2021 Ford F-150 Hybrid Brakes Problems

The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the ABS, auto collision, and traction control warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel while depressing the brake pedal. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed with a defective electronic brake booster. The vehicle was repaired by the dealer. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V533000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) which the contact linked to the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in the recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 43,000.

NHTSA ID

11610853

Incident

Aug 12, 2024

Mileage

43,000 mi

If you pull onto a road and try to accelerate, the vehicle is unresponsive. The RPMs will increase, yet the vehicle drive train (10 Speed Transmission) is unresponsive for several seconds. This has been an ongoing issue with the vehicle since new and was first reported to Ford Customer service on Jan 2022. Ford has made several attempts to fix this issue, yet the transmission continues to fail with the same issue. This is a critical safety issue that jeopardizes the passengers in the vehicle. Vehicle parking brake engages without notice. At any given time, the electronic parking brake engages without warning and you have to manually release. While sitting at a controlled intersection, on an inclined street, waiting for traffic light to change, with vehicle in Drive, foot on the brake, the electric parking brake engaged. Vehicle shift lever moved to the park position on its own. Vehicle engages it's parking brake and moves shift lever into Park while sitting in traffic is very dangerous. Vehicle shift column failed in drive and vehicle would not move or run. This caused drive train to lock in place, freezing all four tires. Ford had to drag truck onto flat bed with tires locked. It had to be dragged off flatbed when delivered to Ford dealer for repair. They had to put grease down on the flatbed so truck would slide off without tires rolling. While at the dealership, the mechanic had to manually disconnect the calipers in order to move vehicle. The safety backup features failed and would not release wheels (lever under steering column).

NHTSA ID

11585878

Incident

Apr 25, 2024

On November 29, 2023 I took my 2021 F150 to Larry Miller Ford for servicing and repairs related to Recalls 22S71 and 23S35. When the tech was rotating the wheels he discovered that the axle shaft bolts were sheered off on both the left and right rear wheels. The service manager called to tell me that this was a serious safety issue and that only the brake rotors were preventing the wheels from falling off the truck. The service manager told me there was a "Customer Satisfaction Program 22B34" issued by Ford, but no Ford Recall relating to the problem. Larry Miller Ford has replaced both axles and axle bolts. I am waiting to find out if there is damage to the rotors, calipers or brake pads, a concern since the sheered off bolts were rattling around within that area since breaking off apparently between service visits. I strongly believe Ford should be required to issue a recall on this problem. I never received a notification on CSP 22B34. Had it not been for my tire rotation, the wheels could have fallen off at highway speed.

NHTSA ID

11557734

Incident

Nov 29, 2023

Electronic parking brake activated unexpectedly at low speed after taking off from a stop. From a stop traveling downhill at a low rate of speed, the parking break activated and caused the truck to skid to a halt three times causing a safety issue for drivers around the vehicle. Manually deactivated the electronic parking brake each time and after forward movement at about 5 mph, it activated again. After the fourth attempt to start forward movement, the electronic parking brake stayed off. After doing research, recall 23V-509 came up but this specific VIN does not appear to be tagged under that recall.

NHTSA ID

11538361

Incident

Aug 12, 2023

This is the 4th time since purchasing the truck that this event has happened with time having the most severe results. When shifting from reverse to park the shifter goes into park and jumps back into reverse. First event (after exiting the truck) the truck rolled into a shipping dock breaking a taillight and buckling the rear bumper. Next two I had one foot on running board and one foot in the truck ant was able to hit the brake stopping the truck. This fourth event one foot was on the running board and one on the ground. As truck went back the door flattened me to the ground and the front tires rolled over both of my legs. The truck rolled up an inclined parking lot, across a busy road and down a bank. I was driven by ambulance to the hospital and then transferred and airlifted to trauma center at Ruby Memorial Hospital. After the second event the local Ford dealer said they could not duplicate the event. The brakes do not hold even though they are depressed and set when the shifter is shifted.

NHTSA ID

11537888

Incident

Jul 12, 2023

2021 FORD F150. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO SAFETY RECALL 21S56. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE BEGAN ROLLING WHILE IN PARK AND THE ENGINE POWERED OFF. THE VEHICLE STRUCK A TRASH CAN. THE VEHICLE WAS SCHEDULED FOR AN APPOINTMENT TO BE DIAGNOSED.

NHTSA ID

11459235

Incident

Apr 1, 2022

Brakes failed to stop vehicle when entering my garage. Vehicles brake pedal went all the way to the floor board while truck continued to roll crashing into garage wall damaging personal items stored in garage as well as drywall, studs, and hair-line vertical cracks in exterior brick veneer. I have security video of the complete incident.

NHTSA ID

11450566

Incident

Feb 4, 2022

My trucks integrated brake controller will not consistently control the electric trailer brakes. I plug in the trailer and get confirmation that it is controlling the brakes by manually testing them while rolling and at some point during the trip it stops controlling them without warning. I have tried all methods to be sure the 7 pin connection is seated properly and I am sure it is. I have a 7 pin tester and when I check the electric output at the plug it lights up the circuit (BK) for the brakes. When traveling and I realize I no longer can control the trailer brakes, I pull over and unplug the trailer, plug in the tester and when squeezing the brake controller it will not light up the circuit marked (BK). If I leave it disconnected and shutoff the truck for 15+ minutes and reconnect, it works again only to stop again at some unknown point. There is obviously a seriously dangerous issue here. I have taken it to the Ford dealer and they can't find anything wrong. When it resets you can't duplicate it until you tow for an undermined distance for it to fail again. I have searched the internet and found many people with the same issue and no one has been able to get it solved by all manner of efforts including many efforts at Ford dealers and electrical shops. This form asks for the date it occurred. It started as soon as I took delivery with 5 miles and is ongoing.

NHTSA ID

11450382

Incident

Feb 4, 2022

The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 36 MPH and approaching an intersection, the brake pedal was depressed and went to the floorboard. The vehicle continued through the intersection. The anti-lock brakes warning light then illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure however, no further assistance was provided. The approximate failure mileage was 1,500.

NHTSA ID

11448956

Incident

Jan 7, 2022

Mileage

1,500 mi

The trailer brake on my truck is not working consistently. When coming down a snowy mountain pass two days ago, the bake controller disconnected (after working for about 5 hours). This is incredibly dangerous and due to the fact that I am on a cross country road trip and all dealers are booked months in advance I have not been able to get any information from Ford. I am going to post links to other people having this same problem. This has happened since the truck was purchased. This is an incredibly dangerous situation and I would have expected more from a Ford Truck. I believe based on these other peoples experiences that the issue is with the Powerboost Hybrid specifically. Motor Trend even noticed this in their review: Software Struggles We also intended to evaluate how much the electric motor's torque helps with towing, only to be thwarted by another bug, this one in the trailer brake controller. No matter what we did, the integrated trailer brake controller would not activate the trailer brakes—even with the gain all the way up. We verified the issue was with this F-150 by hitching the trailer to another truck, where the trailer brake controller and trailer brakes worked fine. Link to Motor Trend Review: https://www.motortrend.com/news/2021-ford-f-150-powerboost-hybrid-review/ Other Examples of customers experiencing the same problem. https://tfltruck.com/2021/08/ask-tfl-ford-150-trailer-electrical-issues/ (read the comments at the bottom of the article) https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/trailer-brake-failure.5105/ https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/trailer-brake-not-working.3039/page-2 https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/trailer-tow-power-issue.3259/ https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/trailer-towing-issues.2619/

NHTSA ID

11445442

Incident

Dec 26, 2021

While towing an RV trailer, the trucks brake controller failed to send signal to trailer when brakes were applied relying on truck only to stop load. The truck recognized trailer was attached but when brake controller was squeezed message on dash was “No Trailer” Stopped at dealer in Kerrville Tx but problem was not seen on scan tool. This issue seems to be intermittent with no warning message when it happens. Manually monitoring brake controller is the only way to determine if the trucks brake controller is functioning correctly. Consumer took the truck in to 2 different dealers with this trailer brake issue. Both dealers wanted to assume the truck loses connection with trailer. Consumer stated truck does not, the trailer brakes just stop working. Consumer stated has taken the truck to 2 different dealers with this trailer brake issue. Both dealers want to assume the truck loses connection with trailer. Consumer truck does not but trailer brakes just stop working. The attached picture shows me squeezing the brake controller while showing the brakes lights coming on on the rear camera.

NHTSA ID

11443519

Incident

Nov 22, 2021

2021 F150 XLT Powerboost (4x4, 9420 miles). Brakes failed while at a complete stop and truck propelled forward despite brake pedal being being pressed down. I was in a fast food drive through at a complete stop with my foot on the brake pedal and the instrument cluster went crazy, warning lights flashing, malfunction messages for what seemed like everything (believe pre-collision, ABS, traction, hill, and some others- cant recall for sure), warning chimes sounding non stop, the brake pedal dropped towards the floor board, and truck started moving forward despite pressing pedal as far down as I could; this all happened almost instantly. Pumped breaks (not sure if it did anything) but I barley stopped in time from hitting the car in front of me, and I left a far amount of room between us initially. After this, when limping the truck through the drive through (was stuck in the line at this point), it took about 10ft to stop from a 1-2mph roll. After clearing the drive through line, I was limping the truck to open area of parking lot and the truck randomly bucked (like bump starting a manual) and all the instrument cluster warnings disappeared and brake pedal pressure and braking performance returned. Just as how the issue instantly occurred, it also disappeared instantly. Despite all the warnings on the cluster, only ABS Fault and Pre-Collision show on the FordPass app. Prior to to this, there were no issues. The vehicle has yet to be inspected by Ford as the service department is booked out for bit. Vehicle has since been parked as I am fearful a 6k lb vehicle without brakes can end with loss of life. Interesting enough, Ford does not seem to share this concern as their Roadside Assistance Dept says the truck does not have towing coverage while their Customer Care Team says it does but they can't work with each other and end result is I had to prepay $273.06 to Ford Roadside Assistance for the tow to the future service appointment, and maybe Ford might reimburse it.

NHTSA ID

11441828

Incident

Nov 24, 2021

Towing faults. Trailer brake faults. System resets itself after truck shuts down and problems go away until an unknown later time. These problems can happen at any time while towing and can cause the tow vehicle to loose control especially when brakes are applied. Happened many times over a 4800 mile trip. The work around fix is to stop every now and then, turn off truck and wait 15 min before reattaching trailer wiring. This problem has not be reproduced by a dealer because the problem goes away after the truck sits and resets itself. At first a trailer module fault would appear when the problem started, after some time the faults would not appear and the trailer brake module would just stop working without warning.

NHTSA ID

11438029

Incident

Aug 20, 2021

When towing a trailer with trailer brakes, the trailer brakes are tested and confirmed to be working at the beginning of the journey, but at some point during the journey, the trailer brakes will stop working with no indication compromising my stopping ability. This issues has occurred multiple time and can confirm there are no problems with the trailer brakes themselves. This same issue is being reported by multiple other 2021 F150 owners.

