This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Returning from a trip to northeast Alabama, my 2004 F-150 4X4 with a 4.6 liter engine, blow the # 2 spark plug out of the engine. I got the truck back to my girlfriends home in northeast ga. And this is where I'm still at. The dealer I called told me that the plug was at fault before I could even finish telling him what had happened and that it would cost me about $2,800 to replace the head on that side... I asked him "if it was the plug at fault and you haven't even seen the truck yet, how do you know it's going to take a replacement head and the cost of it"" he put me on hold and after 20 minutes I hung up and called back and no one would talk to me about it..!! since then, I have researched this and found that not only has it happened to others, but it has happened to alot of others...!! I have also found that this problem has been reported to your Agency many times and to date, nothing has been done about it. When this plug blow out of the head, fuel was being pushed out of the head and could have caused a fire under the hood. At speeds on interstates as high as they are, my girlfriend, myself and out 2 dogs could have been killed..!!!! so why is your Agency not doing anything about this problem...!!!????"!!!!
The contact owns a 2004 Ford F-150. While driving approximately 60 mph, the vehicle stalled and the check engine light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a local repair shop where the contact was informed that the spark plugs had detached from the engine. The contact called the manufacturer who advised him to take the vehicle to the local dealer. The vehicle had not been repaired. The current and failure mileages were approximately 97,000. Updated 1/25/11 updated 02/04/11
I took my 2004 F-150 to kerry Ford located in the city of springdale because of a window problem I had. The service desk asked me if I was aware of the problems with the spark plugs for my year truck. I told him no, I wasn't. the Ford employee stated that since my mileage was at 89,000, he strongly suggested that I have my spark plugs changed before I get any closer to 100,000 miles. The employee stated that the spark plugs are getting stuck in the engine or breaking off while being replaced. I was told for a tune up, it would be roughly $300 plus an extra $89 for each spark plug that breaks. The employee stated that the spark plug was poorly designed and didn't have enough threads. The employee stated that Ford has accepted no responsibility for the issue. The employee instructed me to goggle, Ford F 150 spark plug to verify that he was telling the truth. I asked that you do the same! people have spent any where from $300-$4500 for Ford poor design. Ford has even designed a special tool to try an assist in getting out the spark plugs without breaking them. Some drivers have had their spark plug literally pop out of the engine while driving. I did take my truck in for service after reviewing all the material on the internet. I now have the distinction of the worst horror story at kerry Ford. I was told prior to having my truck worked on, that their tech has had decent luck getting the spark plugs out. Kerry Ford had broken maybe two spark plugs at the most. I dropped my truck off the night before service so they could soak the plugs in lubricant. After there days of service, Ford called me and stated that 6 out of the 8 spark plugs broke off. Ford had to drill out the broken plugs to remove them. Kerry Ford did show me some compassion and lowered the extra fee from $89 to $39 since so many of my spark plugs broke off.
I own a 2004 Ford F150 with 5.4L V8 engine. Mileage is 104000. Had spark plugs changed and all 8 spark plugs broke off resulting in a very high cost to me. There are numerous complaints of this on the internet. I believe this is a manufacturing defect and cost is being past on to consumer.
I have a 2004 Ford F150 that dies, stalls, or surges at stop light or at low speed. It is an intermittent problem that doesn't send any error codes to the computer. The pickup will just die during while turning or stopping. I have been to the dealer and the problem is still not corrected. I have had numerous close calls due to dying during turning.
- Perry, OK, USA
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The contact owns a 2004 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the steering wheel would vibrate excessively when driving 40 mph and over. The vehicle would not remain in third gear when shifted and the interior of all four tires were worn prematurely. The tires were replaced at a local tire specialty facility and the contact was advised to rotate the tires every 2000-3000 miles. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle would exhibit an unusual knocking from the top portion of the engine. The rear brake light above the crew cab would become filled with water that was leaking into the vehicle. Also when accelerating to highway speeds, the vehicle would become resistant to acceleration. The contact would have to depress the accelerator pedal abruptly. When doing so, the check engine warning light would illuminate and the vehicle would vibrate violently. The contact believed there was an issue with the fuel gauge and tank. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000 and the current mileage was 98,000.
Ford F-150 with Triton engine. I serviced spark plugs at 99,000 miles per Ford manual. Plugs snapped off when mechanics tried to remove them even with special tools. The garage said I was lucky that it only cost $1200 to change the plugs. They didn't have to pull the heads on the engine which could have cost thousands. Garage said this defect was common on Triton engines. I called Ford. Their reply was that they wouldn't do anything because this is a maintenance part. Interesting to note that Ford now supplies the new plugs with a tube of grease so the plug threads don't lock up in the engine head. Other posts on this site detail similar problems plus plugs blowing out of the heads. One needs to wonder if Ford didn't transfer their blow out problem to the rest of us by tightening the plugs too tightly at the factory.
I have a 2004 F-150 that has spit two spark plugs out with in a year. The second one caught fire. There has been this issue with many owners of Ford trucks and is a on going issue Ford won't take care of. Napa auto parts has a repair kit made just for this issue with Ford engines. The cost is $ $73 plus having someone do the repair.
