2019 Ford F-350 SD: shudder or vibration when accelerating

Filed Aug 28, 2026 · Engine, Fuel system · NV · fire

Wife was driving the truck(I was the passenger) while towing our dump trailer. After approx 100 miles into this trip the dash showed a "Reduced Engine Power Warning", and then shuddered. That was immediately followed by a "Service Engine Soon" warning on the dash, and the truck shut down as we were pulling to the shoulder. I smelled diesel fuel as we slowed to a stop. I got out and saw some smoke coming from under the hood. I looked under the truck and saw burning material falling from underneath, I shouted fire, and my wife exited while I retrieved our dog from the back seat. The cab was filling with smoke. Wife called [XXX] while I retrieved a few more small items from back seat. We stepped back and the truck was fully engulfed in flames in a few minutes. Fire crews were on scene after several more minutes, and by that time the truck was burnt to the ground. This truck was in excellent condition with no prior running issues or warnings of mechanical problems. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jul 5, 2022 · Steering, Suspension · AZ

When driving at highway speed encountering a rough stretch of road or a crack, bridge interface or substantial crack in the road surface the truck will begin an extreme vibration and the steering wheel will shudder violently. The only way to gain control is to slow down to at least 30 or 35 miles per hour which is dangerous to do in busy traffic. This has occurred 7 times within the last 6 weeks.

Filed Feb 9, 2022 · Suspension · MI

I was driving the 2019 Ford F-350 XLT ( 027506.7 miles on odometer) on I 94 highway west of Detroit at highway speeds (65-70 mph). Highway had rough/spalling pavement due to winter freeze cycles. Vehicle hit rough patch of highway and vehicle started to violently started to shake and wobble while at the same time steering control of the vehicle was minimal and non responsive. I was able to slow down and eventually get the vehicle off on the shoulder of the highway where the shaking and wobble eventually stopped at slow speed. The incident of shake, wobble and loss of control was repeated on the east bound lane returning to my residence (different stretch of highway mileage). Again this loss of control due to the violent shaking and wobble required slowing down to well below posted speed and getting on to the shoulder of the highway. It took approximately between a quarter to one half of a mile to regain control of the vehicle and have the shaking/ shudder stop. In my view this imposes an extreme safety hazard.

Filed Feb 28, 2021 · Steering, Suspension · 29,000 miles · NC

On multiple occasions over the 5 months I have owned the truck, the front wheels of my 2019 f350 have shuddered violently after crossing minor bumps at normal highway speeds. The shuddering was violent enough to pose a serious threat of an accident. Immediate, rapid deceleration was the only way to regain control. My instinct (just my observation) is that the bumps caused a shudder in the front wheels and if the traction control was engaged that the system engaging made the shuddering worse. The last time and the third time this happened was yesterday 2/27/21 my wife and 2 small children were in the truck with me. De-acceleration, dangerous on a busy interstate on its own, did not stop the shuddering this time, but disengaging the traction control seemed to stop it immediately. I often tow a 30' foot travel trailer on family trips and fortunately the shuddering has not yet happened while towing the camper, but I fear what could happen under such circumstances. I have researched this in ford forums and have come to know this defect is common with ford super duty trucks and is know as the f250/350 'death wobble' and I can tell you that is a very accurate description. I also saw that taking these trucks in for service has not helped other owners and that ford has failed to address what is obviously a common, dangerous design flaw across multiple years of the super duty line of trucks. I urge the federal safety agency to pressure ford to address this issue immediately.

Filed Nov 23, 2020 · Steering · 35,464 miles · FL

On three separate occasions during a recent road trip, we experienced sudden violent shuddering of the steering wheel while traveling at highway speeds (40-70 MPH) and immediately after hitting an uneven spot in the road. On all 3 occasions, the steering wheel shuddered, the vehicle started wobbling side to side, and it was extremely difficult to control the vehicle. The shudder lasted for approximately 20 seconds each time, it was terrifying! This vehicle had only 35k miles on it at the time of our trip and has been very well maintained.

Filed Oct 23, 2019 · Steering, Suspension · 1 miles · NC

On 10/19/2019 while my 2019 f-350 was in motion towing a 36-ft 5th wheel on a two-lane highway at 55 MPH, I drove over a series of bumps in my lane that caused the front of the truck to shudder violently. I had to slow the truck to approx. 30 MPH to get the shuddering to stop. I did not lose control of the 5th wheel. The steering wheel shuddered so violently I could barely keep my hands on it. All vehicle weights were well within the gvwr/gcwr of both the trailer and truck. Ironically enough I was on my way home from weighing the truck and trailer at a cat scale when this incident occurred. Four days later I took the truck to the dealer where they replaced the steering damper assembly in accordance with tsb 19-2274.