There are 15 stored owner reports matching the powertrain & transmission leading-label group for the 1996 Ford F-250 in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 15 of 15 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)UNIT WAS PARKED AND SHIFTER PLACED IN THE "PARK" POSITION. THE TRUCK ROLLED BACK ACROSS THE PARKING LOT AND CAME INTO CONTACT WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. WITNESSES ON THE SCENE VERIFIED THAT THE SHIFTER WAS IN PARK BUT THAT TRANSMISSION WAS NOT ENGAGED IN THAT POSITION. AFTER THIS INCIDENT, IT WAS DETERMINED, BY EXPERIMENT, THAT THE INDICATOR ON THE SHIFTER DID NOT SHOW THE ACTUAL GEAR. WHEN IN "PARK" THE TRUCK WAS ACTUALLY IN EITHER REVERSE OR NEUTRAL. ACCORDING TO OTHER SOURCES, THIS PROBLEM, OF EITHER JUMPING OUT OF PARK OR NOT BEING IN THE GEAR INDICATED, HAS BEEN A PROBLEM WITH FORD AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS IN THE PAST.
THE VEHICLE WAS IN PARK AND IT WAS SITTING FOR 15 MINUTES. THE VEHICLE WENT FROM PARK TO DRIVE ALL BY IT'S SELF. I WAS TOLD BY MY MECHANIC THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS PARTICULAR TRANSMISSION, THE TRANSMISSION IS ELECTRONIC AND HE SUSPECTT A SELONIDE CAUSED THE PROBLEM. I FEEL THAT THIS IS A SAFTY ISSUE. *AK
THE OVERDRIVE LIGHT KEEPS FLASHING AND YOU CAN RESET THE COMPUTER AND THE TRANSMISSION WILL SHIFT FINE UNTIL THE OVERDRIVE LIGHT COMES ON. IT HAS BEEN TESTED AND IT SHOWS THERE IS NO REASON FOR IT TO BE FLASHING. HAVE HAD IT IN THE SHOP NOW 15 TIMES AND EVEN SPECIAL TECHNICIANS LOOKING AT IT AND CAN'T FIGURE IT OUT. I DON'T WANT TO LOOSE MY TRANSMISSION. *AK
CONSUMER WAS PULLING A 5TH WHEEL CAMPER FOR 5,0000 MILES WHEN TRANSMISSION FAILED, DUE TO BURNT CLUTCHES. DEALER RECOMMEND WHEN BACKING OUT CAMPER CONSUMER SHOULD USE LOW RANGE IN 4 WHEEL DRIVE.*AK
4 WHEEL LIGHT STATED THAT IT WAS IN 4- WHEEL DRIVE, IT WAS INFACT NOT, AND I ALMOST WENT OFF OF A CLIF. PUT NEW HUBS ON AND IT FAILED AGAIN IN JUST A LITTLE BIT OF MUD. 4 WHEEL LIGHT STATED THAT IT WAS IN 4 WHEEL AGAIN.*AK
THE TRANSMISSION GEAR INDICATOR INDICATES THAT THE VEHICLE IS IN PARK WHEN IT IS ACTUALLY IN REVERSE OR NEUTRAL. THE VEHICLE WAS TURNED OFF AND IN PARK, AND IT ROLLED DOWN AN INCLINE AND STRUCK A POST. THIS IS THE THIRD 1996 FORD F250 IN OUR COMPANY THAT THE SHIFT INDICATOR LINKAGE HAD THE SCREWS BACK OUT, CAUSING THIS SAME THING TO HAPPEN.
TRUCK WAS AT A STOPPED POSITION AND I NOTICED THAT THE LOCKING HUBS WOULD NOT STAY ENGAGED. THERE WAS A VERY LOUD GRINDING NOISE. I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO USE THE 4WD SINCE THE INCIDENT
VEHICLE SHAKES VIOLENTLY ON THE HIGHWAY, AND REPAIRS WERE DONE BECAUSE BOLTS WERE LOOSE AND MISSING ON THE FRONT AXLES. AXLE PIVOT BRACKET. DEALER CANNOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. *AK
CONSUMER BELIEVES AUTOMATIC LOCKING HUBS WERE INCORRECTLY DESIGNED DUE TO A PROBLEM WITH HUBS BEING NOISY AND NOT LOCKING FROM A PARKED POSITION. ALSO, 4WD TO FAIL ON WET GRASS/SLIGHT INCLINE, BOTH HUBS REPLACED.
TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THE 1-2 SHIFT GETS TO BE VERY MUSHY, PROBLEM COULD HAVE BEEN CAUSED BY HEAT BUILDUP DURING TOWING DUE TO A TOO SMALL FACTORY TRANSMISSION COOLER. *AK
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE LEAKS OIL AND IS HARD TO SHIFT. THE DEALER HAS REPLACED THE COMPUTER BOX, AND TOLD THE OWNER THAT THE TRANSMISSION HAD TO BE REBUILT. *AK
IN COLD WEATHER CONDITIONS THE VEHICLE DOES NOT ENGAGE INTO AUTOMATIC FOUR-WHEEL DRIVE. WHEN THE WHEEL BEARING GREASE HEATS UP, IT FLOW IN TO AUTOMATI LOCKING, CAUSE UNKNOWN. *AK.ET.
4-WHEEL DRIVE LOCKING HUBS BROKE.
TRANSMISSION SLOW TO SHIFT INTO GEAR. WOULD SHAKE & SHIMMY WHEN SHIFTING INTO 3RD GEAR. FEELS LOOSE WHEN STOPPING & GOING AT LOW SPEED, CAN FEEL THE LOOSENESS. *AK
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE WOULD SHUT DOWN. HAPPENED AT STOP LIGHT OR SIGNS. CONTACTED FORD MANUFACTURER & INFORMED CONSUMER TO TAKE VEHICLE TO DEALER. AT DEALERSHIP, MECHANIC PLACED VEHICLE ON DIAGNOSTIC MACHINE & NO CODES APPEARED. TRANSMISSION COULD NOT SHIFT PROPERLY INTO EITHER 1ST OR 2ND GEARS WITHOUT MAKING GRINDING NOISES. MECHANIC REFUSED TO REPAIR VEHICLE DUE TO BEING OUT OF WARRANTY.*AK
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Sep 3, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.