- The 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.
- The risk
- Non-functioning lights could increase the risk of a crash.
- The 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.
Vehicle safety record
2002 Ford Excursion Problems, complaints & recalls
Owners have filed 172 complaints about the 2002 Ford Excursion with NHTSA, most often about the engine & cooling (39) and the wheels & tires (32). Those complaints describe 15 crashes, 13 fires and 14 injuries. It is covered by 5 recalls, the latest in July 2011 for the tail lights. For comparison, the 2001 has 206 and the 2003 has 146.
NHTSA data checked
FFar more problems than a typical Excursion year, for its age
#68 most complained-about 2002 vehicle
- Complaints
- 172
- Recalls
- 5
- Crashes
- 15
- Fires
- 13
- Injuries
- 14
- Deaths
- 0
Most common 2002 Ford Excursion problems
Share of all 172 complaints. One complaint can name more than one area. Tap an area for its complaints and recalls.
2002 Ford Excursion recalls 5
Recall repairs are free. Your dealer fixes them whether or not you bought the car there - check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see if yours is done. What to do
- The problem
- Ford is recalling model years 1995-2003 windstar, 2000-2003 excursion diesel, 1993-1997 and 1999-2003 f-250 sd through f-550 sd diesel, 1992-2003 e-150 through e-550, 1995-2002 explorer, 1997 and 2002 mercury mountaineer, 1995-1997 and 2001-2003 ranger, and 1994 f53 vehicles equipped with the texas instruments speed control deactivation switch (scds). The scds may leak internally and then overheat, smoke, or burn.
- The risk
- A vehicle fire could occur with or without the engine running.
- The fix
- Ford will notify owners that dealers will install a fused wiring harness in line with the scds. On 1999-2003 windstar vehicles with a leaking scds, dealers will also inspect the abs control module connector and repair as necessary. Repairs will be completed free of charge. The safety recall began on october 27, 2009. Owners may contact ford at 1-888-222-2751.
- The problem
- Certain federal-mogul replacement wheel hub assemblies with the brand names: national, carquest p/nos. 515020, 515021, 515025, 515053, 515054, 515059, And 515060, shipped between january 23, 2006, and december 20, 2007, sold for light duty and medium duty trucks. The inboard retention nut used to maintain hub bearing assembly can loosen resulting in an abs light indication, noise, and/or wheel separation.
- The risk
- WHEEL SEPARATION CAN RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
- The fix
- Federal-mogul will notify customers and will replace the hub assembly free of charge. The recall began on february 7, 2008. Owners can contact federal-mogul toll-free at 877-489-6659.
- The problem
- On certain heavy duty trucks equipped with 7.3L diesel engines, the camshaft position sensor located on the engine of the vehicle may function intermittently, possibly resulting in an engine stall.
- The risk
- In the event of an engine stall, a crash could result without warning.
- The fix
- Dealers will inspect the sensor and replace it with an improved camshaft position sensor free of charge. The recall began on december 29, 2007. Owners may contact ford at 1-866-436-7332.
- The problem
- On certain trucks equipped with speed control, gasoline or natural gas engines, the speed control deactivation switch may overheat.
- The risk
- Overheating could result in smoke or burn and an underhood fire.
- The fix
- Dealers will install a fused wiring harness into the speed control system free of charge. The recall began on august 7, 2006. Owners may contact ford at 1-866-436-7332. (Note: also see recalls 05v017 and 05v388)
What owners say
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172 complaints about the 2002 Ford Excursion
Newest first, as filed with NHTSA by owners. Page 1 of 7.
As I was driving the transfer case and drive shaft dropped out of truck. Broken bolts and no warning.
Large patches of paint topcoat peeling from vehicle roof, absolutely no evidence of primer having bonded/ adhering to separated topcoat, peeled paint is identical on both sides, obviously primer intended to integrate topcoat with substrate was faulty and not acceptable.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. The contact stated that each time she drove the vehicle, it stalled without warning. After the failures, all the warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact coasted the vehicle over to the side of the road and waited a minute or more to restart the vehicle. Sometimes, it took up to four attempts before the vehicle would restart. When the vehicle was restarted, it hesitated to move. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was...
