Owner-reported complaints naming the steering system, filed with NHTSA
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Reports naming the steering system — racks, columns, power-steering assist and steering linkage. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2006 Ford F-250 submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 78 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
The 25 most recent of 78, in the owner's own words
While driving on the freeway the vehicle started to shake violently. I had to pump the breaks slowly and pull to the side of the road. After checking everything we took it to the shop and they did 2k in repairs and said it was fixed. It did it again. They said they don't know what it is.
Our truck has been doing the "death wobble" several times over the last 2 years. The truck will suddenly shake violently at high speeds and go into limp mode. We have to pull over pumping the brakes slowly. It is EXTREMELY TERRIFYING to have happen and we have spent THOUSANDS trying to get it repaired but it continues.
Purchased my truck last year and was unaware of problems with this truck.whikr traveling couple miles from my home on a paved two lane road I ran over a small gravel or walnut which immediately sent my truck into uncontrollably shaking in the front end my speed was between 30 and 35 mph it was all I could do to get it to the side of the road and stopped.Shaking I got out and looked underneath the front thinking I had a wheel or something about to come off.I couldn't see anything noticeable loose.So I got back in and very slowly continued to my destination.Since then it has happened more times than I can count small hump or raised pavement or even a hole in the road will send it into a shaking fit all I can do is try and get to the side of the road and come to a stop.Im in a fix as this is the only vehicle I own and I can't afford to buy another and no one knows what to do to fix it.I feel like I'm riding in a death trap Everytime I have to run out I try and stay on the back roads where I don't have as much traffic and don't have to go as fast having this happen on the interstate is extremely scary not to mention trying to get to the side of the road and not get ran over by tractor trailers.When I purchased this truck it only had around 53,000 miles on it and is still under 60,000.Ive seen read about the problem Ford is having and that they are doing nothing about it.I think this is a disgrace for a company my own father worked for them for 15 years and it's ashame they don't care about their reputation or their company or the safety of their customers and families.I want my truck added to the list of the ticking time bombs they have out on the road.
My son was driving on the freeway, traveling approximately 83 mph, when the vehicle lost power, the engine stalled and he lost the ability to steer the vehicle properly. The vehicle was parked at nearest gas station until i could get to it. After inspecting engine, I noticed some wires that had the insulation coming off. I replaced wiring harness, and when doing so, found the main harness to be severely chafed from rubbing the under side of air filter ducts. When looking around engine bay I noticed other wires with insulation coming off too.
The front end wanders and grabs any road deformities severely enough to put you in another lane
On 6/25/2022 I experienced violent shaking at freeway speed in southern California. The vehicle was difficult to control - the steering wheel shook violently, and it could be felt throughout the vehicle. The ride was completely smooth when I began the freeway drive; the problem came on all of a sudden, then continued at all speeds, but was particularly violent over 50 MPH. I have not had it inspected yet, but research revealed this is most likely the Ford "Death Wobble" affecting F250 and F350 trucks years 2005 to 2021. I haven't discerned all the information yet as to how to make repairs. My understanding is the cause is inadequate front end suspension parts, a Ford manufacturing safety issue. Mine is a 2006 model, and some articles report that year was notably the worse. There was no traffic accident, no police report was filed, and we made it home safely. There were no warning lights or messages. The truck is not under warranty.
In two separate instances, traveling on the highway, after going over a bridge transition, the steering wheel and front end began to shake violently. This shaking reverberated throughout the truck causing me to have to slow down immediately and exit the freeway. This was the only thing that stopped the shaking. This is commonly referred to as the “Death Wobble”.
Not quite sure what component or system is failing/malfunctioning. Best way to describe what is happening, "Death Wobble". No other simpler way to put it. No auto store/dealer has any solid answer. Simply put, almost killed my entire family on the highway and not to mention other drivers on the highway. Driving fine then any bumps/grooves in the road instantly sends the entire vehicle into this VIOLENT shaking mess. To stop the shaking, we have to TRY (because once it starts shaking, it's almost like the steering is freezing up) to stop the vehicle completely. Once stopped, we take off like nothing ever happened until the next set of bumps/grooves. We have taken the truck to auto mechanics, we explain what is going on and INSTANTLY they inform us that we are not alone in this and there's really nothing you can do without constantly changing parts, etc. but there is "no" fix. No warnings, messages, nothing. Basically have to hold on for dear life and ride in the far right lanes so you have a better chance of pulling off on the side of the road without being smashed to death. We literally fear for our families lives in this truck but what can you do when it's pretty much all you got.
