2000 Ford Excursion problems & reliability
533 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2000 Ford Excursion, alongside 5 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
22 complaints report injuries (50 injured, 7 deaths reported).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2000 Ford Excursion vehicles were involved in 41 fatal crashes with 26 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Tires | 184 | 35% |
| Electrical System | 59 | 11% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 59 | 11% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 58 | 11% |
| Suspension | 35 | 7% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 30 | 6% |
| Power Train | 19 | 4% |
| Air Bags | 18 | 3% |
| Exterior Lighting | 18 | 3% |
| Steering | 17 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 80,000 miles (middle 50% between 51,000 and 125,000 miles), based on 229 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“The vehicles frame is rotted and there are multiple rust holes in the frame. 3/4 of the chassis is gone and at risk of buckling at any moment.”
Unknown OR Other · filed Mar 3, 2026
“2000 Ford Excursion recall was never done. Allan Vigil Ford in Clayton County GA disconnected my airbag, horn, and cruise control. They stated that a part was on order to complete the recall. We checked up on this over and over and over, the part was always "on order". This part was never installed/replaced on my car…”
Air Bags · filed Aug 8, 2023
“Michelin Defender LTX M/S size 265/75R16. 4 new tires installed less than 60 days and 1,800 miles by Costco before incident. Tire air pressure checked prior to a trip. On the trip, 1 tire rapidly deflated without warning on the freeway in Arizona. Barely had enough time to pull off the freeway and onto the shoulder…”
Tires · filed Jan 26, 2022
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- ENGINE STALLING
Preliminary Evaluation PE06011 · opened Feb 27, 2006 · closed Jun 23, 2006
- SPARK PLUG EJECTION FROM CYLINDER HEAD
Defect Petition DP05005 · opened Sep 22, 2005 · closed Jan 4, 2006
- HEADLAMP SWITCH KNOB BREAKS OFF
Recall Query RQ05002 · opened Aug 23, 2005 · closed Feb 17, 2006
- ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES
Engineering Analysis EA05005 · opened Mar 22, 2005 · closed Aug 2, 2006 · led to recall 08V025000
- SECTOR SHAFT FRACTURES
Engineering Analysis EA01009 · opened Mar 2, 2001 · closed Aug 19, 2003
- PULLS UNDER HARD BRAKING
Engineering Analysis EA01004 · opened Jan 22, 2001 · closed Oct 30, 2002
- PULLS UNDER HARD BRAKING
Investigation SQ00002 · opened May 4, 2000 · closed Jan 22, 2001
Technical service bulletins
217 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2000 Ford Excursion. The 10 most recent:
This SKU is a front upper ball joint. The Customer communication requested return of unsold inventory to inspect for ball studs with excessive rotational friction in the ball joint assembly. Excessive friction in the…
DOR-B8H4Z-11 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 2, 2018
Customer satisfaction program 06n05. Certain vehicles extended warranty - headlamp switch knob may fracture or fall off the headlamp switch. *tt headlamp knob switch - service tip. *tt
06N05 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 8, 2006
Fuel conditioner. Low power, poor fuel economy, fuel gelling in cold weather, excessive white smoke on cold start, hard start, or coking of components exposed to exhaust. *tt
19015 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2006
Wds cop kit diagnostic tip - coil on plug (cop) ignition systems - engine misfire or rough running. *tt
041601 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 14, 2005
Vacuum pump inoperative or runs continuously - climate control defaults to defrost mode. *tt
05174 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 7, 2005
Safety belt retraction speed. *tt
042421 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 7, 2005
Intermittent rough idle - non-commanded egr (exhaust gas recirculation valve) flow. *tt
05417 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 7, 2005
A cold weather reverse engagement stall. *tt
18376 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2005
Engine or fuel system concerns when using fuel with greater than 5% biodiesel concentration. *tt
17467 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2005
Warning indicators-parking aid-reverse sensing system (rss) and forward sensing system (fss)-false activation of warning tone-service tips. *mj update. *tt
0471 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 31, 2004
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2000 Ford Excursion has 5 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2000 Ford Excursion?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 80,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.