2011 Ford Ranger Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Ranger years
- About as many complaints as other years 16th of 28 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 5 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- 2 out of 5 stars
Owners have filed 235 complaints with NHTSA about the 2011 Ford Ranger. That ranks 16th out of 28 Ranger model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is air bags (196 complaints, 83%), typically at around 50,000 miles. Complaints mention 9 crashes, 1 fire, 9 injuries. There are 5 safety recalls covering this model year.
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- 235owner complaints
- 5safety recalls
- 0NHTSA investigations
- 9complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2011 Ford Ranger problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Bags problems | 196 | 83% | 50,000 | “takata air bags” (26%) | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 9 | 4% | 42,500 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 8 | 3% | 39,938 | — | — |
| Structure | 8 | 3% | 77,983 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 5 | 2% | 58,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 5 | 2% | 30,000 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 4 | 2% | 58,000 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 4 | 2% | 43,500 | — | — |
| Engine | 2 | 1% | 80,000 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 2 | 1% | 19,888 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 2 | 1% | 1,080 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 2 | 1% | 52,000 | — | — |
| Wheels | 2 | 1% | 60,000 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 1 | 0% | 3,500 | — | — |
| Equipment | 1 | 0% | 3,300 | — | — |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 1 | 0% | 102,000 | — | — |
| Steering | 1 | 0% | 61,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 1 | 0% | 31,159 | — | — |
| Tires | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 1 | 0% | 110,000 | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2011 Ford Ranger recalls (5)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module
Problem: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2007-2011 Ranger, 2006-2012 Fusion, Lincoln Zephyr, Lincoln MKZ, 2006-2011 Mercury Milan, 2007-2010 Ford Edge, and Lincoln MKX vehicles. The driver's side air bag inflator may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver-side airbag inflator or module with an alternate one, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on April 9, 2021 for the passenger side, and November 14, 2022 for the driver side. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S12.
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module; air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator module
Problem: 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 explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the frontal air bag, an inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: 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 contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Problem: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Ford is recalling certain 2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles and 2011-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Ford is also recalling certain 2010 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2010-2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, and 2010-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of AK, CO, CT, ID, IA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NH, NY, ND, OR, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall 19S01.
Air bags:frontal:passenger side:inflator moduleDo not drive
Problem: Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2007-2011 Ford Ranger vehicles, 2006-2011 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, 2007-2010 Ford Edge, Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles, and 2005-2011 Ford Mustang vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Ford is recalling certain model year 2007-2008 Ford Ranger, Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2006-2008 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles and 2005-2008 Ford Mustang vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Any vehicle not included in "Zone A", or "Zone B" is not included in the safety recall. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. Ford mailed interim letters informing owners that parts are not yet available on July 15, 2016. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S01.
Exterior lighting:brake lights; exterior lighting:tail lights
Problem: 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, f-450, and f-550 trucks for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, "lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment." the multi-function switch was shipped with a subcomponent (slider) that may experience deformation. A multi-function switch with a deformed slider may malfunction causing the turn signal, tail lights, hazard warning signal flashers and/or brake lights not to activate.
Risk: Non-functioning lights could increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: 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.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
I received a letter from FORD identifying my Ranger as in need of an airbag replacement under recall, for free installation and parts. I called the only Ford dealer in town, Capitol Ford, Santa Fe, NM, and was told they were unable to replace my airbag because they did not have the parts for it and…
I'm looking to buy this truck from a private sale. If I do, and the recall has not been completed, will the manufacturer still fix it for free?
High beam lights failed on, the hi-lo beam switch in turn, hazard, wiper combo switch later overheated, burn up, smoke in cabin causing complete loss of lamps, wipers at night in rain. Clearly a common issue based on web. If you are going to send full load current with no control relays force a…
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Ranger. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V158000 (Air Bags) however, the dealer wanted to charge the contact to complete the repair because the air bag was deployed. The contact stated that prior to the recall appointment, he had a crash…
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Ranger. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the air bags needed to be replaced. The vehicle was…
Other Ford Ranger years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 Ranger | 7 | 8 |
| 2025 Ranger | 43 | 13 |
| 2024 Ranger | 91 | 13 |
| 2023 Ranger | 18 | 4 |
| 2022 Ranger | 37 | 5 |
| 2021 Ranger | 117 | 6 |
| 2020 Ranger | 130 | 7 |
| 2019 Ranger | 270 | 11 |
| 2017 Ranger | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 Ranger | 1 | 0 |
| 2014 Ranger | 1 | 0 |
| 2011 | 235 | 5 |
| 2010 Ranger | 156 | 8 |
| 2009 Ranger | 169 | 7 |
| 2008 Ranger | 326 | 5 |
| 2007 Ranger | 270 | 5 |
| 2006 Ranger | 272 | 12 |
| 2005 Ranger | 289 | 9 |
| 2004 Ranger | 404 | 10 |
| 2003 Ranger | 243 | 1 |
| 2002 Ranger | 346 | 3 |
| 2001 Ranger | 515 | 4 |
| 2000 Ranger | 670 | 3 |
| 1999 Ranger | 755 | 4 |
| 1998 Ranger | 576 | 5 |
| 1997 Ranger | 411 | 1 |
| 1996 Ranger | 413 | 2 |
| 1995 Ranger | 321 | 1 |
See all Ford Ranger problems by year, every Ford model, or the Ford VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2011 Ford Ranger?
Owners most often report air bags, exterior lighting, service brakes problems. The top one, air bags, accounts for 196 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2011 Ford Ranger?
Yes, 5 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2011 Ford Ranger a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Ranger model years, the 2011 has about as many complaints as a typical year, and NHTSA rates it 2 out of 5 stars overall in crash tests. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.