DEATH WOBBLE WHILE ON FREEWAY GOING 45 + MPH
I WAS TRAVELING ON I-40 EAST BETWEEN I-95 AND WILMINGTON NC. I WAS TRAVELING 75 MPH WHEN I HIT A BUMP AND THE TRUCK FRONT END STARTED SHAKING VIOLENTLY AND UNCONTROLLABLY. I THOUGHT THE STEERING WHEEL WAS GOING TO COME LOOSE. I IMMEDIATELY HIT THE BRAKES, AND HAD TO ALMOST COME TO A COMPLETE STOP TO RECOVER CONTROL. THANKFULLY THERE WAS NO ONE TRAVELING TO CLOSE BEHIND ME OR IT WAS HAVE PROBABLY BEEN A BAD ACCIDENT. THIS HAPPENED 2 MORE TIMES BEFORE I GOT TO MY DESTINATION. IT HAS ALSO HAPPENED AT 45 MPH AFTER HITTING A POTHOLE OR A BUMP IN THE ROAD. IT IS VERY FRIGHTENING WHEN IT HAPPENS.
AT SPEEDS OF OVER 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE SHAKES VIOLENTLY TO THE POINT OF LOSING CONTROL OF STEERING. IN ADDITION, AT SPEEDS OF OVER 15 MPH, THE STEERING WHEEL HAS SO MUCH PLAY THAT ROUGH ROADS CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO TRAVEL LEFT OR RIGHT AND HUGE CORRECTIONS NEED TO BE MADE IN ORDER TO KEEP FROM DRIFTING INTO OTHER LANES. BOTH THESE ISSUES ARE CONSITENT
AT 145,000 MILES, A STEERING ISSUE DEVELOPED. 3 MILES AWAY FROM HOME, AT A 4-WAY STOP, I TURN RIGHT TO GO TO WORK. THE STEERING WHEEL GETS "STUCK" AND IS HARD TO TURN BACK TO THE LEFT TO CENTER THE F250 IN MY LANE. 1 MILE LATER, ANOTHER RIGHT TURN, AND THE PROBLEM BECOMES SCARY. THE WHEEL IS STIFF TO TURN TO THE LEFT AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE STEERING WHEEL AND THE TRUCK ZOOM TO THE LEFT, I STEER RIGHT AND IT IS SLOW AND STIFF AND THEN RESPONDS WITHOUT WARNING ZIPPING ME TO THE RIGHT. I'M ON THE HIGHWAY AT THIS POINT, DOING 35MPH WAITING FOR THE PROBLEM TO CLEAR UP. AT FIRST, THE PROBLEM CLEARED UP WITHIN A MILE, BUT TODAY IT TOOK 5 MILES. THE PROBLEM IS THEN GONE FOR THE REST OF MY 30 MILE TRIP TO WORK. SAME THING, SAME PLACE EVERYDAY. THIS ALSO HAPPENS ON THE WAY HOME FROM WORK. A MILE AWAY FROM THE PARKING SPACE I HAVE THE FIRST SYMPTOM AND THEN ALL HELL BRAKES LOOSE ON THE NEXT TURN. CRAZY STEERING FOR A FEW MILES AND THEN SMOOTH SAILING THE REST OF THE WAY HOME. PLANNING ON REPLACING THE STEERING GEARBOX AND POWER STEERING PUMP THIS WEEKEND.
I HAVE A 2006 FORD F250 SUPER DUTY 4X4 PICK UP W/ 61.00 MILES , THAT HAS A DEATH WOBBLE WHEN DRIVING OVER 45 MPH. I HAVE REPLACED BOTH HUBS AND SEALS, SHOCKS, STEERING DAMPER, STABILIZER BAR LINKS AND INNER & OUTER TIE RODS. HAVE HAD THE TIRES BALANCED TWICE AND A FRONT END ALIGNMENT. DOES THIS FALL UNDER A RECALL? I HAVE SEEN SERVICE BULLETINS ON THIS. THEY SEEM TO HAVE REPLACED THE SAME PARTS THAT I DID. IS THERE A FIX, AS THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS? THIS DEATH WOBBLE HAPPENS EVERY DAY, SMOOTH OR ROUGH ROADS.
