2017 Ford F-250 SD: ball joint or control arm failure

Filed Jan 28, 2025 · Steering, Suspension · 200 miles · IN

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds over bumps in the roadway, the vehicle experienced a "death wobble". The failure caused the front of the vehicle to shake uncontrollably, causing the contact to temporarily lose control of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on several occasions where the front steering damper and tie rods were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and automatically transferred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 200.

Filed Aug 11, 2023 · Steering, Suspension · FL

took my truck for a safety recall concerning a potentially deadly defect in my 2017 F-250 Ford truck. I had purchased this vehicle from Brandon Ford new in 2017. The safety recall was to address "The Death Wobble" which causes the vehicle steering to shake violently causing the whole vehicle to lose control. I sent my truck to Brandon Ford 2 time prior stating the same problem. In 2021 they told me it was the tires, so I purchased 4 new ones. Still had the same problem occur. They told me this last time they fixed the problem. No true, my son and I whom is 11 had a day planned to goto the aquarium. On the highway the "Death Wobble" occurred again. This caused me to lose control of the vehicale stopping short of hitting the gaurd rail. My son was terrified and so was I. I drove right to Brandon Ford on a Saturday and.demanded they fix the not fixed recall "Death Wobble" item. After several days received a phone call stating I needed new tires and they where dry rotted and in horrible shape. I told them I just purchased through them 2 years prior. The proveded no answer and new I caught them in a lie. They then proceeded to look into the car problem more. I received a phone call 5 days later only to be told I was needed to pay for the complete rebuild of the steering and front end. The rods where bent from the voilent shaking due to the Death Wobble. They told me to fix the problem it was going to be over $4000. I was shocked and was told if I want the safety recall of the Death Wobble to be fixed thats what its going to cost. I felt held hostage, I filed a BBB complaint only for the dealership to take no responsibility. The problem Is not fixed since I have spent over $4000 for the repair. The steering still clicks every time I drive over bumps in the road. Took it to another repair shop and they laughed at the repairs and what I was charged. Only the tie rod was replaced by Brandon Ford, the cost of this part is only $300 dollars. The new repair shop told me it

Filed Jan 21, 2023 · Steering, Suspension · MS

On 6 January 2023, while increasing speed to 55 mph my steering wheel began to vibrate to the point where it was almost uncontrollable and the front end was shaking badly. Vehicle has been in the shop for repair since 12 January 2023 at Henderson Ford dealership in Bay Saint Louis, MS. My safety and others near me on the road was at risk until I could slow the vehicle back down to 45 mph. No symptoms or warnings occurred beforehand. Vehicle was inspected and found to have issues with Drag Link, Stud Right Outer Tie Rod, Adjust Sleeve, and Track Bar. Parts were ordered and repair is ongoing and was supposed to be completed yesterday, 20 January 2023. Vehicle is still in the shop.

Filed Jan 5, 2023 · Steering · TX

I received a recall notice a couple of years ago. I had only experienced minor steering issues before November 2022, such as small vibrations after hitting bumps which only lasted a second or two. Still, I went ahead and had several recalls addressed before the mileage limitation were reached. One of the recalls addressed a steering damper. They said it showed that it needed to be replaced under the recall. I had assumed the small vibrations I felt were the issues addressed in the recall. However, within a few weeks of getting the vehicle back I hit a small bump at the transition from an overpass to street level pavement on I-10 at FM 1516. The truck began to shake fairly violently until I lowered my speed to around 40MPH. I pulled off and inspected the tires/steering/bearings and found no major issues. The truck performed as intended upon re-entering the highway. About a month later I hit another small transition somewhere along Highway 47-Northwest of Highway 60 in College Station. The same issue arose where the truck shook violently until I lowered the speed to around 40MPH. I took the truck back to the dealer and they said now nothing was wrong except some worn ball joints. I find that hard to believe that in the 4 years I owned this truck nothing was seriously wrong until I had the recall "repaired". Now I believe the vehicle is less safe and now the dealer wants to charge $700 for what they say is now the issue.

