Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 Ford Excursion owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Tl* the contact owned a 2000 Ford Excursion. While driving, the contact noticed smoke coming from the front driver's side floorboard. The driver was not aware of any warning indicators illuminated. The contact coasted the vehicle over to the side of the road where it caught fire and burst into flames. The fire department extinguished the fire. The vehicle was not driveable and was towed to the driver's residence. The dealer and manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The driver believed the failure was related to NHTSA campaign number: 09V399000 (vehicle speed control); however, she never received a notification. The failure mileage was unknown.
Tl contact owned a 2000 Ford Excursion. While driving less than 55 MPH, the vehicle shut off. The vehicle was left on the shoulder until a tow truck arrived. The vehicle then caught fire and a police report was filed. Five months later, the contact was notified by the manufacturer that there was a recall on his vehicle that could result in a fire. His VIN was included in the recall. The recall number was unknown. The failure and current mileages were over 100,000.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Ford Excursion. The contact stated that her vehicle caught fire while it was parked. The fire was under the drivers side wheel and then the entire engine was engulfed in flames. The fire department extinguished the fire. A fire report is available. An insurance adjuster will inspect the damages. The cause of the fire was unknown. There were no injuries. The manufacturer has not been notified. The VIN was unknown. The failure mileage was 100,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 Ford Excursion. The contact stated that while parked and unoccupied, the vehicle independently started. The contact disabled the battery. The failure recurred on a separate occasion. In addition, the heater and the interior lights would activate without the vehicle in operation. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure was 111,000. The VIN was unavailable.
Dt*: the contact stated while the vehicle was parked, flames and black smoke came from the driver's side underhood area. The contact extinguished the fire with a water hose. The fire department was not contacted. Minor fire damage was visible inside the engine compartment. The vehicle was towed to a dealer to await further inspection.
Louise sudduth had driven her 2000 Ford Excursion to sudduth farms in mayo, s.c. She had parked the vehicle, and the vehicle caught fire while it was not running. Mrs. Sudduth received serious and ultimately fatal burns.
On July 2, 2010 while at daycare center picking up granddaughter, my 2000 Ford Excursion bursted into flames. The city of jackson fire department came out and put the fire out before daycare center begin to burn down.
Our 2000 Ford Excursion was sitting in the driveway and caught on fire. There was no one in the car at the time. The fire department was called and the fire was extinguished but the truck is damaged beyond repair.
Blown spark plug from 2000 Ford Excursion v-10 triton engine. 3rd time. First time on new years eve 2007 while driving through town of houghton michigan. Was able to insert new plug as old plug was completely blown out from under hood and could not find. Had to replace plug coil as mounting bracket was broken and coil jacket and spring destroyed as well. Second time same plug, this time no threads left to seat spark plug. Thread insert installed by local high performance engine garage. They viewed problem as poor design and manufacturing practices by Ford motor company. Third time just happened earlier today while on us-41 traveling through l'anse michigan ironically just a few miles after passing the old Ford alberta michigan lumber mill where the sideboards for the Ford woodsies were milled. …
Having just made it over the mountain pass with no previous trouble, we stopped at gas station for more wiper fluid. When starting up our 2000 Ford Excursion a loud boom came from the truck. This startled us and others outside of vehicle including a sheriff that heard it and came next to us to see what is was. We immediately turned off vehicle - sheriff and passer bys thought maybe exhaust?? We made it home but truck now sounds like a loud putt putt truck. We smelled fuel all the way home. As it turns out #10 sparkplug blew out hitting firewall. From two repair shops it is in a very difficult spot and is not likely will hold. So, we took it to Ford dealership to see what they can do. We have been told by Ford dealership that a "bandage fix" will probably not hold and other plugs could also blow or May not - apparently this is not new news to Ford or the other repair shops we spoke with. …
Related recalls
Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Diesel
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.
Remedy: 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.
NHTSA investigations
Engine stalling
The cam position sensor (cps) provides a critical signal to the subject vehicle (sv) engine management system, the loss of which results in an engine stall.during pe06-011, Ford stated in their response to odi that it is continuing to investigate allegations of cps related engine stall and further advised that an update will be provided upon completion of the investigation.Ford data shows that 20% of the 716,000 svs…
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
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…
Engine complaints in other Excursion years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2000 Ford Excursion?
NHTSA has 68 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2000 Ford Excursion, 13% of the model year's 533 complaints. The component named most often is engine (15 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 Ford Excursion engine problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 07V-553 (diesel, Dec 5, 2007). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2000 Ford Excursion engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 111,000 miles, and 2% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 9 fires and 1 injury and 1 death to engine & cooling problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.