2017 Ford F-350 SD: fire, smoke or burning smell

Filed Jul 9, 2026 · Electrical, Engine · VA · fire

I am filing this complaint regarding my Ford F-350, VIN [XXX], which caught fire on XXX. The truck had approximately 130,000 miles, which I consider low mileage for a properly maintained diesel Ford F-350. These trucks are known for long service life, and many Ford diesel trucks routinely remain in service for 20 years or more and exceed 250,000 miles when properly maintained. For that reason, I did not expect a sudden and catastrophic fire in a truck with only 130,000 miles. While driving, passing motorists alerted us the truck was on fire. The fire appeared to originate in the engine compartment and spread extremely rapidly. Within a very short period, the front of the truck was engulfed in flames and sustained catastrophic damage. Based on the speed and severity of the fire, I am concerned a failure in the engine compartment, fuel system, electrical system, or another vehicle component may have caused or contributed to the fire. This truck has been well maintained, kept clean, and responsibly cared for. I followed the manufacturer’s maintenance guidelines and did not expect a sudden engine-compartment fire. After the fire, I found reports of other F-350 fires and references to fire-related complaints and investigations. This raises serious concerns Ford may have known of a potential fire risk involving these trucks. This incident created major safety hazard not only to the occupants of the truck, but to other motorists and anyone nearby. Had passing drivers not alerted us, the outcome could have been far worse. The severity of the fire required a major emergency response, including multiple fire trucks and police. A vehicle fire of this magnitude presents an obvious risk of serious injury or death. I request the federal safety agency investigate Ford F-350 and vehicle fire incidents to determine whether a defect involving the fuel system, electrical system, or related parts may cause these trucks to catch fire without warning. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jan 9, 2026 · Engine, Fuel system · CA · fire

Driving uphill at approx 20mph near my home. Loud bang/explosion from engine or front driver-side wheel well. Red alarm flashed on instrument cluster (something like “Front Brake Failure”) and strong odor of fuel or exhaust entered cab. I immediately pulled into a pullout and put vehicle in park when I noticed flames coming from the engine compartment through the gaps in hood and wheel well. I splashed a small amount of water on the driver side front tire, but the fire continued to grow. I backed away to a safe distance and called 911. Within 5 minutes, the entire engine compartment was on fire and I captured on video explosions as the fire raged Local fire department arrived within 15 minutes, but the entire engine and cab had already been destroyed by fire. Had I been driving at high speed or with passengers, this incident could have resulted in serious burn injuries and death. Had I been driving during summer months, this incident would have caused a devastating wildfire. Had I been in traffic, I may have caused a multi-car wreck. There were absolutely no warning indicators that such a violent incident could occur. Tow truck driver said it may have been a fuel filter issue which has caused other Super Duty’s to experience sudden and catastrophic engine compartment fires. Minimal research showed me that NHSTA is investigating Ford Super Duty for this very issue. My F350 is model year 2017. I also have video of fluids dripping from the burning vehicle and the droplets are on fire which leads me to believe that leaking fuel — possibly from a cracked plastic filter — may be to blame for this incredibly dangerous incident. The vehicles remains have been searched by California Highway Patrol and the remains are currently being investigated by State Farm Auto Insurance claims experts.

Filed Jun 10, 2025 · Fuel system · OR

This truck had a complete fuel system replaced already once when it failed while the customer was driving. We are the next owners and didn't know it had this major failure before purchase. We know this fuel pump is an issue and Ford has active law suits against them as these pumps that they continue to put even in the new Fords and all other makes of trucks are blowing up daily. Ford sees it as a revenue stream to keep their shops busy. Fuel is highly flammable and we tow a travel trailer. I would hate to see something bad happen because they won't issue a recall. There several years that are under recall currently and our year is not one of them but it has the same pump. They should not only issue recalls on all trucks that have the known failing CP4 pump, but also give the customers the option to upgrade with the after market DCR pump. The one pump that has been the #1 best replacement option. Installing a new CP4 pump only buys Ford mote time to next failure and keeps their ships full. We spent 50k on this truck. Again, it already happened once! Let's be sure to issue recalls on ALL trucks with CP4 pumps with a real solution and not just another dangerous CP4. We don't want our truck to catch on fire while driving. Its a very big safety concern!

Filed Aug 2, 2023 · Electrical · WI

The truck has multiple leaks when it rains and water is getting inside of the truck through the back window, the sunroof and other places. Water recently go into the radio after a big rain storm and now the radio touch screen is not working. It’s making a crackling sound as if it’s going to start on fire. There was recall for this on other fords but not this specific model but is having the same exact issue. Ford needs to cover this as this is safety hazard. Multiple owners of this specific model have complained and there’s been no resolve.

Filed Feb 22, 2023 · Driver assistance, Transmission · 74,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2017 Ford F-350. The contact stated that the vehicle was idling rough. Additionally, the vehicle had smoke coming from the tailpipe and the contact smelled an abnormal odor. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact received notifications of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V644000 (Back Over Prevention) and 22V880000 (Power Train) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 74,000.

