Print this page

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
4 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
30,169 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.

2016 Ford F-150 drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2016 Ford F-150:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2016 Ford F-150 Owner Comments (Page 6 of 10)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #92

Sep 062022

F-150

  • miles

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

Transmission slips into neutral and downshifts to first while driving sometimes. It also tends to kick when giving gas after stopping.

- Magnolia, TX, USA

problem #91

Jun 092022

F-150

  • miles
Sensors inside transmission shorted out and would cause forced down shifting at highway speed and tires to break traction on wet roads. Dealer stated this issue was recalled on most similar transmissions, but not on the F150. Engine went into limp mode constantly and transmission seemed to want to lock up. A wrench error code was on dash display. Symptoms started in June 2022 and repairs we made July 28, 2022 after a 3 to 4 week wait for replacement parts. Again, dealer informed me of TSB put out for most other vehicles with the same transmission. $1200 repair

- Oak Hill, FL, USA

problem #90

Jun 302022

F-150

  • miles
I was driving on the freeway 50-60 mph, my transmission downshifted suddenly, my rear tires locked up, causing my truck to slow down violently. I looked at my dash and the shift indicator was flashing. I had a wrench appear on my dash two days earlier and called my local Ford dealer for maintenance and was given an appointment in about a week, I was told that wrench could mean 400 things. I made my appointment the following wednesday and was told the lead frame connector was faulty and the part would be ordered. One month later still no part or repair. I was told it would be covered under my extended warranty I had purchased from Ford.

- Hot Springs, AR, USA

problem #89

Jul 062022

F-150 8-cyl

  • miles

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

2016 Ford 150 6R80 auto transmission. I was driving downhill on a paved county road coming to a stop. Pulled onto 2 lane highway, accelerated, then tranmission hard down shifted unexpectedly to limp mode. Engine ran in high idle and would not shift up. Wrench light lit up. I'm lucky nobody was coming up behind me or I wouldn't be here to submit this! The dealer was relatively close, so I went directly, and slowly, there. Dealer pulled codes P0706, P0707, P0720, P0722, P1921, P1702, P0722. They confirmed it was a faulty molded lead frame. Dealer was not able to get transmission to shift, and then it wouldn't start at all. $1300 repair. This happened July 6. Part is not available till Aug 30"???!!!! I'm a carpenter. This truck is my living! Thank God this didn't happen at full highway speed like it has to others. This problem was a recall in 2011-2013 models. How is this not a safety recall now" This is dangerous! Get your stuff together, Ford! The contact stated it doesn-??t appear they are including enough model years to resolve the issue fully.

- Muscatine, IA, USA

problem #88

Jul 082022

F-150

  • miles
The transmission is malfunctioning. The vehicle loses power, and can not accelerate or maintain speed while driving. I have had to pull over on expressways multiple times to shut vehicles off to reset the issues. The vehicle has been inspected by a Mechanic and determined the P0722 Output Sensor is bad. Also, report error code P061A. I have spoken with and attempted to schedule appointments with two different Ford Dealerships that have stated the part is not available and they will not/can not schedule an appointment to repair the issue. This is a recurring issue.

- Portland, OR, USA

problem #87

Jul 082022

F-150

  • 80,100 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was unable to downshift into first gear. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with lead frame failure. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,100.

- Robins, IA, USA

problem #86

Jun 272022

F-150

  • miles

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

My 2016 Ford F-150 will periodically stall. The stall could occur while stopped (at a light or to make turn), while in park and only idling, or when the vehicle was in motion at less than 25 mph. If it stalled while starting a turn, then there was a serious risk of major collision from oncoming traffic. If the oncoming vehicle did not recognized the vehicle was stalling, or had otherwise failed to properly evaluate the situation early enough then a collision would be likely. A scan of multiple Internet web sites found thousands of people, with similar model years and the same engine, 5.0L Coyote, having the same or similar issue.

- Wallingford, CT, USA

problem #85

Jun 202022

F-150 8-cyl

  • 68,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the PCM warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing and the contact was informed that the lead frame needed to be repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the VIN was not under recall and referred the contact to the NHTSA. The failure mileage was 68,000 and the lead frame is needing to be replaced because it was not insulated.

