2018 FORD EXPEDITION Unknown Or Other Problems

The chrome trim on the upper center console of my 2018 Ford Expedition Platinum Max has begun peeling and lifting, creating a razor-sharp exposed metal edge in the front passenger compartment. The sharp metal edge is located where the driver and front passenger/children rest their arms and where the console storage is opened and accessed during normal use. The edge is sharp enough to cause deep lacerations with normal contact. This defect has already resulted in multiple significant cuts to occupants, producing wounds that bled for several hours and required medical care to control bleeding. The center console cannot be used safely without risk of injury, and occupants cannot reasonably avoid contact with the affected area. A vehicle interior surface should never create the risk of open wounds to occupants during ordinary operation. Manufacturer Response Ford Motor Company, Ford Customer Care, and Ford Protect have been notified of the safety risk. Despite documented injury, the dealership and Ford warranty administrators have refused to repair the component, stating that the part is categorized as “cosmetic” in their parts system. Because of this internal categorization, they declined to submit or review the issue as a safety-related failure, and no remedy has been offered. Reason for Filing The failure of interior trim material to maintain structural integrity has resulted in dangerous exposed sharp metal, causing real injury and presenting a continuing safety hazard to vehicle occupants. Manufacturer refusal to take corrective action after injury demonstrates the need for federal safety review.

On [XXX] my AC stopped working and there was a major burning smell. I took the vehicle in to determine the issue. The service advisor advised me that the motor blower had overheated and burned the wires completely causes a fire hazard. Later to find out there was the same recall under incident number 22S56, but my year vehicle was not included. I called Ford customer service and was told they have heard customers having the same issue with 2018s but has yet to be recalled. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Just purchased a certified used vehicle. 1) passenger DTRL is half way burnt out. Upon reading tons of forums online, I’m seeing this is a VERY COMMON issue. 2) the back up guide lines on the back up camera does not show. After master reset of the sync system , the lines appeared once. Since then it has not shown ever again.

Component/System That Failed: The 10R80 automatic transmission is malfunctioning. It causes harsh shifting, delayed acceleration, hesitation, and unpredictable surging. These issues have been confirmed as part of Ford’s internal TSB 23-2250, which directly references this transmission defect. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. Safety Risk: This transmission failure poses a serious safety risk. The hesitation and delay in acceleration occur during merging, turning, and highway driving, which can cause near misses and sudden loss of power. The delayed response time compromises my ability to move safely through traffic. Reproduced/Confirmed: Yes. The issue was confirmed by Liberty Ford in Fayetteville, NC, after I paid for a diagnostic. The service department acknowledged the symptoms but refused to cover the diagnosis or repair under warranty since no recall was showing under my VIN. Inspected by Others: The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer directly or by law enforcement or insurance. However, it was diagnosed and documented by an authorized Ford dealership (Liberty Ford in Fayetteville NC). Warning Lamps or Symptoms: There were no warning lamps or error codes. The symptoms began subtly but became consistent over time. The first noticeable event was approximately in “early 2025”, with increased severity since then. I submitted a written complaint to Ford on June 9, 2025, via USPS Priority Mail (Tracking #[XXX]) and also filed a certified safety complaint with NHTSA (Tracking #[XXX]) but have received no response. I am requesting formal investigation and recall action. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

I have had several issues with this vehicle throughout the years I have owned it. The current issues I am writing about include: transmission failure and replacement, rear passenger door no longer opening and continued issues with the Catalytic convertors. When it comes to the transmission it was unsafe to drive as the gears continued to slip while driving and cause the vehicle to temporarily loose power. This could have resulted in an accident. The vehicle is currently having the transmission replaced at a repair shop where they confirmed the issues. They will also be looking at the other two issues as well. The door not opening poses a huge safety concern as we are only able to use one rear door for entering and exiting.