Filed Nov 28, 2022 · Fuel system · DE · fire

We were driving and noticed a few white puffs of smoke. The next thing that happened was a loud bang from the engine and the cab of the truck filled with black smoke. Within 5 minutes, the entire truck was engulfed in flames, as well as our camper. There was no warning indication on the dash. The insurance company had investigators look at the remains. However, since the truck was aluminum and the fuel filter housing and low pressure side of the fuel system was plastic, everything totally melted. The truck was properly serviced prior to our travels.

Filed Oct 26, 2022 · Steering, Suspension · NC

Okay, been hearing a lot of noises up underneath it, got under there and looked at my heat shields, that are just flaking off everywhere. I'm scared that my truck is going to catch on fire at this point. All of the heat shields around pretty much everything are disintegrating and falling apart. I've already filled out several of these and I went and tried to turn the truck in and to no avail. They have done everything in their power to not fix nothing on my truck. Nothing. I need some help. Please give me a call [XXX] The linkage, the power door locks and the door handles leaking, are all problems that I have and every one of them they know about and I'm scared that the front end is going to fall apart because of that linkage problem.. I can't get them to do nothing for me. I'm so tired of dealing with them and I was going to buy another truck from them and now I'm on the verge of not buying another one from them cuz they won't even fix the problems on this one. I would really appreciate if somebody would reach out to me and help me. Someone please give me a call and let me know what steps I need to do to get this taken care of. Thank you very much. I firmly believe that with your help they will do the right thing. Thank you have a blessed day INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

Filed Dec 29, 2020 · Engine, Transmission · FL

While driving catalytic converter heats up and starts leaking black liquid on sensor wires and smoking real bad with a burning smell.

Filed Jan 3, 2020 · Fuel system · 75,000 miles · TX · fire

Truck was driving down the highway and fuel sprayed over the motor and caught the truck on fire and lost brakes while fire was coming up onto the I windshield. Truck finally came to a stop with the use of trailer brakes. The cab was filled with smoke and thee dashboard was melting.

Filed Feb 22, 2019 · Engine, Fuel system · 23,000 miles · FL · fire

Vehicle was in motion on a city street and the fuel injector dash light appeared momentarily and then disappeared . Shortly afterwards, I began to sense the slight smell of diesel and just as I turned into my homes driveway there was a loud burst from the engine compartment and the truck began to smoke. I stopped and shut off the vehicle immediately and exited as I was going to inspect the situation. There were screams of fire coming from my wife as the trucks engine compartment began to roar with flames. Action was taken to put out the fire but the flames were too strong. 911 was called and the fire department began in route to our location. In my attempts to contain the fire the truck began to attempt to start on its own. After approximately 3 attempts of the truck starting, there was another loud burst and more flames. Afterwards the horn began to alarm for several minutes. With the help of my neighbors between the water hose and fire extinguisher we were able to contain upon the 18 minute arrival time of the fire department. It is unknown at this time to what caused this fire. Please understand my frustrations as I tell you my 2 year old son was strapped in his car seat in a vehicle that was on fire which was only purchased only 6 months ago from a certified ford dealership. Photos of engine compartment and cab dash area are attached. *dt*jb *dt consumer stated he has yet to hear from ford.*jb *dt *dt*jb *dt *dt*jb *dt*jb *dt *dt

Filed Jan 1, 2018 · Visibility · 700 miles · OR

Fords" bumper to bumper warranty' doesn't go "mirror to mirror" on nov 22, 2017 I bought the 2017 f-350 lariat super duty. Nice truck, it's the 8th ford truck I have bought new and until now have never had a major problem that they didn't stand behind until this one. At 700 mi on a family outing to washington dec 8th, my wife remarked that she could smell something burning and I told her it was probably paint off the engine. I had turned on the mirror defrost. On arrival to our destination my son discovered the frames had melted. Sent pictures to service dept. At dealership. Tech sent text back "do not use mirror heaters again". I called and he said dealership would replace when we returned. They picked it up on friday the 15th and midday I got a phone call from service manager stating that he wasn't a very good nancy drew but they were not going to warranty them as they thought they were vandalized ( at 70 MPH you would have thought one of the four of us would have noticed it ) he told me to turn in to my insurance. I remarked that it wasn't an insurance problem, to state farm agents credit they told me to take to another dealer and they would collect repair cost from manufacture. Wouldn't it be great if a warranty was just that? When I told service manager that I was going to file a claim with the oregon doj under the lemon law, he blew me off. I took to another dealer and he told me albany one had placed a "flag" on it making it impossible for anyone else to even look at it but cautioned me to not park in my garage in case of fire until issue was addressed. Called ford customer service and they assigned me a "case number". 1400 mi. On a 72k truck and no mirror defrost. We currently own 9 fords, loyalty doesn't account for much anymore. Warranty must not be any wider than the bumpers.