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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 8
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
12,459 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2018 Ford F-150 electrical problems

electrical problem

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2018 Ford F-150 Owner Comments (Page 2 of 5)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #79

Dec 012020

F-150

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

In late 2020 Ford issued recall 20C03 to correct a problem with the Daylight running lights. This entailed the reprogramming of the body control module. In so doing they made an error in the new program and inadvertently activated the parking lamps at all times when using the Daylight running lights. This is in violation of the FMVSS No. 108 (Vehicle Lighting Standards) and California Vehicle Code Section 24800 (Driving with Parking Lights). I filed a complaint with Ford Motor Co. and they have repeatedly refused to correct the issue. Now to avoid the possibility of receiving a traffic violation it is necessary to not use a safety feature and drive without Daylight running lights.

- Hughson Ca, CA, USA

problem #78

Feb 072023

F-150

  • miles
Exiting a major freeway. Truck lost all power and dash lights illuminated. With a message. Place and park and restart engine. Resulting in me narrowly avoiding a major accident, due to lack of power and braking. After running off the side of the highway and stopping. Vehicle could be restarted with no check engine or faults. However, this is extremely dangerous. After getting home and researching to see if this is a problem to other Ford F150 owners. Others have reported similar problems. Will not be driving vehicle because its unsafe.

- Van Alstyne, TX, USA

problem #77

Sep 062021

F-150

  • miles
Unknown Mykey has me hostage. When I purchased my vehicle they only had 1 key. Not realizing that setting up the MyKey for my vehicle, I would be putting myself and others that drive on the road with me grave danger. I purchased my truck in March of 2019 and I the fall of 2021 I didn-€™t think nothing of it by setting up the Mykey for my Ford F-150. Well without further a due I realized that the restrictions that the Mykey puts on there owners. Driving on the freeway or anywhere one may have to pass another vehicle quickly. Hang onto your hat because the speedometer stops at 80 and you just might find yourself between an on coming vehicle and the vehicle you were trying to get around before he thought about not allot you to-€¦ In the last 15 months there-€™s been to many near misses because of the MyKey restrictions on my speedometer-€¦ Ford says they can-€™t turn the Mykey off without another key-€¦.They ant my to pay $400 for a spare key-€¦ They need an Administration Mykey Key & standard Mykey key to delete the mykey functions. Now to me, that doesn-€™t make since what so ever to be able to set up the Mykey function with only 1 Key when you need 2 to Defunction them.

- Springfield , OR, USA

problem #76

Dec 222022

F-150

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving at generally any speed from 8mph up to 70mph the electronic steering wheel will pull in either direction, I have brought this truck into a certified Ford dealership and they said everything they checked out was okay with said truck. This is not okay as it almost pulled me into the ditch while turning a corner. Other then that incident this erratic steering situation arises anytime I am driving, it does not appear to be intermittent.

- Battleground , WA, USA

problem #75

Dec 012018

F-150

  • miles
radio and camera do not work full screen does not turn

- Crestview, FL, USA

problem #74

Oct 242022

F-150

  • miles
Vehicle had electrical issues - Diagnosis by dealership was water damage to the Body Control Module. This module is inside the cabin on the front passenger area by their feet/legs. The issues included - flashers goin off, horn going off, truck bed gate dropping open - while parked and while driving down highway, and entire vehicle just shutting down while ALL of the issues happened at once. People have been put at risk by the gate dropping and the immediate shut down of an operating vehicle. The dealer was able to reproduce the problem. I had it happen twice. I have since identified that it is something that is a known issue on F150 forums. So much so that the likely cause of the water damage has been identified, and forwarded to the manufacturer. They are not fixing the issue. Manufacturer's dealership technician identified the water damage as the root cause. Required a replacement Body Control Module. Possible warning signs: Noted by myself and others. Emergency flashers randomly going off. Power drain on batteries. Horn going off randomly. Root cause: Unsealed seam between body panels under the hood in the engine bay. Leaking water falls on firewall and then onto the Body Control Module electrical component. Shorting will eventually ensure. This can happen any time. F150 forum thread documenting the likely culprit leaking seam: https://www.f150forum.com/f118/water-leak-cowl-seam-474781/

- Ashburn, VA, USA

problem #73

Aug 272022

F-150

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

There is a noticeable lag in the infotainment system whenever an input from the steering wheel is changed or the screen is touched. The navigation screen shows "no gps" and the maps stop working frequently. There are times the touch screen is black and completely unresponsive. The bluetooth connection with my phone connects and disconnects constantly also. The usb ports directly beneath the radio frequently don't work either. Safety is effected because of increased time looking away from the road trying to answer calls or get directions through the navigation system. The problem has not been inspected because I haven't been to the dealer since this first started happening. There were no warning lamps. The only indicators were that the bluetooth connection for my phone was dropped and the "no gps" was displayed on the maps. This first appeared about 3 months ago.

