2018 Ford F-150 Complaint Log

Sudden down shift at highway speeds while pulling a trailer followed by immediate engine oil pressure loss. I got out and checked engine oil level and it was okay also there was no oil leaks. I tried to restart engine and it would not restart.

Sudden down shift to second gear at highway speeds while pulling a trailer followed by immediate oil pressure loss.

Transmission slipped into neutral while accelerating and attempting to merge with highway traffic. Was nearly rear ended by the vehicle in back of me and had to veer off onto the shoulder of the road and turn the vehicle off and then back on to get the transmission to engage

Upon cranking the truck the cam phasers make a rattling noise. The issue is the same as it is in the recall 21B10 that affects the F-150's but excludes the Raptor.

This vehicle is using oil in a rate of about 7-8 quarts every 2000-2500 miles. When the oil dipstick is checked there is not a drop of oil on the dipstick. I have spoken with the dealership concerning this matter and the suggestion from FORD was to purchase another dipstick, which would cost my pocket book around $600. The dealership indicated that there is a service bulletin out at FORD addressing this very issue, however FORD Motor Company will not pay for the repair. There is no way a brand new vehicle should be using this much oil in that little of miles driven. I have searched the web and found hundred of vehicle owners who are describing the exact very nature that I am reporting. FORD's fix was to put thicker oil in the motor and change the oil dipstick. Can you please contact me in regards to my complaint about this issue. My name is [XXX] , [XXX] ; phone number [XXX] ; email address: [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to be restarted. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that the vehicle was consuming an excessive amount of engine oil. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Technical Service Bulletin: 19-2365. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 102,000.

Was making a left hand turn cutting across traffic at a stop light. Transmission gears slipped causing me to lose power halfway thru a high speed intersection. Other vehicles had to hit curbs to avoid me. This is a common and well known problem with Ford 10R80 transmissions. Someone will eventually end up dying from these issues

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that upon attempting to change a tire, the contact became aware that the provided tools were unable to be used to complete the wheel replacement. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the lug nuts were swollen. The contact was informed that the lug nuts needed to be forcefully removed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 85,000. The VIN was not available.

My 2018 Ford F150 had issues such as harsh shifting, jerking, lunging, hesitation, and loss of power. Every time my truck was in the Ford dealer I asked them to check the transmission. Every time they told me there was no issue with the transmission. The jerking/slipping/hard shifting got progressively worse. I took my truck back to the Ford dealer. The truck had 69K miles. The dealer stated I need a new transmission. Ford was not offering any financial relieve. I asked the dealer if they tried the TSB issued by Ford. The dealer stated they have never got them to work. Ford is aware of defective transmissions in there 10 speed model but are only fixing them for Trucks that are still under warranty.

Transmission delay in shifting and or jerking while shifting through gears. Was travelling at highway speeds in 10 gear and my transmission lost power. Could not accelerate at all transmission was non responsive for a couple seconds while showing it was in 1st gear. This happened a couple more times at lower speeds from 7th gear and downshifted automatically to 1st cutting off any power to transmission. I had made a left turn and vehicle stalled from transmission not accelerating at all and hesitated and jerked into 4th gear. Downshifting and upshifting is delayed affecting the driveability of the vehicle. Vehicle only has 63k miles on it no prior transmission issues at all. I took it into Ford dealership and they said heave seen problems like this with this vehicle in the past and right about where my mileage was at too. Ford says I need a new transmission but cannot diagnose what exactly is wrong with the transmission. Their option they gave me was $6700 to open up transmission and replace parts but the price doesn't include parts or a new transmission at $8100. In doing a little research online there appears to be a major concern with Ford/GM over the 10 speed 10r80 transmission I have. I have 3 children and do not trust driving the vehicle as the driveability of vehicle is a safety hazard and believe it's due to Ford knowingly that there are concerns over the transmission and not willing to do anything to fix their engineering issues with the transmission. The highway speed that i explained could have resulted in a crash or worse, someone getting hurt.

