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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
8 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
46,540 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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.

2009 Ford F-150 engine problems

engine problem

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2009 Ford F-150 Owner Comments (Page 1 of 3)

problem #52

Apr 162021

F-150

  • 183,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While in drive at idle speed the trucks RPM jumped to approximately 4000 RPM instantly. I had to push my foot brake as hard as I could and put shifter in neutral then it was ok for a while then this happened again several weeks later took to dealer no check engine light could not find a problem very dangerous situation.

- Frazier Park, CA, USA

problem #51

Sep 012020

F-150

  • 21,858 miles
Two separate times driving in motion while pressing down the accelerator, the car jumps to 6000+ RPM and would not slow down or respond to brakes. The only way to stop was to force truck into neutral and turn off engine coasting to a stop.

- Mariposa, CA, USA

problem #50

Oct 102019

F-150

  • 164,000 miles
Purchased vehicle in Nov 2018, less than one year than the date of this claim. On nine different occasions my vehicle experienced one or more of the following: Loss of all electrical power, steering, acceleration control, fuel pump/injectors, timing of the RPM, and other related issues leaving me stranded in the middle of nowhere, immediately and instantaneously stalled out on highways and major freeways without warning, some of which nearly led to vehicular accidents from sudden loss of all electronic equipment and power of the truck, with hundreds of individuals having experienced the same or similar issues with this year and model F-150. In the midst of all of this, I've spent over $3,500+ in repairs between the date of purchase to date of this claim to the ECM, fuel pump module, fuel injector harness, battery, ignition switch, mass flow air sensor, camshaft position sensors, serpentine belt, and normal maintenance, and have been informed that I now need a new engine, another $5,000 on top of the present $6,784 lien currently on the vehicle. The physical safety of myself and others has not only been placed in jeopardy, but this issue and vehicle has placed me in a serious, delinquent, and seemingly impossible financial position. I can't even get the car to run now, it will not drive after the engine suddenly stalled out 15 days ago as I lost all ability to accelerate on freeway; engine was overheating and had no oil pressure. Timing chains, rod, main bearing and camshafts all need repair with no guarantee that I won't be placed in the same or similar position again if I were to correct, possible bankruptcy if left uncorrected. Ford wants $400 more for inspection, makes no guarantee all issues will he identified and refuses to make repairs or take responsibility for their faulty 5.4L V8 Triton engine & electrical system that are 'built Ford tough.' Please help.

- Fraser, MI, USA

problem #49

Aug 082019

F-150

  • 107,365 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2009 Ford F-150. While driving approximately 65 mph on a highway in an active construction zone, the accelerator pedal automatically dropped to the floorboard. The contact depressed the brake pedal to the floorboard, but the vehicle did not decelerate. The contact stated that he lost complete control of the vehicle and turned into a ditch to avoid a crash. The air bags did not deploy. While in the ditch, the vehicle was placed into neutral and the engine was shut off; however, the rear wheels kept spinning for thirty seconds. The contact had to apply full pressure to the accelerator pedal before it would disengage. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and could not assist. The dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The failure mileage was 107,365

- Middletown, PA, USA

problem #48

Sep 052018

F-150

  • 150,000 miles
My truck stalled while entering freeway lanes. I went from 60mph to 10mph and was nearly read ended. The truck finally stalled just as I made it to the shoulder. Two hours later, my truck stalled while doing 40mph on a surface street. I had to pull into a center turn lane to avoid blocking traffic. Fuel was at half a tank. Oil level was good.

- Knoxville, TN, USA

problem #47

Sep 052018

F-150

  • 98,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Ford F-150. While driving 50 mph, the brake pedal was depressed, but failed to respond. The contact had to exert excessive force on the brake pedal to stop the vehicle. The contact also stated that the revolutions per minute increased to high and the brake light was illuminated. The local dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 98,000.

- Maringouin, LA, USA

problem #46

Jul 032018

F-150

  • 114,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While in motion making a three point turn to turn around, the engine speed (RPM) increased causing truck to accelerate forward. Service brakes did not stop the truck. I put the truck transmission into neutral while depressing the service brake pedal, the truck stopped and I shutoff the engine and restarted. This issue has happened at least 6 times.

