2002 Ford Ranger Air bags Problems
- Complaints
- 37about this part
- Share
- 11%of 346 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 42,901miles
- Trend
- FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 37 complaints about the air bags of the 2002 Ford Ranger, 11% of the 346 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 42,901 miles. 22 of these say a crash was involved and 1 a fire, according to the filers.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“After my 2002 Ford Ranger was recalled for a cruise control issue, I kept blowing fuses. In taking it in to my Ford dealer they indicated a short within the driver's side airbag deployment system. Went through about 20 - 10 amp fuses before I could take it in. Failure of a safety item like the airbag should not happen especially with less that 70,000 miles on the vehicle.”
NHTSA complaint #10207563, filed 2007-10, 69,500 miles“Was in an accident and the airbag didn't deploy did some research on the internet and found out there is a wire under the driver's seat that is too short. If someone tall like me pushes the seat back all the way it stretches the wire and causes the safety system to error and shut off. An airbag warning light lights up on the dashboard. Ford issued a bulletin to the dealers and are well aware of the problem. I've read cases of people being charged $600 to fix it.”
NHTSA complaint #10324023, filed 2010-04, 70,000 miles“My airbag light came on with blinking 4x then 7 times. The Ford dealership said the reason my air bag light came was because the connection was dirty. My question to them was why is their electrical connections in need of cleaning? Then they turn around and charge you labor to clean the connection.”
NHTSA complaint #10104893, filed 2005-01, 42,302 miles“On 12/14/03 I was driving east at 50 MPH. When a car ran a stop sign and a flashing red light. My Ranger edge fully impacted his vehicle directly in the passenger side at 50 MPH. The air bags did not deploy. I pushed his vehicle off of the right side of the road and into a telephone pole which broke and came down across the top of my truck. I was wearing my seat belt & shoulder harness. I was knocked out for approximately. 20 minutes. I sustained injuries to my right knee, left elbow and to the back of my head. …”
NHTSA complaint #10054922, filed 2004-01, 36,000 miles“I was going home from work at about 15:45 on colorado highway. 66. I was traveling east bound at 65 MPH when the airbags went off in my 2002 Ford Ranger. Because of this I ended up crossing the opposing lane of traffic and into the ditch. This caused the front end suspension to be damaged. I contacted Ford about this and was basically given a run around for 9 weeks. On april 13, 2006 Ford contacted me and said that their engineers had determined that the airbags went off because I went into the ditch not before. So they are not going to do anything about this. …”
NHTSA complaint #10155334, filed 2006-04, 44,000 milesAir bags: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 | 4% |
| 2024 | 4 | 4% |
| 2023 | 2 | 11% |
| 2022 | 1 | 3% |
| 2021 | 2 | 2% |
| 2020 | 3 | 2% |
| 2019 | 4 | 1% |
| 2011 | 196 | 83% |
| 2010 | 128 | 82% |
| 2009 | 144 | 85% |
| 2008 | 295 | 90% |
| 2007 | 236 | 87% |
| 2006 | 175 | 64% |
| 2005 | 132 | 46% |
| 2004 | 189 | 47% |
| 2003 | 25 | 10% |
| 2002 | 37 | 11% |
| 2001 | 62 | 12% |
| 2000 | 67 | 10% |
| 1999 | 79 | 10% |
| 1998 | 32 | 6% |
| 1997 | 22 | 5% |
| 1996 | 25 | 6% |
| 1995 | 18 | 6% |
| 1994 | 3 | 1% |
| 1992 | 1 | 1% |
| 1990 | 1 | 1% |
Other parts of the 2002 Ford Ranger
61 complaintsVehicle speed control
51 complaintsBody and structure
49 complaintsEngine cooling
39 complaintsSuspension
36 complaintsTires
29 complaintsBrakes
23 complaintsElectrical system
17 complaintsFuel system
17 complaintsSeat belts
16 complaintsOther or unknown
14 complaintsEquipment
10 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2002 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