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.
When driving at approximately 50mph and coming into contact with any uneven spots in the road the truck will shake violently and jump up and down left and right so bad that it is impossible to do anything but hit the brakes.when the vehicle slows to about 30mph the shaking subsides and is fine until the next bump in the road.. it happened 3 times in 5 mins and in less than 1 mile distance on a state highway.. this is a serious problem and needs corrected before someone is killed.. the first time it happened I had about 8000 miles on my vehicle, it has happened 10 times since, every time at speeds greater than 50mph
While driving this vehicle and after hitting a bump or dip in the road the vehicle experiences the death wobble. It is even more pronounced while pulling a horse trailer and this makes the truck extremely difficult to steer much less retain control of. It has happened 3 times since I purchased this truck. The first two times were covered under warranty but now the truck has 38,000 miles on it and the repair is no longer covered. The last time it was repaired the part was supposed to be covered for 12,000 miles and the mileage on the truck was just over that mile marker and the dealer said it would not be covered this time. The latest part replacement is apparently on backorder and we are forced to drive this unsafe vehicle until we can get it repaired once again.
At about 62K miles on my stock 2017 F250 I began to experience major oscillation whenever I would drive over the slightest road bump/imperfection between 55-75 mph. Since then the problem has gotten worse to where the entire truck will shake violently and will not stop unless I slow down under 50 mph.
My F-250 had about 26,000 miles on it when I first experienced the "death wobble". while driving at 75 mph I went over an expansion joint on the interstate in ks. It was at this time the pickup started violently shaking and the steering wheel was dangerously difficult to control with the oscillation. After slowing to around 30 mph the oscillation stopped. The smell of burning rubber filled the cab. This same even happened two more times within an hour and a half. After the first incident I could feel the death wobble start in the steering wheel a second or less before the violent shaking started. All three times it occurred on the interstate at speeds of 75 and 70 mph. I do not trust the safety of this vehicle!!!
Ford repair shop called and said the issue was corrected. Test drove. Both the owner and service tech experienced the problem when driving the truck. Service tech placed truck back in the shop for further repairs. This is the fourth time for this repair with 20,000 highway miles on the truck. Issue was steering wheel vigorously and uncontrollably when encountering a slight imperfection on a straight, level, and paved highway.
- Brookland, AR, USA
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Death wobble truck in motion, happens on highways and freeways when going over 65 mph and you hit a bump, shakes and loss of control have to come to stop to regain control. Started happening at 17K. Informed there was no fix. Endangers lives of all on board.
I am reporting a suspension & steering problem with my 2017 Ford F-250 with 28,000 miles. The tires are in good condition and properly inflated. The vehicle has never been in a collision, had any frame work performed on it and the steering and suspension had been operating acceptably. While driving on a limited access highway at approximately 65 to 70 mph, the vehicle drove over a moderate bump in the lane. The front suspension and steering began shaking, vibrating and oscillating severely at a high frequency (relatively fast vibration). The shaking continued for a significant amount of time and it seemed impossible to steer as the suspension and steering shook. I took my foot off the gas pedal but was afraid touching the brakes would make the condition worse. There was little to no control of the vehicle while this was happening. The shaking/vibrating did not stop until the vehicle eventually slowed down. About a mile further down the same road the vehicle encountered another moderate bump at approximately 60mph and experienced the exact same condition. About 2 miles after that the vehicle encountered another minor bump and experienced the same severe shaking again. At that point, I operated the vehicle at about 50 mph (15 mph below the speed limit) and exited at the first exit I got to. I took local roads at speeds under 50 mph to return home. I have operated this truck and a 2020 Ford Explorer over this same road, in the same lane and over the same bumps numerous times and never experienced any problem with the Explorer or such a severe reaction with the F-250. With the 2017 Ford F-250, I have experienced the front of the vehicle jumping laterally when traveling over these bumps and others like them since the vehicle was new. These bumps are not deep potholes and are typical moderate bumps commonly encountered on many older highways. The consumer stated the vehicle was repaired twice, but the failure recurred a short time later.
I was travelling on the interstate at about 70mph. I crossed a bridge expansion gap, slight bump, and the steering wheel/front end of the vehicle vibrated so dramatically, I had to reduce speed and the vibrations stopped around 35mph as I moved to the shoulder. I took the truck to the Ford dealer to have it serviced and was told that this is a known/common problem and that they will not have the parts to fix the vehicle for six to eight weeks at best. I was also advised not to drive the vehicle with the existing steering stabilization problem and that I could buy after market steering dampening shock and linkage to fix the problem.
