2017 FORD F-350 SD Complaints

EXPERIENCED 'DEATH WOBBLE' SEVERAL TIMES WHEN TRAVELING ON HIGHWAYS (BETWEEN 65-75 MPH). THIS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES - ONCE WHILE PULLING A FIFTH WHEEL TRAILER, WHICH NEARLY CAUSED ACCIDENT. DEALER INSTALLED BAR TO ADDRESS ISSUE SEVERAL MONTHS AGO. TODAY, I EXPERIENCED IT AGAIN - 5 TIMES IN A MATTER OF 60 MILES - AGAIN ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN GOING OVER EXPANSION JOINTS ON BRIDGES. THIS IS ONLY STOPPED WHEN SLOWED DOWN SIGNIFICANTLY ON HIGHWAY - EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. BASED ON THE VERY SIMILAR AND NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THIS ISSUE MAKES ME THINK A CLASS ACTION IS WARRANTED AND NEEDS TO BE PURSUED - SINCE IT SEEMS THERE AREN'T APPROPRIATE STEPS BEING TO CORRECT THIS VERY DANGEROUS DEFECT. THE CORRECTIVE STEPS FORD HAS DEALERS PERFORMING AREN'T WORKING AND THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE THAT NEEDS IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. *TR

FORD DEATH WOBBLE - AT RANDOM TIMES WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS (45-75MPH) SEVERE STEERING AND FRONT SUSPENSION SHAKES CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL OF VEHICLE. TO GAIN CONTROL DRIVER MUST BRAKE HEAVILY AND REDUCE SPEED.

TIRES NOT HOLDING AIR PRESSURE. SEEING THIS ON THE PASS SIDE FRONT WHEEL/TIRE, AND THE OUTER PASS WHEEL/TIRE OF THE REAR DUALLY. RESEARCH INDICATES THIS COULD BE DUE TO CORROSION CAUSED BY THE STEEL VALVE STEM AND THE ALUMINUM WHEEL. THIS IS A HAZARD PARTICULARLY DUE TO THE FACT THIS VEHICLE IS BUILT FOR HEAVY DUTY TOWING AND TIRES MUST MAINTAIN PROPER AIR PRESSURE. TIRES ARE LOSING APPROX. 10PSI WEEKLY. FORD SHOULD RECALL THESE VEHICLES AND REPAIR/REPLACE THE VALVE STEM ASSEMBLY TO PREVENT TIRE PRESSURE LOSS. NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS OF SAME CAN BE FOUND BY RESEARCHING INTERNET SOURCES. THE VEHICLE ONLY HAS 13,500 MILES ON IT.

WHILE TOWING A 28" FIFTH WHEEL TRAILER I ENCOUNTER SEVERE, AND I MEAN SEVERE FRONT END WOBBLE WHICH ALMOST CAUSED LOSS OF CONTROL ON 3 SEPARATE OCCASIONS (DEATH WOBBLE). IT OCCURRED WHEN HITTING EXPANSION JOINTS AT BRIDGE CROSSINGS AND WHEN GOING OVER MODERATE ROAD BUMPS. SPEEDS VARIED FROM 65MPH TO ABOUT 55MPH.TRUCK IS RELATIVELY NEW WITH ONLY 15K MILES ON IT.

AT ~25,000 MILES, TRUCK BEGINS TO SHAKE UNCONTROLLABLY AFTER HITTING ANY SMALL DEFECT IN THE ROAD IF TRAVELING OVER 60 MILES PER HOUR. VERY EASILY COULD RESULT IN DEATH OR SERIOUS INJURY IF IT WERE TO OCCUR IN HEAVY TRAFFIC OR AROUND A SHARP CURVE ON THE HIGHWAY. TRUCKS ERROR MESSAGE "SERVICE ADVANCE TRACK". MECHANIC ATTRIBUTED IT TO FAILED STEERING DAMPERS. BEGAN NOVEMBER 2018, BECAME A SERIOUS SAFETY HAZARD IN JANUARY 2019.

MAJOR ISSUES WITH THE STEERING COMPONENTS, TRUCK WILL GET DEATH WOBBLE FOR NO REASON AND HAVE HAD THE 'UPDATED STEERING' DONE AT THE DEALER AND IT STILL DOES IT !

WHILE DRIVING AT NORMAL HIGHWAY SPEEDS (65) AN 'EXTREME' WOBBLE DEVELOPED IN FRONT STEERING AND SUSPENSION. STEERING WHEEL DEFLECTION WAS AROUND 30 DEGREES SIDE TO SIDE FROM TOP CENTER. A FIFTH WHEEL TRAVEL TRAILER WAS BEING TOWED AND THE WOBBLE RESULTED IN DEPARTURE FROM TRAVEL LANE; HOWEVER, NO ACCIDENT OCCURRED. SPEED WAS REDUCED TO 20 MPH BEFORE WOBBLE CEASED AND TRAILER BRAKES WE THE ONLY EFFECTIVE THING TO STRAIGHTEN TRUCK. APPLICATION OF TRUCK BRAKES SEEMED TO WORSEN THE WOBBLE. VOLUMES OF INFORMATION EXIST ON THIS ISSUE LABELED AS 'DEATH WOBBLE.' HTTPS://M.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=4JV7L8BBO1Q HTTPS://M.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=8EUQ6F8RGT4 VEHICLE IS AT PURCHASING DEALER FOR REPAIR. I AM HAPPY TO SPEAK WITH NHTSA IF DEEMED APPROPRIATE.

