KnownCarProblems2003 Ford F-350 Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 90 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 Ford F-350, most often about the engine (29% of complaints, typically around 23,000 miles). It is 11th of 14 F-350 model years by number of complaints and has 2 recalls.
Most common 2003 Ford F-350 problems
Engine
26 complaints · 29%Half of these problems showed up before 23,000 miles. Parts named most often: engine, exhaust system.
: the contact stated while driving the vehicle stalled and lost power. This occurred at various speeds, and in all incidents the vehicle restarted. The vehicle was later driven to the dealer, who replaced and reprogrammed the turbo-charger. However this did not remedy the problem. On the most recent visit to the…
While driving the turbo hose to the turbo charger continuously blew off. Consumer experienced this problem several times. Took vehicle to dealer to be repaired. However, problem recurred.
Speed control
13 complaints · 14%Parts named most often: accelerator pedal.
While driving 20 MPH vehicle was engaged in full throttle. This resulted in unexpected acceleration, andthen a collision with a parked vehicle. No report of air bags deploying.
The contact owns a 2003 Ford F-350. The contact stated that while driving 65 MPH, he lost control of the vehicle as the vehicle independently decelerated to a complete stop. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnosis. The dealer stated that the air blockers failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not…
Electrical
11 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 16,000 miles. Parts named most often: wiring, ignition.
Dt: when the consumer went to start the vehicle it wouldn't start. The vehicle sat for over 12 hours. It had just come out of the shop and it had a down strap installed. The fire started in the right hand side of the dashboard. All the contents of the truck were destroyed. Both the police and fire dep artment…
Vehicle fire-2003 Ford 350 van-fire occurred as a result of an electrical malfunction in engine per fire analysis-VIN [VIN].
Fuel system
10 complaints · 11%Half of these problems showed up before 83,500 miles. Parts named most often: fuel injection system.
While driving vehicle stalled. Dealership indicated that this was due to a malfunction in the fuel injectors. The fuel injectors were replaced 8 times, and the EGR valve was replaced twice.
Strong diesel fuel odor at idle in cab with windows closed. Strong diesel odor around front of truck. No visible leaks or damp areas. Fear fire hazard.
Brakes
8 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 41,000 miles. Parts named most often: foundation components, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip.
2002 Ford f350 suffered a ruptured brake line.** answer required***. When the brakes were applied the pedal did not feel normal. The garage found that the brake line was improperly installed. The brake line was rubbing against the support for the shock absorber.
While pulling from a light or stop sign the vehicle brakes would lock up without warning. The dealership had been contacted. During stop and go traffic, when traffic opened up the brakes locked up and would stop for 20 minutes and unlocked when cooled down. After the second time the vehicle was taken to the dealer…
Wheels and tires
7 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 64,000 miles. Parts named most often: tread/belt.
Tl contact owns a 2003 Ford f350. While driving 65 MPH, the front passenger side ameri-tech tire blew out without warning. The current estimate from his insurance company is over $2,700, which includes fender and rim damage on the front passenger side, the ABS system, and the fender inner-liner. The dot number and…
The contact owns a 2003 Ford F-350 equipped with bf goodrich rugged terrain t/a tires, size: 285/75/16. While driving 75 MPH, the front passenger side tire sustained tread separation. The contact stated that there was damage down to the fender and fender well of the vehicle. The contact stated that the tire was still…
Steering
6 complaints · 7%Parts named most often: hydraulic power assist, column, gear box (other than rack and pinion).
The steering column failed while driving and caused loss of control. The steering wheel had gone around in a circle with no response. The consumer then touched the brakes and had gone into a ditch. Scc
While driving 55 MPH the vehicle's steering failed without warning. As a result the driver lost control and collided with a pole. No report of air bag deployment.
Air bags
4 complaints · 4%Parts named most often: frontal.
The consumer's vehicle was involved in a front end collision while driving 50 MPH. Upon impact, the front air bags did not deploy. Passengers in the rear seats sustained minor injuries. There was no indication that there was a problem with the air bags prior to the collision. The vehicle was a total loss. The front…
While driving 20 MPH vehicle was engaged in full throttle. This resulted in unexpected acceleration, andthen a collision with a parked vehicle. No report of air bags deploying.
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2003 Ford F-350 recalls
Lights: brake lights
Risk: Non-functioning lights could increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the switches free of charge. The safety recall began on august 15, 2011. Owners may contact ford motor company customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332.
Full defect summary
Ford is recalling certain model year 2011 ranger trucks built from january 25, 2011, through april 25, 2011 at the twin cities assembly plant, and service parts distributed to dealers for certain 2004 through 2011 model year ranger trucks, 2002 through 2005 model year excursion vehicles, and 2002 through 2007 model year f-250, f-350, f-450, and f-550 trucks for failing to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, "lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment." the multi-function switch was shipped with a subcomponent (slider) that may experience deformation. A multi-function switch with a deformed slider may malfunction causing the turn signal, tail lights, hazard warning signal flashers and/or brake lights not to activate.
Electrical: 12v/24v/48v battery
Risk: If the ground wire is loose, electrical current may flow to the radio suppression strap causing it to heat and potentially melt or ignite adjacent components which could result in a fire.
Fix: Dealers will replace the engine ground stud and the radio suppression strap and adjacent components will be inspected for damage and replaced, if necessary. The recall began on july 23, 2004. Owners should contact ford at 1-800-392-3673.
Full defect summary
On certain pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles equipped with 6.0l diesel engines, the engine ground stud that attaches the negative battery terminal eyelet to the engine block may be loose.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
Summary
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehi
Engine stalling
Summary
Twenty five of the odi failure reports are duplicative of ford complaints.twenty odi reports do not contain a VIN (and may or may not be duplicative of ford reports).the 14 alleged crashes and 2 alleged injuries were all minor.submitted during preliminary evaluation (pe) 04-070, ford's response to odi's information request (ir) letter contained about 5,000 consumer reports (mors) and 8,700 field reports (cqis).ford reviewed the complaints and categorized them.the manufacturer reports shown above represent a count of unique vehicles that ford categorized as allegedly stalling due to a subject engine component ('a' category, see ford's ir response letter for further detail); some of these vehi
Questions about the 2003 Ford F-350
- What are the most common problems with the 2003 Ford F-350?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: engine (26 complaints, typically around 23,000 miles); speed control (13 complaints); electrical (11 complaints, typically around 16,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2003 Ford F-350 have?
- 2 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from July 13, 2011 (lights). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2003 a bad year for the Ford F-350?
- It is 11th of 14 F-350 model years by number of complaints, with 90 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.