This truck was supposed to be recalled under the Transmission recall for 10r80 and I noticed while conducting a decode on the vin number that the type and kind of transmission was never listed so I’m wondering how many people have been going through the same issues as us and if this will get fixed because our vin is not recalled and it should be

Transmission failed. Specifically the CDF drum which is a known issue and Ford has a TSB for it. Truck would not move or shift gears periodically. Would also slip into neutral and would not engage any gear which is extremely dangerous on the road. Dealer confirmed that the CDF drum is shot and the truck needs a new transmission, $8800. My truck only has 53k miles on it, it is a 2018 model year. There were no visual indications of a problem, no CEL. You could tell just by driving the truck, it got so bad that it was virtually undriveable. I put the TSB below. This really needs to be a RECALL as it is super dangerous. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Catastrophic transmission failure at 44,690 miles.

Transmission downshift without warning

10 speed transmission. Began to shift had in and out of 8th gear. When shifting out of 3rd, it would lose power and slow down. While traveling highway speed, it suddenly shifted from 10th down to 1st for a brief time before getting back in gear. This caused me to take my foot off of the gas and begin applying the brake while traveling on the freeway.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission slipped, and the vehicle jerked. The RPM fluctuated, and the engine revved, but the vehicle lost motive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was determined that the CDF cylinder needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 149,000.

Unknown

The transmission is experiencing delayed engagement, harsh shifting, and slipping out of gear. It is at the dealership and available for inspection at this time. The dealer has inspected the transmission and reported that it failed and needs to be replaced. Ford company has been notified and will be conducting their own inspection soon. There were no warning lamps, but this has happened before. This will be the third transmission for this truck. The original transmission was replaced in April 2022 for the same issues. Now three years later, it needs to be replaced again for the same issues. There are several lawsuits against Ford for this particular transmission and multiple TSB’s.

With 83,000 miles, we checked the oil to discover it was empty. Upon taking it to the dealer, they determined that there was severe scoring due to the known PCV value issue under TSB 19-2365 for excessive oil consumption. Prior to this time, there had been no oil issues with the vehicle. Dealer recommended replacement of the engine. The engine was replaced in August 2024 with a remanufactured engine. The oil was changed on December 5, 2024. From that point to February 25, 2025, the oil was checked periodically with 3 quarts of oil being added over that period of time. We took the truck back to the dealer to check to see why there is excessive oil consumption again. The dealer instructed us that they would need to follow the recommended action in TSB 19-2365 to reprogram the powertrain control module, install a new engine oil level indicator, and change the engine oil. We would then need to bring the truck in weekly for the dealer to check the oil to assess whether there was excessive consumption of oil. We asked why the engine would have been replaced in August 2024 with another engine that had the same problem as the engine replaced. Weren't the corrections done to the engine per the TSB 19-2365? We were told they did not know.

The cam phasers on my 2018 Ford F-150 Raptor are failing now as I hear rattles on a cold start from the engine, which has then been proved out by technicians at the Autonation dealership here in Frisco, Texas. They are suggesting full replacement for all the phasers which causes major safety concerns. I use my car to drop my [XXX] son at daycare every day and drive 30 miles each way to work. I know that Ford offered customer satisfaction program for 2018 manufactured F-150s but somehow the recall doesn't apply to my vehicle. The repair costs are $6k quoted by the dealership I mentioned and it is simply too expensive for us to be able to afford. Therefore, I was wondering if you could please add this recall to my VIN which will allow me to get this safety concern resolved at a Ford dealership. I would really appreciate it if you could do that. Have a great day! INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Radio went out not long after I bought it. Nothing on that end works. No back up camera, nothing. Bad apim module. 1400 to replace. It’s such a common issue and should be a recall.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission independently downshifted into first gear. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was made aware of the failure, and an estimate was provided for the cost of the transmission replacement. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,787.