- New Lenox, IL, USA

problem #72

Jun 062018

F-150 6-cyl

  • miles
From the summer of the first year of purchasing the new vehicle on April 4, 2018, due to the very foul smell of urine when the air conditioner was operated, diagnosis and repairs were requested to more than 4 dealers in New York City, but only the opinion was presented that there was nothing wrong except for cleaning methods, and every summer I constantly asked other dealers for diagnosis and repair, but it didn't work. However, I have continuously commissioned the dealer every year to solve this problem, and the dealer of the current ford lincoln of queen said that if the warranty repair is not possible, the owner must pay the cost to do the work, and the warranty repair that I have part, but they are due to the borrower's faulty use No warranty repairs due to Since there has been a problem since the first year of purchasing the vehicle, I have continued to request repairs until now, but they have ignored them and dealt with things in a disrespectful and formal way, causing mental and physical pain up to this point. My warranty repair insurance is until April 2025 Since there was a problem with it from the time I bought the new vehicle, I continuously requested repairs every year to the present. In other words, they are demanding repair costs with the excuse of consumer responsibility and negligence now that they have secondary functions.

- White Marsh, MD, USA

problem #71

Jan 012022

F-150

  • miles
The vehicles electronic systems all seem to be going haywire. Towing alerts are given when not actual or sometimes not even towing. Backup camera is on/off when backing up then touch screen does not function for several minutes after backup camera was on. Towing and backup camera malfunctions affect driver safety and vehicle accident prevention. The problem has not been looked at and/or repaired by dealer as I'm investigating what the issue 'may be' (first indication is APIM module"?") No OEM or Police inspections performed Started winter/spring 2022 and have gotten worse. First signs were Trailer Warning alerts then progressed with GPS and backup camera outages. Now none of vehicles electronics seem to be function at or even NEAR 100 percent effective.

- Windsor, NY, USA

problem #70

Sep 182022

F-150

  • miles
While driving 5mph 5 minutes after starting the truck, the truck caught on fire and burst into flames after stalling out.

- Chamblee, GA, USA

problem #69

Sep 012022

F-150

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Backup camera failed/does not show anything on dash screen. Cannot see behind me when backing up. The dealer service center confirmed the failure and ordered a new wiring harness at my cost of $450. The dealer said the wiring harness for the camera needs to be replaced. The camera worked sporadically and then failed. There is now a message on my dash screen saying the camera does not work.

- Manitowoc, WI, USA

problem #68

Sep 012022

F-150

  • miles
My truck has an automatic start-stop feature. About twice a month, when I am at a stop and the auto stop shuts down the engine, the whole truck will shut down. I will then have to put the transmission into park, turn the key to off and then restart the truck. A warning light comes up on my front display which says Auto StartStop Shift to P, then Restart Engine. The A with the arrow around it is in orange. This has caused me many issues in traffic and I have been close to getting rear ended on multiple occasions because of it. I have had it to the dealer, Haldeman Ford of Kutztown, on 5 different occasions over the past 6 months and it is still not resolved. The dealership has replaced the battery, did a system reboot and replaced the starter. I have shown them pictures and videos of it happening. They put a computer scanner on my truck that I had to use to record when it happened which I did. They were also able to experience it themselves during one service appointment. My first service appointment was 3.14.2022

- New Tripoli, PA, USA

problem #67

Aug 112022

F-150

  • miles
I put the truck in park and left it idle with the air conditioning on for a passenger got out to go do something for a few minutes and the truck just started have flames come out of it from the middle of the truck until the truck completely burned the fire started with the truck running and idling and the the truck was parked on gravel

