A Ford Explorer owner says its transmission is failing at 87,000 miles, roughly 10,000 miles after her extended warranty expired. Now she’s angry that Ford had already issued a service bulletin for the problem and never made it a recall.
Alexis Driver (@alexis.d13), who posts about family, style and daily routines on TikTok, filmed the 66-second video in her car. It has been viewed more than 9,200 times. Text on screen reads: “Ford Motor Company, you stink!!!!”
“This message is for Ford Motor Company,” she says at the start. “First off, let me say, Henry Ford is rolling around in his grave right now.”
She says she bought the 2020 Explorer in 2022 with 27,000 miles on it. It now has 87,000 and is paid off. “I had the extended warranty. It just expired 10,000 miles ago, and now you want to tell me that my transmission is going out?” Alexis says.
‘There’s a service bulletin on this issue’
“To top it off, there’s a service bulletin on this issue, which means that it is a common manufacturer problem or issue. but it’s not a safety risk, so there’s no recall for it,” she says. “So you just expect me to pay for this out of pocket?”
She’s weighing whether to “either pay for a rebuild or a new transmission,” she says. “Get your crap together.”
She does not say which bulletin she found. Ford’s powertrain warranty, which covers the transmission, runs for “5 years/60,000 miles.” So at 87,000 miles her truck is past it on mileage.
Her reading of the difference between a bulletin and a recall is close to the mark. Manufacturers must send the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) a copy of every bulletin they send dealers “regarding any defect in its vehicles.”
This includes “any failure or malfunction beyond normal deterioration in use.”
This applies “whether or not such defect is safety-related,” according to the regulation.
The same rule covers “warranty and policy extension communiqués,” so owners can ask a dealer whether Ford has extended coverage for a bulletin’s problem.
What NHTSA’s records show
The 2020 Explorer has drawn 1,250 owner complaints to NHTSA. Of these, 505 of them involve the powertrain, more than any other category, according to the agency’s complaint data. The model year has 33 recalls, several involving the transmission’s control software or the driveline.
The most recent transmission recall came in June. It covers more than 740,000 vehicles, including 2020 and 2021 Explorers, because “the transmission park pawl may engage while the vehicle is in motion, resulting in park system damage,” NHTSA says. Dealers will update the software and “inspect and replace any damaged transmission components as necessary, free of charge,” but the remedy is not expected until April 2027. Whether her truck’s failure is connected to that recall cannot be told from what she says in the video; owners can check a VIN on NHTSA’s site.
A familiar Ford issue
Some viewers recognized the problem. “Good ole 10R60,” wrote emsbungalow, naming the 10-speed automatic Ford fits to the Explorer. nikkikaay traded a 2020 Explorer for a 2025, writing, “Ford did tell me that the 2020’s have a lot of issues, including transmission problems.” countrybee_ wrote, “Identical situation with my 2020 Explorer. Tranny went out at 77K miles.”
Others offered fixes short of a new transmission. “Find an independent shop that does transmission flushes,” wrote stacieg.wells. “You need to do 3 flushes with filters each time.” pgonz82 suggested she “have the dealer submit to Ford for financial assistance (goodwill money). They may help; may not pay for all of it, but they should help for something.”
A few suggested a different maintenance schedule. “Newer models are better, but if you really want it to have a fair shot at lasting, change the trans fluid every 30,000 miles,” wrote abmobil. “I wish I would’ve known that 4 years ago,” Alexis replied. When burnoutburns wrote that she had never serviced the transmission, she answered: “My brother is an auto technician, so he’s always on me about getting them done!!”
Not every Explorer owner has had trouble. “I have a 2016 Ford Explorer with 183,000 miles and she is still driving great,” wrote jmack3259.
Subplot News reached out to Alexis Driver via TikTok direct message and to Ford via email for comment. We will be sure to update this if they respond.
@alexis.d13 If anyone wants to Venmo me for a new transmission, I’ll gladly accept. 🫠🥹😭 @Ford @FordMotors #ford #fordmotorcompany #transmissionproblems #covidcar #fordexplorer ♬ Vibraphone Harbor – Walters the Foundry
