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2004 Ford Expedition Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 297 complaints with NHTSA about the 2004 Ford Expedition, most often about the engine (19% of complaints, typically around 109,500 miles). It is 11th of 27 Expedition model years by number of complaints.
Most common 2004 Ford Expedition problems
Engine
55 complaints · 19%Half of these problems showed up before 109,500 miles. Parts named most often: engine, exhaust system, cooling system.
On two separate occasions, while driving my 2004 Ford Expedition, a spark plug has been ejected from the engine. One time, at city speeds, a second time at 65 miles per hour. Both times, there was an instant loss of power and the smell of gasoline filled the passenger compartment. After the original failure, I took it…
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, he smelled a burning odor and noticed smoke emitting from the hood area. Upon inspecting underneath the hood, the contact observed an excessive amount of smoke which originated from the engine oil reservoir. There were no…
Air bags
46 complaints · 16%Half of these problems showed up before 87,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal, side/window.
Involved in auto accident hit motorist that ran a stop sign then a utility pole traveling aprox 35 MPH totaled out Expedition and air bags did not deploy.
My side curtain air bags deployed for no reason. I have taken the vehicle to the dealer and they said they could not do anything about it because it is out of warranty. The 5 year safety restraint warranty ended a 1 month ago. The service manager inspected the vehicle and ran a diagnostic test and said there is no…
Brakes
43 complaints · 14%Half of these problems showed up before 18,500 miles. Parts named most often: foundation components, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, antilock, pedals and linkages.
On three occasions the brakes on my 04 Expedition failed. Twice was when towing a 5000 lb. Trailer, and I assumed the problem was connected with that. But the other day when not towing I almost clobbered the car ahead of me when I had to make a hard stop. On the three occasions the pedal goes almost to the floor with…
2004 Ford Expedition SUV - steering wheel pulsates when brakes applied. Returned to dealer service dept and they regroung the front rotors - this occured @ 16500 miles and @ 25600 miles. Dealer advised that it is not a good design by Ford motor company to large a vehicle for the size of brake rotor that they overheat…
Electrical
36 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 102,500 miles. Parts named most often: wiring, 12v/24v/48v battery, starter assembly, instrument cluster/panel.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Expedition. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was able to restart, but the failure occurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the wiring harness and the ecu needed…
Battery drains, took fuse to radio out and fixed the problem for a while but then the locks started to act on there own no way to fix dealers keep saying they never heard of the problem or they want to try things but all they end up dong is costing me more money. But I have found hundreds of people on the internet…
Wheels and tires
29 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 42,000 miles. Parts named most often: pressure monitoring and regulating systems, tread/belt, sidewall.
Recall 02t012000 concerning continental tired separation. Manufacturer was contacted regarding this recall, and consumer was told that because dot numbers did not match the tires on vehicle were not subject to the recall. Manufacturer will not honor the recall.
We were driving with continental tires (p265/70r17113s) on an arizona highway when our rear right tire separated. Our vehicle immediately veered to the left and went up a guardrail with a 30' drop below. Our vehicle (Ford Expedition) flipped 360 degrees, landing on its passenger side. The vehicle was well maintained.…
Transmission
27 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 34,500 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, axle assembly, manual transmission, driveline.
2004 Expedition xlt 2wd. Trying to find out more about (technical service bulletin) dealing with the rear end/differential problem. I also mentioned that just recently there is a gurgling sound coming from the exhaust. Sounds like it wants to backfire or like there is water in the system. I was told by the art hill…
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Expedition. After he started the ignition he applied pressure to the accelerator pedal, but the vehicle would not accelerate. After several attempts he was able to drive. However when driving the transmission kept slipping gears. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnostic…
Body and structure
24 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 87,500 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Expedition. The paint near the front hood, the rear lift gate, the door latch and the wind-shield wiper has corroded. The vehicle has not been inspected or repaired for the failure. The failure mileage was 90,000. The current mileage was 93,000. Updated 11/12/09 the consumer stated the…
The frame is rusting. See photos. The body is rusting away also the brake lines. The entire vehicle is rusting away. Why has this 2004 Ford not included in a recall for rust.
Fuel system
23 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 126,000 miles. Parts named most often: storage, delivery.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Expedition. While driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was restarted and taken to a dealer and an independent mechanic; however, the cause of the failure was unable to be determined. The contact mentioned that the alternator, battery, transmission…
Multiple and intermittent engine stoppage. The engine stalls suddenly while driving in traffic causing hazard to self and others. Sudden loss of power steering makes control of vehicle difficult as power steering is non functional as you attempt to pull to the side of a busy road. Braking systems also are mostly non…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2004 Ford Expedition recalls
NHTSA lists no recalls for this model year.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Steel wheel fracture
Summary
Ford special service vehicle (ssv) expeditions use a steel full face wheel design similar to that investigated in pe03009, rq04007, ea04034 (crown victoria police interceptor) and pe03026 (gm pickups and suvs).a total of 8,251 ssvs (2.2% of total production) were produced within model years 2004-2006 and sold primarily for use by state, federal, and municipal law enforcement (le) agencies.ford stipulates that the subject vehicles are not suitable for high speed or pursuit operations and also identified a 2004 national institute for justice vehicle evaluation report which also acknowledges this limitation. The full face wheel is fabricated from two pieces: a stamped outer wheel disc and a for
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
Summary
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehi
Questions about the 2004 Ford Expedition
- What are the most common problems with the 2004 Ford Expedition?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: engine (55 complaints, typically around 109,500 miles); air bags (46 complaints, typically around 87,000 miles); brakes (43 complaints, typically around 18,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2004 Ford Expedition have?
- NHTSA lists no recalls for the 2004 Ford Expedition. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls in case one is issued later.
- Is the 2004 a bad year for the Ford Expedition?
- It is 11th of 27 Expedition model years by number of complaints, with 297 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.