2004 Ford Ranger Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2004 Ford Ranger most often write about two things: open Takata air bag inflator recalls and parts or warning-light problems around the air bags, and heavy rust on the rear frame and underbody that shows up on trucks that otherwise look intact. Complaints also describe rear drum brakes locking or shoes separating, and a smaller group covers transmission and fuel-system faults at low mileage.

1. 1
   Body and structure

   Rear frame and underbody rust

   • 56 complaints (14%)
   • median 95,800 mi at 14.0 yrs old (44 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2006–2022

   Complaints describe the rear section of the frame, spring shackle brackets, bed crossmembers and spare tire mount rusting through, sometimes cracking or breaking while driving. Owners report the spare tire dropping or hanging by rusted metal, the bed rusting from underneath, and frame damage found during state inspection. Several note the body panels looked clean while the frame underneath was badly deteriorated. Mostly reported on trucks with well over 80,000 miles, often found during inspection or routine service rather than at purchase.

   Recall 04V3310001 related service bulletin

   What to check: Get underneath the truck and inspect the rear frame rails, spring shackles, spare tire carrier and fuel tank crossmember for flaking or holes; a pre-purchase inspection on a lift is worth it. Ask about the truck's history in salted-road states.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Took truck for state inspection and garage called 2 days later,said they can't inspect it due to frame being cracked in 2 places and frame is rotted away. Truck only has 66930 miles on it and looks in very good shape. I was shocked when they pointed out the problems. I called Ford motor co and they won't do anything about it. Truck has been driven up to that point.”

   NHTSA complaint #11163037, filed 2018-12, 66,930 miles

   “While driving, the spare tire started to fall off due to rusting away of the mounting apparatus. Luckily I noticed it when I stopped for gas (it was hanging by only a bit of still attached rusted metal below the truck) so I cut the cable with some bolt cutters to remove the spare and prevent an accident while driving. Driver's side cab mount separated due to excessive rust. Driver's side floor board fell out due to excessive rust - my foot went through the floor. Frame cracked near rear shackle due to excessive rust. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11244193, filed 2019-08, 180,000 miles
2. 2
   Air bags

   Takata air bag inflator recall and parts delays

   • 156 complaints (39%)
   • median 94,000 mi at 12.5 yrs old (39 state mileage)
   • 11 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2008–2025

   Owners describe receiving repeated recall notices for driver and passenger front air bag inflators and then being unable to get the work done, with dealers reporting that replacement parts were not available and callbacks that never came. Several also report air bag warning lights staying on after a recall repair, and a few say air bags did not deploy in a crash. Complaints describe the recall campaign as slow to complete rather than a new fault appearing on its own. Reported across a wide mileage range, from under 30,000 miles to over 150,000, mostly on older trucks still carrying open recalls.

   Recall 23V306000Recall 23V125000Recall 21V076000Recall 21V081000Recall 17V787000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 17V788000 · DO NOT DRIVERecall 16V036000Recall 15V3220003 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for the recall repair paperwork for both driver and passenger inflators and verify with a dealer using the VIN that no inflator recall is still open. Check that the air bag warning light goes out after the bulb-check on start-up.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Ford motor company sent me a recall notice for both driver and passenger takata airbags in january, 2018. This notice says replacement air bags are available. My local Ford dealer ordered replacement air bags in march, 2018. My dealer has not yet received the replacement air bags (as of 23 april 2018). This dealer says Ford has failed to supply replacement air bags for a large number of locally owned Ford products. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11089672, filed 2018-04, 26,400 miles

   “Takata recall I just received my second recall notice from Ford about the takata recall. The first one arrived over a year ago. I made an appointment to have the repair made. When I arrived at the dealer I was then told that there were parts for only half of the inflators on the truck. They would make the repair on the passenger side that they had the parts for and I would have to bring the truck back when I received notice that the parts were available. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11064121, filed 2018-01, 84,000 miles
3. 3
   Brakes

   Rear brake shoes separating and rear brakes locking

   • 22 complaints (5%)
   • median 30,000 mi at 3.0 yrs old (19 state mileage)
   • 7 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2004–2016

   Owners report the rear drum brakes locking intermittently during normal braking, with the truck skidding or the rear end not releasing. On tear-down, complaints describe brake shoe lining separated from the shoe or worn to metal. Some say dealers cleaned and adjusted the rear brakes without resolving the problem, and others report front rotor pulsing or brake fluid leaks at the wheel cylinders. Reported from a few thousand miles up to about 130,000, with several cases under 50,000 miles.

   1 related service bulletin

   What to check: Pull the rear drums at inspection and look for lining separation or cracked shoes, and ask whether the rear brakes have been serviced. A service bulletin describes a grabbing condition from the rear drum brakes, so ask if that repair was applied.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I just had a conversation with a man by the name of brian at the phone number 1800-392-Ford (that the dealer gave me) about my problem. I am very upset and will be filing a complaint about this as a safety issue to the safer cargov website. Among others. This is in regards to my 2004 for Ranger edge 4x4. I just recently had to repair (at my cost) to have my rear brakes redone due to them locking up. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10171042, filed 2006-10, 37,270 miles

   “I have a 2004 Ford Ranger with 12000 miles and the front brakes started to pulse very much. After taking it to a mechanic I was told that the front rotors were shot. The mechanic told me that the rotors metal was peeling off. I had the rotors replaced. I did save the old rotors.”

   NHTSA complaint #10149404, filed 2006-02, 5 miles
4. 4
   Fuel system

   Engine stalling and fuel delivery faults

   • 52 complaints (13%)
   • median 48,400 mi at 5.9 yrs old (41 state mileage)
   • 6 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2004–2019

   Complaints describe the engine shutting off or losing power with little warning, sometimes traced to the fuel pump or the inertia fuel shut-off switch, which owners reset to restart. Others report a strong fuel smell from a burst line near the tank, or the engine idling oddly and refusing to accelerate with the check engine light on. Some mention misfires and cylinder work on the 4.0L V6. Spread from under 15,000 miles to about 125,000, with several cases reported under 50,000.

   What to check: Check for fuel odor around the tank and lines, confirm the fuel pump primes and the truck restarts reliably, and scan for stored misfire or emission codes before buying.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “On two occasions all power in this 2004 Ford Ranger vehicle shut down. The first time it would not restart and after checking the manual I reset the fuel pump shut off switch located beneath the glove box area and the vehicle restarted. 3/01/07, late evening, the vehicle lost all power on an expressway. Luckily, we were in the slow lane and could drift to the shoulder. I turned off the ignition before pushing the reset button for the fuel pump and it started. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10184051, filed 2007-03, 48,400 miles

   “If I left the engine idle more than two minutes it would not pass the state emissions test. Now the emission light came on and it will not go off anymore. Almost got an accident vehicle will not drive over 20 MPH anymore. I must have the same problems of thousands of other people. I was told I have to change the heads on the engine because of poor quality cast iron heads that was used for like three years. My Ford truck is one of these years they had the issues. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10862718, filed 2016-05, 85,000 miles

Buying note. Have any 2004 Ranger inspected underneath for frame rust before anything else, and confirm the air bag inflator recalls have actually been completed on both sides. A test drive that covers cold starts, reverse engagement and braking will help surface the transmission and brake symptoms owners describe.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.