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.
While driving on the freeway in heavy traffic at approximately 60 mph my 2012 Ford F-350 Super Duty crew cab truck began to shake violently so much so that the vehicle was hard to control resulting in a near miss of collision with vehicles next to me. With great effort I was able to control the truck and come to a stop safely. I exited the freeway and took surface roads at slow speeds to get home,
My F350 has developed a death wobble over the last twelve months. Significantly worse last Friday after hitting a bridge expansion at around 65mph. Very close to losing control of the vehicle and shaking did not subside until I came to a complete stop on the shoulder of the road. I have a service appointment on 17dec2020 to have Ford assess problem. They said it is not covered under warranty or tsb so I would have the bear cost of repairs. Ford is guessing could be as much as $4000 out of pocket cost. Since there is a tsb out to fix newer trucks but does not cover mine and there is a class action suit pending for this with Ford filed, I do think Ford needs to consider this a safety issue and repair it pending suit as show of good faith and customer concern about those of us who remain loyal to the brand.
Driving on the highway at 70 mph. The steering wheel wobbled out of control which made it so I could not control the vehicle. I applied the brake but it didn't respond until the truck slowed. Cars were serving off the road and I was within seconds of a very serious accident with 2 of my children. I am frightened to drive the truck as no one can tell me what the cause or repair needed. Had something similar on my former Ford but not to the extent of this incident.
I recently crossed a bridge expansion joint doing somewhere between 70 and 75 mph my truck steering wheel shook violently as I could barely hold it. I slowed down to about 40-45 mph before it quit. This was on a Saturday. Monday I took it to a local garage to have the tires rotated and balanced and check for anything that could be bad in the steering/front end suspension. They rotated the tires and found the steering stabilizer shock was leaking, they replaced it and started to bring me the truck. It started shaking violently at 50 mph. They ended up replacing the drag link, right outer tie rod end, adjusting sleeve, ball joint at tracker bar and right outer lower tie rod end. They said I needed to get an alignment on it, I drove the truck a couple hundred miles seemed to be fine. I took to the shop they used for a alignment, they did their thing and I left. When I left I noticed the steering wheel wasn't straight so I took it for a quick drive. At 60 mph I did the violent shaking again and having to slow down to 45 mph for it to stop, it shook twice in a 6 mile stretch of interstate. I returned it to the alignment shop and they said they could not have done anything to cause it.. I took it back to the first shop and they got it in the Ford garage for an alignment. Still shaking after they had it for most of a week they replaced the tires and it seemed to help. Until a couple days later I was running 62-64mph in a slight turn and it started doing it again. It is still doing it and I know when it is going to start so I'm ready. After research on the web I hear that this is called the "death wobble"
Truck has developed a very extreme death wobble in the front end at speeds over 50 mph, when you hit any small bump, terrifying experience, loss of steering control.
- Conway, AR, USA
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October 16th Friday picked up my wife martha from work around 5 pm. Driving on a country road, smooth straight section, felt shimmy in steering wheel. We didn't have trailer. Road was dry and in good condition. Had been looking in to death wobble and watching videos earlier in the week. Decided to move steering wheel a little left and then back a little right (as if trying to avoid a pot hole, no cars were on coming and one car was behind me), going about 50 mph. Death wobble started and was totally unexpected, shook both the wheel violently and shook the whole truck. I put on the brakes but don't remember how long it took to slow and have the shacking stop, move truck to the side of the road and let car pass me. Dropped of the truck at martha's work and took her car to our destination. Items in the back seat of truck, cooler, plastic bin container and suitcase that was on the truck seat was now on the floor. Will add pdf with more related detail.
At speeds typically over 50 mph vehicle, vehicle has a propensity to begin shaking violently, and uncontrollably. After doing some research this appears to be a common problem known among owners as "death wobble". the vehicle has been to my local dealership to for repairs and parts replacement but the problem remains unsolved. I no longer feel safe operating this vehicle.
At highway speeds, hitting small potholes or bumps in the road causes the vehicle's steering to violently rattle uncontrollable until slowing to under 50 mph.
Death wobble! has happened on many occasions! driving down the highway any speed over 50 miles per hour. Truck front end and steering shake violently! it's very hard to keep control over truck. Afraid of killing my family and other drivers. Took the truck to shop and got two new front tires and a new rim. Truck has been service and no difference!
