2011 Ford Ranger Transmission and drivetrain Problems
- Complaints
- 5about this part
- Share
- 2%of 235 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 30,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 5 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 2011 Ford Ranger, 2% of the 235 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 30,000 miles.
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.
“My truck has 55,000 miles on it and has been babied and not driven hard and has a transmission leak located on my garage floor ' I feel this is an issue that should not have occurred ' I located the leak this morning on my garage floor on 4/14/2019”
NHTSA complaint #11196128, filed 2019-04, 55,000 miles“Traveling west on I-80 in nebraska, saw in my side view mirror blue smoke coming from my vehicle. Drove approx. 4 miles to a safe place to pull over at a reduced speed. Found that the fill plug for the transfer case was missing. Prior to this incident, I had already drove approx. 670 miles from oklahoma city oklahoma, that day. Dealer says the transfer case is burned up and that the repairs are not covered under Ford's platinum warranty. Photos available upon request.”
NHTSA complaint #10644586, filed 2014-10, 77,322 miles“Truck shifter is sticking, the antilock light trouble light comes on and truck will not shift from park. My son who is a mechanic says the brake switch is bad, you have to step on brake and wait for a click then the vehicle will shift into gear. So I tried this and indeed is the issue. This truck only has 40k miles on it. Problem started at about 30k miles I did not know that the issue was a switch. I just thought the shifter was sticking. I had complained of this problem to dealership but it never was bad when they looked at it. Now it is getting to point of being a problem. …”
NHTSA complaint #10934886, filed 2016-12, 30,000 miles“When coming to a stop the vehicle surges forward and I have to stand on the brakes until the surging stops. This only happens about every 2 to 3 hundred stops. At first I thought it was driver error but after doing it several times I noticed that the rpms on the tach would stay at app. 2000 then it would drop down to 900 which is the normal range. I took it to a local dealer and complained and they said they could not duplicate the problem during a test drive. The problems continues and I am afraid one day it will cause an accident.”
NHTSA complaint #10532256, filed 2013-07, 29,000 miles“The contact owns a 2011 Ford Ranger. The contact stated that when the temperature would drop, the transmission would not shift into second gear. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance, stating that the vehicle was operating as normal. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 3,000 and the current mileage was 5,828.”
NHTSA complaint #10447196, filed 2012-02, 3,000 milesRelated service bulletins
- 10160931May 10, 2019On vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission it is imperative that the converter pilot hub be greased with Motorcraft Multi-Purpose Grease Spray XL-5-A even if grease was…
Transmission and drivetrain: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 33% |
| 2025 | 17 | 39% |
| 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 2011 Ford Ranger
196 complaintsExterior lighting
9 complaintsBrakes
8 complaintsBody and structure
8 complaintsFuel system
6 complaintsElectrical system
5 complaintsVehicle speed control
4 complaintsEngine
2 complaintsEngine cooling
2 complaintsOther or unknown
2 complaintsWheels
2 complaintsElectronic stability control
1 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2011 Ford Ranger
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 30, 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