- Plymouth, PA, USA

problem #66

Jan 012019

F-150

  • miles
After starting the vehicle, at any time in under a minute the vehicle's engine will randomly shut off and display a message on the instrument cluster "Auto StartStop, Shift to P then Restart Engine". A photo of this message is included in this report. This issue can occur while in Park, Reverse, Neutral, or Drive. I have had it randomly occur to me upwards of 40 occasions over the past 3 years. A few times I have actually been driving at a slow speed (below 10 mph) when the engine stopped. So far for me, it seems to only happen when the engine RPM's are below 1500 or so. It feels like the engine shakes and then shuts off, then the dash chimes and displays the message mentioned above. I follow the instructions; I turn the ignition off, shift to Park, and restart the engine. Sometimes it starts back up fine and I am able to drive away. Other times the engine shuts off almost instantly and I have to try many, many times (10 to 20) to finally get the engine to stay on so I can drive it. If the engine were to stop while I was making a turn in a busy intersection or on a busy roadway, it would no doubt cause an accident and could be serious or even fatal since I would be unable to move. I have had this looked at by my local Ford Dealer Service shop and they have been unable to replicate the issue. I am not surprised by this since this appears to be random. They have told me to shut off my Auto Start/Stop feature and that is all they did. I have not had this issue looked at by Ford, police, or insurance since thankfully so far it has not occurred in an accident. The only warning message that appears is the "Auto StartStop, Shift to P then Restart Engine" on the cluster. I have not noticed and symptoms that result in this issue so far. This issue first appeared January 2020. Note: This has NOTHING to do with the Auto Start/Stop feature of the vehicle. I have had this issue occur when the Start/Stop feature is active and when it is disengaged.

- North Branch, MN, USA

problem #65

Jul 272022

F-150

  • miles
There wasnt an incident yet, but it was made a law that after may 1st, 2018, all new vehicles need rear view visibility systems. Ford made their vehicles have backup cameras, but they are faulty and stop working. Then charge consumers thousands of dollars to fix a safety issue that should be a recall, free of charge. I am filing a complaint om behalf of thousands and thousands of Ford owners. This law went into effect may 1st of 2018, According to USDOT and the National Highway Traffic safety administration. What ford is doing is wrong/unlawful and they should have to follow the law just like everyone else (even being an automobile company).

- Chalmette, LA, USA

problem #64

Jul 042022

F-150

  • miles
Engine doesn-€™t start when turning the key. When taking the key out and reinserted the engine starts. Auto stop start failure light displayed on dash while idling at a a stop light. Had to turn the ignition off and on several time while at the light. Vehicle has not been reported to the manufacturer or inspected yet. Vehicle is available for inspection upon request.

- Burnet, TX, USA

problem #63

Jun 042022

F-150

  • miles
After towing a trailer for a few hours, the truck has difficulty cranking over after the truck has been turned off for refueling. It seems like the battery or alternator are bad, but I have had both checked and they are in good shape. This only happens when pulling a trailer. This has happened multiple times. The safety concern is being stranded on a road trip. Others have this issue on the 2018 f150 as well. I have read about this. Some have said a wire is overheating.

- Downers Grove, IL, USA

problem #62

May 252019

F-150

  • miles
At 9,000 miles the oil ran dry in the engine. No warning lights came on. The vehicle had routine oil change at 5,000 miles. I was stranded on the road with no transportation. After several oil consumption test Ford agreed to replace the motor with a long block. After 1,000 miles on the second motor the oils was over 2 quarts low on oil. Ford remedy was a longer dipstick with wider oil range. After two oil consumption tests Ford change the motor again with short block. After 20 miles the one of the heads went bad. Ford replaced one head. After 75 miles the vehicle stopped running and is in the shop again. The vehicle has been in the shop for over 6 weeks at a time. I have requested a buy back twice.

- Hamilton, NJ, USA

problem #61

Feb 262022

F-150

  • miles
The F150 will stall when auto start/stop activates. This is a critical safety issue due to the vehicle becoming inoperable at intersections while stopped. The issue was reviewed several times by the dealership and issue persisted. The issue is still not repaired and mitigated by deactivating the system. This resulted in a lemon law lawsuit from me to ford with me winning a settlement for 8K dollars. However, this dangerous issue must be properly repaired. I am able to demonstrate this issue upon request. I have also have video of the incident with warning lights that activate.

- Hague, VA, USA

problem #60

Mar 222022

F-150

  • miles
Vehicle was inspected by the dealership and Ford inspector. VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL RELATED PROBLEMS OF THE 2018 Ford F-150. Backing up to an elevated driveway on a residential street. Braking at 0 mph and the vehicle accelerated at a speed which crashed the front end of the neighbor-€™s car parked at the top of the driveway. Those neighbors have two small children which play on that driveway and would have been killed. The neighbor heard the brakes screeching. I did not have my foot on the accelerator. This incident was reported to the police, the dealership and Ford which inspected the vehicle. They claim they did not find a problem, but there are a multitude of similar issues online. I received an recall email from NHTSA today, March 22, 2022 which I was convinced was FORD and NHTSA resolving this issue because the NHTSA information (in its brevity) seemed similar to what happened with our F-150. However, the NHTSA Campaign number 22V150000, recall number 22S11. However, our F-150 is a 5.0L engine.

- Clarkston, MI, USA

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