About 1 year ago the rear door on the drivers side locked and I have been unable to open it manually, with the interior unlock buttons or with the key fob. However, there have been 3 occasions during this passed year when the door inexplicably opens, twice when the truck is parked and once when I was driving down the freeway. To be clear, the door doesn’t just unlock, it opens. On those 3 three occasions, when I closed the door, it again locks and I’m unable to open it. I’ve taken the problem to 2 Ford dealerships. Both indicated they had never heard of this problem and there were no recalls related to the problem. One dealership diagnosed the issue, charging $100 and determined it was the door latch and offered to replace it ($472 for the latch and labor to be determined). I opted not to repair it thinking that the problem should be further diagnosed to determine if there are flaws in factory parts that create safety issues in this particular truck, make and model.
2018 Ford F-150: doors won't lock, open or latch
136 of the 2,335 complaints about the 2018 Ford F-150 describe doors won't lock, open or latch.
- owner complaints
- 136
- of this car's complaints
- 6%
- typical mileage
- 9,000
- recalls
- 1
Doors won't lock, open or latch by model year
What owners say
Late shifting, transmission will get stuck in a gear, and rev at high rpms for long periods. And real jerky shifting in general. Also door locks freeze in winter, and doors wont latch so i need to hold my door while driving
In cold weather all four vehicle doors would open randomly when driving, forcing occupants to manually hold them shut. Owner found recall 18N03 was active for vehicle and took the vehicle to Ford dealership for service of recall. The issue continued after service and the owner inspected vehicle following the recall procedure distribution from the federal safety agency to discover the dealership partially and incorrectly completed the work listed. Additionally, recall 18N03 refers to recall 17S33 for the rear doors in super cab models. This vehicle has water shields from 17S33 installed but the rear door latches are still unreliable in cold weather.
Door locks freeze open in cold weather due to a spring issue that freezes up with very little moisture. It has happened multiple times over the last couple years. Basically, you open the door and when you go to close, the door latch doesn't engage. Here is a video that shows the issue in detail. [XXX] In order to operate the vehicle at that point, you have to hold the door closed manually. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Door latches freeze, and door won’t stay closed. Operator must drive while holding the door shut. Super-unsafe.
Taillight leaks water causing the blindspot sensor to burn up. Once the sensor is burned up the airbags, power door locks, power windows, heat/defrost, and the radio don't work. This is a known problem and Ford has no fix for it. It is several weeks wait to get it into Ford and costs several thousand dollars for a known problem that they are not addressing. Having no heat or defrosters in the winter make this a safety issue for everyone on the road not just the operator. Door locks and windows not working is a safety issue for the vehicle passengers.
Door Latch Freezing during cold winter months(every year) where temperatures drop below 32°F even after Ford Recall done on both front door latches. Inability to open door, then after door opened there is an Inability for door to latch until it warmed up.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked in the driveway, the door failed to close due to the extreme cold weather. The contact manually rigged the door closed while driving to work. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that there was water inside the door lock and unlock cables. The contact stated that the rusted cables caused the locking failure and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was in the process of being repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 95,415.
Door latching system is often inoperable when temperatures are below freezing. The door will not latch and must be held close while driving. Vehicle has been repaired once by dealer per bulletin 18N03 but the problem persists.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the driver’s side door latch froze and failed to latch securely. The contact stated that the failure occurred in colder climates for several hours. The contact stated that after the vehicle had warmed up for 15 minutes, the door latch operated as designed and the door closed properly. The contact was concerned about the safety of the vehicle with the door not locking as needed. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed, and the VIN was not included in a recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.
Doors will not latch in temps below 30degrees F.
When it gets close to negative temps the door locks won’t work to close the door and the door won’t actually close. I can’t drive with me door open. I have had the recall and door were fixed 2021 and it is a occurred event
Service bulletins that may apply
- In the affected vehicles, some customers report experiencing an unintended tailgate opening and may have...
- On your vehicle, moisture and water entering a power door lock actuator housing could
- In some of the affected vehicles, moisture and water entering a power door lock actuator housing can
- This is a one-time repair program for vehicle owners that report unintended tailgate opening.Affected...
- Customer Satisfaction Program 18N03
- Certain 2015-2018 Model Year F-150 and 2017-2018 Model Year F-250-F-550 Vehicles
- Certain 2018 Model Year Expedition and Navigator Vehicles Equipped With R-1234yf Refrigerant
Related recalls
Latches/locks/linkages: tailgate: latch
- What is wrong
- Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2018 F-150 vehicles with manual and power release tailgates. The tailgate latches may unlatch unexpectedly while driving.
- Risk
- Unexpected tailgate opening may allow unrestrained cargo to fall out of the truck bed and become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the left-hand and right-hand tailgate latches, free of charge. An interim notification letter was mailed January 31, 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 31, 2022. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1‑866‑436‑7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S53.
Recall number 21V983000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2018 Ford F-150 door locks
Is doors won't lock, open or latch a common problem on the 2018 Ford F-150?
136 of 2,335 owner complaints about the 2018 Ford F-150 (6%) mention doors won't lock, open or latch. The model year with the most reports is 2018.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2018 Ford F-150?
There is 1 recall and 10 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2018 Ford F-150
Harsh shifting 243Jerking 208Transmission failure 194Check engine light 164Slipping 146Loss of power 126Hesitation 118Stalling 112Knocking 74Engine failure 65Won't shift 60Start-stop 57Oil consumption 56Backup camera 50Shudder 49Fire or smoke 41Grinding brakes 38Brake failure 27Sudden acceleration 25Adaptive cruise 23Misfire 22Power steering loss 21Overheating 20Screen failure 17Won't start 17Wipers 16Pulling 15Headlights 13Key fob 13No deployment 12Water leak 11Whining noise 10Fuel pump 9ABS 7Fuel smell 6Warning lights 5
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