/d is manually turned off. There are too many people with this problem for it to continue to be ignored. Please help us consumers.*tr
ODI 10315302
Automatic Transmission
Accelerating from 0, failure of transmission to shift from 1st to 2nd gear, engine revs to 4000 rpm and fails to accelerate or shift. *tr
ODI 10257993
Automatic Transmission
The o/d light is blinking fast and now it is beginning to shift gears very rough. All the websites i have seen makes this a common attribute with this year of car. Nothing really lead up to this, it just started blinking on my way to work. *tr
ODI 10258129
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 ford explorer and my o/d light is flashing along with my check engine light coming on. This seems to be complaint #1 with this vehicle in searching the internet. I seem to have a transmission rebuild coming my way. It's always been tough to switch from drive to reverse. Now my lights are flashing and it has a heck of a time switching from 1st to 2nd gear. I have 70,000 miles on the vehicle. I also have…
ODI 10261837
Automatic Transmission
Shortly after purchasing our 2002 ford explorer xls, we began experiencing delayed shifting on occasion. The problem continued to get worse until occasionally, after making a turn, it would slip out of gear impeding acceleration in traffic situations. It also hesitates going into gear after backing up out of parking spaces. This almost caused us to be hit from behind one day when another driver backed out of a…
ODI 10312366
Automatic Transmission
I bought a 2002 ford explorer in 2004 and the transmission is going bad. The od off light is blinking and the car has less than 95000 miles. I took it to the ford dealer to find out the problem, they told me the transmission needs to be rebuilt or replace. The cost is between $2400 - $3700. I had the car for 4 years and still owe on the car. I googled for od off light and found that many ford owners with the same…
ODI 10257646
Automatic Transmission
On 1/18/09 i was driving my 2002 ford explorer on a [redacted] and noticed that it would not accelerate - like i had the emergency brake on. 10 minutes later my service engine light came on and my o/d light started to flash and i could not get over 25 mph. I managed to get safely to a relatives house but had to have the car towed to a repair facility - to be looked at. I have been told the transmission is shot and…
ODI 10255783
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 ford explorer 4.0l v6. I had the transmission rebuilt 10 days ago. I have had to take my vehicle back to the transmission shop now for the third time in 10 days due to problems that the shop says are chronic with, and known by, ford. Ford needs to address the problems inherent with the transmission in this year model. Consumers are continuing to shoulder the financial burden of a problem of which ford…
ODI 10257294
Automatic Transmission
2002 ford explorer, transmission total fail while driving. *tr
ODI 10347879
Automatic Transmission
2002 ford explorer xlt. Transmission problem, od light flickers, tranny slipping. My wife was put in grave danger traveling at a reasonable speed in moderate to heavy traffic. Searching the web for other issues i found a host of the same problems with the same model and year. Here is a link to the site i visited...http://www.carcomplaints.com/ford/explorer/2002/transmission/o_d_light_is_blinking.shtml this vehicle…
ODI 10254140
Automatic Transmission
2002 ford explorer transmission flew into 4x4 low automatic while driving at 50 mph. The 4x4 module part had been replaced once already,and is the culprit of throwing it into an unsafe position. The issue keeps coming up, and the dealer has had no responsibility for replacing the "known ford problem" in over 7 years. This issue is expensive to repair, but the problem is the safety of the vehicle and the passengers…
ODI 10254712
Automatic Transmission
I was driving home from florida in my 2002 ford explorer. The o/d light started blinking. I was towing a trailer and pulled over on the side of the road to see if it needed cooled off. The o/d light continued to flash, meanwhile while i was towing the vehicle started jerking like a huge hammer was hitting the transmission. *tr
ODI 10253715
Automatic Transmission
The o/d light on my 2002 ford explorer started flickering about a month ago. Four days ago, i noticed that my truck wouldn't go from second to third gear while driving. I will get up to 25 mph and the truck would rev up to 3500 rpms and not change gears. I have to ease up off the gas and let the rpms drop and then accelerate again and that's how it changes gears. *tr
ODI 10253554
Automatic Transmission
2002 ford explorer transmission failure at 49,562 miles. Unable to accelerate. *tr
ODI 10265092
Automatic Transmission
Overdrive off light started blinking, took it into a transmission shop just in case. The od unit went bad causing an internal lock in the tranny. It cost $3000 to fix, and from what i am reading this is happening quite a bit to thousands of people out there that bought this year of explorer. If anyone knows of anything else that can be done to make ford pay for this please let me know. *tr
ODI 10253542
Automatic Transmission · Parking Brake · Rear · Unknown Or Other
2002 ford explorer with broken coil spring, crack under rear window, and transmission slip, broken parking brake shoes in assembly. Same complaints that seem to be common. And same with everyone else, no help from ford. *tr
ODI 10253508
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 ford explorer 2wd, six cylinder. It has approximately 86,000 miles and i just spent $2,000 replacing the transmission. I now have to have the rear end checked due to a roar that is so loud it is impossible to hear the radio. This vehicle has been maintained and driven in a very conservative manner. I understand that ford is aware of these problems but will not stand behind the vehicle with service. We…
ODI 10253640
Automatic Transmission · Electrical System
Ford explorer o/d flashing and check transmission coming on it was at the ford dealer for 3 weeks they said it was my pcm and now they are saying it a wiring problem but my car is doing the same thing it was before i took it to them. *tr
ODI 10253710
Automatic Transmission
1. O/d light started flashing, car was jerking when slowing and accelerating. 2. Almost every time starting and stopping vehicle jerks. 3. Remove and rebuild the transmission, fm68 torque converter, transmission overhaul kit, overdrive band assembly, inter band assembly, servo bushing kit, bushing kit. As of april 5th 2010 o/d light flashing again and vehicle jerks when slowing and accelerating. *tr
ODI 10324321