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What 6 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Ford F-53

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (6)Body & structure (3)Backup camera & sensors (1)Electrical system (1)Parking Brake (1)Seat belts (1)

3 of 6 complaints match · Body & structure · clear filters

Oct 31, 2022Body & structure

The contact owns a 2019 Thor Motor coach Windsport built on a 2018 Ford F-53 Chassis. The contact stated that while she was cleaning the RV, she noticed that the metal screws that maintained the overhead unit of the driving compartment attached to the ceiling were pulling out. However, the brackets installed on each side of the overhead unit prevented it from falling. An independent RV mechanic diagnosed that the failure was due to metal screws being installed on the wooden surface. The independent mechanic informed the contact that brackets needed to be installed to maintain the overhead unit into position. The RV was not repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but did not provide any assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 9,000.

NHTSA ODI 11491692

Jun 3, 2020Body & structure

MAIN DOOR HATCH PLUNGER BROKE ON TRIMARK 72130 DOOR HATCH /DEAD BOLT , LOCKING US OUT. IF WE HAD BEEN INSIDE WE WOULD HAVE BEEN TRAPPED INSIDE. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED AT THE TIME. HAD TO FIND A LADDER A CLIMB THRU WINDOW AND AFTER A COUPLE HOURS WERE ABLE TO TAKE APART TO GET UNLATCH AND FOUND BROKEN PLUNGER/HATCH. *TR

NHTSA ODI 11327052

Jun 7, 2018Body & structure

WHILE DRIVING ON THE FWY THE BUNK DOORS ON MY MOTORHOME FAILED WHERE THE DOOR SCREWS INTO THE HINGE BRAKET CAUSING THE 45LBS DOOR TO FALL OFF. ON A SEPERATE OCCASION ON THE OTHER DOOR, THE WELD IN THE BRACKET FAILED AND THE OTHER DOOR FELL OFF. THESE DOORS ARE IN A STRAIT LINE WITH THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER SEATS AND IN THE EVENT OF A PANIC STOP OR TRAFFIC COLLISION COULD CAUSE GREAT BODILY HARM OR DEATH. THE MANUFACURE OF THE VEHICLE DID NOT ENGINEER THE BRACKETS AND MOUNTING DEVICES PROPERLY AND HAVE CREATED A POTENTIAL HAZARD IN ALL SIMILARLY EQUIPED VEHICLES.

NHTSA ODI 11100307

Working with the data? Download all 6 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 13, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2018 Ford F-53 verdict →