Truck was shut down while driving. I was unable to apply brakes in a safe manner, truck was hard to stop and steering wheel was impossible to turn. Something in the steering wheel column ALWAYS breaks on Ford F150 model trucks. There are 3 F150's in my family right now and ALL 3 have had the same exact problems. Something in the electrical system makes the batteries go bad prematurely. The air conditioner compressors and the dryers all go bad prematurely. The door locks on ALL Ford models break and doors cannot be opened. The gear shifters will not go all the way into park and vehicle rolls posing a danger to anyone standing nearby. I nearly got run over by this Ford F150 slipping out of gear and rolling backward, had there not been a planter with plants in between me and the truck I would have been run over by my own truck and DEAD! There AbSoLuTeLy DOES NOT need to be a KILL SWITCH installed on ANY vehicle, as it endangers all drivers and all passengers in the vehicle, as well as poses a danger to any surrounding motorists!!!!!! This is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS for an elderly driver or inexperienced driver!! Maybe before FORD installs a kill switch, they need to correct the JUNK they have been making for years (YEAR AFTER YEAR)!!!! ALL of theses issues have occurred in 6 FORD model vehicles, ranging from 1999 - 2013, to include a 2013 Ford Taurus, 2000 Ford F150, 1999 Ford F150, 2000, Ford F150 Lariat, 2006 Ford 500, 2010 Lincoln MKX. My 76 year old Mother has a friend her age that has a Mercury Sable (Ford 500 Style) that has had the same problems as well. I also spoke with a man at Auto Zone last Sunday, with a Ford Taurus, same problems.
Ford F-150 door locks problems
731 of the 38,391 owner complaints about the Ford F-150 describe doors won't lock, open or latch, most of them for the 2018 model year.
- owner complaints
- 731
- worst model year
- 2018
- typical repair cost reported
- $600
- typical mileage
- 25,000
By model year
Often reported together
Key fob 30Wipers 10Water leak 4Engine failure 4Won't start 3Won't shift 3Seat belt 3Headlights 3
Trouble codes mentioned
U0428 1U0401 1P0316 1P0303 1C1B00 1C1963 1C1278 1B1B48 1B1596 1B10F1 1
What owners say
Passenger side and passenger side rear door sensors say the door is a jar even though it’s not. Opened and closed doors numerous times to make the warning message go away. Seems water or something gets in the sensors, causing the faulty sensors to go off doors will not lock and makes the alarm system go off randomly.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving 60 MPH, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted and the vehicle decelerated to approximately 15 MPH. The powertrain warning light was illuminated during the failure. Occasionally, the vehicle was coasted over to the side of the road, and the contact attempted to turn off the vehicle, but the vehicle occasionally remained running. The contact waited for several minutes before continuing to drive. During the failure, the occupants inside the vehicle lunged forward. The contact stated that a niece's head struck the windshield, leaving a bruise, and the contact’s partner lunged forward and struck her head on the side door handle bar, which left a bruise. The failure had occurred more than 25 times. The vehicle was taken to four certified mechanics, and the lead frame and all the sensors were replaced. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be repaired under the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 26V237000 (Power Train). The dealer performed the update of the powertrain control module software; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was contacted and confirmed the VIN was no longer under recall. The failure mileage was approximately 31,000.
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.
I have had issues with my door locks one by one for the last year until now all of them have failed and no longer work. I have mentioned this issue multiple times at Bob Tomes Ford in McKinney Texas the last few times and got prices for the repair but it is a bit pricey. Recently I have just found out that Ford had campaign 20M04 to address these bad door lock actuator latches but the car has to be under 10 years old and under 150,000 miles. This service I am currently at the service department finally mentioned it to me and advised that I am out of the free repair window as I am now just over the 10 years and mileage and it will now be $2,400 dollars to repair this. I never received any kind of mailing announcing this recall campaign or was never told about it the numerous times I have been into the dealer in the past to bring my vehicle in for basic maintenance like I am usually told about other recalls. My very last trip here I was under the covered time period and nothing was said to me after I mentioned the door locks starting to go bad. I feel Ford and this dealership Bob Tomes Ford is deliberatly not telling customers about this so they do not have to repair it until the consumer will have to pay for the fix. This is incredible deceitful on Ford and the dealerships part and I feel that something should be done about this
Tried to turn on vehicle one morning and it would not start due a parking brake error message & a warning light on the dashboard. The message on the screen behind the steering wheel stated “park brake fault service now” and there was a clicking noise heard coming from underneath the truck. I tried to reset the parking brake by pressing and holding the button as indicated online but it didn’t work. The brake also physically revolted at me pressing down on it and would stutter/thump and not let me press it down fully without heavy resistance. The clicking noise continued randomly even when I was not in the vehicle. Then the door locks stopped working with my car keys, I could only open the drive door manually. I had no means to jumpstart my battery. I called Ford local dealership to come check the issue incase it was a recall issue that had not been reported for my vehicle yet. They are scheduled to come Monday 6/1/26.
The front driver door lock/latch actuator is failing. The driver door does not lock or unlock using the key fob or the interior power lock button. The only way to lock or unlock the door is manually with the key or by pushing/pulling the lock from inside the vehicle. This issue started shortly after we had a historic/unusual cold freeze in Florida. The vehicle is kept outside, so it was exposed to the freezing temperatures. This creates a safety and security concern because the driver door power lock system does not work properly and may prevent the door from locking or unlocking normally when needed. The issue has not yet been inspected by a dealer or independent repair shop. No warning lights or messages appeared before the failure. The component is still installed on the vehicle and available for inspection upon request.
