Ford F-350 SD ball joint problems

Filed Jun 23, 2025 · Steering, Suspension · KY

My truck started "The Death Wobble" a few years ago. I have replaced shocks, tires and ball joints. The problem recently became almost undriveable on the highway as any small bump at a legal (70 MPH) triggered 5 instances on a trip to and from a destination that was 70 miles away via the interstate. I have ordered additional parts based on internet research to try to fix this issue, however in my research it is clear the is a COMMON issue. Why is this allowed to continue?

Filed Oct 8, 2024 · Steering, Suspension · OH

I’ve been having repeated issue with a death wobble I’ve replaced my draglink and tie rod end and it hasn’t helped in the slightest

Filed Sep 25, 2024 · Steering · MD

Hello on 8/3/22 I was driving on the highway and as I was accelerating at around 50mph the steering wheel started to violently shake back and forth. I thought I was going to loose control and crash. I have never experienced this in a vehicle before. To date I have replaced most of the front components and within the past month, both front Tie rods left and right. Steering tie rod including steering gearbox tie rod were replaced. My tires have been replaced in July of 2022. Both front Hubs in 2023. I just had the tires rebalanced again two weeks ago to try anything. The ball joints in 2022 and the mechanic says all these parts above are ok and he cant diagnose anything to cause this death wobble which he experienced. I am now having another shop replace the front Track bar to see if that helps. In the past two years I have spent several thousand dollars on this trucks with front end parts and I still experience this steering shake and wobble. Two years ago at that time the truck was about seven years old, I took it to the ford dealer and they advised that they couldn't find anything and trucks "Do need maintenance" typical run around from ford. Can someone please help.

Filed Aug 19, 2024 · Steering, Suspension · AL

Truck experienced death wobble at posted speed limit and steering could not be controlled until I could slow vehicle. Earlier the death wobble happened and took it to the ford dealer and the service reported nothing wrong. I replaced the tie rods steering damper installed new shocks and springs and cannot be corrected

Filed May 23, 2024 · Steering, Suspension · OH

At differing speeds the truck experienced the "death wobble" causing the front end of the vehicle to shake uncontrollably. This happened 2 times before I had the tie rod ends replaced and several times afterward. You have to almost stop the vehicle to get the shaking to go away. It is a tremendous safety risk and could cause an accident due to the shaking or due to needing to slow almost to a stop - which could cause a rear end collision. This is a common problem with Ford F250 and F350 trucks. I had my mechanic inspect all the front end parts and he recommended replacing the tie rods and track bar. No warning lamps or other symptoms. The issue happened out of the blue.

Filed Mar 29, 2024 · Steering · NM

I have had a recurring problem with the so-called "death wobble" whereby the vehicle starts to shake violently when hitting certain bumps above about 50 mph and cannot be brought back under control without completely coming to a stop. I've had the front end components, including tie rods, stabilizers, drag link, etc completely replaced THREE TIMES and within a year of normal driving it comes back. It has always been repaired at a Ford service center. It happens without warning, though I've learned now how the vehicle feels when the front end starts getting loose so I can have it repaired before it becomes dangerous.

Filed Mar 23, 2024 · Suspension · MA · crash

The front tie rod adjusting sleeve pulled apart from the tie rod end. The threads were stripped off so where you can just pull it off and on. It caused me to drive almost into a tree where I lost complete control of the truck. I did not hit any potholes or bumps that would have caused any damage. There is NO WAY that these two parts should have came apart. This is a severe safety hazard. The tow truck driver said he saw the SAME THING the day before on another Ford truck so clearly this is becoming an issue. I only have 90,000 miles on my truck so there isn't a lot of wear and tear on it either. I have photos of the parts after the incident and I've taken it to my repair shop to get it fixed. He also said that this should have never have happened and its very strange that it did. I had no prior warning of it happening - no shaking, thumping, rattling... nothing to tell me that there was an issue.

Filed Sep 13, 2023 · Steering, Suspension · 87,120 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2016 Ford F-350. The contact stated that while her husband was driving approximately 55-60 MPH with her in the front passenger's seat, the vehicle was shuddering significantly, and the steering wheel was shuddering back and forth. The driver lost control of the vehicle and the vehicle nearly drove into a ditch. The driver was able to maintain the vehicle on the shoulder of the road and came to a complete stop. The contact stated that upon turning off and restarting the vehicle, the vehicle operated as needed. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving, and the contact became aware that the failure mostly occurred while exceeding 54 MPH on a bumpy road surface. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the long and short steering drag link, the steering dampener, the track bar ball joint, and bushing needed to be replaced, and the vehicle needed to be realigned. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 87,120.

Filed Aug 12, 2023 · Steering, Transmission · PA

Truck started doing the death wobble when hitting brakes and sometimes when hitting bumps in the road. Death wobble was very violent and last for a few seconds each time before we could get vehicle stopped. I made my local ford dealer aware of my problem and they inspected it and said it was related to the drive shaft recall. I made the earliesr appointment which was a couple weeks later. I dropped my vehicle off and they said that due to this recall malfunction it had caused damage to my tie rods and drag lengths and those parts needed to be replaced. They said their damage was directly correlated to the drive shaft recall however I would have to pay out of pocket for that to be fixed ($1400). They have had my vehicle for a week and fixed the tire rods and drag lengths but do not have the part for the drive shaft recall. They have no time line for when they will be able to get the part and told me I may come get my vehicle and use it while I wait for the part but I have to sign a waiver stating that it's dangerous to drive. They refuse to give me a loaner vehicle if I would opt to leave my vehicle there while we wait for the part. I'm currently trapped in Texas with 2 horses and can't get back home to Pennsylvania because my vehicle is unsafe to haul the horses back 26 hours.

Filed Jul 26, 2023 · Electrical · VA

The control arm for the turnsignals and wiper system fails resulting in the delay wipers constantly running. This is both an annoyance to driving as well as an obstruction to your field of vision. There also a risk of damage to the windshield as well. This is a very, very common part failure with Ford Trucks.