Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (headlights, tail lights, turn signals, interior lights).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 1998 Ford Ranger owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
I hit a deer while comming home from work at 45 MPH and bent bumper, dented left quarter panel,broke left turn signal lens and cracked plastic grile. Airbags did not apply or engage. I also have taken my truck to the local dealership 4 times to get my door alarm chip replaced @ 50 dollars each time. On last attempt my extended waranty had expired and they refused to honer the problem and promise to replace.even though it was an exsisting problem. This was prior to hitting the deer.
The plastic headlight lens are severely cloudy, a lot worse as time time goes on....years ago, when I bought the truck they were clear, now they are very - very opac, cloudy, so bad that you can't even see the headlight bulb ! There are many vehicles that have the same problem! So many, in fact that the part store aftermarket industries have come out with a restoration kit . I am sure that the cloudy, opac lens do severely lessen the amount of light emitted through the lens. My opinion on this is that the type of plastic selected by Ford seemed fine back in 1998 but over a period of years the plastic deteriorates. My recommendations is to have the manufactures replace them. By, I did buy the kit from a parts store and it is called headlight restorer / defogger kit. Myheadlight.com . My brother and I hand buffed his 2001 Jeep headlights and it took us almost 2 hours ! …
This is a 98 Ford Ranger xlt with 73,000 miles, my problem is the turning signals from my 98 Ford Ranger, everytime that I turned my truck on it makes a squeaking sound around my steering wheel, then right away my left turning signal light turns on by itself, right away when the left turning signal light turns on by itself the squeaking sound goes away, so now to quit my left turning signal light from keeping lighting on by itself I have to push down the emergency button on top of my steering wheel which turn both turning signal lights on, then right away I have to push it down again to turn them off, at that time there is no squeaking sound, but after 5 or 10 more minutes the annoying sound comes back on and I have to do the whole process again to turn off the squeaking sound, it just started to happened 3 months ago.
Upon activating turn signal on a dark morning, the headlights completely failed. Activating the dim/bright lever provided intermittent activation. Upon release of the dim/bright function the headlights would not remain on in either dim or bright mode. Other users of vehicle report complete headlight failure. They too have been able to restore headlight function intermittently after several frantic seconds operating the light switch or the dimming lever while traveling in the dark.
98' Ford Ranger: has a cracked frame on the rear right side. Truck makes loud noises when driving and I am afraid it May become worse over time or completely break down in unsafe speeds. I can not sell it, as I was trying to use the money for a new vehicle due to a new baby in our family. No one will buy such a defective vehicle. Also seat belts will not stay latched? Also the inside dome light melts right through the covering, where temperatures make the plastic cover bubble and melt.
While driving with headlights on at night the headlights go out intermittently. The consumer must turn the headlight switch several times to get the headlights to operate again. When the consumer placed the high beams on, they would fail to go back to dim. The switch on the dash sometimes failed to bring the lights on, would take several minutes before going off. The switches in the doors were faulty and casued the lights to fail to turn off.
While driving at night, the driver was unable to see the ashtray because vehicle did not have a light near the ashtray. Owner has contacted the dealership. The dealership had no option to add a light to the ashtray. The consumer purchased LED lights and installed them himself. Consumer feels any vehicle equipped with an ashtray should have lighting to make it visible.
Consumer complained about a turn signal problem. Consumer was driving and noticed a puff of smoke, and a crackling sound behind the dashboard. Consumer took the vehicle to the dealer, and dealer determined that multi-function module had an electrical short.
We have had nothing but problems with the door ajar light and dome light staying on, plus the wipers are irradic and the windows will sometimes go down on their own. It was fixed once and now it's has started doing the same thing again. It seems to me there are an awful lot of similar complaints out there on this very same item and I feel Ford should have to recall this vehicle to correct the situation. I called them and asked if this would be something they would fix seeing as it's one of their mechanical defects and they replied with a 'no'. I am to the point that I just want to get rid of this vehicle. I also noted they have a mention of how this vehicles leans. That is also true. My Ranger leans. I think this truck is a true lemon.
The information I have provided is in regard to the interior dome light of my vehicle. I drive mostly at night and in the early morning hours. The dome light will not turn off in a reasonable time frame. I have driven home from work on a few occassions with the dome light on the whole way. The light gets very hot and it makes seeing out of the rearview mirror difficult at best. I am concerned that this could lead to a vehicle accident or worse, a vehicle fire while I am driving down the freeway. This does not happen all the time, but often enough to cause concern. Thank you.
Headlight complaints in other Ranger years
Frequently asked questions
How common are headlight problems on the 1998 Ford Ranger?
NHTSA has 35 complaints about the lights of the 1998 Ford Ranger, 6% of the model year's 576 complaints. The component named most often is turn signal (3 mentions).
Is there a recall for 1998 Ford Ranger headlight problems?
No. NHTSA lists no lights recall for the 1998 Ford Ranger, though it has 5 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 1998 Ford Ranger headlight problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 50,000 miles, and 10% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 0 injuries to lights 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.