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1997 Ford F-250 SD problems

The most common problem on the 1997 Ford F-250 SD is engine and cooling, typically around 89,000 miles. It has fewer complaints than a typical F-250 SD model year.

Typical yearClose to a typical year
Owner complaints
39
Recalls
2
Service bulletins
42
Worst area
Engine

The worst 1997 Ford F-250 SD problems

Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.

Problems by type

Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.

  • Engine
    11
  • Transmission
    8
  • Acceleration
    7
  • Electrical
    6
  • Steering
    4
  • Brakes
    3
  • Fuel system
    3
  • Tires
    3
  • Airbags
    1
  • Suspension
    1
  • Wheels
    1

Specific symptoms reported on the 1997 Ford F-250 SD

Adaptive cruise 5

Recalls 2

Vehicle speed controlReported October 13, 2009 · 4,500,000 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Ford is recalling model years 1995-2003 windstar, 2000-2003 excursion diesel, 1993-1997 and 1999-2003 f-250 sd through f-550 sd diesel, 1992-2003 e-150 through e-550, 1995-2002 explorer, 1997 and 2002 mercury mountaineer, 1995-1997 and 2001-2003 ranger, and 1994 f53 vehicles equipped with the texas instruments speed control deactivation switch (scds). The scds may leak internally and then overheat, smoke, or burn.
Risk
A vehicle fire could occur with or without the engine running.
Remedy
Ford will notify owners that dealers will install a fused wiring harness in line with the scds. On 1999-2003 windstar vehicles with a leaking scds, dealers will also inspect the ABS control module connector and repair as necessary. Repairs will be completed free of charge. The safety recall began on october 27, 2009. Owners may contact ford at 1‑888‑222‑2751.

Recall number 09V399000 · Recall details

Engine and engine cooling: engine: dieselReported December 5, 2007 · 1,176,000 vehicles affected
What is wrong
On certain heavy duty trucks equipped with 7.3l diesel engines, the camshaft position sensor located on the engine of the vehicle may function intermittently, possibly resulting in an engine stall.
Risk
In the event of an engine stall, a crash could result without warning.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect the sensor and replace it with an improved camshaft position sensor free of charge. The recall began on december 29, 2007. Owners may contact ford at 1‑866‑436‑7332.

Recall number 07V553000 · Recall details

See all 2 recalls for the 1997 Ford F-250 SD

Defect investigations

Engine stallingOpened June 22, 2006, closed December 7, 2007

In a december 3, 2007 letter, ford advised the federal safety agency that it will conduct a safety recall to replace the cam position sensor (cps) in approximately 1.2 million subject vehicles to address reports of engine stalling.a new design cps with improved performance and durability will be installed as a remedy.owner notifications will begin in december 2007. The subject vehicles are durable, full-sized, medium duty trucks commonly used for commercial purposes, rescue/emergency response, and commercial or recreational towing.cps failure is comparable to unexpectedly turning the key off since the signal it produces is vital to the electronic engine control system.cps signal loss terminates fuel injection resulting in an engine stall.once stalled, the engine may restart right away, or may restart after a delay (typically 5 to 10 minutes), or may not restart at all.in addition to exposing the driver and other motorists to crash risk due to loss of motive power or vehicle disablement, engine stalling also effects the power assisted steering and braking. Through consumer interviews, odi determined that cps failures occurred without any form of warning, at any vehicle speed (50% at highway speeds), and under any driving condition, such as accelerating.consumers reported that about a third of the vehicles failed to restart, with another third reporting delayed restarting.half the vehicles that did restart experienced another stall on the same or a subsequent drive cycle (before cps replacement) re-exposing those consumers to the risks associated with a stalling event.in their voq reports, half of the odi complainants described difficulty controlling the vehicle due to lose of power assist systems, especially those who were towing at the time of the incident. The one alleged injury incident occurred in an intersection when a subject vehicle stalled while turning across oncoming lanes of traffic.although unsubstantiated, the complainant alleged an injury to a child occupant during odi's interview.the other crash allegations mostly involved low speed, loss of control incidents often caused by lack of power assist; no injuries are reported in these incidents, and property damage, if any, was minimal.consumers also reported other incidents with significant safety risks, such as disablement in a lane or on a shoulder of a high-speed roadway or interstate, or extended disablement in remote areas during severe weather conditions. The population above is ford's estimate of the 1.4 million subject vehicles produced that are currently registered.the ford complaint and warranty counts noted above are current as of ford's last submission dated june 21, 2007; they do not include f-450, f-550, or econoline counts as these products were not formally within scope of the investigation when failure information was requested.warranty data analysis indicates that about half the claims involved a stall while driving event ( ford's assessment) and that poor cps durability was a longstanding concern.ford reported that the new cps design should meet or exceed their 10 year, 150k mile life expectancy design requirement.

EA06012

Spark plug ejection from cylinder headOpened September 22, 2005, closed January 4, 2006

On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi?s analysis showed, it is possible for a spark plug to detach from the engine cylinder threads in the subject vehicles.however, odi?s analysis of 474 complaints describing such incidents found only a very few alleged any safety-related consequences.none of these showed any evidence of a serious safety consequence.given the large population and relatively long exposure time of the subject vehicles, the complaint analysis indicates that the risk to motor vehicle safety from the alleged defect is very low.in view of the foregoing, it is unlikely that the federal safety agency would issue an order for the notification and remedy of the alleged defect at the conclusion of the investigation requested in the petition.therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize the federal safety agency?s limited resources to best accomplish the agency?s safety mission, the petition is denied.