What component or system failed or malfunctioned TRANSMISSION, and is it available for inspection upon request YES How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? I WAS DRIVING ON A MAJOR 8 LANE HIGHWAY AND COULD NOT EXCELERATE SAFTLY TO GET OUT OF THE WAY OF TRAFFIC Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? YES Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? YES, MANUFACTURER FORD & AAMCO TRANSMISSION Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, NO and when did they first appear THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON RIGHT AFTER THE TRANSMISSION STOPPED WORKING PROPERLY. FIRST THE TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT EXCELERATE AND THEM THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON THIS TRANSMISSION HAS FAILED 3 TIMES KEEPS LEAVING ME STRANDED ON THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY. EVEN AFTER REPAIRS HAVE BEEN DONE WITH AAMCO PLEASE HELP ME I AM SCARED TO DRIVE MY TRUCK TRANSMISSION KEEPS FAILING

When it is below freezing and there is snow/condensation on the door windows the door lock can get stuck/frozen closed. Many times the door will unlock and open to get in but once I get to my destination I can't get the door open to get out of my car. This has happened on all the doors at different times. We get stuck and I have to crawl out another door that will unlock. There isn't a way to manually pull the door unlocked because the knob goes into a hole so you can't pull it up. Also, sometimes when I run remote start the door will not unlock and open to get into the car. I also have children in car seats, this would be a major safety issue in an emergency if we couldn't get out.

Automatic transmission is causing slipped gears, harsh shifting, jerking, and hesitation. I am almost met with accident couple of times with my family. Whie driving car suddenly shift from 10 gear to 5th gear causing erratic behaviour. While waiting in the Signal for Green light, and when we press the accelerator. Car is not moving at all from first gear.erratically shift to 6th gear.

The large sunroof is made of cheap plastic mechanics and will no longer close as a plastic piece has come off the track. Causes safety issue. The vehicle is available upon request. The window not being sealed if turned over the passenger will be injured with glass shards or distracted while driving as the window will not close. The vehicle has not yet been inspected but is at the Ford Dealership being looked at. There were no other symptoms of the problem.

The Transmission is slow to respond leaving inhibited acceleration. Not being able to accelerate while pushing down on the gas pedal when entering the freeway is a major concern and could be costly to others life and mine. While making a turn during a green arrow, a collision is bound to happen. Dealer is currently reviewing vehicle. No warning lights for transmission present at time of transmission failures.

Transmission is slipping and harshly stopping randomly. Won’t go into park sometimes. Very unsafe. I have heard this is a common thing with the 2018 ford expeditions.

On [XXX] it Looked like I had a tail of a bird in my exhaust. My husband pulled it out and said the tailpipe is packed with junk. Upon clearing it out it looked like a wig or hair extensions. After googling this disgusting matter we found some Ford mufflers are defective and they have what looks like a hairy discharge. Didn’t know if it was safe to drive. Called Montrose Ford in Fairlawn, OH and said they’ve only seen this one other time in 35 years. They are aware of the situation. I have 4 kids and I feel that Ford put my life and the lives of my family on the line with the filled up exhaust from the muffler discharge. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The air conditioner does not blow cold air when turned on. This vehicle was manufactured in the same facility as the other recall on 2018 Ford expeditions manufactured in Kentucky for the air issues. The recall for those vehicle show manufactured in January of 2018 to February of 2018. However, my vehicle was manufactured December of [XXX] but has the same issue. We noticed the air was not working about 6 months after purchasing it (bought in colder weather) and did not learn of the previous recall until now. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

When car is stopped, the engine dies and it reads on screen “ place car in park to restart engine”. This is not the automatic stop/start. Car has died a handful of times when in stopped traffic or at red lights. Sometimes taking several seconds to get engine running again. Brand new battery. Herb Chambers Ford dealership used diagnostics on 9/29/23 and “did not find anything broken”.

Rear hatch closes on person under it spontaneously and does not stop. ie will compress you if you do not move out of the way quickly. Could get squished? No No No

Rear passenger door will not open from the outside even in the unlocked position. It is still locked and cannot be opened from the inside or the outside. We have children that require the use of safety seats. in the event of an accident, we cannot remove them from the back seats. We have to climb from the front seats to the back just to get them out of the car. I have not been to the dealer but, the problem is still not resolved. No one has inspected the vehicle. There were no warning signals whatsoever. i consider this a major problem in the event of an accident. Not being able to get out or have help open the door from the outside will put lives at risk.

RPMs rev up as the truck is changing gears- engine stalls which causes an abrupt halt. I have to let off the gas for the gears to catch up. Several mechanics have looked and there are no codes. This is a very dangerous situation as I am on the road several hours a day for my job. It is especially scary when my children are in the car. Apparently, this is very common with the 2018 Ford models and NOTHING is being done!!!!!! Ford will be sued if this causes an accident d/t no my fault of my own. THIS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED ASAP!!!!!!!!!

