Air bagsPart report

1996 Ford Econoline Air bags Problems

Complaints: 4about this part
Share: 5%of 81 total for the year
Median mileage: —not reported
Trend: Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 4 complaints about the air bags of the 1996 Ford Econoline, 5% of the 81 complaints for this model year. 1 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“On june 28, 2000, my wife made a left hand turn. As she was turning the engine went completly dead, power steering goes out and a yellow liquid shoots out from the steering column on to the dashboard and on my wife's legs causing the skin to burn. This was accompanied with noxious fumes causing my wife and two other passengers to cough and to evacuate the van. The van started back up after this incident. On july 2 & 3, 2000 we took the van to a1 auto care in hobe sound, fl. …”

NHTSA complaint #727048, filed 2000-08

“Strongly feel Ford is responsible for fixing this air bag malfunctioning indicator light safety issue. I am the original owner, the car has been well maintained with no accidents. This concerns me greatly that the air bag light keeps coming on. The local Ford dealer was contacted and said the problem is out of warrantly (5 yrs or 50k miles). They said it would cost $80 to trouble shoot let alone fix. This is unacceptable. It is a safety issue and manufacturers defect problem that Ford service department should cover. Your advice and input is greatly appreciated.”

NHTSA complaint #753991, filed 2001-11

“While driving down the highway a vehicle pulled out in front of the consumer's vehicle, and the consumer broadsided the vehicle. Consumer's airbag deployed but didn't stay up, causing injuries to the driver. Consumer has contacted the dealer about the incident.”

NHTSA complaint #814611, filed 1997-07

Air bags: other model years

Year	Complaints	Share of year
2000	1	3%
1998	2	4%
1997	2	3%
1996	4	5%
1995	2	3%
1994	8	6%
1993	1	2%
1992	1	1%

Other parts of the 1996 Ford Econoline

Brakes
20 complaints Tires
13 complaints Engine cooling
12 complaints Vehicle speed control
12 complaints Electrical system
7 complaints Suspension
6 complaints Seats
4 complaints Steering
3 complaints Body and structure
3 complaints Equipment
2 complaints Fuel system
2 complaints Other or unknown
2 complaints

← All problems reported for the 1996 Ford Econoline

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Nov 1, 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