VehicleVerdict

2004 Ford Ranger engine problems

The 2004 Ford Ranger has 24 engine complaints filed with NHTSA — 5% of the year's total, and roughly flat versus the prior model year.

24

Engine complaints

5%

Share of year

1

Crash-involved

0

Related recalls

Engine complaints by year

Ranger engine complaints by model year57 complaints1983: 1 complaints1984: 2 complaints1985: 3 complaints1986: 9 complaints1987: 7 complaints1988: 15 complaints1989: 13 complaints1990: 16 complaints1991: 16 complaints1992: 20 complaints1993: 14 complaints1994: 27 complaints1995: 17 complaints1996: 36 complaints1997: 19 complaints1998: 57 complaints1999: 51 complaints2000: 43 complaints2001: 35 complaints2002: 46 complaints2003: 27 complaints2004: 24 complaints2005: 17 complaints2006: 20 complaints2007: 4 complaints2008: 6 complaints2009: 6 complaints2010: 5 complaints2011: 4 complaints2019: 30 complaints2020: 16 complaints2021: 15 complaints2022: 6 complaints2023: 2 complaints2024: 5 complaints2025: 7 complaints2026: 1 complaints
Ranger engine complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

What owners report

“WHILE DRIVING WITH PASSENGER, THE INERTIA SWITCH CAN BE EASILY UNATTACHED OR LOOSENED. THIS CAUSES THE TRUCK TO RANDOMLY DIE. IF THE MANUAL VEHICLE DIES WHILE DRIVING AT HIGH SPEED, IN BAD TRAFFIC, OR TURNS REQUIRING POWER STEERING, THE VEHICLE CAN BE DANGEROUS. *TR”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · October 27, 2008 · crash

Common questions

How many engine complaints does the 2004 Ford Ranger have?

NHTSA has 24 complaints about the 2004 Ford Ranger engine — 5% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.