Filed Dec 19, 2021 · Suspension · AL

Right after we bought the truck after 35000 miles in 2017 it started to have the *death wobble* . After bringing it to the shop several times, they finally replaced during extended warranty at ~72000 miles steering damper, ball joints and some parts. This prevented the death wobble for about 30000 miles...and then after that it progressively worsens now. After contacting the dealership who did the replacements...we were told that the warranty on it expired.. This should be a recall from Ford

Filed Aug 28, 2021 · Steering, Suspension · NY

We’ve been experiencing the Ford know “Deathwobble” since approximately 30,000 miles and we currently have 48,000. Ford has replaced the steering stabilizer at least two times and it reoccurs within 4,000 miles. I’ve spent countless hours online trying to remedy this problem. I recently replaced the drag link and the associated tie rod end (The OEM ones had minimal play but I wanted to rule out any possibilities), changed to a Bilstein steering stabilizer and 4 new Bilstein shocks. Unfortunately, on are recent 150 mile trip we had two terrifying Death Wobble experiences that we came very close both times having an accident. Today we were actually forced to go into highway median to avoid being pulled into other high speed traffic. I’m including pictures of the tire marks of this incident. This problem is very dangerous and frightening to have happen. Please help!

Filed Apr 21, 2021 · Steering, Suspension · 38,000 miles · TN

I've had my truck to the dealer previously for bad vibration in the front end and steering when on the interstate going 65-70mph after hitting an imperfection in the road. Dealer first replaced the steering damper in may/2020. The vibration continued, but wasn't as bad as previously experienced. Then last week the vibration worsened. I then experienced what was known as the death wobble. I was on the interstate and hit an imperfection in the road and almost lost control with a violent vibration in steering and entire body. Almost had a horrible accident with a semi tractor as I was trying to gain control. Worst experience I have ever had. Took it to the dealer the very next day, 4/21/2021, and they replaced the track ball joint. I bought this vehicle new, and now only 38k miles. I love ford trucks, as this is my second f250 I've owned. The first one was a 2003, which I also bought new. I'm very frustrated with these front end parts wearing out prematurely. I had to pay for the repairs yesterday as my truck is out of warranty, which I feel ford should have fixed this due to it's previous repair for vibration issues when rolling over imperfections in the road. I am now wondering if I should get rid of this truck after reading multiple topics on the internet of other owners having the same experiences.

Filed Feb 24, 2021 · Steering, Suspension · 25,000 miles · PA

When I operate my 2017 ford f250 at speeds greater than 45 MPH and encounter a pot hole or bump in the road the truck begins a terrible "death wobble". The steering wheel shakes violently and the entire truck shakes and rattles. The dealership replaced a steering damper as part of a ford extended warranty program but now claim the problem will persist because I have worn ball joints and a drag link that needs replaced. I was told this would cost me over $1,100 and it is not covered by ford although it is obviously a flaw and a result of the failed damper. I can't believe ford is willing to ignore such an issue. My family won't ride on the highway in the truck as it is too frightening for them. The sad part is the truck has 25,000 miles and cost me $50,000 and I can't drive it or depend on it now.

Filed Nov 10, 2020 · Suspension · 17,500 miles · LA

Tl* the contact owns a 2017 ford f-250. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH and attempting to overtake another vehicle, the vehicle started shaking abnormally. The contact released the accelerator pedal, the speed was reduced, and the shaking was eliminated. The contact continued driving to his destination without further issues. The vehicle was taken to sterling ford (5524 interstate 49 frontage rd, opelousas, la 70570, (337) 942-2686) previously, where the front ball joints were replaced however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 17,500.

