My fiancé & I were driving down a 35mph road & I told her my steering wheel was a little crooked & I don't remember hitting anything to knock out of alignment. We got to my friends house to move a car trailer for him up his steep driveway. I hooked up to the trailer pulled it out, moved it around to line up to back up driveway & making the last adjustment all of a sudden I was turning my steering wheel but the tires were not turning, jumped out to find the output shaft of the steering box was cracked in half diagonally & the steering arm was laying on the street. When I got under the truck & looked at the part that broke you could see it was fractured for a long time. There was only about an 1/8" on one side that was raw metal from just finally breaking. Thank God we are alive if it would have happened going fast probably would have killed someone.
1999 Ford F-250 steering problems
49 complaints (8% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 69,000. 5 crashes reported.
- owner complaints
- 49
- of this car's complaints
- 8%
- typical mileage
- 69,000
- crashes
- 5
- recalls
- 1
Which part fails
- Hydraulic power assist system9
- Steering wheel/handle bar7
- Gear box (other than rack and pinion)7
- Gear box: shaft sector6
- Linkages: tie rod assembly4
- Linkages: arm: idler and attachment1
- Linkages1
- Hydraulic power assist: pump1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Ford F-250 steering problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 1999 Ford F-250 steering
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
Steering: gear box (other than rack and pinion)
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: medium duty trucks and chassis-cabs. One or more of the four rivets on the lower steering shaft flex coupling may not have been crimped during the sub-assembly process.
- Risk
- If a rivet is not crimped, the flex joint can rotate on the shaft and there would be a reduction in or loss of steering control.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect the lower steering shaft rivets and replace any shafts with uncrimped rivets.
Recall number 98V116000 · Recall details
Related investigations
Steering shaft fracture
Alleged that the steering shaft may fracture
PE98061
What 1999 Ford F-250 owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
I was going down the freeway @ 65mph and I noticed my steering was not responding in the normal way. I had made it to a exit and stopped at light tried to make right turn truck continued straight, and I was stopped in rush hour traffic in ca. Got out and saw my sector shaft had broken off my steering gear box.
The second gear has gone out of the transmission. The consumer took the vehicle to the dealer. *jb *sc the lights at the bottom of the door were inoperative. The steering wheel was out of alignment.
I turned right into a paint store parking lot after leaving a major highway (m-32) with my 1999 ford f250 (69000 miles) and noticed a slipping feeling in my steering. When I tried to back up to leave the paint store my right front wheel was pointed to the far right and my left wheel was straight. I looked under the right wheel area and saw the tie rod end was separated from the steering rod. I had the truck transported on a flat bed to a repair shop. I had all the tie rod ends replaced. The repair shop, bedford's muffler & brake (9893458732) has seen this same type of failure recently on a ford. I have the failed parts and have contacted ford over a week ago. They have not responded.
While mechanic was installing new tires he noticed that the tie rod on the front right side was severely worn, destroyed.
The front tire rod fell off the vehicle. The dealer was notified. *ak both front outer tie rod ends were replaced. *scc
While reversing , vehicle lost steering power. The steering wheel will turn, but the vehicle will not go in the direction that it's being turned. The vehicle's steering sector shaft had broke.
The vehicle pulled to the left and the right, the tire were cupping on the edges, the cloth seat were wearing, the radius arms were loose, the lights were inoerative, there was a squeak in the cowel, the engine experienced gasket and seal problems, however once the engine was replaced, it burned oil fast.*scc
While traveling on the highway and without prior warning the consumer lost control of the vehicle, this failure was as a result of the steering column locking up. Please furnish additional information dealer is aware of the problem.
The vehicle had a twisted sector shaft. *scc
Questions about the 1999 Ford F-250 steering
Does the 1999 Ford F-250 have steering problems?
Owners have filed 49 complaints about the steering of the 1999 Ford F-250, 8% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 1999 Ford F-250 steering problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 69,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 1999 Ford F-250 steering?
Yes, 1 recall: 98V116000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What year does the Ford F-250 have bad steering?
The Ford F-250 model years with the most steering complaints are 2012 (112 complaints), 2011 (102 complaints) and 2008 (80 complaints).
Other 1999 Ford F-250 problems
Brakes 108Tires 107Engine 82Transmission 61Fuel system 41Airbags 40Acceleration 32Suspension 28Electrical 25Visibility 22Lights 18Body 16Wheels 8Seat belts 5Seats 5Locks 3Driver assistance 1
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