WHEN DRIVING ABOUT 55 AND IT STARTED SHAKING AND WOBBLING LIKE THOUGHT WE WERE GOING TO FLIP OR SOMETHING. IVE READ A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE HAVING THIS ISSUE.
WHEN DRIVING OVER UNEVEN PAVEMENT, TRUCK STARTS VIBRATING AND SHAKING VIOLENTLY WITHOUT WARNING. NEW CORRECT SIZE AND PROPERLY INFLATED TIRES AND SHOCKS INSTALLED 2 MONTHS AGO.
SHIMMY CREATING EARLY WEAR IN STEERING GEAR AND FRONT END COMPONENTS.
AT FREEWAY SPEEDS THE TRUCK HAS ENCOUNTERED THE "DEATH WOBBLE". FORD KNOWS OF THIS PROBLEM AND HAS MAILED ME A LETTER ABOUT. WHEN THIS HAPPENED I THOUGH I BLEW OUT ONE OF THE FRONT TIRES. THE STEERING SHOCK VIOLENTLY ALONG WITH THE FRONT END OF THE TRUCK. IT WAS VERY SCARY AND DANGEROUS. AT THE TIME OF THE DEATH WOBBLE I WAS ON THE FREEWAY DRIVING AT APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH. THIS OCCURRED FOUR TIMES IN JULY OF 2013 AND ON JANUARY 7TH, 2018.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 FORD F-250. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH, A LOUD SNAPPING SOUND WAS HEARD FROM THE FRONT END OF THE VEHICLE. THE DRIVER SUDDENLY LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FRONT TIE RODS FRACTURED DUE TO RUST AND CORROSION. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 120,000. UPDATED 04/06/17LJ UPDATED 09/1/2017 *JS
TRUCK "DEATH WOBBLE" - DRI\VING ON I 25 AT ABOUT 60 MPH WE HIT A SMALL BUMP IN THE ROAD AND THE TRUCK BEGAN TO VIOLENTLY SHAKE. WE THOUGHT WE HAD A BLOWOUT, BUT THE TIRES WERE OK. IN FACT, BEFORE OUR TRIP WE HAD OUR TIRES CHECKED AND WERE TOLD THEY WERE FINE. AFTER GOING TO A DEALER I HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM CALLED THE "DEATH WOBBLE". IT IS AN ENGINEERING DEFECT AND HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH TIRES AS FORD WOULD LIKE TO ASSUME. I RECEIVED A NOTICE FROM FORD IN DEC 2015 ACKNOWLEDGING THE "SEVERE VIBRATION" AND BLAMING IT ON THE TIRES. IT IS NOT THE TIRES IT IS AN ENGINEERING DEFECT. WHAT IS BEING DONE REGARDING A RECALL TO FIX THIS PROBLEM? UNLESS YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED THE VIOLENT SHAKING YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW TERRIFYING IT IS AND THE POTENTIAL TO CAUSE A SERIOUS IF NOT DEADLY ACCIDENT. I KNOW I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE COMPLAINING AS I HAVE READ NUMEROUS ACCOUNTS ON FORUMS, SEEN YOUTUBE VIDEOS AND HAD THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT FROM A DEALER ABOUT THE PROBLEM!!!. PLEASE HELP.
