2020 FORD F-150 Complaints

Our 2020 Ford F150 transmission failed at 80k miles. Ford USA offered to pay half of the repair cost but is not willing to take full accountability on a transmission that was never was put under stress. Our truck never towed anything and was only use to drive from the shop to the job site and with only 1 up to 2 passenger only max. Per google research: The 2020 Ford F-150, equipped with the 10R80 10-speed automatic transmission, commonly experiences harsh, erratic, or delayed shifting, sudden jerking or lunging between gears, and gear slippage. These issues stem from software calibration flaws in the adaptive learning system or mechanical wear on internal components. Common Symptoms and Issues Rough Shifting: Hard, delayed, or clunking engagement when shifting between lower gears, especially on cold starts. Lunging or Hesitation: Sudden forward surges or hesitation when trying to accelerate from a rolling stop. Gear Slippage: Temporary loss of power delivery or failure to catch the next proper gear cleanly. Shift Cable Clip Recall: A limited recall addressed a faulty shift cable lock clip where the gear indicator might show a different gear than what was actually selected, increasing rollaway risks

Transmission failed. Truck jerks at stop. Transmission went out at 68,000 miles. My dad has a 2019 with same problem and went out at 72,000 miles. Someone needs to hold ford accountable for this. Extended warranty didn't want to pay the full price. Now I am out of pocket $1,800. Going to file a lawsuit against Ford and the extended warranty company

Transmission….very hard shifting and unexpected downshifting at random times. Needs to be a recall and fix on transmission.

While driving truck down highway with cruise set at 68mph . I was in a bit of incline( not towing) vehicle violently downshifted from 10th to 1st . Service powertrain wrench came up on dash . Vehicle was derated . I came to a stop and shut down key off restarted . Vehicle operated normally again. Took vehicle to ford dealership where they could not find any issue . They also installed a pcm update at that time. Since then the vehicle has a harsh 3-4,5,6 shift and flaring in 7,8,9&10. I am convinced and concerned that the transmission is hurt due to what happened. Ford quoted 13,000.00 to install a new transmission. The truck has never been abused. I don’t wish what is happening to me on anyone as a inexperienced driver in winter conditions would have caused a major accident.

The transmission would not shift out of second gear turning onto a busy highway and my pregnant wife and I were almost rear ended. It then went to first and hard shifted out of gear putting excessive pressure on our midsections. The cause most likely is a well known issue that ford engineers knew about and negligently ignored for several years with the faulty 10r80 transmission. It is not known whether it was a valve solenoid issue or the cdf drum issue but both are very common issues. My wife could have had issues from the stress of the incident and maybe the pressure from the seatbelt. The probelm has not been confirmed or inspected but i cant not afford testing since transmission doagnostics are extremely expensive. I have attched a summary from my own diagnostics of similiar events as the problem still exists. The system is available for inspection upon request.

I. Vehicle Purchase and Maintenance History In September 2020, I purchased this 2020 Ford F-150 new. II. Chronology of Defect and Repair Attempts Around 33,000 miles, the vehicle began exhibiting severe excessive oil consumption, an audible engine noise, and visible blue/gray smoke puffs emitting from the exhaust system. The following timeline outlines my exhaustive efforts to have Ford remedy this under warranty: • March 14, 2025 (36,370 miles): First formally reported the noise and exhaust smoke to Service Advisor Shelby Ray. The dealership initiated an official Ford Oil Consumption Test. I was instructed to drive 1,000-mile increments and return for unrecorded level checks. • May 21, 2025 (38,200 miles): Second formal report. The dealership performed Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) 192365 CP:6006, an established protocol recognizing inherent oil consumption flaws in this specific 5.0L engine. • August 7, 2025 – September 11, 2025 (41,119 miles): Third formal report. The vehicle was left at Tony Serra Ford for over a month (RO # 6034434) to perform engine repairs mandated by Ford tech lines. A loaner vehicle was provided. • December 9, 2025 (44,144 miles): Fourth formal report. The defect was noted as unresolved and still present between oil changes. The engine was found to be 2 quarts low on oil upon arrival. A new tech line case was opened. • May 7, 2026 – Present (48,086 miles): Fifth formal report. The engine noise and exhaust smoke. Truck has been at dealer for 3 months with no resolution.

My transmission hard shifts from 1st to 3rd. It really switches in 2nd gear. It also hard shifts into 5th and 8th gear. Sometimes it misses the gear almost like I’m in neutral. This happens when I’m in 7th or 8th gear. Plus, if I’m on the highway and I need to accelerate, I feel a hard clunk while changing gears. This started in May.

Due to cd drum known issue with these transmissions, they are unsafe to drive, pulling into traffic truck will not accelerate while it searches for gears. I can not drive this truck with this known issue, it's to dangerous.

This vehicle has occasional issues where the vehicle camera freezes and blacks out when backing up. This vehicle has a similar issue to another recall that was issued on a newer vehicle in our fleet, which was a 2022 Ford F-150 and was included in the NHTSA Recall 25V315/Safety Recall Notice 25S49. This vehicle has been regularly serviced and inspected by the Dublin City Shop.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the transmission was shifting hard, jerking, and downshifting unexpectedly and randomly switching gear. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer on several occasions over the years for the recurring transmission failure. The transmission software updates were performed but the failures persisted. The vehicle later stalled and was towed to the local dealer who diagnosed that the transmission CDF drum had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired and was later towed to the local transmission specialist who confirmed the failure and replaced the CDF drum and the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 30,000.