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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
8 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
10,840 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 brakes problems

brakes problem

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2018 Ford F-150 Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #40

Mar 172024

F-150

  • miles

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

My 2018 F150 XLT had the low brake fluid light and message come across my onboard computer as I was driving. When I went to stop my truck to check my brake fluid level, my brake pedal went to the floor and slowly my truck came to a stop. Luckily, I did not collide with anything and was close to a store. I then bought more brake fluid because as it said, it was low, and was. I then proceeded to drive again, and the same thing happened within minutes, and then I checked under the truck for leaking brake fluid. There was none at this point I had no choice but to have my truck trailered to my home by my mechanic where he inspected my brake system, and then he proceeded to tell me that the rear seal on the brake master cylinder most likely blew out and all my brake fluid was leaking into my brake booster. My mechanic did some research and come to find out that this was a problem with Ford f150-??s matching my year. There is a recall for this exact problem on 2018 F150-??s but I did call the dealership and they proceeded to tell me that there was no recall on my truck. As more research was done come to find out that the recall was only on the F150-??s that had a bigger motor than mine. I don-??t understand why my truck does not have a recall because the brake master cylinders are the same and I could-??ve been in a serious car accident and hurt myself or my family if there was a vehicle in front of me when my brakes failed. This being said, I don-??t understand How my truck does not have a recall and that-??s why I am writing this complaint today. Please advise thank you.

- Bluffton, SC, USA

problem #39

Sep 062023

F-150

  • 26,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle and shifting to reverse, the vehicle immediately drove backwards however, while depressing the brake pedal, the pedal extended to the floor and the vehicle failed to stop. The contact quickly shifted into park to stop the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure had occurred on two separate occasions. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 26,000.

- Chesterfield, VA, USA

problem #38

Aug 162023

F-150

  • miles
Was headed out for ice cream with the wife and kids. On the way there we experienced total brake failure. I pulled over immediately upon hearing the alarm signaling low brake fluid. Reservoir was totally empty and zero fluid to be found on any lines. I added more fluid and 5 minutes later same thing. Had it towed to Malloy ford. Just like the re all on the 3.5L f-150 2016-2018 same failure. The Brake master cylinder failure caused leaking into brake booster causing complete loss of system pressure and total stopping failure.

- Louisa , VA, USA

problem #37

Jun 202023

F-150

  • miles

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

A seal in the rear of the brake master cylinder became compromised, allowing brake fluid to leak into the brake booster. This caused my brakes to fail and is a broken in many models of the truck.

- Glen Mills, PA, USA

problem #36

Jun 042023

F-150

  • miles
Complete loss of front brakes I would-??ve crashed my car if there was any traffic coming through the intersection. I-??ve ran through two red lights and almost rear-ended somebody. Ford has already done a recall on my vehicle for this issue, but somehow my Vin number was not included. My issue is identical to the issue described below in the recall that was issued https://www.torquenews.com/3769/ford-recalls-300k-f-150s-navigators-expeditions-fix-brake-cylinder-problem

- Kansas City, MO, USA

problem #35

May 302023

F-150

  • miles
While driving, received alert that the brake fluid level was low. After further review and adding brake fluid, it appears to have the same symptoms of Safety Recall 20S31 where brake fluid is leaking from the master cylinder into the brake booster but no physical evidence of a leak within the system The brake system would have basically failed with potential risks of an accident which would cause injury due to failure from being able to stop. Fortunately I parked the vehicle immediately. Ford does not recognize my truck as part of this recall but it has the same similar issues as the recall states.

- Ponder, TX, USA

problem #34

Apr 302023

F-150

  • miles

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

Leaking brake fluid into master cylinder and booster causing vehicle to have no brakes.

- St John, VI, USA

problem #33

Apr 242023

F-150

  • miles
The vehicle brake line hose ruptured. This vehicle currently has 40,000 miles and for this life safety defect/malfunction to occur shows that there is obviously a significant risk to not just my life but other owners as well. Lives are at risk and Ford could care less! Back in 2020 Ford Motors recalled over 1.3 million vehicles for this same exact issue.

- West Palm Beach , FL, USA

problem #32

Dec 282022

F-150

  • 78,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while coming to a stop, the vehicle made abnormal sounds as if the engine was revving, or the transmission was attempting to shift into another gear while the brake pedal was being depressed to slow down the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure occurred intermittently. The contact stated that after the initial start-up, the transmission was slightly hesitating before shifting into gear. The vehicle had been taken to a certified mechanic but was not diagnosed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 78,000.

- Florence, SC, USA

problem #31

Feb 042023

F-150

  • miles
The breaks have to be pushed too far down in order for truck to stop. I have had the breaks professionally bled and still-€¦ in order to come to a complete stop I have to put quite a bit of pressure for my truck to remain stopped at a red light. I hit a bicyclist crossing the road because my truck moved forward. There have been a few times I almost rolled into an intersection to oncoming traffic because I let my foot off the break just a hair but still applying a lot of pressure. This is VERY dangerous and can cause death. This needs to be looked at because I see a lot of people are having this problem or there have been recalls on other ford f150-€™s but my f150 didn-€™t have a recall for it. Please look into this for the sake of my life and my children-€™s and others.

