Vehicle caught on fire under the hood while being parked for 5 minutes. The local fire department arrived to extinguish the fire. The cause was not determined. Dealer was contacted.
1998 Ford F-150 electrical complaints
Page 3 of 4: complaints 41 to 70 of 87, newest first, as owners wrote them.
1998 ford f150 [xxx] extended cab, 4.2l v6 caught fire. Fire started approximate 45 minutes after being driven home. The vehicle was off and unattended when the fire started. Approximately 2 to 3 months prior the cruise stopped working and I began to have intermittent blowing of fuse #13. Fire marshall will document the fire on 4/22/05. Starting point of the fire is unknown. *nm *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
Engine compartment fire.
While parked for thirteen hours vehicle caught on fire. The fire department stated that fire started in the engine compartment. Vehicle was considered a total loss.
At some point the cruise control on my 1998 ford f150 pick-up stopped working. As I seldom use it I'm not sure how long it was out. Next the #13 fuse failed. The replacement fuse failed immediately. With this fault I was unable to get the truck out of park if started in park. The ABS light was flashing and the brake lights did not work. Took truck to earnhardt's ford dealer for repairs. They traced problem to shorted brake pressure safety switch and speed control servo. Due to the defective brake switch the wiring harness was saturated with brake fluid. All three defective parts were replaced. These repairs cost $3,100 dollars. The mechanic (ken tueffel) stated I was very fortunate the truck did not catch fire. With the recent news reports on the ford pick-up cruise control brake pressure switch causing fires I believe ford motor company has known about the safety hazard of these switches for years and owe me a refund on these repairs.
While vehicle was parked a fire started under the hood. Vehicle was totaled. The dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem.
Early last year (2004) my cruise control stopped working on my 1998 ford f-150 4x4 p/u. I checked all the fuses and they were fine. I used the truck without the cruise control for the next 6-8 months. Then one day while at work I noticed smoke coming out of my truck hood. I opened the hood and noticed it was on fire at the cruise control switch (at the time I thought the switch was a pressure switch activated by the brake) so I cut the wiring to stop the current flow and put out the fire. I caught it early enough so no other damage was done to the truck. Just some melted wiring that I replaced. (being an electrician helped) I could not use the truck for a couple of days and took a day off work until I found a switch and I replaced it. I have not had any problems since. When I went to the local ford dealership (antelop valley ford in lancaster, ca) to get a replacement switch and explained the incident to them they had no idea what switch I was talking about and said they had no replacement for it, then said they could order it for me after I showed them where it was located under the hood. They never told me it had anything to do with the cruise control and they never told me about ongoing problems with this switch, that upsets me more then anything! I went to power ford in valencia, ca and they had a switch in stock that I purchased. I can only assume that the switch that I got from the ford dealership to replace the burnt up one was a non-faulty switch? Low and behold, my cruise control started working after I replaced the burnt up switch! The july 15, 2004 incident date is an approximate date.
1998 ford f 150. Headlamps failed at night in a blizard, causing loss of sight at a medium rate of speed resulting in a dangerous situation. Will need a new multifunction positional dimmer switch in column replaced.
When vehicle was parked in the driving way it caught on fire and burned completely down.
Parked vehicle at around 7:20 am and at around 8:30 am the vehicle caught on fire. The fire was coming from the engine compartment on the driver's side. One week prior to the fire the cruise control stopped working. And the brake light came on the dashboard. A couple of days before the fire a fuse blew out, and was replaced one time. The vehicle would not go into park. Stereo and speakers were installed early in 1999 professionally. The fire did not spread to the house. Will mail 35 mm pictures to bruce york.
My 1998 ford f150 4x4 blew 3 coils within 3 months of each other, culminating with the ignition coil in august 2004. I contacted ford and was told I was being put on a "recall list" in case others had complaints. When the coils blow, there is a horrible noise from the engine and an immediate loss of power due to the spark plug no longer igniting that cylinder for the engine to run off of. Luckily, I was able to pull over to the side of the road and call a wrecker without incident. All three coils were replaced and I still have receipts. I traded the vehicle in due to the numerous problems it began having.
