On the passenger side of the engine pan the dipstick adapter was manufactured poorly. The oil from the crankcase has caused the oring to swell and leak oil. The oil leak is getting on the starter and clutch. The oil can cause a short in the electrical system. This can cause an accident or death while driving. The oil on the clutch can cause loss of control and cause an accident or death. The oring can swell and fall off the adaptor and become lodged in the oil pickup. This will starve the motor of oil and cause a catastrophic failure of the motor while driving. This can cause an accident or death. Due to the inherent poor design the oring that is submerged in oil should be compatible with oil or be able to be replaced. It is not possible to replace the oring due to due to the terrible design of the dipstick assembly. To replace this oring with a proper oil compatible one requires the disassembly of the motor and the removal of the motor to gain access to the defective part. This is a common problem on all vehicles of the same make and model from 1988-2006.
1997 Ford F-350 engine problems
29 complaints (19% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 117,000. 1 crash reported.
- owner complaints
- 29
- of this car's complaints
- 19%
- typical mileage
- 117,000
- crashes
- 1
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Engine: gasoline13
- Engine: diesel5
- Engine4
- Exhaust system1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Ford F-350 engine problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 1997 Ford F-350 engine
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
Spark plug ejection from cylinder head
On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi?s analysis showed, it is possible for a spark plug to detach from the engine cylinder threads in the subject vehicles.however, odi?s analysis of 474 complaints describing such incidents found only a very few alleged any safety-related consequences.none of these showed any evidence of a serious safety consequence.given the large population and relatively long exposure time of the subject vehicles, the complaint analysis indicates that the risk to motor vehicle safety from the alleged defect is very low.in view of the foregoing, it is unlikely that the federal safety agency would issue an order for the notification and remedy of the alleged defect at the conclusion of the investigation requested in the petition.therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize the federal safety agency?s limited resources to best accomplish the agency?s safety mission, the petition is denied.
DP05005
What 1997 Ford F-350 owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-350. While driving 25 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact restarted the vehicle and it stalled a second time. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drive home. Gladian repair shop of pittsburg, virginia was made aware of the failure and suggested a list of unknown repairs. Camel brothers repair shop of prince george, virginia replaced the accelerator pedal position switch sensor, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-350. While driving at various speeds, the vehicle would suddenly stall. After restarting the engine, the vehicle operated normally. The contact indicated that the failure was intermittent. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the cam shaft position sensor was faulty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in the federal safety agency campaign number: 07v553000 (engine). The contact stated that the vehicle experienced the same failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 92,000.
While driving my 1997 ford f350 diesel pickup, pulling a 36ft gooseneck horse trailer with my two teenage daughters and their four horses, the engine in my pickup spontaneously ignited. There was no "check engine" warning light, and the engine temperature gauge showed normal. The only warning I had was smoke coming up from the left wheel well upon speed decrease to turn a corner. I was traveling a short distance from home and at a low rate of speed (less than 40mph) during the travel from my home to the local fairgrounds for rodeo practice. As I turned the corner, the smoke billowed. I immediately pulled over and smoke filled the cab of the pickup. My two daughters and I quickly evacuated the vehicle and called 911. We quickly unloaded the livestock from the trailer and got far away from the scene. My fiance, who was traveling behind us in another vehicle, tried putting the fire out with the fire extinguisher I carried in my pickup, but to no avail. As an emergency responder himself, he had the presence of mind to unhook the pickup from the horse trailer and push it away as it became engulfed in flames. By the time the fire department arrived, the vehicle was engulfed in flames and a total loss. From the time I noticed the smoke until the fire consumed the vehicle was less than 15 minutes. My daughters have been traumatized by this incident. We have suffered significant financial and economic loss as a result of this spontaneous fire. I need to make people aware of this to prevent others from suffering similar loss, injury or even death. I am aware that there are multiple electrical issues with this make/model vehicle. I received no recall notices from ford, or warning of any kind that something like this could happen to my vehicle as a result of a faulty part (which is what we believed to be the cause of this fire).
Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-350 turbo diesel. The contact stated that the oil gallery plugs in the engine block were leaking oil while he was driving. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the dealer stated that they would repair the vehicle free of charge. However, the dealer called him and explained that his vehicle was outside the warranty. The vehicle had not been repaired but the contact stopped driving it on the street. The contact called the manufacturer who stated that they used a new material when producing those models and the plugs would leak, but refused to assist in repair costs. There were photographs available. The current mileage was approximately 66,700. The failure mileage was approximately 42,000.
Stopped at a stop signal and engine quit. Cranked okay, but would not start. Got it towed to my house. After lots of trouble shooting for not starting, noticed that the engine tachometer was not working when trying to start. Replaced the cam position sensor, f7tz-12k073-b. The truck started right up.
Cam shaft position sensor in truck has gone out suddenly and could be very dangerous when moving - loss of power steering and brakes. Evidently almost all engines have this part fail at some point and have done nothing to help the consumer.
I have had two camshaft position sensor failures on my 97' f350 7.3l diesel in a matter of one year. This left me stranded on both occasions. I discovered on several ford truck discussion forums that this is one the most common failures on these trucks through a variety of years. I could not find any person who owned a similar year truck and did not have this component fail on them. Please take action on this issue.
(1) vehicle randomly dying while driving in traffic (2) cam postion sensor, engine dies , loss of power steering, loss of power brakes (both a nessesity with a diesel pick up to be able to maintain control due to thier weight) (3) replace the cam position sensor at appoximately $140.00.
While driving between 55-60 MPH motor vibrated, followed by a loud bang. Consumer pulled off the road, and had vehicle towed to the dealership. The two piece flywheel came apart, which caused the transmission housing to crack where the transfer case (4-wheel drive was located. Dealership indicated that this was a common failure with this year trucks, and the two piece fly wheels were not installed in later model trucks. Transmission housing and the flywheel were replaced.
Questions about the 1997 Ford F-350 engine
Does the 1997 Ford F-350 have engine problems?
Owners have filed 29 complaints about the engine of the 1997 Ford F-350, 19% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 1997 Ford F-350 engine problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 117,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 1997 Ford F-350 engine?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
What year does the Ford F-350 have bad engine?
The Ford F-350 model years with the most engine complaints are 2004 (80 complaints), 2008 (47 complaints) and 2005 (35 complaints).
Other 1997 Ford F-350 problems
Brakes 32Tires 29Transmission 21Steering 12Suspension 9Acceleration 8Electrical 7Fuel system 7Lights 4Body 3Visibility 3Wheels 3Seat belts 2Airbags 1
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