Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2026-2027 Explorer Police Interceptor vehicles. A phantom "Global On" command in the overhead console may illuminate the map lights and prevent them from being turned off. As such, these vehicles fail to comply...
Lights
Ford Explorer Lighting problems by year
192 complaints filed with NHTSA about the Ford Explorer's lights. Headlights, tail lights, brake lights, turn signals and interior lighting failures.
Lighting complaints by model year
Lighting recalls
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Explorer vehicles. The Dynamic Bending Light (DBL) system software may cause the passenger-side headlight to turn in the wrong direction when driving through curves in the road. As such, these vehicles...
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2025 Explorer and Aviator vehicles. When towing a trailer, the tail lights on the trailer may fail to illuminate due to an improperly manufactured body control module. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with...
Dope, inc. Is recalling 42,540 combination corner and bumper lamp assemblies of various part numbers sold for use as aftermarket equipment for various passenger vehicles. These headlamps fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety...
Sabersport is recalling 16,270 combination corner and bumper lamp assemblies of various part numbers sold for use as aftermarket equipment for various passenger vehicles. These headlamps fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety...
Certain ck motorsports combination headlights, clear corner, bumper, and side marker lights sold as replacement lamps for use on the passenger vehicles listed above. Some combination lamps that are not equipped with amber side reflectors fail to conform to...
Certain pro-a motors corner lamps, turn signals, and headlights sold as replacement lamps for use on certain passenger vehicles listed above. Some combination lamps that are not equipped with amber side reflectors fail to conform to federal motor vehicle...
Vehicle description: mini vans, light pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles. Off lease canadian vehicles equipped with daytime running lights which meet canadian requirements and not the photometric requirements of fmvss 108, "lamps, reflective devices...
Latest Explorer lighting complaints
I own a 2025 Ford Explorer Active, purchased new in April 2025. In approximately early October 2026, I noticed a significant and unexplained brightness difference between the rear taillights. The driver's-side taillight is noticeably brighter than the passenger-side taillight when the exterior lights are illuminated. On October 19, 2026, I brought the vehicle to Ford Country in Henderson, Nevada, for diagnosis. My service advisor personally observed the difference in brightness. The technicians scanned the...
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vehicle's electronic systems and reportedly found no diagnostic trouble codes explaining the condition. According to the shop foreman, technicians also installed taillight assemblies from other Ford Explorers for comparison. The driver's-side taillight remained brighter, suggesting that replacing the lamp assemblies did not correct the condition. The dealership discovered professionally installed aftermarket emergency lighting and two previously disconnected factory liftgate lighting connectors. These modifications were performed in 2025, and the remaining factory taillights appeared to operate normally for more than a year afterward. The shop foreman explained that the dealership would not continue electrical diagnostics because its technicians do not work on modified emergency-vehicle electrical systems. He did not establish that the aftermarket equipment caused the brightness difference. The vehicle is being returned without a confirmed diagnosis or repair. I am concerned that the unexplained difference in rear lighting brightness could affect the visibility or interpretation of the vehicle's rear lighting by other motorists. The vehicle previously received an inspection under Ford recall 25C42 involving the Body Control Module C, which reportedly passed. I do not know whether that recall is related to the current condition. I am submitting this complaint to document a potential exterior lighting safety issue and request that NHTSA review whether similar
Headlight went out.
Faulty led chip in headlight, DRL , high beam & low beams affected EXACTLY like the recalled 2026 models.. ford recommended replacement @ 2,400$ Ford should be forced to extend the recall to all affected models. This is an attempt to mitigate and minimize financial damage for ford motor company and is unacceptable
Drivers side low beam intermittently does not operate. Becoming more and more common. Now, passenger side lamp is doing the exact same thing, and both shut down while in motion at night. These lamps should not fail like this. There is an existing recall for 2026 vehicles with the exact same issues.