DP05005

Engine compartment firesOpened March 22, 2005, closed August 2, 2006

Ea05-005 is closed with ford?s actions in recalls 05v‑017, 05v‑388, and 06v‑286, recalling approximately 6.7 million vehicles equipped with texas instruments speed control deactivation switches (scds).the brake systems in these recalled vehicles generate a vacuum that can potentially cause the scds to fail and, in certain switch installation orientations, catch fire.ford is also including the entire population of 1998 explorers.ford has informed odi that testing to determine the cause of failures in the 1998 explorers will continue after this investigation is closed.odi believes that the vehicles exhibiting the factors causing scds failure described in this report correlate well with the observed failure rates on these vehicles by model and model year.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist in the non-recalled vehicles manufactured with scds that are not included in ford?s recalls.odi will continue to monitor the non-recalled population for incidence of engine compartment fires.the agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.see attached closing report for details.

EA05005

Technical service bulletins for the 1997 Ford F-250 SD 42

Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.

See all 42 bulletins for the 1997 Ford F-250 SD

What 1997 Ford F-250 SD owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Mar 11, 2015 · Fuel system · 88,000 miles · MD

Was driving my 1997 f-250 from home to the dump when the strap on my front fuel tank broke/ruptured and the tank fell to the ground, still attached by fuel lines to the truck. A passing motorist brought it to my attention. I have owned the truck since 2010 and it has been operated in md during this time frame and had been operated in md by the previous owner. Though ford has a recall on 1997-99 ford f-250 for this very specific problem my truck is specifically not included in that recall.

Filed Aug 5, 2011 · Engine · 89,000 miles · AR

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-250 sd. While driving approximately 40 MPH, the contact heard a noise coming from the engine area. Suddenly, the vehicle began to vibrate and hesitate in a jerking motion. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated that one of the engines spark plugs dislodged. A spark plug kit was installed and the failure continued to occur after the repair. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic, who stated that the engine would need to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 89,000.

Filed Sep 20, 2010 · Fuel system · 57,123 miles · NY

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f250 hd. The contact stated that he had to replace the straps that held the fuel tank to the frame due to severe rust and corrosion. The manufacturer was not been contacted. The current and failure mileage was approximately 57,123. Updated 02/23/11 *bf updated 04/29/11

Filed Aug 16, 2010 · Transmission · 250,000 miles · GA

There's a recall on my 1997 f250 7.3 diesel. The recall is for the automatic transmission gear selector. I took it to ford to have it fixed cause I was experiencing the problem and he told me that my VIN did not qualify.

Filed Feb 20, 2010 · Acceleration · 256,000 miles · NC · fire

The failure was the cruise control started a fire in my 1997 ford f250 while my wife ,our 16 month old and myself were sleeping. Luckily we got out but everything we had is a total lose.

Filed Jun 24, 2008 · Engine · 215,000 miles · TX

Stranded on highway. Tow cost and repair.

Filed Mar 14, 2008 · Steering · 150,000 miles · TX

Tl*the contact owns a 1997 ford f250 hd. The steering mechanism becomes loose and makes random noises. The contact took the vehicle to a shop and was informed that the steering linkage was coming apart. The mechanic placed a temporary makeshift to hold the linkage together, but it has not been replaced. He then learned that there was a recall on the year, make, and model of his vehicle for the same failure. The manufacturer stated that his VIN was not included and they refused to repair the defect. The contact feels that the failure should be repaired for free since it was identical to the one mentioned in the recall. The failure mileage was 150,000 and current mileage was 236,000. Updated 04/02/08.

Filed Feb 29, 2008 · Engine · 98,000 miles · MA

Tl*the contact owns a 1997 ford f250 hd. The contact stated that the oil pan leaked on the vehicle. It could not be repaired unless the entire engine was removed. He noticed puddles of oil under the vehicle in the driveway. The mechanic placed a sealant around the oil pan, but this did not correct the failure. The contact has not taken the vehicle to a ford dealer. The current mileage was 99,000 and failure mileage was approximately 98,000. Updated 03-12-08

Filed Feb 19, 2008 · Acceleration · 110,000 miles · MA · fire

Tl*the contact owns a 1997 ford f-250 sd. The contact stated that the cruise control module caught fire in the beginning of 2008. The fire and police departments extinguished the fire and filed a report. The vehicle was destroyed. The contact stated that he never received a recall notice from ford, although ford stated that one was sent. The purchase date was unknown. The current and failure mileages were approximately 110,000.

Filed Nov 14, 2007 · Airbags · 130,000 miles · AZ · crash · 1 injury

Trying to find out if a 1997 f 250 4x4 was standard issue with driverside airbag?

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Questions about the 1997 Ford F-250 SD

Is the 1997 Ford F-250 SD reliable?

Owners have filed 39 complaints about the 1997 Ford F-250 SD, fewer than a typical F-250 SD model year.

What is the most common problem with the 1997 Ford F-250 SD?

Engine and cooling, with 11 complaints, typically around 89,000 miles. Next is transmission (8).

How many recalls does the 1997 Ford F-250 SD have?

2 recalls, covering vehicle speed control and engine and engine cooling.

Was there a recall on the 1997 Ford F-250 SD engine?

Yes, 1 recall: 07V553000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.

What year does the Ford F-250 SD have bad engine?

The Ford F-250 SD model years with the most engine complaints are 2004 (114 complaints), 2002 (105 complaints) and 2001 (99 complaints).

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