Other engine problem on the 2002 Ford Ranger
1 crash 3 fires 4 of the 27 reports for this failure mention a crash, a fire, an injury or a death. Those are the owner's words on the complaint form, not a verified finding, and one report can mention more than one.
When other engine problem gets reported
Owners of the 2002 Ford Ranger report other engine problem at a median of 20,000 miles. A quarter of the reports come in before 10,000 miles and a quarter after 130,000 miles, from 14 reports that carried an odometer reading.
A part like this is normally expected to survive 95,000 miles. It is the 5th most-reported problem on this model year.
The mileage distribution
The reported range runs from 10,000 miles at the tenth percentile to 170,000 miles at the ninetieth, a spread of 159,830 miles across the middle 80% of reports.
A spread this wide points at use rather than design. Towing, climate, service history and city mileage all move a failure like this, so the median is a weak guide to any individual car.
57% of the dated reports were filed under 36,000 miles.
The whole distribution
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9,270 miles | 10,500 miles | 18,000 miles | 130,000 miles | 169,100 miles |
Read the 10th percentile as “one report in ten arrived this early”. Exact figures are shown in this table because it is the table of record; everywhere else on the site they are rounded to the precision the sample can carry.
What a percentile can and cannot tell you here
These five numbers describe the readings owners gave, in order. The median is the middle one: half the reports arrived below it. The 10th and 90th are the edges of the bulk of the distribution, and the distance between them is the part worth reading. A tight spread — say 70,000 to 95,000 miles — points at something that wears out on a schedule, and the schedule is knowable. A wide one, 20,000 to 190,000, points at a fault that hits some cars and never troubles others, which means the mileage on the listing in front of you tells you very little about your odds.
What these figures are not is a survival curve. Every reading here comes from a car whose owner filed a complaint, so the sample contains only failures: it cannot say what share of the fleet made it past 150,000 miles untouched, because those owners had nothing to report. Nor is the mileage the moment of failure — it is the odometer reading as recalled at the time of filing, which may be weeks later and is sometimes rounded to the nearest ten thousand by the person typing it.
Percentiles are shown at all only once 8 readings exist for the vehicle and mode. Below that the middle of a handful of numbers is noise wearing a decimal point, so the figures are withheld rather than dressed up.
What happens, and what it costs
Of these reports, 1 a crash and 3 a fire are mentioned. Owners write their own complaints and the agency does not verify them, so read this as what the reports say happened rather than as a confirmed count.
Putting it right typically runs $300–$4,000 at an independent US shop. That range is an editorial estimate held in this site's failure-mode catalogue, not a figure from NHTSA, and it is a repair cost rather than a diagnosis cost.
The same failure on other years
The same failure is reported on 20 model years of this car. It shows up earliest on the 2008, at a median of 800 miles, and latest on the 1996 at 190,000 miles.
By volume the 1998 carries the most reports, with 43; the 2002 has 27. A mode that appears across most years of a model is usually a design choice rather than a bad batch.
If one year stands out to the left, that is the year to avoid; if the whole line sits at a similar mileage, this is wear rather than a defect in one production run.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The mileage is the one the owner gave.
2002 rangers are apparently equipped with a speed control chip that limits top end speed and RPM's. I was not informed that my vehicle was going to be crippled by this device or I would not have purchased it. When driving in the western us, this limiter has almost caused me to be in an accident 4 times. Ford should be compelled to tell buyers that this vehicle has a speed limiter before the sale is closed.
Purchased a new 2002 ford ranger 4x4 4dr xcab with the 4.0 engine. Vehicle identification # [xxx], on september 14, 2002. After coming to stop, engine has surged. First time RPM went to 1500 and could keep the truck in place with brake pressure. Took to dealer for 3000 service in december and reported problem. Dealer performed normal 3000 service and found no problems, however they asked to be informed if it happens again. This time engine surged to over 3000 RPM and could not keep truck stopped pushing into another truck in front of me. We hit bumpers and the only way to stop my truck was to slam the transmission into park. Are there any other reported problems of engine surge like this. Using regular gasoline in the tank. Taking truck back to dealer for inspection. *jb information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr
While driving engine produces a knocking sound.*ak the consumer stated that the vehicle doesn't run properly on the 87 octane gas. The engine had a spark-knock condition. The consumer feels this type of problem is unacceptable for a new vehicle. *ph *nlm
Also reported on the 2002 Ford Ranger
Other body or interior problem
Other speed control problem
Other powertrain problem
Fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure
Other wheel or tire problem
Differential or transfer case failure
How far this goes
Complaints are voluntary, so 27 is a floor and not a count of affected cars. Mileages are typed in by owners and cluster on round numbers. And the mode itself is assigned by software reading the complaint text, which is reliable in bulk and fallible one report at a time.
Questions this page answers
At what mileage does other engine problem happen on the 2002 Ford Ranger?
Across 14 owner reports that included an odometer reading, half were filed by 20,000 miles. A quarter were filed before 10,000 miles and a quarter after 130,000 miles. These are the mileages owners reported when they complained, not a prediction for any individual car.
How common is other engine problem on the 2002 Ford Ranger?
27 reports have been filed with NHTSA, about 0.4 per 1,000 vehicles. Complaints are voluntary, so this is a floor rather than a count of affected cars.
What this is and is not. These are the mileages at which owners chose to complain to a federal agency, which is not the same as the mileage at which the part fails on every car. It skews toward failures that happened outside warranty, cost real money, or frightened someone. It is still the only public dataset that carries failure mileage at all, and the shape of a few hundred readings is informative even when a single one is not. Methodology · JSON · this failure on other cars
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed