2020 Ford F-250 SD: jerking or lurching

Filed Jan 28, 2026 · Transmission · NC

2020 Ford F250 with 85,000 miles. We purchased new and all maintenance has been done on time and by Ford Service. Transmission began jerking when going from park to drive (or reverse). Noticeable lunging of the vehicle when putting into gear. This began in December 2025. This is a safety concern if anyone is in front of or behind the vehicle when this happens. The truck jumps. Now the transmission is not shifting gears smoothly when the truck is in motion. This is a known problem with trucks manufactured during this time period with 10R80 transmissions. Ford has been less than helpful in helping me come to a resolution. They tell me there was a TSB sent out. They attempted to reprogram software (at a cost of $424 to me). I will upload the invoice from Ford. This only made the problem worse. They quoted me a "special price" of $8,500 to replace the transmission, however their service department is SIX WEEKS out. For this reason we have chosen to have the transmission replaced at a local transmission shop. Their price is $9,932.41. I have attached that invoice. Ford needs to take accountability for this safety problem and attempt to make these vehicles safe. They should absorb at least some of the cost to fix this design problem. We paid full price to purchase a new, safe vehicle. That is not what we received. Rather than a "Technical Service Bulletin", Ford should be forced to do a recall and make this right for customers who paid top dollar for these vehicles.

Filed Nov 7, 2025 · Transmission · 100,000 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-250 SD. The contact stated that while the vehicle was stopped at a traffic light, the transmission failed to downshift from seventh gear, causing the vehicle to jerk. The transmission warning light was illuminated, and the message "Power Train Malfunction - Reduce Power" was displayed on the Ford Mobile App. The contact's neighbor, an independent mechanic, diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V256000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

Filed May 28, 2025 · Transmission · CO

When shifting into drive the truck will lurch forward, a very hard shift. It also does the same thing in reverse. Several times the if my foot was not pressing very hard on the brake when shifting into drive or reverse the truck would lurch forward several feet. It there was an obstruction or person in front of the truck it would have put them at risk of being hit. While driving on cruise control it is very slow to shift and will skip multiple gears when shifting down when going up a hill. Sometimes also going downhill. This can cause the truck to slow down rapidly without a brake indicator which could cause a rear end collision if there is someone following closely. The truck is only 4.5yrs old and has 60,597miles. Symptoms started about 3-4months earlier when truck was well under 60,000 miles however I was unable to get it to the dealer until 60,597 which puts the truck out of warranty. The dealer was able to reproduce the issues and performed a code reset as well as a reprogram and the issue was not resolved. Dealer tore down the transmission and said one of the clutch packs in the transmission has failed along with several other parts. It is now requiring a full rebuild or replacement. There were no warning lights, alarms or messages. Date below is approximately when symptoms started occurring. I do not yet have my vehicle back so do not have the full report from the dealer. I will submit when I receive my vehicle back.

Filed Jan 31, 2025 · Transmission · 110,000 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-250. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle and shifting into gear, the vehicle jerked significantly. Additionally, the contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the transmission was slipping and was skipping gear. Additionally, the transmission remained stuck in a gear. The power train warning light was illuminated, and a message advising to see the Owner's Manual was displayed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where diagnostic trouble codes indicating that the transmission clutches were slipping, were retrieved. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 20V365000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

Filed Jan 29, 2025 · Transmission · 96,500 miles · VA

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the transmission independently downshifted from tenth gear to first gear. The contact stated that while the gear shifter was in drive and the accelerator pedal was depressed, the vehicle lunged forward. The contact stated that while reversing, the accelerator pedal was depressed, and the vehicle jerked backward. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed transmission CDF drum. The contact was informed that the transmission CDF drum needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The contact was advised to contact the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,500.

Filed Jan 1, 2025 · Fuel system · OH

My truck started having the extended start a couple of years ago. It seems when it's warmer outside, sometimes, it will crank for an excessive amount of time before it will start. It was very intermittent and hard to determine exactly when this would occur. Someone told me it was the fuel pump and that the fuel pumps in certain Ford Super Duty models were just faulty. A couple of weeks ago, I was pulling onto the highway from a stop. My check engine light came on and the truck almost stalled. There was a vehicle that had to brake suddenly to avoid this. Now I notice that when I give the truck gas when it's in a higher gear, it hesitates and starts jerking back and forth. I can't drive it now. I know it's the fuel pump. I also have a neighbor that has a 2019 F-250 truck and his truck is doing the exact same thing right now. He said he's had the extended crank for a few years occur to him as well. He contacted the dealership and they told him it's a known issue with the fuel pumps in the Super Duty trucks. There are many videos online of folks reporting the exact same thing as my truck and my neighbors truck. However, we have gas engines and not the diesel engines. I feel the recent recall should be extended to all Super Duty trucks and don't just think it's an issue with the diesel trucks. I'm just wondering if anyone has looked into all the fuel pumps Ford is putting into their Super Duty trucks. It's crazy how so many people are having problems with them whether they have the gas engine or the diesel engines. Thanks!

Filed Dec 26, 2024 · Transmission · 70,000 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-250. The contact stated that when driving, at various speeds, the transmission would do a hard shift, giving a jerking sensation. No warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The manufacturer referred the contact to the dealer and to the federal safety agency Hotline to file a safety complaint. The failure mileage was 70,000.

Filed Oct 9, 2024 · Engine, Transmission · 65,000 miles · FL

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while accelerating from a stop, the vehicle lurched forward and hesitated to accelerate. Additionally, while driving at various speeds, the transmission randomly shifted gear and the gear selector failed to match the gear selection. During the failure, the check engine warning light was illuminated, and the “WRENCH” symbol was displayed. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 20V197000 (POWER TRAIN). The contact indicated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 65,000.

Filed Jul 23, 2024 · Transmission · AR

While driving at various speeds the transmission/powertrain has jerking shifting, loss of power, inability to increase speed, hesitates in speed, hard shifting, clunking noises. It hesitates from 4th to 5th gear, hesitates from 9th to 10th gear, and will drop from 10th gear straight down as low as 4th gear with the RPMs of the engine going dangerously high.

Filed Apr 15, 2024 · Transmission · 105,000 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving at undisclosed speeds, the transmission was shifting hard, and the vehicle was jerking. The failure recurred intermittently while the contact waited for the recall repair. The contact was notified of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V256000 (Power Train) and the recall was repaired; however, the dealer notified the contact that the valve body in the transmission was failing. The failure recurred after the contact came to a stop, and the vehicle shifted hard from tenth gear to first gear. The maintenance required message was displayed. The vehicle was restarted, and the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the valve body was replaced; however, the vehicle was diagnosed with a clutch pack failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.

Filed Jan 11, 2024 · Transmission · OH

The truck slips out of gear for no reason, suffers very hard shifts causing the truck to jerk, and skips gears making it impossible to drive safely. Also, I lost power on the freeway several times and the truck would up shift and down shift erratically causing issues maintaining speed in traffic. I took the truck to the Ford dealer and was told I needed a new transmission. Ford has issued a recall for the Diesel truck with this transmission but refuses to repair other trucks with the same faulty transmission. This truck costs almost $60,000 new, was built in January 2020 with a faulty and dangerous transmission but ford is refusing to help their customers.

Filed Jan 31, 2023 · Transmission · 62,000 miles · AL

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-250. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V256000 (Power Train) however, the parts for the repair were unavailable. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would hesitate and jerk upon the depression of the accelerator pedal without warning. The manufacturer had been notified of the recall. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the repair. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000. VIN tool confirms parts not available.