I was driving the truck at about 45 mph when I felt the engine "missing". I rolled down my window and could hear the engine missing and running very rough. I was about 30 seconds from my house, so I continued. Right before I got to my house I shut off the engine and coasted into my driveway. I tried cranking the truck the next morning and it idled rough for about 10 seconds and then the engine failed. I towed it to the Ford dealership where they diagnosed that it hydrolocked. There was a lot of gas and water in the oil pan (the entire coolant system had dumped there). It was then that I found out that there was a recall on 2005 F150's for the same problem, a faulty fuel injector that caused hydrolocking. I called Ford and asked if I was covered under this recall since I had the same part. They informed me it was only for 2005, not for 2004 regardless of the part #. they offered me no help since my truck was at 72K miles. The truck was impeccably maintained with the oil being changed every 3K miles.
My 2004 F-150 (a $34,00 vehicle)Ford pickup truck (58,000 miles) blew a spark plug out of the head in August of 2009. A Ford dealer fixed the problem by putting in a helicoil into the plug to repair the issue. ($580) this past February it blew a plug again, the dealer told me that the only reliable fix was to put in a new engine head. The cost for this was $3,000 dollars. If you look at this web site you will see the thousands of consumers that have face this defect. It is apparent that Ford is turning their back and ignoring the issue that these vehicles should be recalled. If they will not address the issue I am sure that your Agency should look into this issue. www.topix.com/forum/autos/Ford/tr7hfu0vd0N2U9kpd thousands of examples of this recallable failure.
I have recently purchased a 2004 Ford F 150 and today 3/4/2010 has made the second time it has blown out a spark plug. I understand that there is no recall on this and I would like to know why, because this is happening to alot of customers. [xxx] is my email. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
I own a 2004 Ford that the spark plug edjected from the head. I took the truck into a garage and they put a helicoil in, that lasted 1 week and blew out again. Now I need a new head.
The contact owns 2004 Ford F-150 truck. The contact was driving 30 mph when the engine stalled and the contact coasted in neutral gear onto the side of the road. The roads were wet, yet, they played no factor in the vehicle failure. The vehicle was towed to his residence. The dealers quoted a price of $300-$1800 to replace the spark plugs. The dealer stated that the repair did not fall under the 100,000 mile warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 60,100. The current mileage was 60,300. Updated 03/26/10
The 'engine fuel control module' on my 2004 Ford F-150 4X4 extended cab, 6 3/4ft bed, 5.4L 3V engine 4X4 has failed due to poor design. The module is located under the bed of the truck, and cracks when hit by pebbles that are inevitably kicked up. Water then gets into it and it fails causing the vehicle to stop and not run at all. Once the mechanic found out what the issue was, he then tried to order the part. The module is on national back order, 3 months I'll have to wait to receive it. This is my only source of transportation and I do not know what to do. I paid over $300 for this vehicle and now I cannot drive it because of a $77 part that I cannot get. Ford should be held responsible for this issue and the time that I will not be able to use it. If it is on 'national back order', then obviously there is a design issue and a recall should be issued. 3 months back order is not acceptable. Is Ford Motor Co going to give me a ride to work, the doctors, etc while I wait for the part to come in? something has to be done. Please do your best to look into this and find a solution. Thank you again for your time and consideration.
Plug failure in V8-Triton engines they break off in the heads of the engines is one problem causing a 300 dollar tune up to sky rocket all the way up to 2800 dollars this is all Triton 3 valve motors Ford said the fixed the problem they did not and they still break. The other problem is that some of the plugs blow out the heads causing a sudden power loss and possible accidents when I contacted the dealer all they would do is give me a price quote against broken plugs trying to take them out they said it falls under warranty restrictions and that's not fair because one of the selling points about the truck was no need for a tune up for $100 thousand miles you can't hit that number 3 years 3600 miles there are a lot angry people out there because of this me included and I believe it falls under a dangers vehicle problem I no they have fixed other people trucks over the warranty and I had to fix my on truck after it stop running and I couldn't get a attorney I am handicap and don't have the money it took at least week to get the plugs out by my self the new plugs cost a $103 and the time crawling around because my legs or bad I figure 100,000 would be fair or may plugs paid and a trade for new tires.
Had tune up on vehicle at 100,140 miles, per manufacture requirements. Incurred additional costs due to two spark plugs exploiting in block. Mechanic said this is a regular problem, see technical bulletin. Ford has a special way or tool for fixing this problem. Q: I am requesting research be done to see if recall should be in place for this issue in the Ford F150. Q: how many Ford owners have had same repair" Q: what are requirements by this Agency for issuing recalls"
I have a Ford 2004 F150 5.4 L Triton engine (3 valve) and it has 51,777 miles on it as of today. I called dave sinclair Ford to check on having the spark plugs changed. They informed me that this job is has been a major problem because the spark plugs designed and made for the 2004 model break off because of poor design. This breaking of the spark plugs has been adding on 1000 to 2000 extra dollars because they have to take special measures and use special tools to fix this issue. Ford Motor Co. Has had the spark plug redesigned as of 2006 and has also issued a tsb special instruction for removing the defective plugs. The tsb 06-15-2 can be found on www.etoolcart.com/06152.pdf. Ford has acknowledged that their is a problem however, they will not offer to cover all of the extra chargers that are added on due to this defective spark plug issue. A recall should have been issued as soon as they changed out the spark plug design, added the tsb bulletin, or when they started having special tools made for the job. Ford needs to take care of its consumers and offer a recall for all of the 5.4 L Triton engines that are having this problem. I have contacted mike detwiler, service manager, at dave sinclair Ford. I have contacted Ford Motor Corp. And made two complaints and they were sent to engineering. Everybody acknowledges that this is a major problem, however; Ford will not cover this issue and I cannot even use my extended warranty that I purchased extra to help cover unjustly expenses.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Beaufort, NC, USA