FORD F-250 · model year

2018 FORD F-250

614 NHTSA complaints, 10 crash reports, and 1 active recall for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2018FORDF-250 carries 614 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 10 crashes, 12 fires, 5 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2018 F-250 is steering with 243 filings, followed by suspension (193) and unknown or other (44). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability. This model year has 1 active recall campaign, which means the manufacturer is obligated to remedy the covered defect at no charge for the life of the vehicle — the full NHTSA campaign numbers are listed below.

NHTSA currently has 177 investigation files overlapping the 2018 F-250, and 8 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

614
Complaints
10
Crashes
12
Fires
5
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

614 filings

Crashes Reported

10 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

Above median complaint volume — review patterns below.

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
STEERING243
SUSPENSION193
UNKNOWN OR OTHER44
WHEELS28
STRUCTURE:BODY13
POWER TRAIN13
ENGINE13
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM11
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM8
BACK OVER PREVENTION7
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)6
FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL5
EXTERIOR LIGHTING4
AIR BAGS4
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL4

Recalls (1)

18V89400018/12/2018

ENGINE

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Ford F-150 and 2017-2019 Ford F-250 Super Duty, F-350 Super Duty, F-450 Super Duty, and F-550 Super Duty pick-up trucks equipped with an engine block heater. Water and contaminants may get into the block heater cable's splice connector causi

Recent Complaints

20251215UNKNOWN OR OTHER

My backup camera went black. There is a recall on this product 25V572 or Ford 25S89. My vin number is not on the list. How do i get my vin number on this list since the problem is identical to the recall prolem?

20250819FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

100k miles and the high pressure fuel pump is failed. Created small metal particles that got into fuel lines. Everything needs to be replaced. There’s a recall on over 80k trucks with the same issue. Local ford said this is the same issue as all the recalls but because we don’t have the recall on our VIN, we have to pay $20k for replacement.

20250711CrashFUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

Fuel pump faulted, engine would just cut off in middle of driving whether on highway, street, or interstate. Engine would randomly shut off. Took to ford dealership, they had to replace low pressure and high pressure fuel pumps, the dealership says this model is notorious for that, the fuel pumps tear apart and send metal into the fuel rail. This caused the truck to not get diesel and shut off. An extreme safety issue. Several times it happened while driving, and nothing prepared you for it to happen. Just saw where models I believe starting with 2020 have been recalled for same issue. Don’t understand why 18 models weren’t.

20250711CrashENGINE

Fuel pump faulted, engine would just cut off in middle of driving whether on highway, street, or interstate. Engine would randomly shut off. Took to ford dealership, they had to replace low pressure and high pressure fuel pumps, the dealership says this model is notorious for that, the fuel pumps tear apart and send metal into the fuel rail. This caused the truck to not get diesel and shut off. An extreme safety issue. Several times it happened while driving, and nothing prepared you for it to happen. Just saw where models I believe starting with 2020 have been recalled for same issue. Don’t understand why 18 models weren’t.

20250711SUSPENSION

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle displayed the death wobble. The failure had occurred three times. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was contacted; however, the contact was not able to speak with a representative. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000.

Mileage: 32,000

20250711STEERING

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle displayed the death wobble. The failure had occurred three times. There were no warning lights illuminated. The dealer was contacted; however, the contact was not able to speak with a representative. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000.

Mileage: 32,000

20250616ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started, the instrument cluster failed to function as intended. The contact stated the instrument cluster failed to activate. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a failed central processing unit. The contact was informed that the central processing unit needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact referenced an unknown recall; however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

Mileage: 90,000

20250603ENGINE

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle shut off unintendedly and the contact lost control of the vehicle. The message engine power reduced was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the high-pressure fuel pump had failed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 127,460.

Mileage: 127,460

20250603FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle shut off unintendedly and the contact lost control of the vehicle. The message engine power reduced was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the high-pressure fuel pump had failed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 127,460.

Mileage: 127,460

20250519POWER TRAIN

Transmission just went out no tell tale signs or anything.

20250423FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

On a very busy freeway truck started making a noise and losing power. 18 wheelers are coming up fast behind us and honking at us not knowing we are losing power and can not pull over because we are going over a bridge. The truck continued to lose power and messages started to appear saying powering down. We made it off the freeway and the truck completed died on us. Could not start. Had to call a wrecker and be towed over 100 miles back home. Well over $450.00. The next day called a mobile diagnosis that was $175.00 to tell us it was the fuel system. Got quoted from the Ford dealership $15k to repair so we took it to CS AUTOMOTIVE. They charged us $13,0000 for the repair. Shortly after getting the repair done, Ford issued a recall on 2018 Ford F250 for the same issue as our 2018 Ford F250 but our vin # was not included in the recall. It is clearly the same issue and we were told they will not do anything as our vin # was not in the recall.