- Nineveh, IN, USA

problem #45

Feb 202018

F-150

  • 66,000 miles
Pulling up to my destination, the accelerator suddenly causing the vehicle to rapidly speed-up and become difficult to control

- West Union, OH, USA

problem #44

Nov 242017

F-150

  • 133,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Ford F-150. While the vehicle was in reverse, it revved up. The brake pedal was depressed and extended to the floorboard. As a result, the contact crashed into an enclosed trailer on July 5, 2017. The failure recurred on November 24, 2017 and the vehicle crashed into a wall. There were no injuries and a police report was not filed. The air bags did not deploy and the vehicle was not towed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 133,000.

- Eden Prairie, MN, USA

problem #43

Jan 042017

F-150 4WD 8-cyl

  • 72,225 miles
After coming to a complete stop, I accelerated rapidly and let off the gas pedal once I reached the posted speed limit...the truck continued to accelerate on its own !! I had to stomp on the brakes to slow the truck down, threw it in neutral and rolled to a scary stop. The truck continued to rev to 4000 RPM's while in neutral. My wife jumped out of truck while we were at a red light. Luckily no one was in front of truck. While truck was revving in neutral on its own, I tried stomping on gas pedal several times to try to stop it from revving to no avail. I finally turned the truck off and restarted it a few minutes later, the truck idled normal. I immediately began to try to duplicate the problem to no avail the floor mat did not interfere with the pedal. I do have a video of the incident on my phone.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #42

Aug 312016

F-150

  • 94,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Accelerator pedal sticks, there is no rhyme or reason for this problem. This has happened on a few different occasions at different driving speeds. Last time this happened my two children were in the truck as the truck accelerated toward stopped traffic. Thankfully the accelerator let loose before we crashed into other vehicles.

- Fairport, NY, USA

problem #41

Mar 082016

F-150 6-cyl

  • 73,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Ford F-150. While driving 65 mph, the vehicle continued to accelerate when the accelerator pedal was not depressed. The brake pedal was depressed, but the vehicle resumed acceleration. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road with the brake pedal depressed and turned off the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed, but the cause of the failure was not found. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 73,000. Updated 05/06/16 updated 05/29/18

- Hopkinsville, KY, USA

problem #40

Dec 292015

F-150

  • 17,400 miles
Vehicle was motion. Merging onto interstate 93. Depressed the accelerator to bring the vehicle to highway speed. When I took my foot off the accelerator, the pedal did not come back, but rather was stuck wide open. I was forced to pull into the breakdown lane, turn off the engine, put it in neutral and coast to a stop. After about 5 minutes, I restarted the truck and it was fine. This vehicle has the 4.6L 3-valve per cylinder V-8 engine with an automatic transmission. It does not have cruise control or any power options. I decided to file a complaint about this after reading over 100 reports of this same issue on the internet. The manufacturer denies there is a problem. Something needs to be done to correct this issue before someone gets killed because of it.

- Wilmington, MA, USA

problem #39

Nov 192015

F-150

  • 75,000 miles
Traveling at 65 mph on the express way, I took my foot off the accelerator and the truck took off, accelerating as if it was being floored!. I hit the brake pedal but the engine still continued to rev itself and accelerate. I thought it might be a stuck floor mat but nothing was in the way. I hit the brake pedal again and popped the gear shifter into neutral. This stopped the engine from revving itself and accelerating. I took the vehicle into the dealership, and they claim to have never heard of anything like this and can't find anything wrong with the vehicle! thank god I did not smash into the vehicle that was in front of me.

