Explorer lunging at high speed while parking

[Michelle M J]

Hello.. I am new here to this forum I work for Ford mo company. I work at the Sterling Axle plant in Michigan, been here for 26 years leasing vehicles for my entire career that I've worked here. I seem to be favoring explorers the last few years and I've always wanted an ST but it's been out of my price range. I was introduced to something called the St line and it was a little more in my price range and had a little more bang for its buck than the regular Explorer and I really love the sporty interior. It's my most favorite Explorer yet. however, right now it is in the shop being repaired. when I was coming to work last week at 6:30 in the morning a spot opened up up front so I'm driving down slowly through the parking lot and as I was making my turn into the spot my foot was on the brake because obviously I need to go slow and eventually stop so my foot is always on the brake. so as I'm turning into the spot...like ive done a million times over... the next thing I know within seconds it just catapults away from me and smashes into the rear end of the F-150 in front of me at pretty significant speed. I sat there in shock for a second. I had no idea what happened. I backed the car up parked it, got out to inspect the damage but of course I needed to get into work. in any case it did some pretty significant damage to the passenger side fog light and front bumper of my vehicle. it hit the truck with such force that it pushed the truck out into the lane in front of it by a few inches. to be honest I'm surprised my airbag did not go off. it really shook me. this has never happened to me before. I have leased multiple explorers this is my first St line so I don't know if it has anything to do with this particular model or the fact that it was in sport mode at the time? I did ask the dealership to look at this but I've asked around at work and nobody has ever really heard of this happening on an Explorer and I didn't really know what to tell the service guys at the dealership to look for. but if I had some kind of concrete proof that this has been an issue it will help me out with my insurance claim they just sent me the estimate from the dealership and the repairs are going to be just over $7,000. In any case I love this vehicle but I'm nervous that this could happen again. I'm not sure what caused it and I was just wondering if anybody has ever heard of this before?

 

[2020FordRaptor]

That definitely isn't normal. I haven't heard of that problem on these Explorer's.

 

[FORZDA3]

I’ve never heard of the “unintended acceleration” event happening as you described. In actuality, it has never been proven to have occurred at all, even with the infamous Audi events. In ALL events from ALL manufacturers there have only been 2 confirmed events that were caused by actual defects vs driver error. BOTH were mechanical failures that did NOT “fix themselves”. Just saying that it’s 99.998% your error. Not 100% though…?

 

[Michelle M J]

Believe me I have thought about this and thought about this over and over again. I did have some rubber floor mats on the floor in the front seats that didn't quite fit they were a little bit oversized so once in awhile the corner part of the mat sometimes would overlap the gas pedal but not even on the gas pedal it was like on the bottom left hand corner. The thing that I keep going back to is the incredible amount of speed that the car went to when it accelerated forward. I would have had to have slammed my foot on the gas pedal not just lightly brush it or tapped it on accident. I mean it was fast and I've been driving a long time and I always have my foot on the brake when I'm pulling into a parking spot. I wasn't distracted I wasn't in a rush, I was actually early to work that day. you have to drive slow through our parking lot because it's dark and there's people walking in between cars and you have to be slow. I was pulling into the spot and kind of looking to my left to make sure I had enough space between me and the car to the left of me and I know I had my foot on the brake and as I'm trying to position the car and straighten it it just took off and I'm telling you in all of my 20 plus years of driving this has never happened to me. I just have a hard time believing that all of a sudden I could have done something so stupid when I've never done it before. I mean I wish I could say it with certainty that it was just me because then I could be sure that it wouldn't do it again cuz I'm nervous now because I don't know for sure it just doesn't seem like it was me. I was talking to a girl at work about it and she said the same thing happened to her and her escape and she said now she's going to look into getting her car looked at to make sure it doesn't do it to the extent that she has an accident. and I did read a story about a guy who was driving his F-150 and was stopped at a light and rear-ended somebody because the car launched forward I can't recall what the issue was though.

 

[Michelle M J]

I know I have been having some issues with the brakes over the last couple months. at first my brake pedal would stick if I'd be sitting at a red light and I'd take my foot off the brake it would stick and I would feel it hit the bottom of my foot as I pulled my foot off the brake. I haven't felt it hitting the bottom of my foot lately but now it just makes a weird creaking sound? I did let the dealership know about that as well so I don't know if it's an issue with the ABS system or what. my husband who is an engineer and works on car engines for his job said that he believes it could be something with the electronic throttles so I don't know. But I guess if the dealership gives it a throughout checkup and doesn't see anything wrong I guess I'll just have to talk it up to operator error even though I don't feel that's what it is but I definitely will take more precautions.

