NHTSA Complaint #10551420 — 2001 FORD EXPLORER SPORT

THIS HAS OCCURRED MULTIPLE TIMES SINCE I'VE HAD THE VEHICLE. I KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT VEHICLES TO KNOW THIS IS NOT NORMAL IN THE EARLY YEARS OF 125,000 MILES AND ROUTINE MAINTENANCE. WHEN I ACCELERATE FROM A STOPPED POSITION THE RPM'S GO UP TO ABOUT 3,000 OR SO BUT THE VEHICLE DOES NOT ACCELERATE. THE O/D LIGHT WILL FLASH AND THE VEHICLE, WHEN IT DOES ACCELERATE, IS "SLUGGISH". WHEN I PULL OVER AND TURN OFF THE VEHICLE, THEN TURN IT BACK ON, IT SEEMS TO RESET THE LIGHT SO THAT IT IS NO LONGER ILLUMINATED BUT EVENTUALLY THE ISSUE WITH THE LACK OF ACCELERATION COMES BACK WITHIN THE NEXT FEW MILES AND USUALLY IS A PROBLEM BETWEEN 1ST AND 2ND GEAR. IT HAPPENS LIKE CLOCK WORK WHEN I LEAVE A DRIVEWAY AND ENTER TRAFFIC WHICH PUTS ME IN FEAR OF BEING HIT BY AN ONCOMING VEHICLE. THIS IS DEFINITELY A POTENTIAL HAZARD AND IN AN ATTEMPT TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM I HAVE COME ACROSS MULTIPLE ENTRIES ON "BLOGS" WITH SIMILAR SYMPTOMS THAT USUALLY BEGIN AROUND 120,000-150,000 MILES. IN MY OPINION, THE ISSUE CAUSING THE PROBLEM, AND THE POTENTIAL RISK TO MY LIFE AND OTHERS, SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED YEARS PREVIOUS. THIS SEEMS TO BE TOO COMMON. VEHICLES, IN GENERAL, SHOULD NOT BE OPERATING LIKE THIS UNLESS THERE IS AN EXTREME LACK OF CARE IN REGARDS TO MAINTENANCE. ON ANOTHER NOTE... I'VE NOTICED THAT THE VARIOUS FAULTY PARTS THAT HAVE BEEN RECALLED ARE "QUICK FIXES" WHICH TRANSLATES TO ME AS "CHEAP FIXES". IF A COMPANY PRODUCES A PRODUCT THAT FAILS BEFORE IT'S TIME OR CAUSES DANGER TO IT'S CUSTOMERS, THEY SHOULD DEFINITELY ENSURE THAT THE PROBLEM BE REMEDIED. SO "MAN UP" FORD AND ADDRESS THE ISSUE- OR THE ALTERNATIVE IS TO QUIT PRODUCING GARBAGE. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR