1988 Ford Ranger Transmission and drivetrain Problems
- Complaints
- 9about this part
- Share
- 10%of 89 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 115,500miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 9 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 1988 Ford Ranger, 10% of the 89 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 115,500 miles. 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.
“I was driving uphill on highway 152 when my slip yoke exploded blowing out the rear of the bellhousing to my transmission throwing the truck rear end 6 ft in the air and the nose of the truck 3 feet in the air this was caused by the drive shaft taking into the ground when coming down the driveshaft slapped around ripping out the exhaust manifold from the cadillac converter and put a large gash approximately 12in to 18 in into the gas tank when I drop my transmission to replace it I found out that the block was no good due to the fact that 2 square pieces of the block approximately 2 in…”
NHTSA complaint #11129805, filed 2018-09, 180,000 miles“I bought a 1988 Ford Ranger tan gold in color love the truck, but I went to indiana to pick my son up everything was fine but on the way back that's when everything started to fall apart here. Ok, starter wouldn't restart had to pop clutch it, an then the clutch pedal itself gave away from the fire wall on the way home to savanna il. Ok, it was dark out so the next day went to look and my son and I saw there was a crack there so we tried to fix this an see why it wasn't starting up. I called midas to see if they would weld this up for me. …”
NHTSA complaint #10328338, filed 2010-05, 51,000 miles“Man-tran:5 sp overdrive: clutch suddenly releases while letting up pedal; vehicle lurches forward/backward depending on which gear its in; intermittent problem.”
NHTSA complaint #963281, filed 1995-04Transmission and drivetrain: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 33% |
| 2025 | 18 | 40% |
| 2024 | 39 | 41% |
| 2023 | 5 | 28% |
| 2022 | 17 | 45% |
| 2021 | 60 | 50% |
| 2020 | 49 | 38% |
| 2019 | 92 | 34% |
| 2011 | 5 | 2% |
| 2010 | 1 | 1% |
| 2009 | 3 | 2% |
| 2008 | 1 | 0% |
| 2007 | 2 | 1% |
| 2006 | 4 | 1% |
| 2005 | 8 | 3% |
| 2004 | 27 | 7% |
| 2003 | 16 | 7% |
| 2002 | 61 | 18% |
| 2001 | 51 | 10% |
| 2000 | 69 | 10% |
| 1999 | 67 | 9% |
| 1998 | 60 | 10% |
| 1997 | 42 | 10% |
| 1996 | 28 | 7% |
| 1995 | 22 | 7% |
| 1994 | 49 | 11% |
| 1993 | 19 | 8% |
| 1992 | 13 | 7% |
| 1991 | 12 | 9% |
| 1990 | 10 | 10% |
| 1989 | 5 | 7% |
| 1988 | 9 | 10% |
| 1987 | 1 | 2% |
| 1986 | 2 | 6% |
| 1985 | 5 | 19% |
| 1983 | 1 | 9% |
Other parts of the 1988 Ford Ranger
32 complaintsEngine cooling
13 complaintsBrakes
9 complaintsSeat belts
9 complaintsFuel system
6 complaintsBody and structure
4 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
4 complaintsSteering
3 complaintsLatches, locks and linkages
2 complaintsOther or unknown
2 complaintsTires
2 complaintsVehicle speed control
2 complaints
← All problems reported for the 1988 Ford Ranger
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 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