Power running boards switched from automatic to off position while driving vehicle and without warning to driver. Due to height of vehicle (20" wheels) and failure to deploy, injury occurred while attempting to exit vehicle. Ford took over two weeks to determine problem and cost owner approximately $1400 to repair as vehicle was no longer under warranty. Vehicle had less than five thousand (5,000) miles.

The rear evaporator has reportedly failed and is causing a leak to the refrigerant. We have read the TSB 21-2250 and the earlier Customer Satisfaction Program 18N01 which both point to what is reportedly a common issue for these systems. Safety concern is overall heat in vehicle. At the same time we are experiencing a leak of coolant, and the Ford dealership is recommending replacement of pump. The dealer is also recommending the replacement of rear evaporator and recharge of the refrigerant. The cooling fan was running full blast which was our warning of checking low coolant, there was no warning lights of any issues. As there have been multiple TSB type of issues, as a customer this seems like a known issue that Ford should be paying to have fixed.

The auto start stop function failed to restart the engine in an intersection on three occasions. We entered the intersections waiting to make a left turn and the auto stop start turned the car off. When we picked up our foot off the break to complete the left turn and clear the intersection the auto stop start failed to restart the car. An error code came up that said "Auto Start/Stop Shift to P, then restart engine". We shifted to park and restarted the car to clear the intersection to blaring horns. Thankfully there wasn't an immediate need to clear the intersection due to oncoming traffic or we would have been clobbered.

Drivers door would not close. Took 10 months for the new door latch to get shipped to my local Ford dealer . They charged us $ 708.00 to do the repair .

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that she noticed fluid leaking from the rear of the vehicle while parked. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer where she was informed that the passenger’s side shock needed to be replaced. The contact had also taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic who confirmed the failure and gave her an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a claim was filed. The contact was referred to NHTSA for assistance. The contact stated that she only does city driving and that a failure of this magnitude should not have happened this soon on a newer vehicle. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 44,000.

Mileage: 44,000

The transmission would slip and not go into gear. Causing me to stall in the middle of intersections. This occurred multiple times and if I took my foot off the gas it woudl catch and I could go again. Dealership told me it could be PCM issue and was not able to see me until December of 2021. At the end of October it suddenly became almost undriveable and was limped to dealership. It was determined that the gear ratio for the 3rd gear was incorrect and at 67,318 miles and 4 years old it needs a new transmission.

THE VEHICLE HAS AN INTERMITTENT ELECTRICAL PROBLEM WHICH CAUSES A CROSS TRAFFIC SYSTEM FAULT, BLIND SPOT SYSTEM FAULT AND THE LIFTGATE OR LIFTGLASS TO INDICATE THAT IT IS AJAR. HEN THESE FAULT THE SAFETY SYSTEMS ARE INOPERATIVE AND POSE A SAFETY CONCERN. THIS OCCURS WHILE IN MOTION AT BOTH ON BOTH CITY STREETS AND AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. *TR

Mileage: 48,000

THE RETRACTABLE/AUTOMATIC RUNNING BOARD ON THE PASSENGER SIDE INTERMITTENTLY DROPS DOWN WHEN THE CAR IS IN PARK AND IN A STATIONARY POSITION FOR A PERIOD OF TIME. (IE. 2-3 HOURS AT REST) WHEN I RESTART THE VEHICLE AND OPEN/CLOSE THE DOORS, THEN SHUT OFF THE VEHICLE, THE RETRACTABLE RUNNING BOARDS WILL GO BACK UP WHERE THEY BELONG...MOST OF THE TIME. SEVERAL DAYS LATER, THE SAME THING HAPPENS AGAIN. I TOOK THE VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE (CRONIN FORD - HARRISON, OHIO) IN THE FALL OF 2019 AND THEY REPLACED THE RETRACTABLE RUNNING BOARD MOTOR ON THE PASSENGER SIDE ONLY. IN MARCH OF 2020, IT STARTED TO HAPPEN AGAIN, AFTER THE VEHICLE IS AT REST FOR 2-3 HOURS. I AM PLANNING TO TAKE IT IN FOR SERVICE AGAIN, BUT I'M CONCERNED THAT THIS WILL BECOME A RECURRING PROBLEM WELL AFTER THE WARRANTY PERIOD IS OVER.

Mileage: 23,500