2017 Ford F-450

In January 2021, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Recall Query (RQ21-001) to assess allegations of post-recall remedy uncommanded tailgate openings in model year (MY) 2017-2019 F-250/350/450 Ford trucks. Besides the recall remedy launched in January 2020, Ford also implemented a production update in November 2019.  At the time of the RQ opening, ODI had received eleven (11) Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQs). ODI sent an Information Request (IR) to Ford in February 2021. In numerous meetings after receiving their IR response, Ford highlighted the drop in claims since the recall and production update and communicated how they were unable to verify the owners’ complaints or replicate the concern. Despite this, Ford began developing ways to prevent uncommanded tailgate openings from various human, mechanical or electrical causes. Based on testing, Ford issued a Customer Satisfaction program, 21M05-S1/S2/S3, to further address the potential of unintended tailgate openings. This work was applied to vehicles being produced as of December 20, 2021.  The program began for already delivered vehicles on July 22, 2022. The covered models include 2017-2022 F-250, 350, 450, 550, 650 and 750 Super Duty and 2020-2022 F-600 Super Duty trucks. ODI has received 39 VOQs between February 24, 2020, and December 15, 2023, alleging uncommanded tailgate openings.  In a detailed analysis, none of the vehicles in the VOQs were found to have received the Customer Satisfaction update. Since ODI has not received any complaints of post-Customer Satisfaction program tailgate openings, this office is closing this Recall Query. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the ODI reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.

By letter dated December 4, 2019, Ford Motor Company (Ford) notified the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of a safety defect that may exist in model years (MY) 2017 through 2019 Ford Super Duty F-250, F-350, F-450 vehicles equipped with an electric tailgate. Following the receipt of five consumer complaints alleging unintended tailgate opening without vehicle operator knowledge, while the vehicles were in motion, NHTSA opened this investigation to assess the manufacturer's data including warranty claims, field reports, design changes, etc.In vehicles equipped with an electric tailgate, water can enter the electrical wiring system and may cause a short circuit resulting in the unintended activation and release of the tailgate latch. This could allow unintended opening of the tailgate while the vehicle is in motion.Analysis of the data provided by Ford found that the frequency of a tailgate opening unintended was high in vehicles equipped with electric tailgates. Unintended tailgate opening without vehicle operator knowledge may result in loss of unrestrained cargo, increasing the risk of a crash. In response to this investigation, Ford decided to conduct recall 19V-864.Owners will be notified by mail and instructed to take their vehicle to a Ford dealer to modify the tailgate/frame wiring harnesses by adding jumper pigtails to isolate the tailgate release control circuits, and will install a new tailgate handle release switch. With recall action 19V-864 taken by Ford Motor Company this investigation is closed. Further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist on other model or MY vehicles outside of the recall scope. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.The ODI reports cited above can be reviewed at: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID using the following complaint identification numbers: 10984283,11004227,11082643,11090089,11104638,11115381,11140680,11141071, 11141075,11141174,11141200,11141331,11141447,11141547,11141548,11142572, 11142618,11142657,11153541,11153959,11157225,11160936,11165124,11165590, 11166199,11166802,11170049,11171409,11171509,11171685,11180009,11182035, 11186146,11191151,11191353,11193045,11194958,11203615,11206443,11209199, 11229482,11230768,11233349,11233436,11255126,11265643.

tailgate opens while driving could cause jackknife of trailer and truck has recall, recall has been performed 3 times and still having issues midway ford inspected and said the tailgate is functioning as intended no warning or indicators this is 2nd time this has happened and recalls have been performed also have surveillance video of me leaving a customer's house with tailgate up and closed and when i pull to end of driveway and make a left u can see the tailgate come down while in motion driving .ford motor company and the dealer refuse to help with damages and have no concern this could happen to me on a off ramp or at higher speeds and this could end up in a life threating situation, they cannot offer me a fix or repairs to my vehicle or trailer even though i have a letter from them that says they will, customer satisfaction program 21mo5 it states coverage for this issue for 10yrs or 150,000miles i currently have 117000 miles and year coverage until 2027

NHTSA ID

11656631

Incident

Dec 23, 2024

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-450. The contact stated that the vehicle had been diagnosed with an oil leak coming from the injector seals. The vehicle was serviced by the dealer and the contact picked up the vehicle after it was serviced. While driving from the dealer at approximately 40 MPH, the contact noticed white-grayish smoke coming from the passenger side of the vehicle. The contact immediately pulled over as black smoke began to emit from the vehicle vents as all occupants exited the vehicle. The vehicle quickly became engulfed in flames and the authorities were called to the scene. The fire was extinguished by the fire department. A fire report was filed. The contact, his wife and daughter all experienced mental trauma as a result of the fire; no medical attention was given. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was later taken into possession by the contact's insurance company. The dealer was notified of the failure and denied any responsibility for the fire. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and a case was filed; the contact was then referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The vehicle was destroyed as a result of the fire. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

NHTSA ID

11592921

Incident

May 17, 2024

Vibration at 70 mph. Safety concern as to possible vehicle damage/control due to excess vibration transmitted throughout vehicle. Problem has been acknowledged by Ford Motor Company by means of a Safety Recall Notice # 22S74. Correspondence from Ford dated December 2022 stated parts to repair the problem were expected to be available Q1 2023. As of 5/5/23 there is no additional information available from Ford or it's dealer. My vehicle is unusable and there is no remedy available from Ford.