The passenger door lock/latch actuator is failing. The passenger door will not open from the outside at all. The door has to be opened from the inside. The power lock button and key fob do not unlock the passenger door. I can hear the lock/actuator trying to operate, but the door does not unlock or release from the outside handle. This issue started shortly after we had a historic/unusual cold freeze in Florida. The vehicle is kept outside, so it was exposed to the freezing temperatures. This creates a safety and security concern because the passenger door cannot be opened from the outside in an emergency, and the power lock system does not work properly. The issue has not yet been inspected by a dealer or independent repair shop. No warning lights or messages appeared before the failure. The component is still installed on the vehicle and available for inspection upon request.
1.unexpected downshift into second gear while driving - like the engine is falling - causes severe jerk and sometimes truck revs/ goes into neutral - just revs. 2. frozen tailgate latches and door latch defects 3. additionally the transmission harsh shifting when cold (safety/drivability defect): When the vehicle is cold, the 10‑speed transmission shifts harshly, hesitates, clunks, and delays engagement. This matches Ford’s transmission TSBs for calibration and adaptive learning issues. The dealership acknowledged the shifting issue but did not perform the required calibration or TSB procedures. The dealership refuses to document my reported symptoms or perform the TSB repairs unless the failure is happening in front of them. This prevents known defects from being repaired and leaves the vehicle in an unsafe condition. Ford Customer Service confirmed the shifting issue exists but the dealership still did not perform the calibration. ford corp customer service didnt understand and manager didn’t even know what a tsb is:/ so no help at corporate. as chuck the manager stated he didn’t know what document i was referring to and i told him the number as well ? I contacted Ford Customer Service and a case was opened. A customer service manager named Chuck returned my call. He stated that the TSB is “not a warranty” and that the dealership “has to duplicate the condition” before Ford will authorize the repair. I explained that the tailgate freezing issue cannot be duplicated on demand because it only occurs in cold overnight temperatures, not during daytime service hours. Despite this, Ford insisted the dealer must reproduce the failure, even though Ford’s own TSBs describe this exact cold‑weather condition.
* This complaint concerns a catastrophic failure of the transmission in my vehicle. This defect was first reported to a Ford dealer while still within the 5-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty (Jan 3, 2023, at 58,679 miles; Invoice #XXX). * The condition worsened. Between July 2024 - Jan. 2026, I received 7 digital "Service Engine Soon" warnings via the Ford App. My dealer advised that the vehicle was "OK to drive" as long as the light (which never stayed on) was not flashing. I was told diagnostics could not be made unless the light was active at the dealership. Jan 16, 2026, the light came on; I was able to take the truck to the dealer. A fault code was finally captured, but the dealer reported a two-month service backlog. I could not wait that long. *Feb 2026, I established a clean engine baseline. I spent $833.15 to replace O2 sensors (EJ’s Automotive) to rule out engine−related performance issues. During this service (at 103,431 miles), an inspection confirmed metallic clutch material contamination in the transmission fluid only 10,248 miles after a 2nd professional flush. This failure occurred despite a total maintenance investment of $11,533.80 across 21 service visits. * This failure resulted in a dangerous Loss of Motive Power, creating a collision risk. The vehicle is currently grounded and completely inoperable. The dealership verbally designated the vehicle as VOR due to the confirmed diagnosis, only to contradict that status by claiming it was "driveable" after I declined a $15,000 quote for a teardown to diagnose the issue. * Since the truck can no longer tow, 2 third-party transports for a horse and a trailer relocation are necessary. The failure has also resulted in a total parasitic battery drain. The tailgate latch and door locks are inoperable, suggesting the transmission fault is interfering with module communication. This is consistent with the root cause Ford has acknowledged in TSBs 24-2101 and 25-2126 involving the CDF clutch drum sleeve. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF
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
Latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
- What is wrong
- 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 latch. Either condition can result in the doors opening while driving although they appear to be closed.
- Risk
- A door that opens while driving can increase the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- 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 12, 2018. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1‑866‑436‑7332. Ford's number for this recall is 17S33.
Recall number 17V652000 · Recall details
Latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
- What is wrong
- Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2017 F-150, and 2017 F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 vehicles originally produced with black or body colored exterior door handles that may have been subsequently equipped with a chrome exterior door handle cover accessory kit purchased from a Ford dealer. These accessory door handle covers may cause the doors to unlatch in a side impact collision. As such, these vehicles may fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 206, "Door Locks and Door Retention Components."
- Risk
- If the doors unlatch and open in a side impact collision, the occupants have an increased risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Ford will notify owners, and dealers will remove the accessory covers and refund the purchase price. The recall began July 13, 2017. Owners may contact Ford at 1‑866‑436‑7332. Ford's number for the recall is 17C09.
Recall number 17V331000 · Recall details
Questions about the Ford F-150 door locks
Which Ford F-150 years have doors won't lock, open or latch problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2018 (136 complaints), 2016 (135 complaints) and 2015 (99 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix doors won't lock, open or latch on the Ford F-150?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $600 (median of 18 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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