FORD F150 · model year

1981 FORD F150

2 NHTSA complaints. A VIN lookup is required to determine whether a specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 1981FORDF150 carries 2 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

The most frequently selected component label in reports for the 1981 F150 is fuel system, gasoline:storage:tank assembly with 1 filings, followed by tires (1). Complaint categories reflect owner reports and intake categorization; they do not establish a defect pattern or cause.

NHTSA currently has 2 investigation files overlapping the 1981 F150. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should read the complaint-by-year trend as report volume, not a causal diagnosis. Use the related-complaint feed and the official recall lookup when researching a specific vehicle.

2
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

2 filings

Crashes Reported

0 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY1
TIRES1

Recent Complaints

20110124TIRES

I PURCHASED FOUR USED SX 5000 STARFIRE (COOPER) 255/70-15 TIRES FOR MY 1981 FORD F-150 IN MARCH OF 2010. THE TIRES WERE MOUNTED TO WHAT I BELIEVE ARE 15X8 STEEL WHEELS BY THE INDEPENDENT TIRE SHOP THAT I PURCHASED THE TIRES FROM. I THEN DROVE FROM SAINT PETERSBURG, FL TO AUSTIN, TX ON THE TIRES WITH NO PROBLEMS. OVER THE NEXT TWO OR THREE MONTHS, I DROVE ABOUT 500 MILES ON THE TIRES WITH NO ISSUES, UNTIL ONE DAY ONE OF THE FRONT TIRES WAS FLAT IN MY DRIVEWAY, WITH THE TREAD SEPARATED IN ONE AREA. I REPLACED BOTH FRONT WHEELS WITH SPARE WHEELS AND TIRES (UNKNOWN EXACT SPECIFICATIONS, BUT SMALLER), AND WITHIN A COUPLE OF WEEKS, ONE OF THE REAR TIRES (AGAIN, IN MY DRIVEWAY) WAS FLAT, WITH THE TREAD SEPARATED. I PLACED TWO OTHER SPARE WHEELS/TIRES ON THE REAR AND PLACED THE SX 5000S IN MY GARAGE. WITHIN A WEEK, THE TWO SX5000S THAT HAD AIR IN THEM HAD BLOWN, AGAIN WITH THE TREAD SEPARATED. THE FAILURES OCCURRED WHEN THE WEATHER OUTSIDE TURNED HOT (SUMMER). TIRE PRESSURES WERE MAINTAINED NE

19990928FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY

THERE IS A HOLE IN THE GAS TANK. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. *AK

Compare 1981FORDF150 to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 1981 FORD F150 have?
The 1981 FORD F150 has 2 NHTSA complaints, 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 1981 FORD F150?
The most-complained component for the 1981 FORD F150 is FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY with 1 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include TIRES.
Is the 1981 FORD F150 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 vintage: August 2026. 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.

Every figure on PlainCars is rendered directly from NHTSA complaint and safety data, no number is typed in by an editor. This year-specific record is rendered from NHTSA ODI, recall, and NCAP rows for the 1981 FORD F150; no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.