NHTSA ID

11520574

Incident

Oct 1, 2022

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-450. The contact stated while driving at approximately 70 MPH there was a vibration coming through the steering and the entire vehicle. The contact stated there was an abnormal bang-like explosion that had come from under the floorboards. The contact stated that a section of the drive shaft had sheared off of the vehicle and rolled out onto the highway and struck another vehicle that had been behind the contact. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that he lost forward momentum and was able to pull off the highway. The contact stated that the other vehicle had also pulled off behind his vehicle. The contact stated that there were no injuries, however, the trailing vehicle had had the section of the drive shaft penetrate through the front grill and damaged the radiator and condenser. The contact's vehicle had sustained damage to the rear undercarriage, shock absorbers, and fuel tank. The contact said that the police were on the scene and filed a report. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer where it was determined that the drive shaft needed to be replaced. The contact had previously taken the vehicle in for service to report vibration and had been told that there was a recall but that he would have to wait for the official recall letter from the manufacturer. The contact received the recall notification from the manufacturer for NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V880000 (Power Train) after having had the drive shaft failure. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

NHTSA ID

11508725

Incident

Dec 30, 2022

Mileage

90,000 mi

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-450. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V880000 (Power Train) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the vehicle started to shudder violently, and the driveshaft detached. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The contact noticed that the transmission fluid was leaking. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the driveshaft had detached and damaged the transmission assembly, the skid plate, the fuel tank, the rear-end driveshaft housing, and other unknown components. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer sent a diagnostic report to the manufacturer. The manufacturer then informed the dealer that the contact needed to pay for the repair of the vehicle and may be reimbursed for the expenses. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ID

11507237

Incident

Jan 14, 2023

Mileage

200,000 mi

Tailgate opens in transit and allows contents of bed to fall out of vehicle causing issues for drivers behind truck

NHTSA ID

11495099

Incident

Nov 28, 2022

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-450. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V087000 (Structure, Power Train) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ID

11480070

Incident

Feb 16, 2022

The vehicle air bag dash light warning lamp started to periodically come on and stay on, when it should have been off after the initial start cycle. When the air bag light is on, it reflects a defect in the system. Vehicle is not safe to drive with malfunctioning air bag system. The vehicle has a warranty on safety issues until 60,000 miles. We have confirmation of the issue in writing with Seth Wadley Ford dated March 12, 2020 with mileage recorded as 48,444. The service order number is 323328. It was again noted at Seth Wadley Ford dated July 6, 2020 with mileage recorded as 51,064. The service order number is 331898. Ford Motor Co. opened a case CAS-29479403. January 26, 2021 vehicle was dropped off at Seth Wadley Ford for repair. Ford Motor Co agreed to pay for the repair. The vehicle was in the shop until March 22, 2021. Service invoice number 348793 shows replacement of module, wiring asy main, sensor asy air bag, module seat heater control, and module seat heater control. November 2021, problem started recurring. February 21, 2022 went to Seth Wadley Ford with the light on to document recurrence of problem. Ford Motor Co. opened new case CAS-35533984. Seth Wadley Ford was unable to take truck in for repair until May 9, 2022. Vehicle shows DTC code for passenger air bag. Dealership cleared code and fault lamp recurs but does not show any code. Recommended replacement of air bag and pigtail. Ford Motor Co indicates repair is not under warranty. June 24, 2022, I contacted Ford Motor Co regarding repair, as this is a recurring problem related to initial complaint and repair. CAS-35533984 had been closed. A representative of Ford Motor Co. re-opened a new case CAS-37340218 Ford Motor Co offered to split repair 60/40. With additional extended warranty to include air bag/safety items at no charge. July 11, 2022 To date repair authorization has not been issued. Repair has not been completed.

NHTSA ID

11473577

Incident

Jan 1, 2020

Certain 2017-2025 F-450 – F-600 Chassis Cab Upfitted with an Aerial Bucket Frame Rail Crack

Some 2017-2020 F-150 and 2017-2019 F-Super Duty vehicles may not successfully complete the Transmission Characterization/Solenoid IDN procedure using the Integrated Diagnostic System (IDS) scan tool. This may be due to the IDS not being at the latest software level

The Service Awareness Newsletter is an informal communication that contains information that may not be presently available in a TSB, SSM, GSB, or other electronic communication. This article includes information on warranty, technical service tips and other service information.

Some 2015-2019 Transit vehicles equipped with a 3.2L engine, 2018-2020 F-150 vehicles equipped with a 3.0L engine, 2017-2020 Super Duty vehicles equipped with a 6.7L engine built on or after 13-May-2017 may exhibit an illuminated malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) with diagnostic trouble code (DTC) P2002 stored in the powertrain control module (PCM). This may be due to a crack in the diesel particulate filter (DPF) substrate. To correct the condition, follow the Service Procedure steps to replace the DPF.

In some of the affected vehicles, customers may experience sustained steering wheel oscillation after hitting rough pavement or an expansion joint at speeds typically above 45 mph (72 Km/h).

Some 2017-2018 F-Super Duty vehicles equipped with a 6.7L engine may exhibit a concern where the DEF level indicator appears to be stuck in the full position. Follow the Service Procedure steps to correct the condition.