Acceleration complaints by model year
| Year | Complaints | Share of year's complaints | Typical mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 3 | 3% | 15,000 miles |
| 2013 | 1 | 1% | 156,000 miles |
| 2012 | 5 | 3% | 110,000 miles |
| 2011 | 5 | 4% | 35,000 miles |
| 2009 | 1 | 4% | 50,000 miles |
| 2008 | 2 | 2% | 11,000 miles |
| 2007 | 1 | 3% | 0 miles |
| 2006 | 2 | 1% | 60,000 miles |
| 2005 | 2 | 2% | 66,000 miles |
| 2004 | 13 | 8% | 20,000 miles |
| 2003 | 13 | 14% | 25,000 miles |
| 2002 | 7 | 6% | 55,000 miles |
| 2001 | 8 | 5% | 166,000 miles |
| 2000 | 9 | 3% | 182,000 miles |
| 1999 | 15 | 4% | 483,000 miles |
| 1997 | 8 | 5% | 105,000 miles |
| 1996 | 12 | 9% | 110,000 miles |
| 1995 | 4 | 3% | 91,000 miles |
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (accelerator pedal, throttle, sudden acceleration, cruise control).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
Since my vehicle has been in warranty I've had intermittent issues where my vehicle loses track of what gear its in and forces downshift to 1st gear. For the most part this only happened when I was going slower speeds. I told my Ford dealer about it but they said there were no recalls for it. On Wednesday while driving at highway speeds my dash lights indicating the transmission position began to flicker then my vehicle downshifted to first gear locking up the tires and screeching me to a near halt.
Lost control of steering braking and speed .it has happen 3 times twice with my son . 1st time was about a month prior to the big one . Driving in a construction zone. So not about 45mph hit a pothole brakes started intermittently hitting all different sides . Very difficult to control. Almost hit concrete wall. 2nd time with similar to the 1st one however on highway going 75mph it took control while in motion. We almost wrecked 3rd time happened on a dirt road on a curve no control over steering brakes hit all for different areas at different times. Brakes hit so hard on the driver's side consistently it broke the tie rod and the arm sleeve slamming us into a dirt bank on the right side and some trees damaging our vehicle separating arm sleeve and tyrod.. We called Ford dealer let them know what happened they said no recalls on our VIN they would fix but out of our pocket. …
I was on the road and I hit a bump on the freeway only going between 55 and 65 mph and the Truck immediately started to whobble out of control I almost hit the car next to me because I could not control it . It was a life and death experience I could never shake off . I spoke to the dealer and they claimed they had never heard of such thing and acted like they didn't believe me. What ever is wrong with it needs to be recalled because I'm surprised that no one was hurt on rush our in a busy city like Salt Lake City. Ford is being very irresponsible for not fixing the problem.
Truck hit bump (small curb) with driver's side front wheel and simultaneously started accelerating and had total brake loss. This happened while driving towards a gas bump in a filling station. Vehicle accelerated from about 10 MPH to probably over 30 MPH until it hit a stationary truck.
I was driviing on the highway 65mph an the truck started the death wobble it was out of control. Things on the back seat landed on the floor due to the uncontrolable shaking of the truck. I had to slow down which I almost caused an accident. This is a scary an unsafe issue.. It has happened quite a bit an is going to cause someone to get seriously hurt or even die. Something has got to be done. Ford has got to recognize they have a big issue here an do something about it. I have to keep the speed down an even then its still an issue. I am scared to drive the truck its that bad in one instance I thought I was gonna die I couldnt get it to stop finally was able to get over to the breakdown lane an stop I was shaking an scared to death. I have not been to the dealership due to dueing my research an findin out it was the death wobble an there is no fix for it. …
Having owned the truck less than a month and driving in city traffic, the vehicle lost power and went to idle. This happens repeatedly. Seems to occur primarily in city driving - not highway driving. Have been to the dealership several times with no solution. They can find no codes. This is dangerous as I could be making a left turn in heavy traffic when it drops to idle and could be involved in a serious accident. We have now owned this truck for a year and it only has 6,800 miles on it due to the danger of driving in traffic. Most of these miles have been from repeated trips to the dealership to no avail.
We have had four separate incidents involving unintended acceleration with our 2004 Ford f350. When applying the brakes, the vehicle suddenly accelerates. It has happened twice going down our driveway, once when driving in city traffic, and once when we were parking at a rest stop. The vehicle was driving at low speeds in all of these instances. In the most recent incident, the vehicle suddenly accelerated, jumped the curb and struck a trash can at a rest stop. Thankfully no one was in front of our vehicle as they could have been killed. The vehicle also rear ended another vehicle in another incident. This has happened three times when my husband was driving and once when I was driving. After the most recent incident we googled this and found there are numerous class action lawsuits against Ford for this issue, and that our year vehicle (2004) has one of the highest incident rates.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 Ford f-350. While driving various speeds, the vehicle suddenly shut off. Also, while idling, the engine rpms remained very high and the vehicle would attempt to surge forward. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who replaced the icp sensor and injector control sensor, but the failures continued. The manufacturer and local dealer were not notified of the failures. The failure mileage was 200,000.
Related recalls (2)
Vehicle speed control
On certain trucks equipped with speed control, gasoline or natural gas engines, the speed control deactivation switch May overheat.
Remedy: Dealers will install a fused wiring harness into the speed control system free of charge. The recall began on August 7, 2006. Owners May contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332. (note: also see recalls 05V017 and 05V388)
Vehicle speed control
Vehicle description: certain 1997-1999 rhd explorer equipped with 4.0l ohv/sohc engines and cruise control built from May 29, 1996 through March 4, 1999; 1998-1999 explorer/mountaineers equipped with 4.0l ohv/sohc or 5.0l engines or 1998-1999 rangers equipped with 2.5l, 3.0l ffv/efi or 4.0l engines and cruise control built from…
Remedy: Dealers will replace the cruise control cables. At the present time, the replacement cables are not available. Customers are being advised not to use the cruise control system until a replacement can be made.
Frequently asked questions
Which Ford F-350 years have acceleration problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 1999 (15), 2003 (13), 2004 (13), 1996 (12) and 2000 (9) model years. Acceleration complaints make up 4% of all complaints for the 1999.
Is there a recall for Ford F-350 acceleration problems?
Yes — 2 recalls, including 06V-286 (vehicle speed control, Aug 1, 2006); 99V062001 (vehicle speed control, Mar 30, 1999). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Ford F-350 acceleration problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 85,000 miles; 40% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the cruise control (19 mentions), followed by the accelerator pedal (8).
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.