2005 Ford Explorer Electrical system Problems
- Complaints
- 36about this part
- Share
- 7%of 497 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 78,000miles
- Trend
- FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 36 complaints about the electrical system of the 2005 Ford Explorer, 7% of the 497 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 78,000 miles. 2 a fire, according to the filers.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“Car stalled while driving at highway speeds. Brakes and steering became impaired. Lucky, I was in the rightmost lane and was able to narrowly avoid collision. Incident occurred after a ~3hr drive as I was exiting the highway (I.e. Slowing down). Upon restart, engine turned over, but was undriveable due to iterative surge/stall cycles.”
NHTSA complaint #10862482, filed 2016-05, 95,000 miles“My Explorer transmission just stopped working going down the highway, almost got hit by a truck. Electrical system kept going in and out. Checked with a Ford dealership they said it was a common problem with explorers and there was no recall. I checked online and there was over 10,000 complaints made. I am in the military have 14 combat tours, and come home to have my life put in danger again on something that you all know about. When are you going to step in?”
NHTSA complaint #11047135, filed 2017-11, 87,000 miles“While driving down the interstate at night my vehicles dashboard began to act erratic. Then the battery gauge rapidly dropped into the red zone. Within about 3 miles I lost my interior power, headlights, taillights, and signals including my hazard lights. When limping off the interstate my truck had lost enough power to where it died out. Once at the dealership it was found that the alternator fried out causing a surge that wiped out the PCM and utility cluster all without warning.”
NHTSA complaint #11020712, filed 2017-08, 162,000 miles“Continuous and repetitive malfunction of gas gauge. It occurs very often and is a well known problem in Ford explorers. Additive has been added to no avail, I think Ford just wants owners to have to pay for this and purposely continues to design vehicles like this. It is a major safety concern...what if I run out of gas in the freezing cold with two babies?”
NHTSA complaint #10226434, filed 2008-05, 57,500 miles“Because of the recent GM recall ignition issue, I thought I should let someone know about the serious similar issue I had 3 times before I traded my car in. The car would just shut off while driving. And all 3 times, I pulled to the side of the road and restarted the car and continued on my way. I was lucky to have a place to pull over safely. I took it to my mechanic twice, found nothing wrong. Took it to Ford and they found nothing wrong. I traded the 2005 for a 2011. …”
NHTSA complaint #10575830, filed 2014-03, 80,000 milesRelated service bulletins
- 10048099Aug 1, 2012Ford/lincoln/mercury: may have sludge buildup in throttle body leading to less airflow or engine idling rpm fluctuation and hard starts or battery disconnect or dead battery…
- 10021038Feb 26, 2007Mil on with p0463 or erratic fuel gauge operation.
- 10016904Oct 31, 2005Service engine soon lamp on with pcm dtc p0463, instrument cluster dtc b1201 and or fuel gauge drops to empty-vehicles built 8/2/2004 through 4/7/2005.
- 10013371Jun 7, 2005Malfunction indicator lamp (mil) and electronic throttle control (etc) lamps on with both diagnostic trouble code (dtc) p2106 and p2135.
- 10017905Apr 1, 2005Wrench lamp on and no diagnostic trouble code (dtc) stored.
- 10018937Jan 1, 2005Mil on with dtc p0191 with or without various drivability symptoms and/or additional dtcs.
- 10013319Jan 1, 2005Open fuse f2.20 (5 amp) and/or f2.1 (30 amp) which may result in loss of function of several systems including power seats, adjustable pedals and power door locks.
- 10011342Sep 1, 2004No crank/no start condition when vehicle temperature is below freezing (32f/0c).
Electrical system: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 9 | 21% |
| 2025 | 23 | 22% |
| 2024 | 2 | 10% |
| 2023 | 14 | 13% |
| 2022 | 39 | 14% |
| 2021 | 48 | 11% |
| 2020 | 188 | 15% |
| 2019 | 20 | 7% |
| 2018 | 58 | 8% |
| 2017 | 94 | 6% |
| 2016 | 129 | 5% |
| 2015 | 93 | 5% |
| 2014 | 100 | 6% |
| 2013 | 163 | 7% |
| 2012 | 64 | 8% |
| 2011 | 95 | 8% |
| 2010 | 12 | 10% |
| 2009 | 2 | 6% |
| 2008 | 38 | 26% |
| 2007 | 25 | 12% |
| 2006 | 39 | 6% |
| 2005 | 36 | 7% |
| 2004 | 55 | 4% |
| 2003 | 54 | 5% |
| 2002 | 148 | 4% |
| 2001 | 29 | 8% |
| 2000 | 78 | 8% |
| 1999 | 92 | 7% |
| 1998 | 114 | 6% |
| 1997 | 80 | 5% |
| 1996 | 47 | 3% |
| 1995 | 55 | 7% |
| 1994 | 75 | 6% |
| 1993 | 45 | 5% |
| 1992 | 45 | 7% |
| 1991 | 52 | 9% |
Other parts of the 2005 Ford Explorer
151 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
99 complaintsFuel system
66 complaintsVehicle speed control
44 complaintsEngine cooling
29 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
26 complaintsBrakes
18 complaintsEngine
17 complaintsOther or unknown
16 complaintsAir bags
15 complaintsSuspension
15 complaintsWheels
15 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2005 Ford Explorer
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology