2023 Ford F-150 Steering Problems

The turn signal stalk on my 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning intermittently requires excessive force to manually cancel after turns and lane changes. The stalk self-cancels normally roughly 50% of the time, but when the steering wheel does not rotate far enough to trigger automatic cancellation the driver must manually return the stalk to center. The condition is most reliably reproduced when the cabin has been elevated in temperature for an extended period and subsides once cooled. The issue predominantly affects right-hand turns and lane changes. The affected component is the turn signal stalk switch pack (multifunction switch), available for inspection. Diagnostic scanning confirmed DTC B124C stored in the SCCM. Based on my research this code indicates a Turn Indicator Stalk Switch Pack fault. The safety risk is threefold: first, a stalk that does not self-cancel sends false signals to other drivers. Second, manually forcing the stalk back to center diverts driver attention from vehicle control. Third, when the stalk releases under applied force it does so suddenly and without warning, and if the driver's hand is on the steering wheel this can cause an involuntary steering input, risking unintended lane departure at highway speeds. I am the second owner, having purchased from a dealership at approximately 60,000 miles. The defect was present at purchase and has worsened progressively to approximately 76,000 miles. The vehicle has not been inspected by a dealer as it is outside warranty. No warning lamp is present; however DTC B124C is confirmed via diagnostic scanning. I documented the issue in a video post which received responses from numerous affected owners: [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11743666

Incident

Jun 11, 2026

While driving my 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor, the vehicle suddenly lost throttle response. The accelerator pedal produced no response and the engine would not rev even though the vehicle remained powered on. A battery warning light briefly illuminated at the time of the incident. I was able to bring the vehicle to a stop, but during the event the steering wheel became locked or extremely stiff and the vehicle did not respond normally to inputs. After stopping, I placed the truck in park and was unable to shift the transmission back out of park. The vehicle appeared to remain powered on but multiple systems were not responding. After pressing the start/stop button and cycling the vehicle, the issue cleared and the truck began operating normally again. Prior to this incident, the vehicle had already been scheduled to go to the dealership because it had been displaying numerous warning lights and diagnostic codes across multiple systems, totaling approximately 30 alerts. The vehicle was taken to a Ford dealership for diagnosis. The dealership reported codes indicating a network communication issue between vehicle modules but stated they were unable to reproduce the failure and no repair was performed. The dealership has requested that I take possession of the vehicle despite the unresolved cause of this failure. Given the loss of throttle response and steering function while the vehicle was in motion, I currently feel the vehicle is unsafe to operate until the underlying issue is identified and corrected. A sudden loss of throttle response and steering control while the vehicle is in motion creates a significant risk of collision, particularly in traffic or at highway speeds. The fact that the failure temporarily cleared after cycling the vehicle suggests a potential intermittent electronic or communication failure affecting critical vehicle control systems.

NHTSA ID

11722885

Incident

Feb 27, 2026

Complete electrical shut down driving on the highway on two separate occasions. While driving engine shuts off, dash board goes black, infotainment center goes black. Required to shift vehicle into park to restart after occurrence. Huge safety risk! When taken to Ford service; unable to find any issues and was told “vehicle is safe to drive”

NHTSA ID

11714037

Incident

Jan 22, 2026

Yesterday I went to pull straight out of my parking spot after I switched from park to drive and the steering was completely locked up, so I put it in reverse to get back into my parking spot .I then put it back into park, turned the truck off waited for a few seconds turned it back on and it was fine to drive home . No service lights came on.

NHTSA ID

11711619

Incident

Jan 16, 2026

The contact owns a 2023 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while the contact's son was driving, the steering wheel failed to steer in the intended direction, and the steering wheel seized. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the failure occurred while the contact's son was driving on a busy three-lane highway. The contact's vehicle crashed into another vehicle. No injuries were sustained. A Police report was filed. The contact was informed by the tow truck driver that the steering wheel had seized and the vehicle was inoperable to drive. The vehicle was towed to a local tow yard. In addition, the contact stated that the contact's vehicle and the other vehicle were both damaged; however the contact was still waiting for the insurance adjuster. The contact was advised by the insurance company to contact the NHTSA Hotline and report the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.