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diagnosed, but the technician could not find a failure code. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer and was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failures and informed the contact that the vin was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 07v553000 (engine and engine cooling). No further assistance was offered. The approximate failure mileage was 210,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion equipped with toyo open country r/t tires (na), size: lt285/75/r16. While driving 65 mph, the rear passenger tire experienced tread separation. Prior to the failure, the rear driver's tire was replaced by allen tire (located at 1725 superior ave, costa mesa, ca 92627, (949) 646-5236) due to a bulge in the tire. The contact stated that there was damage to the vehicle. The set of tires were a replacement set. The tire was included in nhtsa campaign number: 14t014000 (tires). The manufacturer was contacted. The approximate vehicle failure mileage was 170,000 and the tire failure mileage was 75,000.
Had a b f goodrich lt315/75r16d all terrain ko, dot: bfauhx111211, front left tire explode without any warning, was driving north on highway 65, about 16 miles south of branson, mo. I was traveling around 65 mph in the right hand lane on a clear dry day with minimal traffic. The tires were purchased on 4-23-11, sam's club #6361, vehicle had 91,461 miles. The incident happened on 5-8-18, the vehicle had 136,896 miles. (45,435 Miles). When the tire exploded it severed the front left brake line resulting in the loss of control of the vehicle, causing major damage to the vehicle, resulting in the vehicle being totaled.
Was driving on highway and vehicle all of a sudden lost power kept pressing the gas pedal and it wouldn't go as felt like you wanted to turn off it would stall we have checked everything in the truck engine everything and everything seems good transmission does not have any metal shavings I did notice that for some reason the electrical panel have melted it was all completely melted and they believe that the transmission is also melted and stuck together I'm not sure because we still haven't I mean transmission has...
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no signs that something wrong with it I think this is very thing I think this is very dangerous for a vehicle to just stop in the middle of the freeway and imagine if they would have been traffic thank god that there wasn't that nobody was right behind me cuz the truck just stopped and it was not going
While backing the vehicle I felt a pop and then there was no steering control. I looked under the vehicle and found that the tie rod connection to the pitman arm had snapped.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion equipped with sunfull mont-pro ht781 tires, size: lt265/75/16. While driving 65 mph, the vehicle vibrated abnormally. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the rear passenger side tire tread separated, which caused a bubble in the tire. Within less than a thousand miles later, the front driver's tire also experienced the failure. The retail facility where the tires were sold and installed was not contacted. The tire manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vin was unknown. The approximate vehicle failure mileage was 166,000 and the tire failure mileage was approximately 4,999.
I have a 2002 ford excursions and 2 time spark plug ejection from the motor.
I started my truck after sitting for 36 hours and what sounded like bad exhaust leak ..After being checked out by mechanic found that a spark plug and coil has been spit out of motor ..I had them repace spark plug and coil on top which repaired the problem ..Today I was driving to town 10 miles and after stoppi g to get gas the noise started again !
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. The contact stated that the vehicle blew the number six spark plug out of the engine. The spark was replaced but the failure recurred. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic for inspection. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 110,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. The contact stated that while driving 70 mph, she applied the brakes to disengage the cruise control and the vehicle continued to accelerate independently. The contact was able to get the vehicle to stop after several minutes. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure and current mileage was 176,000.