- Port Gibson, MS, USA

problem #84

Apr 202022

F-150

  • miles
Transmission shifts hard or may shift up or down when it shouldn-??t. Get warning message in dash. Took to dealer a couple months ago. Was told part was back ordered and didn-??t know when they would get it. My research online indicates this is a common problem. I believe this is a safety issue that could cause an accident.

- Mount Vernon, IL, USA

problem #83

May 252022

F-150

  • miles
The problem that is happening to my vehicle and other 2016 F150s is Galvanic corrosion on the transfer case and transmission housing that is causing the housings to leak fluid and can cause catastrophic failure of either the transfer case or transmission. The Galvanic corrosion is happening due to non-coated steel fasteners being used on an aluminum housing. Which is not industry standard. See article below posted on SAE.org This vehicle is available for inspection upon request. This corrosion has caused a leak in the transfer case and could cause failure of the transfer case and/or the transmission which could in turn cause severe bodily and property damage if this occurred while operating the vehicle at highway speeds. The problem is being reproduced on all 2016 F150s that share the same non coated fasteners. See links for examples of the problem happening to other owners: https://www.f150forum.com/f118/transfer-case-corrosion-leakage-505822/ https://www.f150ecoboost.net/threads/transfer-case-corrosion.84551/ This component has not yet been inspected. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms prior. The SAE has an article on this topic and how manufactures should prevent galvanic corrosion. See link below: https://www.sae.org/publications/technical-papers/content/932357/#:~:text=Although%20aluminum%20on%20its%20own, can%20lead%20to%20severe%20corrosion. That article was written in 1993. Ford should not have sold a vehicle that had components that would absolutely fail and knowing it could be prevented. Thank you for your time I hope we can help all the owners that are experiencing these problem and we can help avoid people from being injured by getting ford to recall this defection.

- Sebago, ME, USA

problem #82

May 112022

F-150

  • miles

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

While driving, the transmission sticks or will not shift. A wrench flashes and has only produced a check engine light one time. Code P0715 - Irregular signal coming from the input/turbine speed sensor in transmission. If it does shift, it is hard and jerks the vehicle. This has only happened a few times while driving but I found a Ford TSB for earlier models (2011-2013) having the same issue.

- Brownwood, TX, USA

problem #81

Mar 042022

F-150

  • miles
Front differential grinding when driving. Ford Replaced IWE check valve and problem came back about a month later. Windshield washer fluid pump failed.

- Ephrata, PA, USA

problem #80

Apr 192022

F-150

  • miles
Vehicle transmission/drive train shifted into neutral and dash flashed Service AdvanceTrac & Hill Decent Control Fault warnings while traveling on highway at 70 MPH towing trailer. No advanced warning of issue or warning of power loss. Transmission shift controls had no control of power train. Engine appeared to go into idle mode. This system fault placed the safety of vehicle driver, passengers and nearby vehicles at high risk. Luckily vehicle was topping a rise and gravity maintained speed to coast to shoulder of busy highway. And there was a shoulder on the highway. Turned off vehicle, restarted and appears to be operating normally. Waiting for dealer service to diagnose vehicle.

- Littleton, CO, USA

problem #79

Feb 262022

F-150

  • miles
I was driving my 2016 Ford F150 truck on an I-91 at usual highway speeds 65 mph in cruise control when I felt and heard a loud bang and the truck jerked and I applied the brakes and came to a stop. I was unable to move the vehicle off the highway. As it turned out the driveshaft was sheared off the transaxel transfer case. I called 911 and the state police and local fire department arrived. The towing company could not move the back wheels when they pulled the truck onto the towtruck platform as the back axel was locked up. This could have resulted in an injury to myself or to other cars around me. Fortunately I was on dry pavement and the vehicle did not swerve into other traffic. The truck was towed to the local Ford dealer. I was told that the transfer case had a crack and leaked oil causing it to seize up. However, I have had no oil leak in my driveway where I park the vehicle and have had no incidents in which the tranfer case has been hit by any large or hard object to cause any cracks in the case. No warning lights went on prior to this incident and the truck had been driven earlier in the week without incident or warning.

