421 of the 2,977 complaints about the 2011 Ford F-150 are about the steering — 14% of everything reported for this model year. Half of the failures with a mileage on record happened before 76,000 miles.
421
Complaints
7
Crashes
2
Fires
3
Injuries
Filed with NHTSA, in their own words.
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Orchid Isle Ford in Hilo has replaced the electronic power steering rack and pinion already once but now it’s gone bad again.I don’t understand why because I hardly drive my truck and it has only 40 something thousands miles on it
NHTSA complaint #11706892 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Driving about 10 mph when steering lockup Shop replaced rack opinion
NHTSA complaint #11704860 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Steering became stiff and difficult, brakes fell off the vehicle. No breaks. Heard/felt a pop and steering became loose. No steering, steering wheel was not turning the tires. Operated as a toy steering wheel without any temsion/control. I was stopped at a stop sign when the incident happened going 0mph.
NHTSA complaint #11703493 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. The check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to Auto Zone, and DTC: P0720 was retrieved, which indicated a failure with the output shaft speed sensor. The contact was informed that the output shaft speed sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. In addition, the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel failed to turn in the intended direction. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The contact was informed that the repair was not covered under any unknown recall. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with rack and pinion failure. The contact was informed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was informed that neither repair was covered under the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 136,000.
NHTSA complaint #11694835 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The power steering goes out randomly. While driving forward , backing up, parking, turning. Very dangerous to drive.
NHTSA complaint #11684806 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Was in a car Collison not wherein setbelt and airbags did not deploy or come out at all
NHTSA complaint #11684416 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The electronic power steering locked up while driving & could not turn the wheel at all. Yes this has been inspected & confirmed by an independent service center. There were no warning lamps or messages prior to this incident. The vehicle is render useless with the locked up steering.
NHTSA complaint #11664724 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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I was driving when the steering locked up with no warning light on the dash or fault messages. Was driving on a road and taking a turn when I went straight into the woods not allowing control of vehicle
NHTSA complaint #11658765 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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On my.2011 ford f150 xlt the electrical power steering asssist failed completely while driving in traffic... It was incredibly hard to maintain control of the vehicle ... I had to use all my strength to get the wheel to turn what so ever. It was u credibly lucky that I didn't cause an accident because it made me steer into oncoming traffic and would.not let the vehicle.tur. the opposite direction. ..the warning light said service advance Trac and then said power steering assist failure.
NHTSA complaint #11641353 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Power Assist Fault warning is displayed and the power steering stops working while driving causing a dangerous situation. Stopping the truck and turning off the ignition and restarting it clears it. This condition is becoming more frequent and harder to clear. The last occurence was 12/28/2024. It happened about 10-12 times in a row.
NHTSA complaint #11633305 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel intermittently failed to return to the center and excessive force was needed to bring the steering wheel back to center. The contact also stated that the vehicle hesitated with an abnormal cranking sound coming from the vehicle. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but offered no assistance. The contact was then transferred to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 43,000.
NHTSA complaint #11629592 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The transmission downshifts inappropriately while driving (typically at higher speeds). I can see that there have been recalls for inappropriate downshifting during my model year, but Ford is saying there are no recalls on my truck. This has been an issue for a while. The power steering shut off while driving (while I was turning) I saw that there have also been recalls for power steering problems but Ford is saying there are no recalls on my truck. This recently started happening.
NHTSA complaint #11628974 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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My truck truck won't start. We could jump it and it would be fine. I took it to ford and found out it was a bad Body control module and there was a nationwide backorder. I found on line a recall for other F-150 but didn't included mine. I was able to have mine repaired. Now I was pulling my camper home from Maine, parked the truck at home. The next morning I had a notice on the dash to have power steering serviced, found out the rack and pinion is bad. Again found others on-line with the same issue. I am lucky it didn't happen while towing or when my wife was driving. I also now have the same issues with a 2012 F-150. I feel like it needs to be investigated and Ford needs to make it right. I will fill out a complaint for the 2012 truck.
