What are the common problems with the 1987 Ford Ranger?
Owners of the 1987 Ford Ranger have filed 50 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system (14) and the seat belts (8). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 1 of its 50 complaints lists a mileage (109,117 miles), too few to say when problems were reported; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 50 owner complaints on the 1987 Ford Ranger. Owners named the electrical system most often: 14 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 50 complaints, 4 report a crash, 14 report a fire and 3 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
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Common problems with the 1987 Ranger
NHTSA's file holds 50 owner complaints on the 1987 Ford Ranger. Owners named the electrical system most often: 14 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 14 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Seat Belts | 8 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 7 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 5 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Steering | 3 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
Of the 50 complaints, 4 report a crash, 14 report a fire and 3 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 1987 Ranger
Too few complaints on the 1987 Ranger list a mileage to say when owners reported problems: 1 of its 50 complaints lists a mileage (109,117 miles), and a median is given here only with 10 or more.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 1987 Ranger wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Every model year together: Half of the 2,468 NHTSA owner complaints on the 1983–2011 Ford Ranger that list mileage came after 77,000 miles (NHTSA complaints file of November 11, 2026). How many miles will a Ford Ranger last? →
Is the 1987 Ranger a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1987 is a good or a bad Ranger: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1987 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 50 complaints, the 1987 ranks 25th of the 29 Ford Ranger model years from 1983 to 2011 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 1999 (760). The fewest: the 1983 (11).
NHTSA files the Ford Ranger name for 1983–2011 and 2019–2025. A gap of three or more model years means the name covers different vehicles, so the 1987 is compared only with the 1983–2011 model years.
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 Ranger | 11 | 0 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1984 Ranger | 12 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1985 Ranger | 27 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1986 Ranger | 35 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1987 (this page) | 50 | 1 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1988 Ranger | 89 | 7 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1989 Ranger | 73 | 7 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1990 Ranger | 105 | 8 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1991 Ranger | 132 | 8 | Under 10 mileages |
| 1992 Ranger | 189 | 22 | 91,649 |
| 1993 Ranger | 232 | 36 | 93,000 |
| 1994 Ranger | 438 | 72 | 111,830 |
| 1995 Ranger | 321 | 41 | 139,026 |
| 1996 Ranger | 413 | 80 | 116,500 |
| 1997 Ranger | 411 | 110 | 100,000 |
| 1998 Ranger | 582 | 111 | 100,000 |
| 1999 Ranger | 760 | 218 | 88,000 |
| 2000 Ranger | 676 | 287 | 82,000 |
| 2001 Ranger | 527 | 291 | 80,000 |
| 2002 Ranger | 346 | 220 | 55,400 |
| 2003 Ranger | 243 | 185 | 56,000 |
| 2004 Ranger | 405 | 219 | 66,803 |
| 2005 Ranger | 289 | 152 | 57,000 |
| 2006 Ranger | 272 | 106 | 69,440 |
| 2007 Ranger | 270 | 63 | 65,000 |
| 2008 Ranger | 326 | 71 | 65,000 |
| 2009 Ranger | 169 | 38 | 36,000 |
| 2010 Ranger | 156 | 46 | 51,000 |
| 2011 Ranger | 235 | 66 | 48,000 |
Every Ranger year compared on NHTSA’s complaints and recalls: Ford Ranger years to avoid →
1987 Ford Ranger recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 5 recall campaigns that name the 1987 Ford Ranger (4 vehicle campaigns and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
| Campaign | Report received | Component |
|---|---|---|
| 98E010000 | Apr 8, 1998 | SERVICE BRAKES, AIR:DISC:ROTOR |
| 87V140000 | Sep 4, 1987 | WHEELS:LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS/STUDS |
| 87V139000 | Sep 4, 1987 | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS |
| 87V075000 | May 26, 1987 | SEAT BELTS:FRONT:ANCHORAGE |
| 87V070000 | May 18, 1987 | EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS |
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 1987 Ranger lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 1987 Ranger.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 49 of the 50 complaints on the 1987 Ford Ranger give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA names counted: RANGER, RANGER EV and RANGER ELECTRIC. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only these.
- Recall-file names matched: RANGER and RANGER EV.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
1987 Ford Ranger questions
What are the most common 1987 Ford Ranger problems?
NHTSA's file holds 50 owner complaints on the 1987 Ford Ranger. Owners named the electrical system most often: 14 complaints. A complaint can name more than one component. Of the 50 complaints, 4 report a crash, 14 report a fire and 3 report an injury (8 people reported injured). These are owners' reports to NHTSA, not findings.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 1987 Ford Ranger?
NHTSA's file gives no mileage figure for the 1987 Ford Ranger: 1 of its 50 complaints lists a mileage (109,117 miles), and this page gives a median only with 10 or more. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 1987 Ranger can cover.
Is the 1987 Ford Ranger a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 1987 is a good or a bad Ranger: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 1987 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 50 complaints, the 1987 ranks 25th of the 29 Ford Ranger model years from 1983 to 2011 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 1999 (760). The fewest: the 1983 (11).
How many recalls does the 1987 Ford Ranger have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 5 recall campaigns that name the 1987 Ford Ranger (4 vehicle campaigns and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 1987 Ford Ranger before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 1987 Ford Ranger.