What breaks most · 1995 to 2026 model years
FORD F-350 SD problems by year
Owners have filed 3,628 safety complaints with NHTSA about the FORD F-350 SD across model years 1995 to 2026. Three years stand out: 2017 for steering complaints, 2019 for steering complaints and 2005 for engine and cooling complaints. The quietest years are 1995, 1997 and 1998.
- Years to check closely: 2017, 2019, 2005
- Fewest complaints: 1995, 1997, 1998
- Complaints on file
- 36281995 to 2026, all trims
- Worst year
- 2017572 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 11389 fires · 94 injuries · 2 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 41kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 199Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 1 | Electrical system (1) | |
| 3 | 0 | 2 | Engine and cooling (1) | |
| 3 | 0 | 1 | Speed control and throttle (2) | |
| 142 | 13 | 3 | Engine and cooling (32) | |
| 157 | 8 | 3 | Engine and cooling (41) | |
| 158 | 9 | 3 | Engine and cooling (40) | |
| 124 | 7 | 4 | Engine and cooling (41) | |
| 132 | 6 | 5 | Engine and cooling (51) | |
| 130 | 3 | 3 | Engine and cooling (42) | |
| 217 | 8 | 4 | Engine and cooling (48) | |
| 127 | 5 | 2 | Steering (45) | |
| 25 | 1 | 2 | Suspension (9) | |
| 101 | 7 | 1 | Steering (25) | |
| 19 | 1 | 5 | Steering (3) | |
| 50 | 1 | 7 | Suspension (18) | |
| 43 | 0 | 8 | Steering (14) | |
| 29 | 1 | 10 | Suspension (10) | |
| 9 | 0 | 10 | Steering (2) | |
| 7 | 0 | 5 | Wheels (2) | |
| 207 | 3 | 4 | Steering (67) | |
| 208 | 5 | 4 | Suspension (81) | |
| 572 | 7 | 14 | Steering (292) | |
| 201 | 1 | 10 | Steering (101) | |
| 466 | 9 | 12 | Steering (266) | |
| 188 | 7 | 16 | Powertrain and transmission (53) | |
| 96 | 1 | 15 | Fuel System, Diesel (23) | |
| 108 | 2 | 17 | Electrical system (28) | |
| 40 | 2 | 15 | Electrical system (13) | |
| 44 | 4 | 3 | Electrical system (17) | |
| 14 | 2 | 6 | Powertrain and transmission (5) | |
| 6 | 0 | 4 | Powertrain and transmission (3) |
What fails on the 2017 FORD F-350 SD
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 51% |
292 | 1 | Shop steering parts for the 2017 FORD F-350 SD |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 38% |
219 | 1 | Shop suspension parts for the 2017 FORD F-350 SD |
| Wheels | 10% |
59 | 1 | — |
| Unknown or other | 9% |
51 | 1 | — |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 8% |
45 | 1 | Shop body and structure parts for the 2017 FORD F-350 SD |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 5% |
29 | 1 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2017 FORD F-350 SD |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 4% |
24 | 0 | Shop fuel system parts for the 2017 FORD F-350 SD |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 4% |
23 | 1 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
I’ve been having repeated issue with a death wobble I’ve replaced my draglink and tie rod end and it hasn’t helped in the slightest
-
DEATH WOBBLE, front suspension and steering Danger of a rear end collision at freeway speeds, or loss of control hitting other vehicles or items on the side of the road, result possible death to passengers, other vehicle people or bystanders. NO NO NONE I am a former Mechanic and this is LIFE THREATENING.
-
1. Normal driving with normal scheduled maintenance. 2. Egr system: egr cooler, oil cooler, fan clutch, modulator valve, egr valve 3. Brought to FORD; replaced the above parts. Different style egr cooler old parts were taken by FORD.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which FORD F-350 SD years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2017, 2019, 2005 carry the most filings on the FORD F-350 SD. The 2017 alone has 572 complaints, led by steering.
What is the most common FORD F-350 SD problem?
On the 2017 model year, the most-reported component is steering with 292 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do FORD F-350 SD problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all FORD F-350 SD complaints that include mileage is about 41,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.