On 6/5/2013, I was driving on freeway at approx. 70Mph and tread separated from rt. Rear tire causing vehicle to swerve into adjacent lane. Damage to quarter panel and running board. This is the second tire failure in the past 45 days.The tires are bfgoodrich 265/75r/16 commercial ta load range e. The four new tires were installed on 2/28/2011 and have approx. 14,300 Miles of wear at time of failure. The other tire (left front) failed on 4/19/2013. Because of strong front end vibration, I inspected the front tires. I found that it was out of round due to belt separation. The dealer replaced this tire also. *Tr
Accelerating from a stop, a spark plug ejected from the cylinder head. *Tr
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. The contact stated that while traveling 55 mph and applying the brakes, there was an abnormal noise heard from the braking system. The brake pedal became stuck and the vehicle would not slow down. The contact continued to pump the brakes and was able to coast to a stop. The contact later parked the vehicle and noticed that a fire had started from under the vehicle. The contact was able to extinguish the fire however, the transmission and central computer was destroyed....
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The vehicle was towed to a dealer where the transmission computer module, transmission and the brake booster was replaced. The dealer advised that the brake booster leaked onto the transmission and the front drive shaft, causing the vehicle to catch on fire. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer three weeks prior to fire and there was no indication of a potential failure. The failure mileage was unknown. The current mileage was 190,000.
The spark plug blew out of the cylinder head (cyl #3), damaging the thread, the spark plug, the spark plug boot and the ignition coil. This is the second time this has occurred in this vehicle in the last two years. The first was approximately 2 years ago and that was the plug in cylinder #5. The same damage occurred. *Tr
Engine performance suddenly became erratic and very rough running. Immediately turned around and went home/ had towed to ford dealer. Dealership ran $250 diagnostic test but came back clean. I was directed to change engine oil as air might have gotten into the fuel injection lubing system along with changing the fuel filter. On performance of fuel filter replacement, technician directed my attention to what appeared to be small pieces of metal trapped in and on top of filter element. Mechanic said this is very...
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common problem with metal the result of delamination of the inner lining of the fuel tank in ford diesels. Internet research reveals many many complaints to both ford and nhtsa over this issue. This creates a very dangerous situation due to loss of power steering, brakes, and trailer brakes which could easily result in loss of lives. I have complained to ford and my complaint has been duly noted and registered. *Tr
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. The vehicle was included in the recall under nhtsa campaign id number: 07v553000 (engine and engine cooling:engine:diesel) and was repaired. After the repair while driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle began to decelerate independently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing where the technician performed repairs to the vehicle but the contact was unaware of the exact repairs. The failure continued. The vehicle was not further repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.
#4 Spark plug blew out of engine head, threads destroyed. Ford dealer service department told me this is a known defect in the ford 5.4 Triton engine head and that ford is doing nothing about it. *Tr
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. The contact was driving 45 mph when the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was restarted after the failure and taken to a private mechanic. The mechanic confirmed that the camshaft sensor needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was contacted and the vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 62,550 and the current mileage was 62,600. Updated 02/22/12*lj updated 03/01/12
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 ford excursion. While driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle began to decelerate while the contact was depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact released the accelerator but was able to regain acceleration once depressed again. The failure recurred intermittently at various speeds traveled. The vehicle was taken to the dealer twice for diagnostic testing. The technicians were able to duplicate the failure but could not diagnose the cause of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.
While driving on i-84 east bound, between the dalles and pendleton oregon, our 2002 ford excursion experienced a tire tread separation on the right rear. We experienced a recurring popping sound just prior to the tread separation. We were pulling a light trailer. Tread separated but tire remained inflated. I was able to see the tread leave the tire in my right mirror as it happened. We were traveling up hill at the time so speed was approximately 63mph. Dry roads and 93 degrees. *Tr
Was starting from a stop to make a left turn when driver heard a loud pop. There was a sudden loss of power and some smoke. The vehicle was towed and diagnosed. The #3 plug on the right bank has blown completely out and damaged the coil pack. A phone call to the dealer yielded no help other than we can have it towed there to be repaired, as it likely needs a new head. Some internet research and talking to other ford owners definitely suggest that this is a design problem with the alum heads blowing out spark plugs,...
