2018 Ford Expedition Reliability Report

Struts and shocks leak oil early, sometimes at all four corners. Drivers notice heavy bouncing over bumps and bridge joints and a harsh ride, and some say the truck wanders toward the next lane. Many leaks are found during tire or oil service. Reported mileage runs from under 10,000 to about 46,000, and some replacement struts start leaking again. Owners past warranty pay for the repair themselves, and a few mention parts on backorder.

Two reports describe fires starting under the hood. In one, the fire followed a battery-saving warning and engine shutdown. In the other, the truck burned within minutes. More common problems include a center screen that stays dark and takes the backup camera with it, stalls at stops with a message to shift into park and restart, and rear doors that will not unlock. Other complaints cover a truck rolling while the dial read Park, a leaking and stuck panoramic roof, and a PCM that stopped working after a software update.

The passenger-side LED daytime running light dims, turns purple, or lights only part of its strip. Nearly every complaint here is about this one failure. No dash warning appears, so drivers often hear about it from other motorists or find it after buying used. Reports say the only fix is a full headlamp assembly, quoted at $1,200 plus labor. A few drivers also find the projector low beams too dim, with a hard cutoff that leaves unlit roads hard to see.

Chrome trim on the upper center console peels and leaves a sharp metal edge, and occupants report cuts that needed medical care. Transmission slipping, harsh shifts, and stalling in traffic or intersections come up here too. Other complaints include power running boards switching off and not deploying, rear doors that will not open or freeze shut, a power liftgate that does not stop when it closes on someone, A/C failure with a burning smell from the blower motor, and a sunroof that will not close.

Uncommanded acceleration is the most serious theme. Reports include a crash after the engine raced and the brakes and ignition did not respond, and a stuck accelerator with cruise control on that pushed the truck to nearly 100 mph. Other complaints describe the transmission losing drive under acceleration and then clunking back into gear, delayed shifts when cold, a speedometer reading lower than GPS speed, and cam phaser rattle at startup.

Front seat belt pretensioners fire on their own with a loud pop, sometimes with smoke, and the belt then locks tight and will not retract. This has happened while driving, while starting the truck, and while refueling, and 2 injuries are reported. Another complaint describes an airbag light with a fault message for the passenger pretensioner circuit. Separately, owners say the outboard second-row lap belts are too short for larger adults and dealers have no extender for them.

Three crash reports say the airbags did not deploy. One was a 45 mph T-bone collision and another a rear impact at highway speed. In the rear-end crash, both front seats slid forward and reclined, bruising the front occupants and trapping children in the second row. Other complaints describe a seat belt airbag going off while driving and an airbag warning light that stays on. These reports record 6 injuries in total.