What 1,835 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Ford F-150 Supercab Diesel

While shifting from park to drive or shifting from reverse to drive the vehicle makes a very loud bang pop sound from under or rear of vehicle. Dealership claims can't reproduce or it is normal which how would they know if they can't reproduce.

NHTSA ODI 11482304

Transmission on 2018 F150 XLT does not shift properly. When driving, the lower gears shift very hard, enough to snap your neck. I used the Tow/Haul transmission feature one day, and while coasting to a stop, the transmission shifted down so hard that everything in the truck went flying. I know that some of the 2018 F150 trucks have been recalled for this very reason but at this time, my VIN number has not been added to the list. My vehicle just hit 30,000 miles. I talked with my Ford dealer, Ford itself and the NHTSA.

NHTSA ODI 11481347

Front Hubs, Bearings have gone bad, and they are on backorder. 6500 on waiting list. I have been on this list since Janurary. Was told today that the company making the part, are not even make them. This could cause an accident if the bearings lockup. The ABS and the traction control does not work. Making for unsafe driving. Especially with fall and winter coming.

NHTSA ODI 11480076

I put the truck in park and left it idle with the air conditioning on for a passenger got out to go do something for a few minutes and the truck just started have flames come out of it from the middle of the truck until the truck completely burned the fire started with the truck running and idling and the the truck was parked on gravel

NHTSA ODI 11479267

The transmission valve body wears over time and becomes out of sync with the electronic shifting strategies. This caused the clutches to burn up and the vehicle comes out of gear or drops into 1st gear at highway speeds. Transmission was inspected and replaced due to the damage. Prior to the interstate failure was some random hard shifting but no warning lamps or messages.

NHTSA ODI 11478102

Truck shifts gears and goes out of gear when driving at highway speeds. In some cases it loses power altogether when it slips out of gear. It also does this when stopped and trying to accelerate at an intersection.

NHTSA ODI 11475809

While traveling on interstate truck shifted harshly causing a severe jerk then loss of power. Took to repair facility and after three days truck was returned. On way home roughly twenty-five miles from dealership same issue returned and truck went into limp mode maximum speed of 30mph. Truck has now been at repair facility for six weeks with no end in sight as to when or if a repair will be made. This is a 10 speed automatic transmission with 55,000 miles.

NHTSA ODI 11475030

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the transmission was slipping and the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with transmission failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and offered to cover 65% of the transmission repair. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the initial repair failed to fix the vehicle. The manufacturer then agreed to the cover the repair for a second time; however, the failure worsened. Two more additional repairs were performed on the transmission but failed to fix the vehicle. The dealer then informed the contact that the transmission needed to be replaced; and provided an estimate. The vehicle was not repaired and remained in the possession of the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 67,000.

NHTSA ODI 11474136

Transmission shifts up and down harshly from 1st to 3rd gear and from 3rd or 2nd gear to 1st. This also happens between 6th and 7th gear, when driving in eco, normal, or wet/snow. Lower gear shifting up or down results in frequent clunk sounds, and sudden change in speed. Experienced loss of rear wheel traction when gears shift at low speed around turns in wet conditions. I tried approaching corners at different speeds, and noticed the transmission likes to shift part way through a left turn, regardless of speed. Vehicle also shifts from 1st to 3rd while rolling at idle RPMs, and careers unexpectedly. This is frightening when driving slow around pedestrians in crowded areas, especially elementary school parking lots. On a couple occasions I have almost hit a vehicle backing out of a parking space when my vehicle shifts from 1st to 3rd while my foot is on the brakes. If I didn’t have my foot depressing the brake pedal I definitely would have hit a vehicle backing out of a parking space one one occasion. Started day 1 of purchase, and I was advised by the dealer that the vehicle needs to go through a learning mode which takes about 5k miles. Vehicle continued to shift to shift roughly after 5k, so I complained to the dealer. Dealer said my vehicle was not part of the group recognized as having a rough shift issue, but said they could reset the learning process and it might resolve the issue, but the dealer also said what I was experiencing is pretty normal with the 10 speed transmission. Dealer made note of harsh shift after test drive and after completing service said it will take a few hundred miles of driving for the system to retrain itself, and I may notice significant harsh shifts during that time compared to performance prior to service. No problem indicators activated before or after service, and no other resolutions were offered by the dealer, and Ford customer service recommended trying a new dealer if I was not happy. Under 30k at 4yo, same behavior

NHTSA ODI 11473952

Transmission, jumping gears, sluggish shifting, jumps gears with a jolt, local and highway speeds. Component was sent to manufacturer. Present since purchase in 2018. Causes warning light, low response (latency) between gas and engine response affects interactions with other vehicles at intersections (uncertainty). Yes, vehicle required major transmission repair and part replacement, now drives like it should have (solid and dependable transmission shifting). Warning engine light.