- Lyndonville, VT, USA

problem #78

Feb 132022

F-150

  • miles
Transmission has downshifted to first gear multiple times on its own while going highway speeds in 6th gear. Vehicle showed an orange wrench in the vehicle information system on dash.

- Warrenton, VA, USA

problem #77

Feb 012022

F-150 8-cyl

  • 46,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at 50 MPH, the transmission suddenly downshifted into an unknown gear, and the vehicle jerked and shuddered. Additionally, the engine revved loudly. The dealer was made aware of the failure; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact to take the vehicle to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The failure mileage was approximately 46,000. 26 Apr 2022 update: Traded vehicle to dealership in York, PA on 25 Feb 2022 due to being told that the parts were unavailable from Ford. Later on, got a call from a different Ford dealership that they located a replacement part (AL3Z 7G276 D) Molded Lead Frame. I repurchased the vehicle from the dealership (at a higher price) and had the work performed by L&L Ford in East Berlin, PA. Ford agreed to a cost share of the repair, however my outlay was $348.74 plus the cost of purchasing the vehicle back from the dealership (~$1600). The Molded Lead Frame contains the Transmission Range Sensor component. At this point, this issue has cost me approx. $2000 to resolve when it should have been a safety recall.

- New Freedom, PA, USA

problem #76

Jan 072022

F-150

  • miles
My wife and I were traveling to our home in the truck. When preparing to turn left off the main road, I noticed that the turn signals were not working, requiring me to go to the right off the side of the road, as there was heavy traffic behind us. While on the side of the road, I tried the windshield wipers, window sprayer, and turn signals. None were working. I turned the engine off and then restarted the truck, and limped home. After getting home, the truck was parked while looking for a mechanic to fix whatever was wrong with it. It was recommended to me that the "Wiper Multi-switch" be replaced. This did not eliminate the problem. I then arranged for the Ford Dealer, Woody Anderson Ford, to take the truck in and fix it. The Dealer says the truck has had a major electrical failure and doubts that can be fixed.

- Huntsville, AL, USA

problem #75

Jan 042022

F-150

  • miles
I was driving on the interstate and the vehicle displayed a Blind Spot failure in the middle of the instrument cluster. At that same moment the truck abruptly down shifted almost causing me to loose control and the car behind me to take evasive action off the shoulder of the road. The truck engine was still running but pressing on the accelerator had no response. I had to attempt to navigate two lanes to my left through traffic with no power and in a coast mode. If I were pulling my trailer I would probably not be alive to write this. I took truck to Dave Knapp Ford dealer (where I bough it new). They indicate it is module in the transmission with known issues in various years. They pulled computer info and confirmed what I have written here with exact mph etc. They indicate that this is not a recall. I believe all F150 drivers should be aware of this and are at risk of death or injury.

- Arcanum, OH, USA

problem #74

Dec 152021

F-150

  • miles
While driving at 50 mph, automatic transmission put itself in 1st gear. Tires squealed, and engine revved. luckily, no other traffic in area. Transmission self corrected after a few seconds. The weather was dry. Temperature in the low 40's. Other similar occurrences were when starting from a stop sign or red light, transmission stayed in 1st gear. On all above occasions, the dashboard display simply said to see owners manual. My impression is the transmission is believing I am in manual mode for a few seconds.

- Waverly, OH, USA

problem #73

Nov 082021

F-150

  • miles
during normal highway crusing, the transmission gear indicator started flashing and experienced loss of power, as if the car was in neutral causing me to decelerate. sometimes when the transmission "catches" again, it'll catch in a lower gear such as 2nd, which will cause rapid deceleration. Multiple times I've been worried about getting rear ended when this happens. This issue happens about 3 times per week. Dealership can't diagnose and I even have a video of this happening. Dealership states tranmission repairs are over 3 weeks out. Simply unnacceptable.

- Hoffman Estates, IL, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »

Not what you are looking for?