Inertia Switch - 2005 Ranger

ive had 3 ford rangers all the inertia switch wiring clips have fried on me. it should be a recall but noone has said anything about it ive had to do everything from buying new fuel pumps to having my truck towed home ive found the best solution to fix the problem is only 99 cents its electrical tape cut the switch off, strip the wires and twist and tape them together and the problem will never happen again. all my trucks were rangers from 2003-2005 3.0 2wd v6. but after that problem solve :]

...

Over the past 23 or so years me and my Father have owned a total of 5
Rangers with a mix of engines (2.3L, 2.9L, 3.0L, 4.0L), cab styles (2 Dr,
Supercab, 4 Door), bed lenghts (long and short beds), and drive type (2WD
and 4WD). We have never had a switch trip. And that includes my sons driving
the truck around the pasture like a maniac, driving acrossed rows in a field
at relatively high speed (I estiamate he was doing 45 and the truck was
leaving the ground when I caught him), a couple of accidents, and having a
tree dropped on one Ranger. In fact, I only know of one closely related
person to have tripped an interia switch in a Ford (and that includes at
least 16 Ford products that include the switches). My ex-sister-in-law
tripped the switch in a Taurus wagon when she enetered her driveway at a
high speed (steep driveway with a significant angle on the entrance from the
street).

I suspect something is wrong with the truck's structure if the iniertia
switch is being tripped during routine driving manuvers. I'd suggest taking
a good look at the cab's floor pan and the cab to chassis mounting points.

The switch should not trip for the wrong reason. Something is wrong and it
needs to be fixed. Looking for a good dealer is probably a key way to get it
fixed. I am not sure I agree with your estimate of the chances of accident
being increased by a factor of 50 compared to a fire if the switch cuts off
the fuel inadvertenly, but then both outcomes are very rare. Clearly Ford is
paranoid about fire related lawsuits. Persoanlly I've had a number of cars
where the engine cut out on the highway,and have never had much trouble
dealing with it. I guess driving older British cars trains you for things
like that.

Ed

Repeat problem with my 2006 Ford Ranger, first time dealer repairs/replacement of the inertia switch totaled nearly $300!! Most recently, thanks to several discussion forums such as this one and a youtube video, pushed the reset button myself for free and presto, vehicle started!! Seems to happen when passengers enter vehicle and inadvertently kick the inertia switch! No bumpy road, passengers were the only common factor! Here's the youtube link..... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JXbglWWOS8&feature=related

We had the exact same problem with our recently purchased 2005 Ford Ranger with 47K miles on it last Friday night. Our daughter was driving along the 101 freeway when all of a sudden the engine cut out. She was frightened & now stuck on a busy freeway with nowhere to go. Had to have the truck towed 50+miles to a service shop on a Friday night. Thanks to all your postings of this problem was I able to figure out the problem & replace the inertia switch with one of those Ford kits that cost $100+. We were raised a Ford family and have maintained the tradition. However, this really touches on the core value of why we continue to purchase Ford products. If Ford has known about this why haven't they issued a recall to install the new inertia switch kit so our family members will be safe? The new kit places the inertia switch behind the fuse cover along the passenger side of the truck preventing anyone from kicking or hitting it.

Thank you all for your posts they were extremely helpful

ejohn90472 in Southern California

The wiring connector to the switch melted. I had to order it online. I'm not sure if the wiring is now fried or if the switch is. If the wiring is shot, does anybody now how much work, time, money, and headaches this is going to result in? Has anybody else have or had this problem?

I dunno. I just dunno.

I belong to '94 Tbird LX V8. In '03, I was backended by
a truck on the side of the switch. Like to took my head
off. $5000+ in body damage. The switch didn't trip.

In '04, I was on the hiway when my garbage Firestone rear
tire exploded. Was passing a truck at the time. The switch
tripped, I lost control. Somehow managed to make it to the
shoulder without getting bloody murdered.

I guess it was just po' me and Geof that got dysfunctional
inertia switches. Couldn't have happened to anybody else. :-)

I'd estimate the chances of getting injured/killed when
the switch trips for the wrong reason are about 50 times
greater than the chance of preventing a collision-related
fire ...

"Quality Is Job One!"

"'Tis a testament to FordGarbage!".

Cheers,
Puddin'

On 24 Sep 2005 04:48:57 -0700, "Geof" <
--

*** Puddin' Man PuddingDotMan at GmailDotCom ***
;

It is very unusual for it to trip on 'some rough pavement.' The switch
requires at least a 'g' force to activate. Perhaps the mounting is not
secure. I would install a bypass switch until you find a solution.

mike

...

