2017 Ford F-250 Problems, Recalls & Reliability
1,837 owner complaints sit in the federal file for the 2017 Ford F-250, alongside 15 recall campaigns and 3 defect investigations. It scores 94/100 on the trouble index — one of the years to avoid for this model. Steering leads the reports, typically around 28,000 miles.
Avoid this year if you can. The 2017 Ford F-250 sits at the top of this model's complaint rankings. Quieter picks in the same family: 1991–1996, 1998, 2007, 2009–2010, 2013–2014, 2020–2022.
Avoid
Where 2017 sits among all F-250 years
What owners report
“Violent shaking of front end of truck and steering wheel. 58,000 miles on f250. Happens when truck hits pothole or rough bridge joint at speeds over 50. The death wobble.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 F-250
“At highway speed, hitting a bump in the road, front end develops severe wobble, know as "death wobble"”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 F-250
“Driving in between 50 and 65 i hit a bump or pot hole in the road the front end starts to shake and shakes the whole cab of the truck bad. Truck has 29k miles. Had to slow down to 30 mph to get it to stop shaking.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 F-250
“Drove over a small bump on the road and front end of truck started to shake so bad had to slow down to get it to stop.that shake was also felt in the steering wheel.i was driving down the road at 55 to 60 mph.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 F-250
“I am having the issue with frozen doors latches. The fsa 18n03 has been completed and i continue to have an issue with my doors not opening when it is below freezing. If i am able to get them to open, i am unable to get them to latch afterwards, the door just bounces back and will not latch.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 F-250
“Dash instruments, radio, compass, overhead console, all blank and inoperable. Was told by for service that many vehicles 2017 to 2019 are having same problem. Told the instrument cluster module powers multiple areas of truck and will need a new module. Was told there is a glitch in the design.”— owner report to NHTSA, 2017 F-250
Mileage when trouble shows up
Among the 1,448 reports that include an odometer reading, problems most often appear around 30,000 miles. Half of those reports fall between 20,000 and 41,300 miles — a useful range to weigh against the mileage of the exact car you're looking at.
Recalls (15)
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Lincoln MKC, Mustang, F-350 SD, F-250 SD, F-450 SD, 2015-2017 Lincoln Navigator, Expedition, 2015-2018 Edge, Transit Connect, 2016-2019 F-550 SD, Transit, 2017-2019 Econoline, and 2019 Ranger vehicles.…
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the rearview camera as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 13, 2026. Ford owners will receive letters in phases, beginning…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2018 F-Super Duty F-250, F-350, and F-450 4x4 vehicles. A radial damper inside the driveshaft may move out of position over time, which can cause a driveshaft imbalance and result in a fracture.
Fix: Dealers will replace the driveshaft, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 27, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2020 F-Super Duty F-250, F-350, F-450, and 2017-2020 Lincoln Continental vehicles equipped with the 360-degree camera system. Degradation of the camera's anit-reflective lens coating can lead to a foggy or…
Fix: Dealers will replace the rearview camera, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 14, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-800-1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2022 F-250 and F-350 Super Duty vehicles equipped with gasoline engines and aluminum driveshafts. Underbody heat and noise insulators may loosen and contact the aluminum driveshaft, which could damage the…
Fix: Dealers will inspect and repair the driveshaft as necessary, and properly attach the underbody insulators, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on April 7, 2022. Owners may…
Icon Vehicle Dynamics, LLC (Icon) is recalling all 05-UP FSD 2.5 Centerline Stabilizer Kits with part number 65050. The kits were sold as an accessory for certain 2005-2021 Ford F-250 4X4 and F-350 4X4 pickup trucks. The foam ring inside the stabilizer…
Fix: Icon will notify owners, and dealers will install a new shock assembly with a revised foam ring and steel support disc, free of charge. The recall began December 21, 2020. Owners may contact Icon…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2019 F-Super Duty F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 SuperCrew Cab vehicles with carpet flooring. If a front seat belt pretensioner deploys as the result of a crash, the sparks may ignite materials such as…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will apply heat resistant tape to the carpet and its insulation, and modify the B-Pillar insulation as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Super Duty F-250, F-350, and F-450 trucks equipped with an electric tailgate latch release switch mounted in the tailgate handle. Water may enter the electrical wiring system and cause a short circuit,…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will modify the tailgate/frame wiring harnesses by adding jumper pigtails to isolate the tailgate release control circuits and will install a new tailgate handle…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Ford F-150 and 2017-2019 Ford F-250 Super Duty, F-350 Super Duty, F-450 Super Duty, and F-550 Super Duty pick-up trucks equipped with an engine block heater and previously remedied under recall 18V894.