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 2001 Ford Excursion owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Blast from engine at 45 MPH while driving on snowy/icy bridge christmas night 2007. No where to pull over. Bounced off snow pile and with momentum crossed over bridge. Still in traffic and several near misses later highway patrol found me and diverted traffic. Spark had blown right out of engine but still attached to coil. Gas exiting and ignited with each spark firing. Vehicle now at Ford dealer. Greater than $4,000 repair. Service writer says spark plugs blowing out of engine and disabling engine with possible fire has been common on 2000-2005 Ford truck engines. Ford needs to be pressed for recall. Not enough threads to hold spark plugs in long term on original equipment. Common expectation of serviceability is that spark plugs and ignition fire stay inside engines. Consumer affairs web sight list hundreds of complaints on this issue.
A spark plug blew out of the engine. While I realize that there was no collateral damage this time, my truck has nine more opportunities to do it again. My daughter and 4 year old grandson were stranded on the side of the road in 32 degree temps. Her cell phone had died and she had to walk to a phone (child in tow). There is enormous proof that this is a rampant problem with Ford engines and has cost consumers thousands of dollars to repair yet you choose not to hold them liable and have even allowed them to cover up a problem. Why? Http://www.consumeraffairs.com/automotive/ford_spark.html http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2007/05/ford_techs_spark_plugs.html
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Ford Excursion. While traveling at 70 MPH, the speed began to reduce. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that thread gave way on the motor head. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.
On aug 29,2008 my 2001 Ford Excursion caught on fire I was never contacted my a Ford dealer or my insurance company that there were a recall on Ford SUV my SUV are total lost due to this fire as I look under Ford fire recall there are a recall on Ford SUV due to fire.
#7 spark plug blew out of the spark plug hole. Spark plugs were last replaced by a local Ford dealer in 2011. Internet research shows this failure and defective cylinder heads to be common in this engine, v-10 6.8l.
Ford - spark plug blow out: yesterday my 2001 Excursion with a 5.4 triton v8 engine blew a spark plug right out of the engine. It blew out with such force, the boot and cap/ coil snapped in two (the screw is still on tight). The treads of the old plug have no (none, zero) signs of damage, so how does a spark plug that is screwed in just blow out. Our local mechanic states "this is common on many Ford triton engines. The head heats up and expands, since there are minimal threads holding the plug in place, during the combustion cycle, the plug just blows completely out." I thought he was giving me a load of non-sense, thus simply preparing me for the sure to be huge up-coming bill. …
2001 Ford Excursion with 7.3l power stroke and automatic transmission. On 11/06/2005 the engine died without warning with my wife driving along a remote country road along a river. The immediate loss of power brakes and power steering resulted in a partial loss of control that caused the truck to leave the pavement and nearly plunge into the river. The check engine light came on. The truck restarted, but there was a profound loss of power rendering it undriveable. The truck was towed 45 miles to the nearest Ford dealer where a sensor was replaced and we were charged $1000 for a tune-up. The service manager told us that we should use unleaded gasoline to augment the octane in the diesel fuel to prevent a future failure. …
I have a 2001 Ford Excursion with 52,000 miles. I was 2 blocks from home when I heard this loud pop, then this loud clapping noise from under the hood. I immediately shut the vehicle off and had it towed to the dealership that I purchased it from and have had all the regular maintenence done at. (morrie's buffalo Ford, buffalo, mn) the 3rd spark plug on the rh side of the engine blewout, and took the cylinder head threads with it. $3000 to repair. The Ford inspector refused to admit fault on Ford's part, yet the service manager at the dealership told me that the plug blowout was no fault of mine. Purchased an additional $2000 bumper to bumper extended warranty that wouldn't cover it either. It is still at the dealership as I'm trying to figure out how to get Ford motor company to take responsibility for a faulty product and fix like they should. …
Sparkplug blew out of the engine head while driving resulting in a loss of power and very noisy condition. This is the second time in 6 months that I have had this same problem. The last time was October of 2007. The two incidents do not involve the same cylinder of the engine but they are on the same head. The repair will cost about $500 dollars and cost me the loss of my vehicle for 2 days. This is an issue with all Ford 5.4l and 6.8l engines. My brother has a 5.4 v-8 and has had the same problem twice in his vehicle. Ford is aware of the concern but refuses to do anything to help because it involves somewhere around 17 million engines and is not cost effective. In my estimation, if Ford does not want to issue a recall, which I can understand because it would be an astronomical amount of work and money, then they should at least be required to help with the cost of the repair. …
I have had two spark plugs eject from the cylinder head on my Ford Excursion. The first plug ejected about three months ago. On the 24th of February 2008 a second spark plug ejected the cylinder head. The first problem was repaired at a Ford dealership, costing me $350.00 to repair. I am currently waiting for a Ford representative to contact me about the second failure. The reason this is happening is because there are only approximately three threads tapped into the head to hold the pug in. A typical cylinder head usually has at least 1/2 of an inch or about 7-8 threads to hold the plug in. This is, in my opinion, an engineering defect with Ford being liable for the defect from factory. There is a safety hazard associated with this. When the spark plug ejects fuel vapor is blown out of the spark plug hole during the compression stroke. …
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 2001 Ford Excursion?
NHTSA has 52 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2001 Ford Excursion, 25% of the model year's 209 complaints. The component named most often is engine (17 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2001 Ford Excursion engine problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 07V-553 (diesel, Dec 5, 2007). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2001 Ford Excursion engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 98,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 3 fires and 0 injuries 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.