 

[Fastcar]

Hmmmm.... Gotta throw this in. This morning my wife is driving approaching a red light and I thought that she was closing fairly quickly and braking harder when closer to the red light. She says that this car is not the Expedition I usually drive and the Explorer seems to roll faster when her foot is off the gas 'cause it is lighter. Put it in Sport to bring up the tach and tried it again. Next light took her foot of the gas to roll to the stop and the rpm's jumped up 500rpm with her foot off the gas for a couple of seconds which required her to hit the brakes harder. This was hard acceleration not gradual. Something to keep an eye on I guess.

 

[2020FordRaptor]

Believe me I have thought about this and thought about this over and over again. I did have some rubber floor mats on the floor in the front seats that didn't quite fit they were a little bit oversized so once in awhile the corner part of the mat sometimes would overlap the gas pedal but not even on the gas pedal it was like on the bottom left hand corner. The thing that I keep going back to is the incredible amount of speed that the car went to when it accelerated forward. I would have had to have slammed my foot on the gas pedal not just lightly brush it or tapped it on accident. I mean it was fast and I've been driving a long time and I always have my foot on the brake when I'm pulling into a parking spot. I wasn't distracted I wasn't in a rush, I was actually early to work that day. you have to drive slow through our parking lot because it's dark and there's people walking in between cars and you have to be slow. I was pulling into the spot and kind of looking to my left to make sure I had enough space between me and the car to the left of me and I know I had my foot on the brake and as I'm trying to position the car and straighten it it just took off and I'm telling you in all of my 20 plus years of driving this has never happened to me. I just have a hard time believing that all of a sudden I could have done something so stupid when I've never done it before. I mean I wish I could say it with certainty that it was just me because then I could be sure that it wouldn't do it again cuz I'm nervous now because I don't know for sure it just doesn't seem like it was me. I was talking to a girl at work about it and she said the same thing happened to her and her escape and she said now she's going to look into getting her car looked at to make sure it doesn't do it to the extent that she has an accident. and I did read a story about a guy who was driving his F-150 and was stopped at a light and rear-ended somebody because the car launched forward I can't recall what the issue was though.

The gas pedal on these cars are very soft and easy to press, the floor mat could have easily pressed the gas had it had enough pressure or movement.

 

[2020FordRaptor]

Hmmmm.... Gotta throw this in. This morning my wife is driving approaching a red light and I thought that she was closing fairly quickly and braking harder when closer to the red light. She says that this car is not the Expedition I usually drive and the Explorer seems to roll faster when her foot is off the gas 'cause it is lighter. Put it in Sport to bring up the tach and tried it again. Next light took her foot of the gas to roll to the stop and the rpm's jumped up 500rpm with her foot off the gas for a couple of seconds which required her to hit the brakes harder. This was hard acceleration not gradual. Something to keep an eye on I guess.

These Explorers definitly don't slow down as much as any of my other trucks or Expeditions have in the past. Sport mode loves to be in a higher gear, as it's name implies, so if the RPMs get a little low, it'll blip the throttle to downshift and rev match. It will not slow down, but it won't speed up in that process.

 

[FORZDA3]

Note that EVERY person who has had this “issue” was 100% SURE they didn't do anything to cause the event, even though there was only 2 actual malfunctions in ALL reported events. I certainly don't think they were lying, just simply unaware of their action. Note that the worst damage outcomes involved elderly, except for the policeman driving the Toyota with the floor mat over the accelerator. He didn't have the presence of mind to shut off the push button ignition by holding it OR just stand on the brakes HARD and hold them. Way too many drivers without the required skills…

 

[DaveG ST]

I know I have been having some issues with the brakes over the last couple months. at first my brake pedal would stick if I'd be sitting at a red light and I'd take my foot off the brake it would stick and I would feel it hit the bottom of my foot as I pulled my foot off the brake. I haven't felt it hitting the bottom of my foot lately but now it just makes a weird creaking sound? I did let the dealership know about that as well so I don't know if it's an issue with the ABS system or what. my husband who is an engineer and works on car engines for his job said that he believes it could be something with the electronic throttles so I don't know. But I guess if the dealership gives it a throughout checkup and doesn't see anything wrong I guess I'll just have to talk it up to operator error even though I don't feel that's what it is but I definitely will take more precautions.

What you seem to be describing is the auto hold feature. When you come to a stop the brakes will stay applied even when you take your foot off the brake pedal. You then have to push the gas pedal to begin moving again. There is a chance you pushed down too hard to get moving again? Also, if anyone could chime in on the active cruise control, which I don't use but the wife does. Any chance the vehicle attempted to accelerate to a set speed without Michelle knowing that she had done this? Another issue is that the vehicle should have stopped automatically without input from the driver, prior to hitting something. Michelle, not to ruin your day any more that it has been, but the ST and ST Line look similar, but are two different animals.