20250402FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact stated that the failure had occurred while a trailer was attached. The contact stated that his family was inside the vehicle during the failure. The vehicle was restarted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with fuel system failure. The contact was informed that the fuel system needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced an unknown recall repair; however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 116,000.

Mileage: 116,000

20250227STEERING

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, the steering wheel seized with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure recurred. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 148,000.

Mileage: 148,000

20250218UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Ford recall 18N03 was preformed in 2022. Now in 2024/2025 passenger front door will not latch during freezing temperatures.

20250115ENGINE

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. There was no warning light illuminated before the failure. The contact was unsure if the vehicle was towed or taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that there was rust in the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Mileage: 80,000

20250108FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

The contact owns a 2018 Ford- F-250. The contact stated while driving at approximately 65 MPH, there was an abnormal sound and the "Vehicle Powering Down" message was displayed on the instrument panel; the vehicle lost automotive power and the vehicle failed to return to normal operation. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not drivable and was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact did research and was made aware of an unknown NHTSA Campaign Number however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.Â

Mileage: 100,000

20241230STEERING

I PURCHASED THE TRUCK NEW, AND IT HAS NEVER EXPERIENCED THE DEATH WOBBLE UNTIL DEC.25, 2024. THE TRUCK NOW HAS ONLY 45K MILES ON IT. I WAS DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE AND HIT A ROUGH PATCH IN THE ROAD AT 70 MPH, AND THE TRUCK BEGAN TO VIBREATE AND SHAKING, MY SON WAS IN THE VEHICLE BEHIND ME AND SAID IT LOOKED LIKE THE CAB WAS GOING TO FALL OFF IT WAS SHAKING SO BAD. i HAVE TAKEN THE TRUCK TO TWO RIVERS FORD DEALERSHIP TO CHECK OUT THE ISSUE. I JUST WANTED TO REPORT IT AS WELL SO THERE IS A RECORD OF THE ISSUE.

20241230SUSPENSION

I PURCHASED THE TRUCK NEW, AND IT HAS NEVER EXPERIENCED THE DEATH WOBBLE UNTIL DEC.25, 2024. THE TRUCK NOW HAS ONLY 45K MILES ON IT. I WAS DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE AND HIT A ROUGH PATCH IN THE ROAD AT 70 MPH, AND THE TRUCK BEGAN TO VIBREATE AND SHAKING, MY SON WAS IN THE VEHICLE BEHIND ME AND SAID IT LOOKED LIKE THE CAB WAS GOING TO FALL OFF IT WAS SHAKING SO BAD. i HAVE TAKEN THE TRUCK TO TWO RIVERS FORD DEALERSHIP TO CHECK OUT THE ISSUE. I JUST WANTED TO REPORT IT AS WELL SO THERE IS A RECORD OF THE ISSUE.

20241125STEERING

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and driver over a bump in the roadway, the front end of the vehicle was shaking violently. The contact slowed down to 10 MPH and restarted the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact added aftermarket stabilizers to the front end. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who informed him the failure was due to the death wobble and there was no fix for the issue. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. While driving 70-75 MPH, the vehicle shook violently. The vehicle became uncontrollable, and the contact decelerated to 20 MPH. The manufacturer was contacted, who referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was unknown.

20241125SUSPENSION

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and driver over a bump in the roadway, the front end of the vehicle was shaking violently. The contact slowed down to 10 MPH and restarted the vehicle. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact added aftermarket stabilizers to the front end. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who informed him the failure was due to the death wobble and there was no fix for the issue. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. While driving 70-75 MPH, the vehicle shook violently. The vehicle became uncontrollable, and the contact decelerated to 20 MPH. The manufacturer was contacted, who referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was unknown.

Compare 2018FORDF-250 to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations 8 Open

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2018 FORD F-250 have?
The 2018 FORD F-250 has 614 NHTSA complaints, 10 crashes, 12 fires, 5 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
Are there any recalls for the 2018 FORD F-250?
Yes, the 2018 FORD F-250 has 1 recall(s). The most common affected component is ENGINE. Recalls are issued by NHTSA and manufacturers must provide a free remedy.
What are the most common problems with the 2018 FORD F-250?
The most-complained component for the 2018 FORD F-250 is STEERING with 243 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include SUSPENSION and UNKNOWN OR OTHER.
Is the 2018 FORD F-250 safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.