Filed Sep 1, 2020 · Steering · 40,000 miles · AZ

2017 f-250 death wobble vehicle mileage is just over 40k while driving down the freeway at 60-65 MPH I hit a pothole in the road which was about 1.5 inches deep. The steering wheel started shaking left to right and the truck was impossible to control. I had to slow down to below 45 MPH before the death wobble would stop. My truck is totally stock with stock wheels and tires on it. This is a common problem with ford super duty trucks, and ford denies any responsibility! This is clearly a problem with many ford super duty trucks and someone needs to make them step up and fix this hazardous condition which can lead to potential accidents. As of may 2020 ford issued an extended warranty coverage for the steering linkage damper. I just took my truck to a ford dealership for this repair and they're telling me I need to replace some ball joints and bushings at my cost. It is obvious that the ball joints and bushings that are failing are directly related to the violent death wobble, but ford will not cover these costs. Again this problem has been going on for a long time with these trucks. What other vehicle wears out ball joints and bushing that fast?

Filed Jul 24, 2020 · Steering, Suspension · 10,000 miles · ND

Purchased brand new, had the first steering oscillating experience or death wobble at around 10000 miles. Happened on and off, took it in for warranty and they couldn't find any issues, but replaced the steering dampner. I pretty munched stopped driving over 63 MPH unless I knew every bump on the road by heart. Finally got it in at another dealership at around 17000 miles due to the continued death wobble that would happen over certain bumps at speeds over 65. They found a bad lower tie rod end. After replacing the tie rod end it seemed to drive a little better, finally went 70mph again, but not for long. At about 22,000 miles it started again, my wife was with me and experienced it for the first time. She cried... Has not set foot in it since. It now has 23000 miles on it. My wife refuses to ride in it or drive it. I will not allow my 3 kids to ride in it either. If it happened at the wrong time it could easily kill someone. I'm a very mechanically inclined person, and experienced driver. It truly scares me when it happens. Between the death wobble, and ford urging dealerships to hush hush the severity, I wont be buying another new ford anytime soon. And I purchased 3 new trucks in the last 5 years, and have easily owned 15 or more. This is just my complaint about something that is potentially a deadly design flaw. Not to mention it shakes bad while towing. And it's not the trailer, I pulled 3 different ones. And the dealer told me it just how they tow when I brought the tsb, part numbers etc. For them to repair it. And just ignore it. I have zero complaints on any of the other ford vehicles I have owned, but this 2017 f250 has made me rethink my next new vehicle purchase. I also have video footage of several of the death wobble occurrences.

Filed Jan 2, 2020 · Steering, Suspension · 37,750 miles · IL

I have filed a previous complaint regarding the same issue. (complaint number 11279636) stock 2017 ford f250 now with 38,000 miles. The truck has the death wobble. My truck is on its second steering damper and this time the ford dealer replaced the drag link and the outer tie rod. As well, the dealer adjusted the alignment again... The truck is still experiencing sustained steering wheel oscillation and I am again experiencing the death wobble, less than 1,000 miles after the most recent repair. It is very unfortunate that consumers purchase 50k+ dollar trucks and so many people are nervous driving them down the road. Working in automotive, the days are often filled with comments such as the following: continuous improvement. Review the data, the data will tell the story. Change points. Root cause and permanent countermeasures. I have reviewed the historical f250 crew cab 4x4 complaint data on this site (the federal safety agency) and the data does tell a story. Ford is not continuously improving the death wobble issue on the super duty, instead it has gotten worse. There has been a change point with this fourth generation f250. (2017,2018,2019) as of 11/21/19 the fourth generation f250 super duty has had more the federal safety agency suspension and steering complaints for the death wobble than the previous two generations combined. (9 years. Second generation 2008-2010 and third generation 2011-2016) the current repairs (countermeasures) are not effective and are not permanent. This can clearly be seen in the descriptions of the complaints on the federal safety agency. The repairs either do not fix the problem at all or are only a temporarily band aid for the issue. This is truly a safety concern and to date nothing has been implemented to correct the issue. Please, open an investigation and encourage ford to permanently address the issue.