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and the #3 r plug seems to be common. This could cause fuel/vapors to be exhausted and sprayed on a hot manifold and cause a fire. It sounds like there may have already been some fires attributed to this problem. This sound like a case where the dealer/ford refuses to admit that it is a problem and fix it for owners. Before there are serious injuries from a crash or a fire, ford should be compelled to fix this issue. Its unlikely that ford will answer the call without pressure from nhtsa. There seem to be far too many of the same type of problems with this 5.4L motor for it to be a coincidence.
The problem with the vehicle is that it is not properly insured. The limousine operator dba amor limousine service) works in ohio and kentucky. The operator does not carry the required $5 million auto liability coverage. The operator does not properly file with dot for his public livery business.
2002 Ford triton 6.8L v10 engine in an excursion vehicle ejected an original (unchanged, factory torqued) spark plug with great force and damage in the engine compartment. Coil was immediately damaged as spark plug ricocheted around the engine compartment followed by the smell of gasoline vapors and loud noise from the engine compression being directly vented from the vacated spark plug hole. The five threads of the triton spark plug hole were damaged by the force of the ejection. This should not happen with...
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the ford engine to the customers safety given this was an original plug (at 85,000 miles). The weather at the time of the spark plug ejection was -4f, and the spark plug ejected as the vehicle was beginning to accelerate from a standstill. Ford has a major and costly defect with their triton engines they sold to customers (engine replacement is estimated at $4000) and the government should enforce ford to recall and repair all spark plug holes in these aluminum engines spanning years 2000 to 2004 given they only used 5 threads in each spark plug hole, which is insufficient for an aluminum block. How is it that this widely known issue is not getting the federal government's attention given this is a demonstrated major defect and a safety issue (could have had a fire in the engine compartment if a spark from the ejected spark plug occurred). *Tr
Ford Excursion: every year compared
All Excursion years2002 Ford Excursion vs rivals
| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Grade | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 Ford Excursion | 172 | 5 | F | |
| 2002 Ford Explorer Sport Trac | 3,613 | 4 | F | Compare |
| 2002 Ford Explorer Sport | 3,613 | 5 | F | Compare |
| 2002 Ford Explorer | 3,613 | 10 | F | Compare |
| 2002 Ford Escape | 1,070 | 10 | D | Compare |
| 2002 Ford F-150 | 955 | 10 | F | Compare |
| 2002 Ford EV Ranger | 389 | 0 | - | Compare |
| 2002 Ford Expedition | 383 | 4 | F | Compare |
| 2002 Ford Econoline | 170 | 4 | F | Compare |
More sales usually means more complaints, so compare similar vehicles of the same year. The grade compares each vehicle with its own model's other years.
Questions about the 2002 Ford Excursion
Does the 2002 Ford Excursion have any recalls?
Yes - NHTSA lists 5 recalls for the 2002 Ford Excursion: tail lights (July 2011); vehicle speed control (October 2009); hub (December 2007); diesel (December 2007) and more. Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether yours has been fixed.
What are the most common problems with the 2002 Ford Excursion?
By the complaints owners filed with NHTSA, the most common problem areas are the engine & cooling (39), wheels & tires (32), brakes (20).
How many complaints has the 2002 Ford Excursion had?
172 complaints have been filed with NHTSA, the first on July 10, 2001 and the latest on September 26, 2023. Of these, 15 describe a crash and 13 a fire, and together they report 14 injuries and 0 deaths.
Is the 2002 Ford Excursion a reliable vehicle?
Its Safety Index is 1 out of 100 (grade F: far more problems than a typical Ford Excursion year, for its age). The index weighs complaints, crashes, fires, injuries, deaths and recalls against how long the vehicle has been on the road, compared with the same model's other years. It is not a measure of every repair - read the complaints and owner experiences, and have any used vehicle inspected before you buy.
Which Ford Excursion years have the most complaints?
2001 (206), 2002 (172), 2003 (146). See every Ford Excursion year compared.
What should I do if my 2002 Ford Excursion has a problem?
If it is a safety problem, stop driving it if it is unsafe and contact your dealer. Report it to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem - enough reports start investigations and recalls - and share your experience here so other owners know what to look for.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data