Driving at highway speed (55-75 mph) the front wheels will start to shimmy and shudder causing steering wheel and front tires to oscillate severely (death wobble) when driving over rough surfaces. This causes entire vehicle to shake uncontrollably. This has caused loss of steering control and can only be be stopped by stopping or slowing vehicle. (unsafe at highway speeds with traffic following)
I have been dealing with wobble and vibration on my F-350 for years now and it seems to be getting worse. It has always seems to occur between 45-55 mph. They first replaced ball joint, then I was told it's the tires, got new tires. It was always just a little vibration and play in the wheel. Now when I hit a bump, a frost heave or like a bridge joint I get extreme shake and vibration in the steering wheel that makes the vehicle hard to control. They most recently replaced stabilizer but it still occurs. The effect seems to be worse when I have my truck camper on it. Started to do research today on it and discovered this so call death wobble complaint. I am filing a complaint too because it almost caused me to have an accident today as I had no control and was forced to suddenly slow down today after I hit a bridge joint.
Currently experiencing "death wobble" at various speeds while on both city and highway roads. Front end becomes completely unstable and control is not regained unit speed is reduced greatly. Incidentally, the air bag dash light is now on.
I can be driving down highway no problem, suddenly hit a small bump and get death wobble, having to immediately try slowing down below 50 and pulling over to side of road. Replaced almost all front end components and continue to have issue.
4 months ago I was traveling at 50 mph. While driving my Ford F350 superduty at that speed the truck had an extremely bad and violent shake in the steering wheel. During this time I had no steering control, braking was at a very minimal, and pulled the truck into oncoming traffic. This has happened 6 other times in the past 4 months. During this time Ford mechanics have told me that this doesnt appear to be a common issue since it doesnt happen all the time. I replaced shocks, tires, and even had the suspension looked at by certified mechanics and nobody has an answer for this problem. This problem is a known issue by NHTSA and Ford and nobody seems to be doing anything to fix this issue. It's getting to the point where I cannot drive my only mode of transportation for fear of causing a serious accident injuring or killing myself, my family, or someone else in the road. If an investigation is not done very soon I will seek legal action against Ford and against the NHTSA for overlooking the severity of this problem. You can read all the other reports on what the internet is calling the death wabble. This is not an isolated situation and if I need to bring this to the attention of the news so it's more public I will do this.
While accelerating up to a cruising speed on a local interstate, the steering wheel and front end began to shake violently, severely limiting my ability to safely control the vehicle (A/K/a a "death wobble"). I had to take my foot off the accelerator in the middle lane of an interstate (with a speed limit of 70 mph) and move carefully over to the right hand shoulder to bring the vehicle to a stop. The issue has persisted despite having my tires balanced and front end aligned. I took my truck to a local Ford dealer for another warranty item on 2/3-4/2020 and requested that this problem be looked into as well. I was advised by the service manager that the truck needed "an entire new front end" at a cost of over $1,800 as it was something covered under the extended warranty we have on the truck (up to 75,000 miles).
'death wobble': while driving on paved road ways at speeds of 60 mph to 80 mph it suddenly goes into a violent shake. The shake is so violent that objects on the seats and in the box are thrown around, even heavy objects such as 30 pound propane tanks. The only way to stop the violent shake is to slam on the brakes and reduce the speed to under 40 mph. Bumps in the road can induce the shake if the speed is around 60 mph.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-350. While switching lanes at 65 mph on the freeway, the vehicle shook violently and experienced the "death wobble". when the contact released the accelerator pedal, the vehicle stopped shaking and was driven to its destination. The contact called hoffman Ford (5200 jonestown rd, harrisburg, pa 17112, (717) 657-1600) and was informed to have an independent mechanic observe the suspension from underneath the vehicle while turning the steering wheel aggressively from side to side. The dealer stated that the track bar attached to the ball joint should turn from side to side. The manufacturer was contacted and provided a case number. The failure mileage was 150,000.
While driving on a straight stretch of road and not changing speed, the truck will randomly start to vibrate uncontrollably. "death wobble". the only way to get it to stop wobbling is to dramatically slow down. It happens randomly and at varying speeds. When it happens I have very little control over the vehicle it's extremely dangerous
Ford death wobble, defect in front steering damping shock causes truck to severely start shaking when 1 wheel hits ripple in road. You cant stop the violent shaking of truck without almost stopping truck. It shakes entire truck. Happens on highways with ripples in pavement or uneven pavement at speeds around 60 mph or higher. Ford will not do anything about it. Dealership puts after market dual steering stabilizer kit on front end at price of $600
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- South Jordan, UT, USA