- Windsor, OH, USA

problem #38

Nov 062014

F-150

  • 153,080 miles
After accelerating to pass on the highway (65 mph to 70 mph), the truck remained going 70 mph when accelerator released. Vehicle could be slowed with difficulty by applying brakes, but would resume speed when brakes released. Fortunately, traffic was light. Cruise control was not being used at time of incident. Attempted to resolve issue for approximately 4 miles/minutes at highway speeds (determined accelerator not stuck on floor mat, engaged and disengaged cruise control, braked repeatedly while making sure I was also not hitting the accelerator). Eventually slowed vehicle to approximately 10 mph with extreme braking on an uphill incline, at which point vehicle would not slow any further. Took truck out of gear and shut off engine (vehicle stopped). Had towed to service department of Ford dealer who "could not reproduce problem" but replaced electric throttle body assembly and cleared/reprogrammed computer. When asked if incidents such as these are reported to Ford for their database, the service representative said no, that they had no means to do so.

- Knoxville, MD, USA

problem #37

Aug 052014

F-150

  • 14,676 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the accelerator pedal was stuck intermittently while traveling approximately 70 mph on a major highway with the cruise control engaged. The contact disengaged the cruise control and the failure occurred intermittently. The contact had to drive onto the emergency lane, shift into neutral gear and applied force to the brake pedal; however, the vehicle surged forward while the brake pedal was applied. The contact had to turn the vehicle off and restart it in order to reset the computer. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer several times and they were unable to replicate or diagnose the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 14,676.

- Ruther Glen, VA, USA

problem #36

Apr 122014

F-150 4WD 8-cyl

  • 66,700 miles
Approaching an yellow light at approximately 35 mph I hit the gas pedal hard for passing gear. The accelerator stuck, the engine roaring, I had to step as hard as possible to stop the truck so I would not hit the vehicle in front of me. Engine would not stop accelerating forcing me to turn off the truck. Shocked, I sat in traffic for a moment before I restarted the engine, but it immediately went to full speed again, forcing me to again turn off the engine. My friend climbed out and pushed me out of traffic. After sitting in a parking lot for about 5 minutes I again started the engine and it started normally.

- Allen Park, MI, USA

problem #35

Mar 062014

F-150 8-cyl

  • 49,880 miles
Accelerating on interstate on ramp to merge into traffic. Accelerator stuck and vehicle speed increased. Had to heavily apply brakes to stop, put in neutral, engine continued to rev, shut truck off. About a minute after stopping, a loud pop was heard in cab (accelerator unsticking??). turned truck on, normal acceleration followed. This was the first and only occurrence.

- Cheyenne, WY, USA

problem #34

Jul 202013

F-150 4WD 8-cyl

  • 62,500 miles
While driving 60 mph, I left off the accelerator to slow down to 45 mph the posted speed limit ahead. At 45 mph, I slightly touched the accelerator to maintain the 45 mph speed limit, the RPM's went over 4000 and would not stop. I applied the brake, but the engine kept the RPM's between 4000 and 4200. I stomped on the brake with both feet and the un-intended acceleration stayed at the higher RPM. I could hear the anti-lock brakes engage to help slow the truck down, but the engine labored over 4000 RPM. I was concerned with not being able to stop the truck, so I shifted the transmission into neutral and coasted to the berm of the road with the engine staying at a very high RPM. Once I came to a complete stop, I shifted the truck into park and the RPM's were over 6000. I immediately shut off the engine and waited a few seconds before trying to re-start the truck. I checked the condition of the floor mat asap to verify it was not on top of the accelerator. This happened to my wife less than a year ago and nothing was found at the Ford dealership and the ogc reviews suggested that the floor mat may have caused the first un-intended acceleration. As I turned the key, the engine would not start and it made a clicking noise. I got out of the truck and opened the hood to check the motor. I could not see anything, so I went back into the cab and started the truck. It started, but would not idle, the RPM's went to over 6000 and stayed constant. I shut the truck off again and waited a few seconds and on the third attempt, I shut the truck back off, because the RPM's would not idle and went to 6000 and stayed there. I adjusted the power adjustable foot pedals and waited a few seconds and the truck started and idled at normal RPM's. I left the truck at the dealership on 7/31/13 for an inspection....updated 09-26-13

- Marietta, OH, USA

problem #33

Aug 122009

F-150

  • 52,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 mph, the engine rpms increased excessively as the vehicle suddenly accelerated without warning. The contact mentioned that the failure recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the failure was unable to be replicated. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 52,000 and the current mileage was 63,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Marietta, OH, USA

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