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.
At interstate speeds, my vehicle can go into a mode where in the steering wheel jerks violently, along with the front end shaking violently. This has happened twice in 2022, and rough pavement appears to initiate the event and pulling over to the shoulder, coming to a complete stop is the only way to stop the shaking.
Death Wobble: 2019 F250 with 42,450 miles. After hitting a small bump while driving on the highway at normal speed, the front end starts violently shaking and the steering wheel oscillates from side to side. Steering control is completely lost and I have to hang on for dear life until I can ease to a shoulder to slow down and get out of the wobble. This is completely unacceptable and puts everyone's lives at risk who are in the immediate vicinity. I immediately called my local Ford dealer and was told this "happens from time to time." Despite admitting this is a known problem since the mid-2000s and a danger to public safety, Ford refused to fix it, stating my truck is just past the limited factory warranty. I was out of town when this first occurred with no prior warning and it happened 14 additional times within a couple days. Why is Ford not recalling these vehicles for this issue? It is extremely dangerous to those inside and in close proximity to the vehicle. Please make Ford address this before someone gets seriously hurt due to their incompetence and desire not to have to spend the money on a full fledged recall.
- "death wobble" in my F250 3 times on our way back from the Outer Banks, NC to Nashville. Ford is stating it is the Steering Dampener. Yes, it is available for inspection. - Safety was poor, it felt like I had little control until we came to a complete stop. I would say it put other at risk as we had to move to the side, across multiple lanes, to the side of the road. - It happened 3 times in one trip. - It has not been inspected (only by me). The Ford dealership stating they know the problem (without looking at it) and start a service order. We are awaiting the part. - No, it just suddenly happened. We were not towing anything either
My 2019 F250 has only 17328 miles today. This month I experienced two dangerous situations. When driving at high speed on the freeway, approx. 60 miles per hour, the steering wheel and the whole front end start an uncontrollable shake and wobble. It feels like the truck is going to be broken into pieces. I was driving at freeway speed in the carpool lane, this sudden wobbling scared me and all my family inside the truck. We thought the truck was going to explode or something. I immediately turned on my emergency light and reduced my speed. The car behind me almost hit my truck. I had to get out of the car pool lane and shift four lines before stopping on the shoulder. I looked into the problem online and found out that many Ford Heavy Duty truck owners like me had similar experiences. I went to a nearby Ford dealer, and the advisor informed me that this problem is known as "Death Wobble" and that Ford is aware of it. However, parts are unavailable, with no ETA! This dangerous issue could cause a vehicle operator to panic and try to reduce speed on the freeway suddenly in order to regain control, but it could also cause the vehicle to collide with a following vehicle or lose control, hitting vehicles nearby. My life and my family's lives could be in danger because of this. I am worried about driving this truck again since this is my work truck. Please help!
On 10/9/2022, while driving on the interstate at 70-75 mph next to an 18 wheeler, I experienced the dreaded "death wobbles" in my new truck. The truck was barely able to be controlled, and I had to pull over to the shoulder of the interstate and come to a complete stop. When I tried driving to the next exit to get to a safer location, the death wobbles hit a second time when driving at a reduced speed because there was a very minimal dip in the road. The vehicle gave no warning prior to or during the incident. The steering/suspension systems were completely out of control, and only began working after I had to bring the vehicle to a complete stop. I notified the dealer, Carvana, and am returning the vehicle to them. They had initially done an inspection and stated the vehicle was fine. Obviously, it wasn't. This was extremely terrifying and even worse, Ford is aware of this long standing issue and has not issued a recall. When I called the Malloy Ford dealer in Martinsburg, WV, they said they wouldn't cover the repairs, that it would be up to me to pay for whatever components malfunctioned and were possibly further damaged by the death wobbles.
- Gerrardstown, WV, USA
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Suddenly while driving, the car begins to shake uncontrollably/violently, causing the vehicle to swerve and rapidly rotating the steering wheel to move from side to side, making it difficult to control and causes great fear of trying not to crash. Feels like my vehicle is about to fall part so I feel like I have to hold onto my car for dear life.
Death wobble.....after hitting bump in road steering wheels shakes until vehicle comes to stop. Only have 30,000 miles and no off-road driving. Doesn't matter about speed. Have issues at 45 mph and now driving 65 on highway. Very dangerous having to come to complete stop in middle of highway as unable to even steer!
