What breaks most · 1995 to 2019 model years
FORD F-350 SD problems by year
Owners have filed 1,725 safety complaints with NHTSA about the FORD F-350 SD across model years 1995 to 2019. Three years stand out: 2005 for engine and cooling complaints, 2001 for engine and cooling complaints and 2000 for engine and cooling complaints. The quietest years are 1995, 1997 and 1998.
- Years to check closely: 2005, 2001, 2000
- Fewest complaints: 1995, 1997, 1998
- Complaints on file
- 17251995 to 2019, all trims
- Worst year
- 2005217 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 7952 fires · 63 injuries · 2 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 47kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 123Across 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 | Wheels (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) | |
| 125 | 5 | 2 | Steering (44) | |
| 23 | 1 | 2 | Steering (9) | |
| 100 | 7 | 1 | Steering (25) | |
| 19 | 1 | 5 | Tires (3) | |
| 34 | 1 | 7 | Steering (8) | |
| 42 | 0 | 8 | Steering (14) | |
| 24 | 1 | 10 | Suspension (8) | |
| 6 | 0 | 10 | Wipers and visibility (1) | |
| 7 | 0 | 5 | Wheels (2) | |
| 51 | 1 | 4 | Engine (17) | |
| 37 | 3 | 4 | Steering (12) | |
| 148 | 4 | 14 | Steering (81) | |
| 30 | 1 | 10 | Steering (10) | |
| 11 | 0 | 12 | Body and structure (4) |
What fails on the 2005 FORD F-350 SD
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 22% |
48 | 0 | Shop engine and cooling parts for the 2005 FORD F-350 SD |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 18% |
38 | 1 | Shop steering parts for the 2005 FORD F-350 SD |
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 18% |
38 | 2 | Shop suspension parts for the 2005 FORD F-350 SD |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 13% |
28 | 0 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2005 FORD F-350 SD |
| Fuel System, Diesel | 10% |
21 | 0 | — |
| Tires | 7% |
16 | 1 | — |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 7% |
16 | 1 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 2005 FORD F-350 SD |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 6% |
13 | 0 | Shop powertrain and transmission parts for the 2005 FORD F-350 SD |
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.
-
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.
-
My 2001 FORD f350 5.4 engine while driving blew a spark plug out of the cylinder head and caused a small fire under the hood of the truck. I was able to put out because i happened to have a small fire extinguisher on board.
-
One of my spark plugs simply blew out of the cylinder head of my 2000 FORD f350. These were factory plugs, since my truck has less than 100,000 miles. I simply started my truck in the morning and it blew right away.
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 30, 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, 2005, 2001, 2000 carry the most filings on the FORD F-350 SD. The 2005 alone has 217 complaints, led by engine and cooling.
What is the most common FORD F-350 SD problem?
On the 2005 model year, the most-reported component is engine and cooling with 48 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 47,000 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.