1. The Transmission 2. -While driving at highway speeds the vehicle slipped into neutral multiple times, other vehicles have swerved to avoid our sudden slow down. -Has lurched forward from stop when foot was removed from brake at intersection with pedestrian present. -Stalled completely when auto stop start engaged and impeded cross traffic at night 3. Yes the problem has been reproduced and confirmed multiple times by independent service center. 4. No, the transmission has not been inspected by FORD or anyone else 5. There were no warning lamps, or messages. The only symptom at first was rough shifting. Transmission no longer knows what gear to be in. For example it will move to tenth at 25mph or drop to first gear at 50mph. Adaptive learning computer has been reset multiple times. A warning light started coming on intermittently ("wrench" symbol) after changing fluid. Each time computer has been reset a different code pops up associated with the wrench light coming on.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that after opening a Ford Pass account and profile, the software was stuck in a learning loop. The transmission seized, skipped, jerked, and the vehicle lunged. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that a bushing was lodged in the axle tube and the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was reset. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

Transmission slipping And as its driving from 4th gear it drops down to 1st gear and it slips wont go into gear and it stops for a couple of seconds

The doors do not close when cold i have to use the seatbelt to rap around doors to keep them shut. I have brought to ford multiple times no fix. The transmission erratically shifts through multiple gears and downshifts into low gears when at high rate of speed. Which i have been told is due to a faulty cdf drum in transmission that ford wont take responsibility for. It is a very dangerous vehicle

I received a recall on my 2018 F-150 to update / reprogram the PCM. The truck had been running well and had not had any check engine lights on (at least since I have owned it). The recall work was done at a local Ford dealer on 2-17-2025. On [XXX], the check engine light came on. The truck was taken to a local mechanic who scanned the code and said it indicated that one of the catalytic converters needed replaced. The light went out about a week later, but came back on [XXX]. I believe the check engine light coming on is related to / caused by the recall in which the PCM was updated. I contacted the service department where the recall work was performed. He said the dealership could scan the check engine code, but it would cost $200-$300 and I would be responsible for that cost. After reading about many similar cases online in which other people believe the recall work has now caused check engine codes indicating there is a problem with the catalytic converter(s). I contacted FORD customer service and opened a case (case # [XXX] ). I was told by the dealer that the truck could go into limp mode at any point and would be basically undrivable at that point and potentially cause a dangerous situation - especially in traffic or if towing a trailer. I am getting no where with the dealer or FORD customer service. I believe the problem has been caused by the recall in which the PCM was updated. I would greatly appreciate this concern being investigated. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the vehicle made an abnormally loud rattling sound on cold starts. The contact related the failure to TSB Numbers: 23-2143 and 21N03. The dealer and Ferman Ford (727) 797-2277); were notified of the failure and referred the contact to the manufacturer for assistance. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle started to downshift unintentionally. The power train and the transmission warning lights were illuminated, and the message "Power Default" was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.

Door latching system is often inoperable when temperatures are below freezing. The door will not latch and must be held close while driving. Vehicle has been repaired once by dealer per bulletin 18N03 but the problem persists.

Complete transmission failure causing lose of power. 2023 Replaced transmission 65,000 miles. 02/14/2025 New transmission 80,000 miles lose of power when accelerating to pass then huge Bang! Truck spent approx. a month or more during warranty to fix 4wd issues.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked in the driveway, the door failed to close due to the extreme cold weather. The contact manually rigged the door closed while driving to work. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that there was water inside the door lock and unlock cables. The contact stated that the rusted cables caused the locking failure and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was in the process of being repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 95,415.