NHTSA ID

11431137

Incident

Aug 30, 2021

THE TRAILER BRAKING SYSTEM ON MY NEW 2021 F150 POWERBOOST MALFUNCTIONS EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE. WHILE TOWING MY 27 FT AIRSTREAM TRAILER THE BRAKES WILL OFTEN STOP WORKING. THEY ALWAYS WORK WHEN I BEGIN A TRIP, BUT THEN THE BRAKES FAIL DURING THE TRIP. I RECEIVE A NOTICE WHEN ATTEMPTING TO MANUALLY APPLY TRAILER BRAKES FROM INSIDE THE CAB THAT THE TRAILER IS NOT RECOGNIZED. SEVERAL OTHER NEW F150 POWERBOOST OWNERS ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME ISSUE AND THEIR EXPERIENCES CAN BE FOUND ON THE F150GEN14.COM USER FORUM. I HAVE INCLUDED A LINK TO THE FORUM THREAD. https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/trailer-brake-not-working.3039/ SO FAR NONE OF US HAVE ANY SUCCESS WORKING WITH FORD DEALERS. I HAVE TRIED SEVERAL AND THEY ARE NOT HELPFUL. I ALSO CALLED FORD CUSTOMER SERVICE BUT THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING IN THEIR DATABASE INDICATING THERE IS A PROBLEM. THE ONLY CLUE I'VE FOUND SO FAR, FOR MY TRUCK, HAS TO DO WITH THE SEVEN PIN PLUG. WE HAVE TRIED TWO DIFFERENT TESTING DEVICES AND BOTH SHOW THERE IS ABOUT A 6 SECOND DELAY SENDING A SIGNAL TO THE EBRAKE PIN. THE OTHER PINS FOR LIGHTS FIRE IMMEDIATELY, BUT THE EBRAKE PIN HAS A DELAY. OTHERS ARE LOOKING AT THE BRAKE MODULE IN THE TRUCK AND OTHER PROGRAMMING ISSUES. AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE USER FORUM THERE ARE MANY THEORIES AND NO SOLID SOLUTIONS YET. I HAVE HAD MY AIRSTREAM BRAKES INSPECTED TWICE AND THEY HAVE NOT FOUND ANYTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE A 7K LB TRAILER PUSHING YOU DOWN A STEEP MOUNTAIN WITH NO BRAKES IS TERRIFYING. SOMEONE IS GOING TO HAVE A SERIOUS ACCIDENT IF FORD DOES NOT TAKE THE ISSUE SERIOUSLY AND FIND THE CAUSE.

NHTSA ID

11431034

Incident

Jun 30, 2021

Trailer brakes although operational at start of journey intermittently fail to operate some time thereafter at which point they stay failed. This happens without any warning or notice to the driver. All indications are that trailer is attached correctly e.g. vehicle self diagnosis of trailer lights shows lights operational and trailer connected. Operating the trailer brake via. dash brake controller either shows normal BUT no trailer braking occurs OR will show an error message "No Trailer Attached" but trailer attachment is verified through trailer lights shown (by truck) as operational. Safety implications of this should be obvious - no trailer brakes will force truck to stop truck+trailer combo using only the truck brakes, leading to drastically increased stopping distance or possibility of brake failure e.g. on long downhill stretch of road. Dealer is unable to reproduce the problem, has suggested changing brake controller (but really for lack of other ideas) and agrees that the physical fit/dimensions of the trailer plug itself seem poor quality compared to other trucks - possible cause? Other instances of owners experiencing this problem are documented in this forum thread: https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/trailer-brake-not-working.3039

NHTSA ID

11429169

Incident

Jul 25, 2021

I bought a new 2021 F-150 Powerboost exactly 60 days ago, drove approximately 1500 miles until I completely lost brakes on the car almost causing an accident. I brought the car over to the dealer Cross-Roads Ford of APEX and after one day with my truck, they diagnosed the issue, made software updates to all modules, and returned the car. I got the car and within 5 minutes from the dealer, lost brakes again and had to manage to stop the vehicle... Returned to the dealer and it's in for diagnosis again but they asked me to contact Ford. This is not acceptable, I put my family at risk twice and possibly others in the road with this truck. Opened a case with Ford CAS-32036511-Y0W3W4.

NHTSA ID

11420244

Incident

Jun 7, 2021