While driving on highway at 65 mph, violent shaking in front end began and vehicle steering was inoperable. I had to slow down the vehicle to 10 mph before the violent shaking finally stopped and the ability to steer was regained. If I had been on a curve or had a vehicle behind me, I could have been killed. I was out of town when this occurred and it happened 5 additional times on that trip. This a known issue to Ford because they sent me a letter stating this is a problem. The truck (which was purchased brand new and only has 17,000 miles on it and all original parts) has now been with the dealer for 3 days. They are going to replace the steering damper but have told me that they don't know if it will fix the issue. After doing additional research on my own, I have learned that this issue is actually known as the "death wobble". Why is Ford not recalling these vehicles for this issue? It is extremely dangerous and certainly not what one would expect after paying $80K for a truck.
We experienced the "Death Wobble" with this vehicle. The part Ford has identified as the problem(Steering Dampner) has been covered by the 20N04 warranty extension but the parts surrounding the Dampner have also been affected and needed to be replaced at our cost. This include the Long Drag link, Short Drag link, and the Adjuster. Parts and Labor totaled $673.31. This issue is well documented throughout Ford owners.
This is related to Campaign # 20N04 Steering Linkage Damper. Ford is aware of this problem and when I accelerate and hit a bump in the road the whole front end of the truck vibrates uncontrollably and i have to slam on the brakes to get the vehicle under control. I have taken it in to the Ford Dealership in Thomasville and they supposedly have ordered the part. My truck was there for 3 weeks and they did not fix the problem. I have called left messages and they have not returned my calls. I don't feel safe driving the vehicle and they will not give me the status update on when the part is going to come in.
While driving on more than one occasion the front of the truck and steering wheel starts violently shaking. It makes it hard to control. Once you pull over and stop, you can resume driving without issue. You never know when it will happen.
While driving on Interstate 45 south of Houston at highway speeds, the steering wheel began heavily vibrating after hitting a small pothole in the freeway. It vibrated violently until I was able to apply the brakes and slow to under 40 mph. At that point, it smoothed out and control was restored.
The contact owns a 2019 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving downhill approximately 70 MPH, the vehicle started shaking and vibrating uncontrollably while driving over surface changes in the road pavement. The contact was able to stop and inspect the vehicle but was unable to identify the cause of the failure. After continuing the long-distance trip, the failure reoccurred on two separate occasions. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to determine the cause of the failure but suggested that a suspension stabilizer bar be installed on the vehicle; however, the part was on backorder. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 27,000.
The first time it happened was about 9/3/2022. I was driving down the road at 60 mph and hit the rumble strip in the middle of the road. The truck started shaking violently until I slowed substantially. I started back up and it was fine. On three separate occasions it has started to do this went hitting a bump in the road. Each time I was driving about 60 mph and it stopped when I slowed substantially. It is almost impossible to steer it when it happens and it is very dangerous.
Drive train vibration, also known as -??Death Wobble.-?? My truck is experiencing shaking, or vibration at driving speeds of 70MPH. Problem is getting worse.
Driving at highway speed I hit bumps in the road which caused violent shaking in the vehicle and loss of control of the steering. I was forced to immediately reduce my speed to avoid total loss of control, almost causing an accident. Dealer called it the death wobble but was unable to repair due to the inability of replacement parts. I have videos of the my vehicle experiencing the issue again on 9-15-22
Death wobble, steering extremely violent and difficult in heavy traffic with a need to slow down immediately. Risk to me and everyone around me because of the loss of control. The truck wouldn-??t stop vibrating/shaking/bouncing until I came to a complete stop in the middle median of an interstate highway. Stopped to look at the truck and didn-??t see anything. Tried again and it happened a second time. The road was rough and has some uneven places. ( I-65 south between Louisville and Elizabethtown Kentucky.)
Death Wobble: At speeds above 55mph the vehicle becomes uncontrollable after encountering bumps in the road that initiate the death wobble. The wobble becomes more uncontrollable until you can get the vehicle stopped - to zero mph. This was very dangerous in heavy Denver I25 traffic where your ability to stop was constrained by adjacent vehicles. It also occurred in construction zones with rough pavement and no shoulders or places to get off road. Having to hit the skids in the middle of freeway traffic posted with an 80mph speed limit, is life threatening, for my vehicle and the other drivers. Ford is well aware of this problem - the internet has many videos explaining how to fix it. Ford needs to get this done before someone is killed. I cannot drive the vehicle above 55mph.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Charlevoix, MI, USA