Two problems related to brake fluid leak have been reported for the 2004 Ford Ranger. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2004 Ford Ranger based on all problems reported for the 2004 Ranger.
On Saturday, June 20th my wife drove down our driveway and lost her brakes. The driveway is pitched about 15 degrees so the truck, a 2004 Ranger with 60,000 miles, picked up speed. Pumping didn't help. She steered the curve thereby not flying into the shed; she aimed at a 10 foot deep flowering bush to avoid the stone wall and the truck went through, missed the ash tree, and came to a halt 200 feet down in the meadow. There had been no warning that the brakes were about to fail, no softness that either of us noticed, no warning light. The diagnosis at the dealership is that the master cylinder failed; no lines broken, no fluids having leaked. I called Ford and was told that since the car was out of warranty there was nothing Ford would do, except report the incident to the engineering department to record for future reference. A master cylinder should outlive the rest of a vehicle. There can be no excuse for this. It is not just one of those things, like a flat tire.
The contact owns a 2004 Ford Ranger edge. The contact stated he has been having brake problems with this vehicle. While driving at 65 mph and applying the brakes the vehicle would not stop. The pedal had a spongy feel when it was pressed down. The service dealer replaced the cap on the reservoir to the master cylinder. This did not remedy the problem. Then, the dealership replaced the reservoir, this still did not remedy the problem. The dealer replaced the seals, and this seemed to stop the leak of the brake fluid, but did not help the braking capability. The braking problem resulted in an accident because he could not avoid an animal in the road. When he applied the brakes the vehicle skidded and he could not gain complete control of the vehicle. The vehicle flipped over six to seven times. The consumer was driving 75 mph when the accident occurred. There was one fatality, and two injuries as a result of this accident. The consumer has not contacted the manufacturer or the service dealer because of injuries sustained from the accident. The consumer left the vehicle in a tow yard in winslow, arizona.