Driving approximately 65 mph on a dry road 01/03/2020 I went over a slight rough spot in the road. The front wheels immediately began to vibrate severely. The steering wheel was shaking out of control. I hit the brakes to slow down to approximately 35 mph when the vibrating wheels and the shaking stopped. This is the fourth time this has happened to over the two and a half years I have owned this truck. In reading about other complaints I do not understand why Ford is not addressing this problem. I am taking my truck to my Ford dealer on Monday to have them tell me what they are going to do about this issue. This could have easily caused an accident as the truck was violently shaking. People tend to panic and may have drastic reactions when something like this happens. We need to keep up the pressure on Ford to recognize this problem and fix it before somebody gets hurt or killed.
Drove over a small bump on the road and front end of truck started to shake so bad had to slow down to get it to stop.that shake was also felt in the steering wheel.I was driving down the road at 55 to 60 mph.
I own a 2017 Ford F-250 crew cab 4 wd and have a serious problem with a steering wheel shake while hitting rough road( death wobble). Steering shakes so violently that you almost loose control. It has happened at highway speeds and slower speeds. Vehicle is not safe to drive. Dealer gave me back the truck and said they will let me know when Ford has a fix for it. I have only owned the truck for a week and spent $40K for something that is not safe
The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-250. While driving 75 mph, the vehicle experienced the death wobble when driving over a bump in the road. The contact temporarily lost control of the vehicle and pulled over to the side of the road. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The failure continued. The contact called flint hills auto (located at 7920 E us-24, manhattan, ks 66502, (785) 776-4004) and informed them of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 30,000. Consumer took his truck to flint hills Ford on 1.7.2020 and had the steering stabilizer and track bar both need to be replaced. Parts were back ordered 4-6 weeks. Rattling noise can be heard from the truck.
My truck has developed the "death wobble". it has been in to the Ford dealer for repairs for this issue. The dealer performed the tsb from Ford and replaced the front stabilizer. That has failed to correct the issue. Yesterday, 1/2/2020, I was crossing a bridge when the truck went into the death wobble. The truck began to shake and vibrate violently almost causing me to wreck myself and another vehicle. The death wobble lasted about 20 seconds and stopped once I was able to slow the vehicle almost to a stop on a major interstate. This condition is well known by Ford but they have yet to find a solution. I paid $70K for this truck and I am now afraid to drive it for fear of my life and the safety of others.
While driving the truck over 40 mph on uneven pavement or bumps in the road it will send the vehicle into a death wobble and uncontrollable all over the road. I contacted the dealership and was advised of many complaints but no recalls at this time. It is unsafe and dangerous on highways or any roads over 40 mph. We just purchased this truck 12/2019.
Going 64 mph, I encountered a tremendous 'death wobble' that complete shook my truck so hard that the rear view mirror came off. It took about a 1/2 mile of decelerating too about 50 mph to stop the wobble. It occurred again about 1 mile down the highway. Seems to happen when the highway meets a bridge or overpass.
I have filed a previous complaint regarding the same issue. (complaint number 11279636) stock 2017 Ford F250 now with 38,000 miles. The truck has the death wobble. My truck is on its second steering damper and this time the Ford dealer replaced the drag link and the outer tie rod. As well, the dealer adjusted the alignment again... the truck is still experiencing sustained steering wheel oscillation and I am again experiencing the death wobble, less than 1,000 miles after the most recent repair. It is very unfortunate that consumers purchase 50K+ dollar trucks and so many people are nervous driving them down the road. Working in automotive, the days are often filled with comments such as the following: Continuous improvement. Review the data, the data will tell the story. Change points. Root cause and permanent countermeasures. I have reviewed the historical F250 crew cab 4X4 complaint data on this site (NHTSA) and the data does tell a story. Ford is not continuously improving the death wobble issue on the Super Duty, instead it has gotten worse. There has been a change point with this fourth generation F250. (2017,2018,2019) as of 11/21/19 the fourth generation F250 Super Duty has had more NHTSA suspension and steering complaints for the death wobble than the previous two generations combined. (9 years. Second generation 2008-2010 and third generation 2011-2016) the current repairs (countermeasures) are not effective and are not permanent. This can clearly be seen in the descriptions of the complaints on NHTSA. The repairs either do not fix the problem at all or are only a temporarily band aid for the issue. This is truly a safety concern and to date nothing has been implemented to correct the issue. Please, open an investigation and encourage Ford to permanently address the issue.
While driving home and driving about 70mph hit a small bump in the road and the steering wheel started to oscillate violently and truck was shaking violently. Truck was difficult to control and I had to quickly reduce the speed to under 30mph for the oscillation to stop. Did it again 10 minutes later on a similar small bump in the road. Pulled over and inspected the undercarriage of the truck and found nothing loose. Drove it home and setup an appointment with the dealer for the next availability.
The truck front end shakes violently when driving on the highway at highway speed and you hit an expansion joint on a bridge or a bump in the road. It will not stop until you slow downs dramatically..ie 25 mph or so from 70 mph. The vehicles has approximately 30,000 miles on
Death wobble 4 th time since new truck in currently at the dealership part is on back order at speeds above 50 miles per hour after driving over a bump in the road
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Mill Run, PA, USA