The 10R80 automatic transmission exhibits harsh/delayed shifts, gear-slipping, and occasional unintended downshifts, especially at highway speeds. More specifically, gears 3 and 5 exhibit hard shifts at lower speeds in heavy traffic, such as stop-and-go city driving. The 8th gear specifically will have issues at higher speeds on the highway when you apply more gas, and the vehicle will drop out of 10th gear and have a very hard shift into the 8th gear, almost like the transmission is about to come apart at dangerous speeds. This appears to be a well-known issue that Ford has issued a TSB 21-2357 back in October of 2021. The specific problem has been confirmed with a dealer and ASE-certified mechanics from the dealership documenting the gear issues, as well as the CDF drum that is a known culprit in the earlier versions of the 2017-2020 F150, based on the poorly designed bushing inside of this drum that slides out of position, resulting in the pressure loss and slippage of gears. This has been confirmed by the dealership, as well as multiple issues documented on the 10R series transmissions. No warning lights or indicators other than The specific problem has been confirmed with a dealer and ASE certified mechanics from the dealership documenting the gears issues as well as the CDF drum that is a known culprit in the earlier versions of the 2017-2020 F150based on the poorly designed bushing inside of this drum that slides out of position, that results in the pressure lose and slippage of gears. This has been confirmed by the dealership as well as multiple issue documented on the 10R series transmissions. No warning lights or indicators other than how it drives and understanding the hard shifts are not supposed to happen in an automatic vehicle. The issue first started about earlier this year, and Ford told me it was an issue, but we can’t get to it for another 8 months. This is unsatisfactory and a huge concern for people and safety of others on the highways.

2018 f150 5.0 engine 102k miles burned 8 qts of oil in 8,000 miles, now the engine is getting rebuilt and I just bought it 8k miles ago. Also the transmission cuts power completely while shifting causing a safety concern. 10 speed transmission is in the truck, worst transmission and engine I’ve ever had out of any vehicle I’ve ever owned.

According to the mechanic, the cdf drum on my 2018 F150’s 10R80 transmission slipped past the retaining ring or lack of a retaining ring causing 5/10 gears to fail. Replaced the entire transmission with a remanufactured one.

Vehicle shifting to lower gears while driving at any speed. Vehicle not engaging into higher gear when accelerating and then slipping out of gear completely. Vehicle remaining in high gears like 7 or 4 when completely stopped.

The component that malfunctioned was the automatic transmission, when leaving from a full stop, I released the brake and pushed on the accelerator, and the vehicle began to move forward and shortly after that it went out of gear and stopped accelerating. The engine just revved up, I let off the accelerator and it slammed hard into gear then started moving forward again. My safety and the safety of my wife and children who were riding with me was put at risk two of the three times, as I was turning into traffic, when the car lost forward momentum from the issue, there was oncoming traffic that almost hit me one time and could have hit me another, if the car had not slammed back into gear and started moving again. I am concerned that if it does it again at some point it may not eventually get in gear again and we could be struck by a vehicle, or rear ended. I have had the problem reproduced one time by an independent mechanic who rode with me. when was looking to get it diagnosed. With out charging me to take it apart and complete a repair he said he believed based on the symptoms and common problems they see with the 10R80 transmission in these years that the CDF drum is going bad. he said it can cause symptoms like this or slipping out of higher gear and down into first causing loss of forward momentum and high engine revving. The repair would require a rebuild or replacement of the automatic transmission. I have not had the component inspected by the manufacturer because it is out of warranty and I do not currently have the funds to pay for a new or rebuilt transmission. I had no warning lamps or messages about the problem prior to the failure, but I did have symptoms of hard, and inconsistent shifts while driving, that have continued to get worse, and the independent mechanic that rode with me said these are all symptoms of CDF drum failure.

APIMs failed. Will not reset, will not update, will not synch, will not function. Loss of GPS, 911 Assist, and all electronic functions. Other warning and rear view options unavailable. This loss of control of driver assisted functions limits safety and interaction features. Stems from 7 February update and software not removing old files. Verified by dealer, only way to fix software is to replace hardware at $1200 per part.