PLEASE REOPEN THIS INVESTIGATION. EVERY PERSON THAT I KNOW WITH A FORD F250 4X4 HAS THIS PROBLEM ON OCCASION. YOUR FAILURE TO MAKE FORD FIX WILL KILL SOMEONE. HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE TO DIE? DATE INVESTIGATION OPENED: MAR 14, 2008 DATE INVESTIGATION CLOSED: MAR 31, 2009 NHTSA ACTION NUMBER: EA08007 COMPONENT(S): SUSPENSION MY TRUCK HAS 60,000 MILES NOW AND I HAVE REPLACED ALL 4 TIRES NEARLY 3 DIFFERENT TIMES IN THE LAST 15,000 MILES. THAT'S AN AVERAGE OF TIRES LAST 5000 MILES. I HAVE ENCOUNTERED THIS PROBLEM MANY TIMES, AND CONSTANTLY GET A "RUN-AROUND" THAT IT'S THE TIRES. MY TIRES ARE PROPERLY INFLATED. YESTERDAY, I WAS TRAVELLING ON INTERSTATE 45 YESTERDAY AT 70 MPH'S AND TRAFFIC SUDDENLY SLOWED TO A CRAWL. I HAD TO APPLY MY BRAKES AGGRESSIVELY AND WHEN I HIT A CERTAIN SPEED BETWEEN 35MPH AND 60 MPH, THE TRUCK BEGAN TO RANDOMLY BOUNCE AND WAS COMPLETELY UNCONTROLLABLE. I COULDN'T EVEN STEER. I NEARLY CRASHED INTO SEVERAL VEHICLES ON THE ROAD. WHILE THE FRONT END OF THE VEHICLE WAS VIOLENTLY BOUNCING (IT BOUNCED SO VIOLENTLY IT BROKE A FOLDING DOWN TV MOUNT / MOUNTED IN THE CEILING OF THE TRUCK), I HUNG ONTO THE STEERING WHEEL FOR DEAR LIFE (LIKE HANGING ONTO A BULL 8 SECONDS) AND CONTINUED TO SLOW EVEN FURTHER, AND ULTIMATELY HAD TO DRIVE OFF INTO THE GRASS ELSE I WAS GOING TO CRASH. THE DEATH WOBBLE WENT AWAY WHEN I APPROACHED A COMPLETE STOP < 15MPH. IN THE SAME TRUCK, I HAVE HAD THIS DEATH WOBBLE INCIDENT HAPPEN OVER 200 TIMES SINCE OWNING THE VEHICLE. I HAVE EVEN HAD THIS SAME PROBLEM HAPPEN WHILE HAULING CAR'S ON CAR TRAILERS. IT IS SCARY. AFTER MARKET MFRS MAKE CLAIMS THAT IT'S DUE TO THE TRACK BAR AND BUSHINGS AND THESE KITS ARE AVAILABLE TO FIX THE ISSUE, BUT FORD AND THE TSA DENIES ITS A REAL PROBLEM. BEFORE I PAY OUT THOUSANDS FOR A AFTERMARKET SUSPENSION, I EXPECT FORD TO FIX THIS, THE CORRECT WAY.
TRUCK VIOLENTLY SHAKES AFTER HITTING A BUMP OR DIP IN THE ROAD AND DOESN'T STOP UNTIL I SLOW DOWN TO ALMOST A COMPLETE STOP. RECEIVED A LETTER FROM FORD ABOUT THIS PROBLEM BUT THE ONLY SOLUTION THEY OFFER IS TO CHECK TIRE PRESSURE WHICH I DID AND OF COURSE DID NOTHING.
I WAS DRIVING ON A CITY STREET AND MADE A LEFT TURN. HALF WAY THROUGH THE TURN THE TRUCK STARTED SHAKING(SHIMMING) TO THE POINT WHERE IT WAS BASICALLY NOT DRIVE ABLE. FORTUNATELY I WAS NOT GOING FAST AT THE TIME SO I COULD SLOW DOWN QUICKLY AND PULL OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. WHEN THE EVENT HAPPENED IT WAS QUICK, FROM NOTHING TO THE TRUCK SHAKING VIOLENT. I ENDED UP HAVING THE STEERING GEAR AND U JOINTS REPLACED.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 FORD F-250. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH, THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME DIFFICULT TO TURN WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE POWER STEERING PUMP NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,000. UPDATED 1/12/16 *CN
2006 FORD F250 MOVING, 2 LANE ROAD, IN MOUNTAINS ,SUDDENLY STARTED TO STEER ERRATICALLY - MANAGED TO KEEP IT OUT OF THE OPPOSITE LANE MORE BY GOOD FORTUNE THAN ANYTHING. POWER STEERING PUMP HAD BEGUN TO FAIL.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 FORD F-250. WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH OVER UNEVEN PAVEMENT, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO SHAKE VIOLENTLY WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THIS WAS AN ONGOING ISSUE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE DRAG LANE BAR AND STEERING LINKAGE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 120,000.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
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