- Rochester, NY, USA

problem #30

Aug 162022

F-150

  • 41,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The contact was able to jumpstart the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the brake controller was defective and was draining the battery. The independent mechanic diagnosed that the brake controller needed to be replaced. The part was replaced. The vehicle was then taken the local dealer where the brake controller was reprogrammed; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 41,000.

- Hidalgo, IL, USA

problem #29

Aug 312022

F-150

  • miles
Brakes failed, without prior notice. Brake fluid leaking out immediately upon refilling. Had to have truck towed to Ford Autonation Scottsdale 8555 E Frank Lloyd Write Blvd, Scottsdale 85260. Technician stated that Brake Master Cylinder leaking from the rear seal and into the brake booster. Needed to replace the master cyinder AND brake booster. This is the identical situation that initiated the recall notice NTHSA#22V150 and Ford recall #22S11. This truck was manufactured at the Ford Kansas City Assembly plant, the exact same plant that is involved in this recall. However because my truck is not the engine type covered un the recall, my repairs were not covered, even though it is the identical problem performed at the exact same plant.

- Scottsdale, AZ, USA

problem #28

Oct 012021

F-150

  • 35,000 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle would not immediately stop or slow down. The contact indicated that the failure was intermittent and had occurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was taken to two different dealers who were unable to duplicate the failure or determine a cause for the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 35,000.

- Middleburg, PA, USA

problem #27

Jan 012022

F-150

  • miles
Front Hubs, Bearings have gone bad, and they are on backorder. 6500 on waiting list. I have been on this list since Janurary. Was told today that the company making the part, are not even make them. This could cause an accident if the bearings lockup. The ABS and the traction control does not work. Making for unsafe driving. Especially with fall and winter coming.

- Frederick, CO, USA

problem #26

Aug 122022

F-150

  • miles
Brake fluid was leaking internally into the booster. This caused a low level brake fluid alarm with an immediate soft pedal resulting a significant delay in braking response. Ford has issued a recall for this specific master cylinder leak. However, my vehicle shows no recalls.

- Windsor, CO, USA

problem #25

May 272022

F-150

  • miles
While driving down the highway at the speed limit (75 mph), my truck suddenly lost power and partially lost braking. The engine was still running but was running at an idle speed RPM. Both an audible voice and a message on the driver information panel said "drive mode not available, service is needed" Braking power was partially lost at the same time. Steering power seemed normal but braking power was also partially lost at the same time. My truck started slowing down, obviously, and as soon as a shoulder was available, I pulled over onto the shoulder and let my vehicle speed decrease. I only had partial braking power (I estimate less than 30%) so was unable to quickly come to a full stop. As my truck slowed to a speed of about 5 mph, it suddenly started working again, although an icon shaped like a wrench appeared at the bottom center of the driver information panel. At the same time of the issue described above, the air conditioning and air blower fully stopped at the same time, and the multifunction display used for audio and navigation went blank for a moment and reset itself. When it came back on the navigation portion of the screen gave a "GPS faulted" error. I was able to finish driving to work, where I parked the vehicle. Later, after work, and after the vehicle had been parked for several hours, the truck behaved normally, the wrench icon was gone and there was no indication at all that there had been any issue. I was in congested traffic at the time of the event and it could have resulted in a serious highway traffic accident involving multiple vehicles.

- Beaumont, TX, USA

problem #24

Apr 092022

F-150

  • miles
I was driving on a local road and i try to braking and i didn't get any response from my brakes for more than 10 seconds was very scary thank you god i do not have any vehicle in the front of me. I need your prompt attention to this situations i have 2 kids and my beautiful wife i don't want nothing happening. Thank you.

- New Port Richey, FL, USA

problem #23

Apr 032022

F-150

  • miles
The brakes went all the way to the floor. Indicated lights such as (brake) and (brake fluid low) came on. I contacted Ford about this issue and they said my vehicles VIN number is not listed under the 22S14 recall for this problem so at this time they cannot fix it.

- Clinton, AR, USA

problem #22

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

problem #21

Jan 122022

F-150

  • miles
Parked 2018 F-150 on slight incline facing downhill. 12' dump trailer attached with load of 2000 lbs. Put transmission in park and set park brake. While preparing to unload trailer, I think I heard a popping sound. Then the truck suddenly began to roll downhill. It traveled about 70 feet before crashing into two parked cars. I ran to the truck and confirmed the transmission was in park and the brake indicator light was on, confirming that I had set the park brake. The truck had rolled freely with no indication of resistance from the brakes or transmission. Considerable damage was done to my truck, the trailer, and the two parked cars. My truck was towed but repairs have not yet begun and no cause has been determined as to why both the park brake and the transmission failed at the same time.

- Charleston, WV, USA

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