 

[Michelle M J]

What you seem to be describing is the auto hold feature. When you come to a stop the brakes will stay applied even when you take your foot off the brake pedal. You then have to push the gas pedal to begin moving again. There is a chance you pushed down too hard to get moving again? Also, if anyone could chime in on the active cruise control, which I don't use but the wife does. Any chance the vehicle attempted to accelerate to a set speed without Michelle knowing that she had done this? Another issue is that the vehicle should have stopped automatically without input from the driver, prior to hitting something. Michelle, not to ruin your day any more that it has been, but the ST and ST Line look similar, but are two different animals.

Oh I know they are. I just been driving myself crazy trying to Google information about this issue and I came across this forum. I realize I don't have an st but I thought well, maybe these guys might be able to shed some light on something I'm not aware of.

 

[Michelle M J]

The gas pedal on these cars are very soft and easy to press, the floor mat could have easily pressed the gas had it had enough pressure or movement.

Ive had these mats since last winter. I would think if the overlap thing was an issue...it would have happened long ago. They've been in the car since last january.

 

[Cdubya]

If the mats are not custom fit for the 2020+ explorers, get rid of them! They are a hazard and can easily be responsible for this. It is one of the issues where you have to spend a little more for custom fit to avoid damages in the thousands and potentially putting your life at risk! I never understand why people skimp on tires and brakes too. It doesn't pay.

 

[FORZDA3]

Ive had these mats since last winter. I would think if the overlap thing was an issue...it would have happened long ago. They've been in the car since last january.

Like i mentioned earlier, 100% of the people did nothing, but magic happened. Evaluate your actions. It sounds to me like your foot was on the gas at least partially, so when you think you're pushing the brake, you're actually pushing the gas more. It takes a HUGE effort on the brakes to overcome a floored accelerator on a stock engine. After the boost builds up on engine, the brakes literally can’t hold it. That's why the stock tune will cut the power if you have the gas and brake pressed after a short delay.

No one posting here is doubting your sincerity, or truthfulness. People who don’t fully understand how the electronic throttles work, which covers 99+% of people, tend to blame it or assume things that are impossible.

 

[Michelle M J]

Since this accident has happened, occasionally as I'm pulling into a parking spot I will ask myself, okay where is your foot? And it always is on the brake pedal.
I am not ruling out that somehow the floor mat could have contributed to this but it just seems so damn unlikely that I could have driven with these floor mats in the car since last January and this is the first time that something like this has happened. seems very unlikely to me but I guess not impossible. who knows.

If the mats are not custom fit for the 2020+ explorers, get rid of them! They are a hazard and can easily be responsible for this. It is one of the issues where you have to spend a little more for custom fit to avoid damages in the thousands and potentially putting your life at risk! I never understand why people skimp on tires and brakes too. It doesn't pay.

I have been leasing cars for 26 years..I have never ever had anything like this happen. It was not my intent to "skimp" on floor mats..I actually thought they were very cool. And matched the car interior. I simply bought them cause I didnt want to mess up the carpeted mats that were in there when the snow/slush/salt season started. I even sent a pic to my salesguy and he really liked them too. He never mentioned if they were not properly fit they could be a danger. And again...ive been driving around with them for 8 and 1/2 months..seems like I would have had this happen long ago if it was truly an issue. ? I dont know.

 

[Michelle M J]

In

Since this accident has happened, occasionally as I'm pulling into a parking spot I will ask myself, okay where is your foot? And it always is on the brake pedal.
I am not ruling out that somehow the floor mat could have contributed to this but it just seems so damn unlikely that I could have driven with these floor mats in the car since last January and this is the first time that something like this has happened. seems very unlikely to me but I guess not impossible. who knows.

I have been leasing cars for 26 years..I have never ever had anything like this happen. It was not my intent to "skimp" on floor mats..I actually thought they were very cool. And matched the car interior. I simply bought them cause I didnt want to mess up the carpeted mats that were in there when the snow/slush/salt season started. I even sent a pic to my salesguy and he really liked them too. He never mentioned if they were not properly fit they could be a danger. And again...ive been driving around with them for 8 and 1/2 months..seems like I would have had this happen long ago if it was truly an issue. ? I dont know.

In any case...the mats will be removed permanently..I will see about purchasing some from the dealership that are a better fit.

 

[Dale5403]

In

In any case...the mats will be removed permanently..I will see about purchasing some from the dealership that are a better fit.

The Ford all weather mats fit well and don't move. I love mine.

 

[Michelle M J]

This is what I was thinking could be the issue.

 

[Dgoebel57]

Yep those both look like AI generated responses, but ANYthing is possible, not necessarily the cause of your specific incident though.

 

[Fastcar]

I bought a set of WeatherTech for mine. They fit real well and don't move at all. I've used their products for years with no problems. ymmv.