NHTSA ODI 11473502

Hard shifts and hesitation make this vehicle extremely dangerous to drive. The vehicle may okay not respond to acceleration when pulling across roads and highways. The transmission shifts extremely hard especially between gears 3-5. When driven for a while (hot) the wrench icon comes on and the vehicle begins to lose power. I have had this vehicle at two different dealerships but they cannot resolve the issue. A quick internet search indicates this is a serious issue with a number of vehicles that have this 10 speed transmission.

NHTSA ODI 11473628

Vehicle makes sudden lunging motion when vehicle is being shifted from part to drive or reverse. After vehicle is in motion from being parked it has random intermittent losses of power. Transmission does not shift properly while the vehicle is in motion.

NHTSA ODI 11469429

The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently downshifted and then accelerated unintendedly. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 82,000.

NHTSA ODI 11469190

Issue is with the transmission. Shifts erratic and slammed into gear at times. Safety concern is on 7 occasions now it has went into neutral like state after starting in traffic which has nearly caused me to be rear ended. While in this state with no forward acceleration the gear indicator switches between several different gears but not going into any one gear. I am now unable to pull into oncoming traffic for fear of the vehicle not accelerating. Truck has 37k miles and I'm the second owner. Vehicle is at ford dealer now since 06/13/22. I have read several forums with many complaints about this 10 speed adaptive transmission. I am severely worried for my and my families safety and was told by ford dealer they have had similar complaints. Have not been in a crash yet but extremely close with a semi on one occasion.

NHTSA ODI 11469234

The vehicles transmission randomly malfunctions slamming into and dropping out of gear and slamming back into gear causing vehicle to lose responsiveness. The dealer has informed me its 2018 F150s and Expeditions and they do not have a fix.

NHTSA ODI 11467976

While traveling on a straight and level interstate freeway with the cruise-control set to 75mph. A huge loss of power followed by a hard downshift from 10th to 7th, up to 9th and attempting to shift back into 10th before I decided to reduce speeds and pull over because it was very dangerous surging/uncontrollable for moments for myself and those driving around me. I noted smoke pouring out from behind the vehicle and that the transmission temp was at 226F. NO WARNING LAMPS/MESSAGES OR OTHER SYSMPTOMS NOTED. Once pulled over, I inspected the underside of the vehicle and noted the whole underside coated in automatic transmission fluid (Red in color). The fluid seemed to trace back to just before the engine/transmission interface. Transmission was serviced 7k miles prior. Dealer advised (through email correspondence) that I let the vehicle/transmission cool down and can then continue to drive the vehicle as the ATF foams up/ expanding and spills out of the transmission vent tube. If problems persist to bring in the vehicle for inspection.

NHTSA ODI 11468042

While driving down the highway at the speed limit (75 mph), my truck suddenly lost power and partially lost braking. The engine was still running but was running at an idle speed RPM. Both an audible voice and a message on the driver information panel said "drive mode not available, service is needed" Braking power was partially lost at the same time. Steering power seemed normal but braking power was also partially lost at the same time. My truck started slowing down, obviously, and as soon as a shoulder was available, I pulled over onto the shoulder and let my vehicle speed decrease. I only had partial braking power (I estimate less than 30%) so was unable to quickly come to a full stop. As my truck slowed to a speed of about 5 mph, it suddenly started working again, although an icon shaped like a wrench appeared at the bottom center of the driver information panel. At the same time of the issue described above, the air conditioning and air blower fully stopped at the same time, and the multifunction display used for audio and navigation went blank for a moment and reset itself. When it came back on the navigation portion of the screen gave a "GPS faulted" error. I was able to finish driving to work, where I parked the vehicle. Later, after work, and after the vehicle had been parked for several hours, the truck behaved normally, the wrench icon was gone and there was no indication at all that there had been any issue. I was in congested traffic at the time of the event and it could have resulted in a serious highway traffic accident involving multiple vehicles.

