Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2013 Ford F-150 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at 35 mph, the passenger noticed smoke underneath the hood. The driver pulled over, opened the hood, and noticed smoke and fire between the fire wall and engine. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact and other motorists extinguished the fire. The fire department was on the scene. A police report was filed. The driver and passenger sustained burns, but no medical attention was provided. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed to his family residence. The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 182,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the vehicle was failing to start as needed with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump fuse needed to be replaced. The contact was advised to take the vehicle to a local dealer for repair. The vehicle had not yet been taken to a local dealer for repair. The contact stated while driving at approximately 5 MPH, the vehicle stalled and was rear-ended. A police report was not filed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F150. The contact stated that while driving at 30 MPH, the speedometer went to zero unexpectedly. In addition, the transmission failed to properly shift gears. The vehicle was pulled over to the side of the road, turned off, and minutes later, it was restarted. After the vehicle was restarted, the wrench warning light illuminated. The contact moved the shift lever to reverse(R), then to drive(D). The contact test drove the vehicle around the parking lot at the apartment complex, and the vehicle functioned as intended. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V075000 (Power Train) and the vehicle was taken to the dealer. The dealer informed the contact that the repair could not be completed unless the vehicle was experiencing failure. The contact stated while driving 45-50 MPH, the transmission downshifted unexpectedly, and the rear wheels locked up, causing the vehicle to slide and stop. The power train warning light and the check engine warning light were illuminated. The contact stated that he turned off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle operated as needed. The contact stated that he turned on the hazard lights and drove back to the residence at a slower speed. The vehicle was later taken to the dealer, where it was determined that the failure was related to the recall. The dealer informed the contact that the campaign had expired. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, there was an abnormal sound coming from the front-end. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. The vehicle lost motive power; however, the contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact waited for a while and then restarted the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to Auto Zone, where it was diagnosed that the throttle had failed. The contact stated that on the last occasion when the vehicle experienced the failure, the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was diagnosed, and it was determined that the cam phasers, valve cover, and throttle had failed. The vehicle was repaired. The failure recurred on several occasions. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated while accelerating from a complete stop, the speedometer was inoperable, the RPM was significantly high, and the vehicle failed to shift into gear as designed. The power train and the check engine warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred intermittently. The contact stated that while driving from a complete stop at a traffic light, the vehicle failed to shift out of first gear. The contact stated that upon pulling to the side of the road and restarting the vehicle several times, the vehicle responded as needed on several occasions; however, the vehicle remained stuck in first gear on other occasions. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle downshifted to 1st gear and made an abnormal clunking sound. The speedometer was at ZERO (0). The check engine warning light and several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The contact pulled to the side of the road. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle. The contact was able to drive to the residence. The contact who is an auto technician diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the output speed sensor had failed. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact of the repairs needed to correct the failure. The dealer informed the contact that Ford Campaign Number: 19N01 repair needed to be performed on the vehicle in addition to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V075000 (Power Train); however, the campaign had expired. The vehicle was not repaired. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 65-70 MPH and making a stop, the vehicle inadvertently stalled. The warning message "No Oil" appeared on the instrument panel. The contact was unable to veer to the side of the road. The contact was able to restart the vehicle after several attempts. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring while driving and making a stop. The contact stated various unknown warning lights were illuminated. The independent mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The dealer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact that there was no recall related to the failure. The vehicle was taken to the independent mechanic but was not diagnosed nor repaired. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the vehicle inadvertently downshifted into a lower gear and the speedometer stopped working. Additionally, the check engine and power train warning lights illuminated sporadically. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road and restarted each time. The contact then received notification of an unknown recall and the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the ECU needed to be reprogrammed. The vehicle was repaired but the failure became frequent. The contact stated the on one occasion during a failure, and pulling over to the side of road, the contact opened the hood and observed two parts sitting on the frame rail. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission and blower motor/HVAC parts needed to be replaced. …
The contact owns a 2013 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently stalled. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact was unable to restart the vehicle after several attempts. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The contact was able to restart the vehicle the next day. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the fuel pump module and the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the fuel pump module and the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The dealer also diagnosed that the fuse box needed to be relocated to prevent fuse #27 from burning due to the engine heat. …
NHTSA investigations
Reduced power during hard acceleration
On May 22, 2013, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE13-018 to investigate 95 complaints alleging incidents of reduced engine power during hard accelerations in model year (MY) 2011 through 2013 Ford F-150 trucks.ODI was aware of three technical service bulletins (TSBs) issued by Ford for a condition that was related to moisture accumulation in the Charge Air Cooler (CAC) for the turbochargers.A…
Engine complaints in other F-150 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2013 Ford F-150?
NHTSA has 567 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2013 Ford F-150, 19% of the model year's 2,990 complaints. The component named most often is exhaust system (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2013 Ford F-150 engine problems?
No. NHTSA lists no engine & cooling recall for the 2013 Ford F-150, though it has 3 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 2013 Ford F-150 engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 56,000 miles, and 35% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 4 crashes, 9 fires and 5 injuries to engine & cooling 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.