NHTSA ID

11709150

Incident

Dec 31, 2025

Mileage

65,000 mi

I’m very concerned about the actual malfunction of my entire steering rack & pinion assembly at just over 6,000 miles. The failure on my 2023 F150 (bought as NEW in Sept. 2024 from dealer w/ 1200 miles) occurred at more than 80 miles per hour when I had punched it to pass another vehicle. The steering became very wonky and was 'soft-locking' in stuttering positions – about 2 degrees apart in moving the steering wheel. It was very touch and go coming into town – even back at 60 mph. I was still hitting the hard spots and making all sorts of racket in full turns as we pulling into a parking lot to check it out. At that time, the only thing I could relate it to as far as how it felt was that the steering assist/ lane keeping assist was wanting to run the show. But I don’t use the feature and have only tried it a couple times since I got the truck – specifically to see how it felt. There was NO MESSAGE on the instruments. Anyway, my point is: this seems to be a serious safety issue, and I would think Ford would want to figure out what happened. The Ford dealership service manager kind of blew it off like, ‘well, stuff happens’. That’s all good and I’m not faulting him – they did a great job of repair, and the truck now drives like a new truck (new steering assembly shipped overnight from Memphis, TN to Livingston, TX) – steering is actually better that the first day I had it. It was always a little quirky in its ‘feel’ so I just thought it was kind of what it would be. Didn’t feel perfect but not enough to complain or even say anything about. I just figured Ford had done something that just gave the steering a little bit different feel. I’d really like to find out what the Ford engineers figure out and HOW could this have been a one-off thing? This seems like a very serious, potential safety issue. The dealership has not replied to 2 emails from their apparently automated 'are you happy with your service' inquiry.

NHTSA ID

11653124

Incident

Mar 23, 2025

My F-150 has been a nightmare since I purchased it in April. Ford dealers are unwilling to even look into my complaints. It has now got to the point where I cant drive the vehicle on the interstate because it is too unstable at those speeds. As in the steering wheel moves one way and the truck steers another. The truck is on its 3rd set of tires with only 30k miles on the odometer, but Ford always comes up with some excuse to blame it on me. That is not the case though, I've had 3 4X4 F-150s prior to this one, so I know what to expect from and how to drive a truck.

NHTSA ID

11639246

Incident

Jan 28, 2025

The contact owns a 2023 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the dealer informed them that there were chip shortages regarding the steering of the vehicle and that when a remedy was released they would be included. The contact had learned of the Ford Technical Serviced Bulletin with the NHTSA ID Number: 10243408 (Equipment, steering). The contact called the dealer who informed them the VIN was not included. The vehicle did not receive the upgrade. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer had referred the contact to file a safety complaint. The failure mileage was 15,100.

NHTSA ID

11619893

Incident

Jan 15, 2023

Mileage

151,100 mi

The contact owns a 2023 Ford F-150. The contact stated that a global supply shortage of semiconductor chips caused unavailability of the specific chip within the Steering Column Control Module (SCCM) required for heated steering wheel functionality. Causing his vehicle not to have heated steering wheel. The contact was relating the failure to a Heated Steering Wheel Performance Upgrade 22G06 he received. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact that Heated Steering Wheel Performance Upgrade 22G06 was no longer activate.

NHTSA ID

11606570

Incident

Mar 1, 2023

Hello regarding Ford’s program 22G06 for the steering wheel heated feature my truck was built during those times and selected plants and they state it’s not under NHTSA’s list of requirements?

NHTSA ID

11600574

Incident

Jul 9, 2024

My car should have been included in the recall to replace the heated steering wheel with this vehicle. Ford has decided that because they did not put a heating element in my steering wheel yet I got charged the $4000 for it and only got $140 credit. I do not think that is fair and should get it upgraded as the 2023 Ford F150 have except for my truck

NHTSA ID

11592019

Incident

Jun 2, 2024

When selecting the TOWING option on the dash cluster, the dash shuts off to a black screen and restarts while driving. This prevents seeing the speed and other dash information. The truck also sends warning to phone after dash shut off that power steering, ABS, seatbelt control, and airbag control is malfunctioning. Took to dealer and they were able to reproduce the issue. The replaced dash but did not fix. They escalated the issue to Ford who said they are working on it back in October. Still no fix.

NHTSA ID

11569980

Incident

Sep 19, 2023

When it’s below freezing, I am experiencing a loud humming/rumbling noise while driving. It last for a mile or two then stop. I haven't drove the vehicle much in fear or damaging anything. There are 2 other vehicle in my area experiencing the same issue & they have the same vehicle. I've been to dealer, they werent able to duplicate the issue but informed me a sales advisor there with the same truck is also having this issue but havent found a fix as it continues to happen. There are many compliants and videos online regarding this issue. Ford need to open an inverstigation into this issue and provide a recall/remedy.

NHTSA ID

11567507

Incident

Dec 19, 2023

Loud vibration while driving, similar to passing over a rumble strip, believed to originate from IWES operating in colder weather. Fear of damage from grinding parts effecting operation of 4WD system.

NHTSA ID

11560854

Incident

Nov 22, 2023

Truck will randomly start making rumble strip or like you have knobby tires noise from front end. You can put it in 4 high and back 2wd an it goes away.this has happened at different speed and differs temp.

NHTSA ID

11560710

Incident

Nov 7, 2023

Both front IWE’s are in question. When it’s cold out like below 32 degrees, I driving and hear a grinding noise. Sounds like a bearing type noise when they are stuck engage and one free spinning. The dealer told me if I hear noise again to engage/press 4high. The noise went away but not fixed.

NHTSA ID

11560431

Incident

Nov 1, 2023