NHTSA ODI 11466595

Transmission stalls/hesitates when pulling out in traffic. Shifts are irractic.

NHTSA ODI 11461224

The F150 will stall when auto start/stop activates. This is a critical safety issue due to the vehicle becoming inoperable at intersections while stopped. The issue was reviewed several times by the dealership and issue persisted. The issue is still not repaired and mitigated by deactivating the system. This resulted in a lemon law lawsuit from me to ford with me winning a settlement for 8K dollars. However, this dangerous issue must be properly repaired. I am able to demonstrate this issue upon request. I have also have video of the incident with warning lights that activate.

NHTSA ODI 11460222

I have on numerous occasions had hard upshifts and downshifts and loss of acceleration while traveling uphill or when accelerating in gears 1 through 6. On two occasions I have had vehicles behind me almost collide with my vehicle due to complete loss of acceleration in my vehicle for periods of 4-10 seconds. The problem has been reproduced and confirmed by a Landmark Ford dealership. During these issues the powertrain malfunction indicator light has turned on.

NHTSA ODI 11458970

Transmission skipping, banging gears and sometimes separating tires from payment. Reported to Ford the following times: 5/16/2019 at 10,300mi 10/17/2019 at 15,130mi 3/18/2020 at 20,378mi 10/09/20 at 25,596mi 11/22/2021 at 40,330mi Ford has claimed that the banging and hard shifting upward and downward is "normal". They will only conduct a factory reset to the computer to "learn driving patterns" again. This works to resolve the issue, but is short lived.

NHTSA ODI 11457857

Whirring sound from right front wheel bearing. Repair shop confirmed I must replace the bearing hub assembly. The parts were unavailable so I was referred to the Ford dealer. The dealer informed me that the repair parts were not available because they were also defective. They also informed me that Ford is showing 16,000 back orders for that part number. They also advised me that the vehicle is safe to drive for now but if the whir becomes very loud it may not be safe to drive. I believe there should be a recall on the involved hub/bearing assemblies.

NHTSA ODI 11457733

My 2018 Ford F150 Raptor has major transmission shifting issues. The dealer re-flashed the transmission but issue are still there. I have researched the internet and I see lots of other owners have issues with these 10 speed transmissions.

NHTSA ODI 11457235

Initially, gears 1-4 had a very harsh shifting sequence. Vehicle has been inspected by Ford and they calibrated/adjusted the computer program. Vehicle remained the same, shifting hard, especially during a downshift to stop. In the last year, the transmission does NOT engage a gear when accelerating from a stop or coasting while on the freeway during a traffic jamb. This situation is very dangerous when making a left hand turn and trying to accelerate through the intersection and you do not have a gear engaged. Also, there have been instances where the transmission shifts from 1-3 and back down 3-1 multiple times in a matter of seconds and then disengages completely.

NHTSA ODI 11456832

2018 - F 150 3.5 twin turbo 10 speed transmission Truck 28K miles: After starting my acceleration from a stop light my transmission just stopped working as if it was not engaged and as I pushed the accelerator nothing was happening. The truck was not moving forward and since I was on a hill the truck started to roll backwards almost contacting the vehicle behind me before pushing the breaks. I was stuck at a busy intersection and had no response out of my truck what felt like 40 seconds before the transmission engaged and the truck to move forward again. This has not happened in the last two weeks but at times it feels like the transmission is grinding when I accelerate from a stop. I plan to bring it into the dealer but need to have my truck and it's been taking the dealers around my area weeks even months to get serviced for repairs. After finding reviews on the web about 10 speed transmissions Ford is using I'm not encouraged by this defect that can be a real safety problem. If a person was walking behind me expecting the truck to go forward and it rolls backward, it could be a fatal mishap. I live in an area with steep hills so Im not feeling very confident in the fixes Ford is doing for other customers who have this same problem as Im starting to experience.

NHTSA ODI 11454395