NHTSA Complaint #11565793 — 2011 FORD EXPLORER

Husband started vehicle, and, as he started backing out of garage, warning chime sounded, and "Electronic Power Steering Assist Fault" message displayed on dash. Steering locked up; he was unable to turn steering wheel. He turned car off and restarted, thinking possible computer error. No further display. Ran errands. Did some research, and found that Ford had issued a prior recall on certain 2011-2013 Explorers in 2014. Safety Recall 14S06 was issued. This vehicle was checked at that time for any DTCs. When none were found, the computer was reprogrammed and power steering coverage was extended to 10 years, or 150,000 miles, from date of manufacture. In these affected vehicles, if a DTC was present, it moved on to the availability of Safety Recall 15N01, which involved one-time replacement of steering gear. After seeing this, we phoned dealer, whose rep (actually 2 separate reps, in 2 separate calls) verified recall on this issue and assured us this would be covered. Upon taking vehicle to dealer on 1/15/2024 for first available appointment, we were told Safety Recall 15N01 had expired and was no longer covered. Repair was estimated to be between $500 and $2,500, depending on DTC results. DTCs present were: C1B00-86, U3000-49 and U3000-72. We were told the steering gear needed to be replaced, at a cost of $1,372.73 for parts, $680 labor, as well as $169.95 for subsequent alignment, for a total of $2,222.68, plus state sales tax. We feel the one-time replacement of the steering gear should still be a covered option if it was already previously deemed a potential safety risk, regardless of the vehicle now being over 10 years old, and still just as potentially hazardous. Loss of steering ability is a serious safety issue, putting countless lives at risk. Vehicle has only just over 70,000 miles on it, is garage-kept, original owner, in very good condition, and has always been kept up-to-date on recall repairs.