2005 Ford Ranger Recalls, Complaints & Specs

9 safety recalls list the 2005 Ford Ranger, and owners have filed 289 complaints with NHTSA. At least one recall carries a do-not-drive or park-outside advisory. Check your own VIN below.

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9 safety recalls for the 2005 Ford Ranger

Most recent first. Recall repairs are free at any authorised dealer. Click a recall for the full defect, consequence and remedy text.

1. Inflator module (air bags)

   NHTSA 23V306000 Reported April 28, 2023 231,942 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2004-2006 Ranger vehicles that received replacement front passenger air bag inflators under a previous recall. The replacement front passenger air bag inflators may have been installed incorrectly.

   Remedy: Dealers will inspect and reinstall the front passenger air bag inflator, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 22, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332.…

2. Inflator module (air bags)

   NHTSA 23V125000 Reported February 24, 2023 98,550 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2004-2006 Ranger vehicles that received replacement front passenger air bag inflators under a previous recall. The replacement frontal passenger air bag inflators may have been installed incorrectly.

   Remedy: Dealers will inspect and reinstall the front passenger air bag inflator, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 5, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332.…

3. Inflator module (air bags) and air bags: frontal

   NHTSA 21V076000 Reported February 17, 2021 144,340 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2004-2006 Ranger vehicles that may be equipped with a driver or passenger frontal air bag inflator used as a replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

   Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver and passenger air bag module, and replace either the module or the inflator, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began March 17, 2021. Owners may…

4. Inflator module (air bags) and air bags: frontal

   NHTSA 21V081000 Reported February 16, 2021 1,067 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2005-2014 Mustang, 2004-2011 Ranger, 2009-2011 Mercury Milan, 2006 Ford GT, 2008-2012 Fusion, 2007-2010 Edge and Lincoln MKX, and 2009-2010 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. These vehicles may be equipped with a driver or passenger frontal air bag inflator used as a replacement service part, that may…

   Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver and passenger air bag module, and replace either the module or the inflator, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began March 17, 2021. Owners may…

5. Inflator module (air bags) Do not drive

   NHTSA 17V787000 Reported December 11, 2017 328,213 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is superseding a previous recall for certain 2004-2006 Ford Ranger trucks to implement a final repair. Upon deployment of the driver side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.

   Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge.…

6. Inflator module (air bags) Do not drive

   NHTSA 17V788000 Reported December 11, 2017 328,213 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is superseding a previous recall for certain 2004-2006 Ford Ranger trucks to implement a final repair. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.

   Remedy: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger's frontal air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge.…

7. Inflator module (air bags)

   NHTSA 16V036000 Reported January 25, 2016 361,692 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 Ranger vehicles manufactured March 24, 2003, to May 4, 2006. Upon deployment of the driver side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.

   Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began February 26, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is…

8. Inflator module (air bags)

   NHTSA 15V322000 Reported May 28, 2015 362,327 vehicles potentially affected Ford Motor Company

   Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 Ranger trucks manufactured March 24, 2003, to May 4, 2006. The affected vehicles are equipped with a passenger side frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.

   Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on December 4, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number…

9. Brake lights (exterior lighting) and tail lights (exterior lighting)

   NHTSA 11V352000 Reported July 13, 2011 26,715 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   Ford is recalling certain model year 2011 ranger trucks built from january 25, 2011, through april 25, 2011 at the twin cities assembly plant, and service parts distributed to dealers for certain 2004 through 2011 model year ranger trucks, 2002 through 2005 model year excursion vehicles, and 2002 through 2007 model year f-250, f-350,…

   Remedy: Dealers will replace the switches free of charge. The safety recall began on august 15, 2011. Owners may contact ford motor company customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332.

289 owner complaints filed with NHTSA

Owners of the 2005 Ford Ranger have filed 289 complaints with NHTSA; 23 describe a crash and 5 describe a fire. Reports cite 23 injuries and 0 deaths. The average mileage at failure in those reports is 69,992 miles. Complaints peaked in 2018 with 50 filed that year.

Most-reported components

• Air bags131
• Fuel system, gasoline24
• Structure: body23
• Suspension22
• Unknown or other21
• Electrical system20
• Fuel/propulsion system13
• Fuel system, other8

What owners are reporting

“The contact owns a 2005 Ford Ranger. The contact stated that upon arriving to the residence and applying the parking brake and exiting the vehicle, the vehicle started to roll backwards. The contact s”

Owner complaint to NHTSA, February 4, 2025 · Parking brake

“The contact owned a 2005 Ford Ranger. The contact stated while driving at 50 MPH, the vehicle was rear-ended by a driver who ran the stop sign. The impact caused the vehicle to flip over multiple time”

Owner complaint to NHTSA, May 29, 2024 · Air bags

Fuel economy and specs

EPA ratings for the 2005 Ford Ranger (Ranger Pickup 2WD, Ranger Pickup 4WD). Ranges cover every tested configuration.

Compare Ford Ranger model years

Recall and complaint counts for every Ford Ranger model year in NHTSA's database.

Checking a specific 2005 Ford Ranger

Other Ford models

• F-15037,961 complaints
• Explorer34,566 complaints
• Escape27,430 complaints
• Fusion22,405 complaints
• Focus22,096 complaints
• Taurus18,159 complaints
• Windstar14,158 complaints
• Edge14,065 complaints

Source: NHTSA recall and complaint databases and EPA fuel economy data, October 2026. Complaint counts are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. Recall counts are safety campaigns that list this model year; whether a particular car was already repaired depends on its VIN. How this data is compiled.