Vehicle unexpectedly caught on fire under the hood while it was parked. Manufacturer was contacted by consumer.
1998 ford f150 caught on fire.***no answer required***. *mr *tt
An under hood fire occurred after the vehicle sat for 10 hours. Fire department extinguished the fire, and indicated that it originated within the fuse box.
I lost the cruise control feature and was troubleshooting the problem when the brake switch (cruise control) caught fire on my 1998 f150 truck in my driveway. The brake switch (cruise control) located on the master cylinder caught fire because the switch leaked brake fluid. The fire damaged the master cylinder and I had to replace the brake switch and the wiring harness. I purchased the brake switch from the local dealer and a wiring harness to correct the problem. I used the ford brake switch and harness and obvously may need to replace it in the future. I contacted the local dealer (team ford in humble, tx) and advised them of the fire. They said they never encountered such a problem. I asked them to contact the ford local rep and never received a return call. I eventually discarded the parts but have evidence of the fire. The master cylinder has been burnt and this may pose a bigger problem with leaks in the future. Can you make sure that ford recognizes this failure and the 1998 f150 trucks are included in the recall on the news. Many thanks!
Fuse box getting wet. Resulting in malfunction of all electrical componets. Ie lights flashing off, speedometer not working, 4x4 kicking in and out, ect.
Consumer stated that with the key out of the ignition vehicle started up. Dealer claimed that gem module malfunctioned.
Fire in left rear quadrant of engine compartment. Only item damaged was the cruise control deactivation switch. Still in place but switch head was charred and deformed. Cruise control quit working about 2 months prior to the fire. The fuse for the ccds was blown . It was a 25 amp device where a 15 amp device should have been. Xrays of the switch head show the internal brass contacts destroyed by electrical arcing.
Spark plugs blew out while vehicle was sitting still. A loud noise was heard. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The plugs were the originals.*ak the consumer stated that the spark plug blew out of the head. *tc
I was driving down the road when I heard a big explosion from under my hood. I poped the hood and found that my #2 coil was blown out of the cylinder. After getting my 98 f150 home I found that the plug was blown out of the cylinder. I have not gotten the problem fixed as of yet but ford says the only way to fix is a new head.
My truck caught on fire. It had not been driven for about 24 hours before the incident. I went out to get something out of my truck and everything was normal. Thirty minutes later we heard a horn blaring outside. When my wife looked out the window, she yelled that our truck was on fire. The fire dept got here within 5 mins by then the hood had melted, the battery had exploded, the windshield blew in and one tire had exploded. The fire appeared to have started on the driver's side of the engine compartment. Somewhere near the fuse box. The fire dept could not determine the exact cause.
"blown spark plug" 1998 ford f150 5.4l engine. Dealer wants $3700 to repair something that should never have happened.
While driving my 1998 f-150 the #2 spark plug ejected itself from the cylinder head. The head does not have enough theads to keep the spark plug from blowing out.
I have had numerous problems with the starter and/or ignition in my 1998 f-150 ford truck. Beach ford in myrtle beach, sc has replaced the starter about 7 times and today the truck left me stranded.
While under warranty, my ford f150 blew the #2 sparkplug and cylinder head at 25,000 miles. It has happened again with the same cylinder head 60,000 miles later. The repairs will cost me $3000.00. Ford motor co. At this time is unwilling to cover the repairs. This seems to be a serious problem with the 1998 triton v-8 engines as I am seeing alot of the same complaints being filed.
The spark plugs blew out at 30,000 miles which caused gasoline to spray onto the engine. Consumer bought a new engine. Currently, at 40,000 miles vehicle experienced the same problem.
Consumer states that vehicle's engine wires are burning up. Dealer notified.
When turning on signal headlights shut off. Dealer notified.
The horn and cruise control do not work. According to many website postings the two are related. Evidently there is a so called "spring clip" in the steering column that needs replacing- cost is around 300.00. This is quite a common problem on the f-series pickups. I can put a fuse in and it will short when I use the horn.
1998 ford f-150 super cab with third door. Interior lamps and 'door ajar' indicator lamp stay on when vehicle is driven, running lamps off, whether vehicle is on or off, and all doors a securely closed. This problem goes away on very hot days.
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