There are 7 stored owner reports matching the electrical system leading-label group for the 1996 Ford F-350 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 7 of 7 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)I OWN A 1996 FORD F-350 CREW CAB WITH A 7.3 LITER POWERSTROKE DIESEL. THE WIRING HARNESSON THE INTAKE MANAFOLD TO CONTROLE THE GLOWPLUGS MELTS AND SO DOES THE VALVE COVER GASKET OF WITCH THE WIREING HARNESS PASSES THROUGH IT WITH A PLUG X'S 2 AND THAN THE INTERNAL WIRING HARNESSES BURN UP UNDER THE VALVE COVER REQUIRING THE ENGINE TO BE DISSASEMBLED TO THE POINT OF THE HEAD TO REPLACE THE COMPONENTS. FURTHER MORE ON THE CLUTCH LINKAGE THERE IS A PLASTIC BUSHING THAT DISINTEGRATES QUITE OFTEN UNDER NORMAL USE. PARTS ARE AVAILABLE BUT THE WIREING PROBLEM IS VERY EXPENSIVE TO FIX EVEN YOURSELF. THE CLUTCH LINKAGE IS FAIRLY EASY TO FIX BUT SHOULD LAST LONGER THAN IT DOES.*AK
WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE CAUSE OF THIS WAS STILL UNDETERMINED.*AK
NAR 03/13/2003 WHILE DRIVING THE CONSUMER PULLED OVER AND NOTICED THE ENTIRE VEHICLE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE REAR AXLE WAS COMPLETELY BURNED. WITH NO PRIOR PROBLEMS IT JUST CAUGHT ON FIRE. *CB *JB
HEADLIGHTS BECOME INOPERABLE ON A INTERMITTENT BASIS WITHOUT WARNING. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED, BUT WAS UNABLE TO LOCATE SOURCE OF ELECTRICAL SHORT. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER DETAILS.*AK
TURNED THE IGNITION, THERE WAS A DISINCT BURNING SMELL AND THE WIRING HARNESSES IN THE TRUCK WAS SHORTED. SOME OF THE WIRING AND HARNESSES ACTUALLY MELTED. THE TECHNICIAN ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE WIRING DIAGRAM WAS INCORRECT, BUT THEY HAD NOT GOTTEN AROUND TO CORRECTING IT.
THE DEFECTIVE ALTERNATOR BEARINGS LOCKED UP, CAUSING THE ALTERNATOR TO CATCH ON FIRE. THE VEHICLE IS AT THE DEALER AT THE MOMENT. *AK
UNDER THE HOOD FIRE, ELECTRICAL SHORT, FAULTY WIRING HARNESS OVERHEATED, WILL PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION. *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.