AT 60MPH ON THE HIGHWAY, AFTER HITTING A MINOR BUMP IN THE ROAD, THE TRUCK SHOOK AND VIBRATED VIOLENTLY AND THE STEERING WHEEL WAS VERY DIFFICULT TO HOLD ONTO TO. THE SHAKING STOPPED AROUND 25MPH AS I WAS PULLING ON TO THE SHOULDER. THE TRUCK HAS 21,000 MILES ON IT AND ALL TIRES, WHEELS, PARTS, SUSPENSION DO NOT APPEAR DAMAGED. RESEARCH INTO THE ISSUE REVEALED WHAT IS BEING CALLED, "DEATH WOBBLE." THOSE DESCRIPTIONS FIT MY EXPERIENCE PERFECTLY. THERE SEEMS TO BE NO CLEAR SOLUTION.

EXPERIENCE 'DEATH WOBBLE' OF FRONT STEERING AT ABOUT 17,000 MILES. TRUCK HAS ABOUT 21,000 MILES ON IT AND I HAVE OWNED IT SINCE NEW. TRUCK IS COMPLETELY STOCK WITH ORIGINAL TIRES, WHEELS AND SUSPENSION. LAST WEEKEND I HAD THE DEATH WOBBLE HAPPEN TWICE. THIS HAPPENED ABOUT 10 MILES APART WHILE IN A CONSTRUCTION ZONE ON THE FREEWAY WITH NO PLACE TO PULL OFF OR ROOM AS LANES WERE NARROWED. A SMALL BUMP STARTS IT, BUT IT TAKES ABOUT 2-3 SECONDS TO 'RAMP UP' TO WHERE THE STEERING WHEEL IS VIOLENTLY SHAKING BACK AND FORTH. HAPPEN AT A SPEED OF ABOUT 58 MPH AND HAD TO SLOW DOWN TO UNDER 40 TO REGAIN CONTROL. TIRE PRESSURE OF BOTH FRONT TIRES HAS A READING OF 63PSI WHICH COLD INFLATION IS 60. TIRES ARE ROTATED AT OIL CHANGES. TRUCK IS AN XLT CREW CAB WITH LONG BOX, POWERSTROKE DIESEL, 4X4 WITH FX4 PACKAGE AND MAX GVWR 11,500. DOES HAVE CHROME PACKAGE THAT INCLUDED CHROME 18' WHEELS AND GOODYEAR ALL TERRAIN TIRES. COMPLETELY STOCK AS TAKEN FROM DEALER. MY OPION IS THAT THE SOLID FRONT AXLE HAS A FLAW WITH REGARD TO TRACK BAR LOCATING THE AXLE POSITION AND THE DRAG LINK OF THE STEERING. BOTH OF THESE LINKS ARE NOT EXACTLY PARALLEL OR OF EQUAL LENGTH. SINCE ONE IS ATTACH DIRECTLY TO THE AXLE AND THE OTHER IS ATTACHED TO THE STEERING ARM, WHEN THE FRONT AXLE OSCILLATES GOING OVER A BUMP, THE NON-PARALLEL, NOT EQUAL LENGTH LINKS INTRODUCE A CONDITION SOMETIME REFERRED TO BUMP STEER. THIS THEN STARTS AN OSCILLATION OF THE STEERING ARM AS THE TRUCK WISH TO CONTINUE TRAVELING THE STRAIGHT LINE, IT COMPRESSES ALL OF THE RUBBER BUSHINGS WHICH THEN CAUSE THE WHEEL TO BE JERKED/SPRUNG BACK VIOLENTLY AND THUS WE HAVE THE WOBBLE OF THE FRONT STEERING OSCILLATING AT FREQUENCY THAT CAN NOT DAMPEN OUT UNTIL VEHICLE IS SLOWED DOWN TO A POINT TO THAT NO LONGER SUPPORTS THE NATURAL FREQUENCY. COLLEGE LEVEL KINEMATIC AND VEHICLE DYNAMICS APPROACH COULD SOLVE THE PROBLEM.

I EXPERIENCED "DEATH WOBBLE" WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH ON INTERSTATE 35 IN NORTHERN IL ON 3-9-19. THIS STARTED AFTER I RAN OVER A MINOR ROAD BUMP. THE STEERING WHEEL BEGAN TO SHAKE VIOLENTLY. I ALMOST LOST CONTROL BUT WAS ABLE TO REDUCE SPEED WHICH STOPPED THE VIBRATION AND PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THIS DID HAPPEN AGAIN ON 3-10-19 WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH. I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH MY FORD'S SERVICE DEPARTMENT ON 3-13-19.