"CHECK HEADLAMP SYSTEM SEE MANUAL" appears intermittently on the dash with headlights going out. As hundreds of others have reported here and on internet forums, we too are dealing with intermittent headlights. This is a major SAFETY issue while driving at night and your headlights go out suddenly. After bringing our vehicle to a Ford Dealership (who regularly service our vehicle) and paying a diagnostic fee, they could not properly diagnose the issue and said the only fix THEY THINK MIGHT correct the issue is...
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to replace the entire headlamp assembly at an over a $3500 cost. The problem is Ford does not know that this will correct the issue. If it truly was a headlamp issue wouldn't our headlamps go out completely after approximately a year of experiencing the headlights going out intermittingly, especially when they are supposed to last the life of the vehicle. The dealership printed out the detailed list of codes on our vehicle going back to January and it confirms the headlights intermittently going out. Besides the dealership, we have spoken to Ford corporate multiple times and they are unwilling to help us in any way nor do they want to address this dangerous issue. An investigation needs to be opened into this matter before a serious accident occurs and Ford needs to answer why this issue is happening to so many vehicle owners and create a recall. NHTSA has helped me before with a problem/recall I had on my Dodge Durango many years ago and I am hopeful that we will be helped on this issue as well.
Passenger headlight module has blown and seems to be an issue with the 2020 Ford Explorer.
Ever since my B pillar came off my car my cabin lights stay on longer than usual and my trunk cant be opened, both being an inconvenience. Dealer agreed the lights stay on because of what broke off but since theres no remedy they cant do anything about it. Ive already had to purchase a battery and will soon prob going to need to again but ford will not pay for one despite it being they're fault.
The passenger headlight low beam does not work.This has been identified by an Independent service center. The Check Headlight System message shows on dashboard. Bought the car in 2023 and the headlight has not worked for 2 years. When driving at night I only have one headlight that works this poses a risk to myself and others. The entire headlight assembly must be replaced.
The trunk does not open. The lift gate error message comes on. The lights stay on longer than they should and the battery is drained. This all resulted after the b pillar flew off on the high way. I have had duct tape on my car for over a year and unable to access the trunk.
The passenger headlamp has went out and after researching this is supposed to be a lifetime lamp and has become a common issue on these vehicles. If these lamps are malfuntioning it should be recalled because it is a safety issue specially to ones that already have vision issues at night.
The driver side headlight low beam LED stopped functioning. I noticed moisture inside the headlight housing. I bought a replacement headlight unit and a control module. The replacement headlight housing has also had the low beam go out, again. Now I have to purchase a module to see if the headlight itself is fine and it's possibly just the module that's going out. A lot of other people are having the same exact issue. This is ridiculous. How is this not a recall item?
Both my passenger and driver headlights have failed. I have paid to have them replaced. The drivers side has failed twice. The passenger side has failed 3 times. I have taken it to the dealership and they "fixed" the issue but it keeps coming back months or weeks later. The low beams are what is failing. The message on the dash says "check headlight assembly see manual" This is a safety risk to me and other people on the road. They have failed while driving. If I am driving early in the morning or late at night...
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I can not see if there are no street lights. People also can't see me coming. This is a major safety risk. I bought the car in August 2024. Headlights have failed 5 times since then. The dealership helped me with my first four failures. On this last failure, they said it is not covered under warranty and that I need to pay $3000 for the headlight. Five failures of headlights seems like a manufacturer issue and not something. I am doing on my end.
Driver side headlamp low beam has burned out. They are supposed to be lifetime LED headlamps, not burn out after only 67,000 miles.
The driver side headlight low beam will not work. Dealership said 1700 labor to replace. I have looked into this and several other ford explorer platinum owners have same issue.
Vehicle equipped with operation red and blue auxiliary emergency lights, prohibited and protected by law for law enforcement use only, facilitates impersonation of a police officer, false detention, harassment, legal scrutiny for police, seller has actual knowledge, strictly liable upon a purchase agreement with a buyer, and can be liable for crimes committed by another by aiding an offender under the color of law. Vehicle has open recalls, mechanical/electrical/lighting issues and requires maintenance.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data