Remember the time was when the safety nuts in Washington thought drivers
would drive slower it the speedometer only registered up to 85 MPH? ;)

mike hunt

it's a Ford, if you want reliable, buy a CHEVY!

I'm having the smae problam with my 06 Ranger.... It just hit 50k miles and thats very low key driving. It's happened 3 times now... Firestone charged me 50 bucks to reset it on top of the 80 dollar flatbed bill!!!
You never know when it's going to happen. Everytime it's happened, it was just normal "street" driving and once while at a stop light. NOT driving through rugged backroads or trail blazing.... I thank God it hasn't happened on the highway or while changing lanes at high speed because you loose ALL power!!!!

I had the same problem with my '05 Ranger. I replaced the fuel pump twice, etc., not fixed. Ford wouldn't even look at the inertia switch. My neighbor found that the switch was all "fried out" inside, and the wire and connector leading to it were melted. He said it should have caught fire. It was a pretty scary sight! If you are having problems with your vehicle suddenly stopping, PLEASE get down and feel around the inertia switch and the wire leading to it. You might have a bad connection that could cause a fire.

I have a 2005 Ranger Edge. I had the same problem. I did two things. First I replaced the fuel pump and it worked again for about 2 months. Then it stopped working again so I replaced the inertia switch with a new one from the Ford Dealership. It worked again for about a month. Than it stopped again, so I replaced the wiring that goes from the inertia switch to the main box on the bottom right passenger side. I also put the inertia switch inside the casing on the lower right so it couldn't be kicked. It has been working for 2 weeks now. I hope nothing else happens.

On another note, I had another electrical problem. My speedometer cluster stopped working and my mechanic found loose wires rubbing against metal on the inside. I think the electrical components on these Ford Rangers are just cheaply made. That is the only thing to check for you now. If it isn't the fuel pump or the inertia switch, just check all the wiring from fuel pump to inertia switch to make sure it is all done correctly. Also check all fuses for fuel pump/inertia switches.

Sometimes I say I and mean a mechanic, I am not a car expert, but would like to be.

There is a button on the 2005 Ranger by the feet on the passenger side. Push that button see if it starts before you spend any money.

yes i have an 05 ranger edge and actually the day i got it this switch tripped about a mile away from the dealership. it turns out the wires in the switch were shorting out. so i went in and got a whole new switch. problem fixed.

Thanks all for your replies - it seems as if there are other owners who
are having similar problems with their Rangers. I believe that I can
successfully re-create the problem predictably and can go show the
service manager at my local dealer the problem. If I get any
resolution I'll be happy to post it here.

Geof

I purchased a 2005 Ranger Edge for my 17 year old daughter. Just
returned from dealer with THIRD reset of inertia switch. Even had
switch replaced on second "Death". Dealer has no idea of what is
causing problem ... my daughter says she's not getting back in it?
Any chance this may fall under Lemon Law?

Inertia switch mount, suspension problem, rough terrain, driving habits, boys
trying to meet girls by "bumper kissing" with their cars. Lemon law? - doubtful.

You dont describe the suspension package you bought with it.

I'd be willing to bet that with 500 lbs of sandbags in the cargo bed that
wouldnt happen.

As it is, I'd pay attention to ride characteristics that might point to a
body integrity problem.

"Mike Hunter" <> wrote in

...

I'd suggest entering a complaint into the NHTSA Complaint Database (see
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/proble... ). I took a look at the
complaints related to late model Rangers and inertia switches and found the
following:

Model Number of Inertia
Year Switch Complaints
2005 2 complaint, no injuries, none with multiple occurrences
2004 1 complaint, no injuries, 2 occurrences caused by passengers
foot
2003 1 complaint, no injuries, 5 occurrences, caused by passengers
foot
2002 0 complaints
2001 0 complaints

4 complaints for 5 years worth of production does not seem to indicate a
major problem. I did think it was interesting that 2 of the 4 complaints
specifically mentioned that passenger's feet caused the switch to turn off
the fuel pump. One of these claimed that he switch connector was dislodged
by the passenger's foot (5 times!). The other was less clear. Is the switch
really that easy to hit with feet? The owner's Guide for a 2005 Ranger shows
the switch mounted on the side of the truck above the carpet near the glove
compartment. I can't imagine the passenger's feet hitting it in that
location. Is it possible you have something heavy in the glove box that is
banging around in the area creating a sharp vibration?

There were actually more complaints related to the rpm limiter built into
the PCM, than about the inertia switch. You have to wonder about the sanity
of people driving Rangers faster than 85 or 90 mph. Especially when they
complain to the Government that the vehicles won't go fast enough. I
especially love the people who complained that since the speedometer was
marked to 125, the truck should be able to go that fast as well.

Ed