1996 Ford Explorer Vehicle Speed Control Problems
Owners have filed 148 complaints with NHTSA about vehicle speed control problems on the 1996 Ford Explorer, 10% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 134,500 miles. The words owners use most often: “cruise control” (20% of reports).
- 148vehicle speed control complaints
- 134,500median miles at failure
- 19mention a crash
- 15mention an injury
- 2related recalls
- 55%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Cruise control: mentioned in 30 of 148 complaints (20%)
- Sudden acceleration: mentioned in 12 of 148 complaints (8%)
- Suddenly accelerated: mentioned in 8 of 148 complaints (5%)
- Throttle body: mentioned in 8 of 148 complaints (5%)
At what mileage do vehicle speed control problems happen?
Based on 30 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 148 complaints, 19 mention a crash, 7 a fire, 15 an injury.
Ford Explorer vehicle speed control complaints by model year
| Model year | Vehicle Speed Control complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Explorer | 2 | 5% | — |
| 2025 Explorer | 7 | 7% | 14,177 |
| 2023 Explorer | 2 | 2% | 44,100 |
| 2022 Explorer | 6 | 2% | 9,980 |
| 2021 Explorer | 15 | 3% | 8,800 |
| 2020 Explorer | 29 | 2% | 11,081 |
| 2019 Explorer | 1 | 0% | — |
| 2018 Explorer | 10 | 1% | 22,000 |
| 2017 Explorer | 21 | 1% | 29,589 |
| 2016 Explorer | 76 | 3% | 7,820 |
| 2015 Explorer | 16 | 1% | 79,600 |
| 2014 Explorer | 29 | 2% | 30,200 |
| 2013 Explorer | 38 | 2% | 49,000 |
| 2012 Explorer | 17 | 2% | 36,666 |
| 2011 Explorer | 18 | 2% | 53,000 |
| 2010 Explorer | 14 | 12% | 9,800 |
| 2009 Explorer | 5 | 15% | 46,250 |
| 2008 Explorer | 7 | 5% | 117,316 |
| 2007 Explorer | 13 | 6% | 72,600 |
| 2006 Explorer | 28 | 4% | 42,000 |
| 2005 Explorer | 44 | 9% | 54,000 |
| 2004 Explorer | 76 | 6% | 73,500 |
| 2003 Explorer | 37 | 3% | 51,090 |
| 2002 Explorer | 152 | 5% | 65,000 |
| 2001 Explorer | 36 | 10% | 87,508 |
| 2000 Explorer | 113 | 12% | 84,635 |
| 1999 Explorer | 148 | 11% | 99,500 |
| 1998 Explorer | 281 | 14% | 112,500 |
| 1997 Explorer | 202 | 12% | 100,000 |
| 1996 Explorer | 148 | 10% | 134,500 |
| 1995 Explorer | 81 | 10% | 137,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (2)
Vehicle speed control
Problem: Ford is recalling model years 1995-2003 windstar, 2000-2003 excursion diesel, 1993-1997 and 1999-2003 f-250 sd through f-550 sd diesel, 1992-2003 e-150 through e-550, 1995-2002 explorer, 1997 and 2002 mercury mountaineer, 1995-1997 and 2001-2003 ranger, and 1994 f53 vehicles equipped with the texas instruments speed control deactivation switch (scds). The scds may leak internally and then overheat, smoke, or burn.
Risk: A vehicle fire could occur with or without the engine running.
Fix: Ford will notify owners that dealers will install a fused wiring harness in line with the scds. On 1999-2003 windstar vehicles with a leaking scds, dealers will also inspect the abs control module connector and repair as necessary. Repairs will be completed free of charge. The safety recall began on october 27, 2009. Owners may contact ford at 1-888-222-2751.
Vehicle speed control
Problem: Vehicle description: multi-purpose passenger vehicles equipped with 5.0l engines originally sold or currently registered in the states of alaska, idaho, iowa, maine, michigan (upper peninsula only), minnesota, montana, nebraska, new hampshire, new york, north dakota, south dakota, vermont, wisconsin, and wyoming. These vehicles, when operated for extended periods of time at highway speeds and temperatures below -20 degrees farenheit, do not return to idle due to ice in the throttle body.
Risk: Although the vehicle can be controlled by either applying the service brakes or shifting the transmission to neutral, increased brake pedal efforts or some increase in stopping distance can result.
Fix: Dealers will install a revised pcv system with water heated vacuum source.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
While driving in "d" in first to second it has had a problem shifting between the 1st and 2nd gears when accelerating and will rev high rpms and sometimes do absolutley nothing when drying to move forward unless i de accelerate and then try to accelerate agine then finally it will catch and go in…
Safety recall 09s09 - scds (speed control deactivation switch) on ford models made after 95 with a texas made deactivation switch that was made poorly. I purchased a 1996 ford explorer eddie bauer edition 4x4 truck in december of 2016, from a private party in nevada.the vehicle was purchased mainly…
Searching by vin: [xxx] number of open recalls: 0 but searching by make, model, and model year i found this recall: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/searchresults;jsessionid=sj1qww1gvddycs6xggchztlty2tn4kjkbpxv1gcs9vg9xl8b1zt5!857755995?prodtype=v&searchtype=prod&targetcategory=a&searchcriteria.m…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 1996 Ford Explorers have vehicle speed control problems?
No. NHTSA has 148 owner complaints about vehicle speed control for the 1996 Ford Explorer (10% of the 1,450 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 1996 Ford Explorer vehicle speed control?
Yes: 2 safety recalls list vehicle speed control. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
At what mileage do vehicle speed control problems start?
The median reported mileage is 134,500 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about vehicle speed control problems on the 1996 Ford Explorer?
The most frequent phrase is “cruise control”, in 30 of 148 complaints, followed by “sudden acceleration” (12).
Other 1996 Ford Explorer problems
See all 1996 Ford Explorer problems or vehicle speed control problems across all Explorer years.