NHTSA Complaint #10958452 — 2016 FORD EXPLORER

OUR EXPLORER HAS ROUGHLY 10K MILES ON IT AND WE PURCHASED IT JAN 2016. WHEN WE ACCELERATE RAPIDLY TO GET UP HILLS OR ON A FREEWAY, WE GET FLOODED WITH AN EXHAUST SMELL THROUGH THE AC VENTS. WE STARTED TO NOTICE THIS ON A FAMILY ROAD TRIP FEB 17, 2017 TO THE ZOO WITH OUR KIDS. THIS HAPPENED WITH OUR 2013 ALSO. THIS CAR IS WAY WORSE AND HAPPENS WITH RAPID ACCELERATION OF 3000-3500 RPM IN TOWN AS WELL. WHEN THIS HAPPENS, WE GET LIGHT HEADED AND MASSIVE INSTANT HEADACHES FROM THE SMELL. WE ARE NOTICING IT HAPPENING NOW IN CITY STREET DRIVING IF WE ARE TRYING TO GET UP A BIG HILL AS WELL AS WHEN WE ACCELERATE TO MERGE ONTO A HIGHWAY. THE SMELL IS GETTING WORSE EACH TIME IT HAPPENS. AS OF LAST WEEK, MY HUSBAND HAS NOTICED WHILE DRIVING NOT ONLY IS THE SMELL GETTING MORE INTENSE BUT IT ISN'T TAKING AS MUCH ACCELERATION FOR IT TO TRIGGER THE SMELL TO FLOOD THE CABIN. HE WAS DRIVING UP A HILL IN TOWN AND ONLY HAD THE RPM AT 2000 AND NOTICED THE SMELL. WE ARE HAVING ISSUES BEING ABLE TO DRIVE AROUND TOWN WITHOUT HAVING THE SMELL FLOOD OUR CABIN. WE HAD ISSUES WITH OUR 2013 DOING THE SAME THING BUT THE 2013 WAS ONLY ON THE HIGHWAY AND NOT AS INTENSE AS THIS CAR. WE ARE STARTING TO EXPERIENCE SYMPTOMS WHEN WE HAVE THIS SMELL COME OUT. WE HAVE TRIED TO TURN OFF AC BUT THAT MADE IT WORSE. WE HAVE THREE SMALL CHILDREN AND THIS IS OUR ONLY FAMILY CAR AND NOW WE ARE SCARED TO DRIVE IT!