…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will disable the engine block heater from being used. When replacement cables become available, a second notice will be mailed and dealers will replace the…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Ford F-150, and 2017 F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 Super Duty trucks. The doors on these vehicles may have a bent or kinked actuation cable or the door latches may freeze after water gets into the…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the door latch actuation cables and repair if necessary, and install water shields over the door latches, free of charge. The recall began October…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017 Ford F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 trucks with manually-adjusted front passenger seats. The seat belt anchor may not be adequately welded to the seat cushion frame. As such, these vehicles fail to…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger manual seat track, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin November 6, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2017 F-150, and 2017 F-250 and F-350 trucks equipped with a crew cab. The left rear inflatable seat belt buckle assembly may be inadequately attached to its mounting bracket. As such, these vehicles fail…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the seat belt assembly, replacing the attaching rivet as necessary, free of charge. Interim notices informing owners of the safety risk were mailed…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017 Ford Explorer, F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450 and F-550 vehicles equipped with a manual driver's seat back recliner mechanism. In the event of a crash, the seat back frame may not restrain the occupant due to…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the seat back frame, free of charge. The recall began on June 7, 2017. Owners may contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332.…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017 Ford F-250 Super Duty trucks equipped with 6.2L engines and six-speed automatic transmissions. These transmissions may have a damaged park rod actuating plate that can result in unexpected vehicle movement…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the park rod actuating plate and replace it, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began on June 1, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017 Ford F-250 and F-350 Super Duty trucks manufactured August 10, 2016, to September 17, 2016. The frame reinforcement bracket may not have been attached to the front fuel tank strap, allowing the fuel tank…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, install the reinforcement bracket, free of charge. The recall began on February 7, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer…
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2017 Ford F-250 SD, F-350 SD, F-450 SD, and F-550 SD trucks manufactured March 21, 2016, to August 28, 2016. The protective shield on the fuel conditioning module may have inadequate adhesion,…
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the protective shield, free of charge. The recall began November 11, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's…
Federal defect investigations
Still open as of the last data refresh. An investigation is not a recall; it may close with no action. All open investigations →
Component: FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL
The Office of Defect Investigations (ODI) has received 27 complaints alleging diesel fuel leaks due to a fracture in the secondary fuel filter housing in model year (MY) 2015-2021 Ford Motor Company (Ford) F-250, 350, 450, and 550 Super Duty vehicles equipped with 6.7L diesel engines. Of these…
Led to recall campaign 19V864000.
Technical service bulletins
328 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, the biggest share on engine and electrical — are on file for the 2017 Ford F-250. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
Complaint history for this model year
When owners filed their reports — a long tail means problems kept surfacing for years.
Questions buyers ask
Is the 2017 Ford F-250 reliable?
The 2017 Ford F-250 drew 1,837 complaints in federal safety records — one of the years to avoid for this model. Its trouble index is 94/100, scored against the model's worst year (2019).
What are the most common 2017 Ford F-250 problems?
The top reported problems for the 2017 Ford F-250 are steering (717 complaints), suspension (587), and other (124).
At what mileage do 2017 Ford F-250 problems show up?
Owners most often report 2017 Ford F-250 problems around 30,000 miles. Half of all reports that include an odometer reading fall between 20,000 and 41,300 miles.
Does the 2017 Ford F-250 have recalls?
15 recall campaigns apply to the 2017 Ford F-250. Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.