Background: I’ve had my F150 for 7 years. For 6.x years though, the truck was operating with improper software in the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) that managed the Emissions system’s control and monitoring. This is according to the Ford Recall Notice in Feb 2025 (2E14) stating the above. To address the Recall, a Ford technician came to my house, performed the software recall update, and immediately afterwards, my check engine light came on. Days later, back at the Ford dealer, they charged me a $200 diagnostic fee, and concluded my Catalytic Converter was bad and needed replacement. And the $2000 repair would be my responsibility since my mileage was (now) over the Emissions Warranty limit. My question to them was: “when did the Catalytic Converter fail”? Dealer answer: Not sure. The old/incorrect software couldn’t detect when it went bad. My comment: So the Converter may have failed in year 1 ,2, 3, 4 or 5 (still in warranty term) and just not flagged it back then? Dealer Answer: It’s possible, no way to know for sure. Point is: There’s a good chance the part actually ‘failed’ during the warranty period. How can Ford logically assign responsibility to me when the software was ‘incorrect’ for 6 years?? I DON'T LIKE DRIVING A TRUCK THAT'S POLLUTING MORE due to a failed Catalytic Converter, but the dealer wasn’t able to explain why it failed AFTER the warranty period. I feel that Ford should replace the Converter at their cost since the point of failure was most likely during warranty, but never triggered due to the defective/recalled software that the Truck had for it's entire life. There are online people saying similar. Got the recall done, then was told they needed a $2000 repair to the Converter. I suppose many will just continue to drive with the non functioning catalytic converter.

10r80 transmission not wanting to get out of second or just slamming gears from 10 back to 1 and not driving

Hard uneven shifting of the 10 speed transmission. One incident occurred on the highway at 72mph when the truck suddenly jerked but then recovered. I was holding the accelerator steady at the time of the incident. This is a major safety concern at this speed with kids in the vehicle. Truck has also experienced uneven shifting throughout its life (currently around 100k miles) but this was the first eye opening incident.

I had repeated issues with sudden downshifts while driving starting around 80,000 miles. By 83,000 miles it was doing it weekly or more frequently. It would shift down to first gear no matter what gear it was in. I would have trouble getting it to shift back even if I stopped and turned it off or tried the manual’s “fix” of pressing the brake and accelerator pedals at the same time for at least 30 seconds. I paid $2300 to fix a transmission barely past 80,000 miles. Besides the safety issue, the impact on daily life in general is a mess. Ford should have to recall all recent years and fix or repay the customers like me who had to pay Ford to fix their defects.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that upon taking the vehicle to the dealer for regular service, the contact was made aware of a failure with the variable camshaft timing. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 87,000.

There have been no warning lamps and the issue has been confirmed by my local Ford dealer. I am having a hard shifts slamming down in gear abruptly. In addition between seventh and eighth gear either the computer or transmission doesn’t know which one to be in and the truck begins to shudder sometimes violently. This occurs when attempting to pass at hwy speeds. When you’re next to another vehicle it has led to Multiple near costly incidence. I don’t have confidence passing in this vehicle or towing. The gears slamming down are painful as a passenger.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the catalytic converter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000.

The driver and passenger seats continuously keep self adjusting without the memory seat option in my vehicle. When readjusting back to position I hear popping. I feel like it’s either an electrical problem or adjustment mechanism stripping out! I’ve talked to several people in different forums with the same issue and thought we was just losing our minds!

SYNC seems to return to factory setting at every start and I need to answer the same series of initial questions to access it. It dumps all of my saved preferences when I turn the truck off. It freezes, particularly when I try a manual soft reboot. Back up camera comes on while I'm driving. I don't have access to audio, navigation, or hands free support.

The contact's husband owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal knocking sound coming from the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The dealer was notified of the failure and diagnosed the vehicle with a defective cam phaser. Upon investigation, the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 21N03. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and confirmed that the vehicle was not covered under the Customer Satisfaction Program. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while the parked, the contact became aware that there was no oil on the dipstick. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that there was piston ring failure and that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was currently being repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 95,000.

The doors do not properly latch in cold weather. Yes available for inspection. The door came open while we driving down the road. The dash light came on indicating door was ajar. Door was not able to be closed after repeated attempts of closing. Passenger has to hold the door closed. Same occurrence happened to the driver side door and it would not latch so the vehicle couldn’t be used that day otherwise driver would have to hold door closed.