Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (power steering, steering column, rack and pinion).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 Ford F-150 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 1997 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel started to wobble. There was no warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 192,699.
Tl* - the contact owns a 2000 Ford f150. The contact stated that a collision occurred on a back road covered with snow. The contact stated that the shaft in the steering gear box to the pitman arm snapped. The contact was driving 30 MPH when the failure occurred and caused the crash. The air bags did not deploy. The contac did not know the extent of the damage. No police report was taken.
I was traveling in neutral, downhill, at about 40mph through a shallow turn as I was exiting a highway. When I put the truck in 4th gear to accelerate, I had no power. The tachometer was at zero and I tried to turn on the hazard lights and begin braking, both failed to work. I had no lights or any other electrical power (it was daylight) I downshifted and turned to ease off the road, I had no power steering, then the steering wheel locked. I halted the truck with the e brake once I was slow enough and on the edge of the road. I tried to restart it several times but nothing would happen. The truck had zero electrical power. After about 15 minutes it started back up as if nothing was wrong. When I got it to john elway Ford in denver co, the mechanics said the computer didn't log any errors and there was nothing they could do. I contacted Ford and they refused to do anything. …
I purchased a new 2000 f150 pickup truck from van boxtel Ford in green bay wi. After putting 45000-50000 miles I had a bad experience with my vehicle. I was driving into a parking lot off the street and was turning into the second parking stall when the vehicle would not turn. I stopped and got out of the truck to see if something was wrong.the front tires were pointing in opposite directions and I noticed a hissing sound coming from the right side front tire. I looked under the vehicle and the tierod had poked a hole thru the tire and rim. The vehiclewas totally unsteerable. The repairs were 700-800 dollars which Ford did not stand behind.what would have happened had the tierod poked thru the rim and tire when iwas driving at highway speeds.I made three calls to Ford at their headquarters, nobody called or responded as requested. People could be killed with this type of incident.
Dt: had problems in past with tie rod ends and was unable to keep grease on them. Consumer was at church and began to leave, and there was a popping noise. After turning the wheel followed by a dragging-this was later a piece of tie rod end. This occurred on the right side, and before the mileage had accumulated to 20,000 .this occurred about a year and a half ago. This was repaired by consumer's husband. This 4th of July weekend, was exiting parking lot onto street and heard another popping noise. Almost lost control of truck but was able to make it off the road. Called husband who was a mechanic, he came and repaired vehicle. This occurred on the left side. The parts for the f150 tie rod ends were unable to pack grease which causes this failure. Has contacted Ford for the first incident. The second failure mileage was just over 50,000 miles.
I was trying to avoid rear ending the car in front of me because traffic had come to an abrupt stop, so I jerked my truck to the right as hard as I could. I could not steer out of it because the steering box broke. I hit the car in front of me on his right rear bumper with my left front bumper. Ron blackwell Ford's head mechanic said the steering box breaking is a safety feature. I have never heard of such a thing. I don't believe that hitting a car at 30 MPH should make the steering box break. The only damage done to my truck was on the left side of my bumper. The headlight wasn't even broke. I think it broke from the extreme pressure of turning it so hard trying to avoid a collision not from hitting the car.
I was trying to avoid rear ending the car in front of me because traffic had come to an abrupt stop so I jerked my truck to the right as hard as I could. I could not steer out of it because the steering box broke. I hit the car in front of me on his right rear bumper with my left front bumper. The only damage to my truck was the front bumper. The headlight wasn't even broke. Ron balckwell Ford's chief mechanic said the steering box breaking is a safety feature. I have never heard of such a thing. I don't belive that hitting a car at 30 MPH should make the steering box break. I think it broke from the extreme pressure of turning it so hard trying to avoid the collision.
(1) due to the particular design flaw of the " tie end rods" (the tie ends do not have a grease nipple to allow critical lubrication of these parts!), the passenger side "upper tie end rod" completely separated from its normal position while the vehicle was in motion. (2) the vehicle operator was unable to steer the vehicle to a safe clearance and was forced to immediately stop on a two lane bridge and block one of the lanes. (3) all of the "tie ends rods" were replaced with new parts that have a nipple for lubrication so that the "wear" item can be maintained by applying grease. The old part is available.
I own a 2000 Ford f-150, while turnig right to go in the garage the right hand tie rod end seperated from the socket. The cost of the repair 248.00 because the opposit end of the assembley was damage when the truck hit the blacktop. In August I received a letter from Ford telling me to have the tie rod ends inspected or how to inspect them every 15,000 miles. This letter indicates that Ford knows there's a problem but choose not to do anything about it until someone gets killed in an accident (which could be me.) when the left tie rod end decides to fail or the rignt one goes again.
I had $1375 worth of maintenance done on my 2000 Ford f-150 at mak haik Ford on aug.14, 2003, such as transmission & power steering flush, replacing fuel, air & oil filters, new brakes & fixing ABS sensor, etc. When I got home straight from the mak haik, the alarm was acting up. Later, I discovered the cruise control was broken. Two days later, while I was in bww on westheimer, my truck combusted into flames (about 30-40 feet high). The truck is a write-off. Mak haik blew up my truck. I want my $1375 back as well as approx. $32,500 for the truck.
Steering complaints in other F-150 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are steering problems on the 2000 Ford F-150?
NHTSA has 68 complaints about the steering of the 2000 Ford F-150, 6% of the model year's 1,075 complaints. The component named most often is linkages › tie rod assembly (42 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 Ford F-150 steering problems?
No. NHTSA lists no steering recall for the 2000 Ford F-150, though it has 6 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2000 Ford F-150 steering problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 60,000 miles, and 5% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 7 crashes, 1 fire and 6 injuries to steering problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.