NHTSA complaint #11616790 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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I bought a used 2011 Super Crew 4x4 in June 2023. Since then, the truck has had almost daily occurrences of the steering sticking to the left during shallow turns at speeds over roughly 25 MPH (e.g. lane changes, wide sweeping turns, round abouts, etc). It requires quick recognition of the issue and a modest tug to return the wheel to center and avoid potential unintended lane changes or collision with objects or curbs to the left. After scouring forums and this site, it appears there are numerous 2011 F150s with this problem and over 400 steering related NTHSA complaints, mostly of similar reports. There are 2 Ford TSBs to this effect, but no recall. How is it that a reverse light warning issue with a 10th of the complaints gets a recall, but not this recognized, potentially dangerous/deadly steering problem? I don't have $2500 to fix this and it's obviously out of warranty. Please do something!
NHTSA complaint #11604018 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Loses power steering while driving without warning.
NHTSA complaint #11590981 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel locked causing the vehicle to stall in the middle of an intersection. Immediately following the failure, the traction control warning light illuminated. The was not able to be restarted. A Police Officer arrived to have the vehicle towed to a dealer. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle with a failed steering and stated that the electric rack source unit needing to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 144,000.
NHTSA complaint #11588713 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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This is the second Ford factory replacement steering rack that has failed and almost caused me to wreck by having the steering wheel lock and may not being able to move the wheel in any direction. It has almost caused multiple accidents, and I know that there are multiple reports of Ford electronic power, steering racks failing
NHTSA complaint #11582985 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving approximately 45 MPH, the steering wheel was loose. While making a left turn the steering wheel unintendedly turned to the right. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering shaft, tie rods, and steering rack needed to be replaced. The dealer replaced the steering shaft, tie rods, and steering rack however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and the contact was informed that no cause of the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the tire and struts had previously been replaced and the wheels were aligned. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 98,571.
NHTSA complaint #11578266 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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I own a 2011 Ford f-150 4x4. The VIN I entered should provide any further information you need. This vehicle is equipped with electronic power assist steering. This vehicle has experienced stiff return of steering in left turns at approximately 45-50MPH. This vehicle has about 156,00 miles on it. This steering difficulty has existed for 4-5 years that I have owned the vehicle. Recently, the steering stared to make loud screeching noises in both left and right turns. This was accompanied by stiff steering as if the power assist was not functional. The power assist failed completely after a weekend vacation. I had to have the steering replaced at a cost of $2552.12. I have never had the power steering fail on any other vehicle I have owned, no matter what the mileage. I have read that many other owners of this year and make have experienced the same problem. Good thing I was strong enough to control the vehicle without the power assist. This could have been very serious problem!
NHTSA complaint #11549079 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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While driving the steering locked up, steering assist came up, and something about steering sensor. Very dangerous going down highway and steering locks up on you. They need a recall on 2011 Ford F150 Electronic Steering.
NHTSA complaint #11543704 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Electric power steering stopped working with no warning. One second it was working, the next second nothing. Happened backing out of a parking spot or it could have caused a serious if not fatal accident.
NHTSA complaint #11532557 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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At speeds greater than 45mph on left hand turns or corners the steering wheel will lock in place and will only return to center with driver intervention.
NHTSA complaint #11532501 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Electronic Power Steering. Power Steering Assist Fault. Lost complete control of Steering going around a corner at highway speeds.
NHTSA complaint #11528626 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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EPAS system has failed twice now while driving. I have had to replace it for the second time. While owning the vehicle.
NHTSA complaint #11528193 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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While driving in my 2011 f150 the electric power steering assist has went out intermittently during a turn causing the steering wheel to lock up or get very tight which has led to curb hits and near miss collisions. No warning indicators have ever come on during or after this has happened. I took ut to a shop and they could find no history of codes releated to steering or any failures during test drive or shop visit. This still continues to happen daily. Ford dealer recommended i replace entire steering systems at a cost of over $3000 without giving me a specific component failure.
NHTSA complaint #11527251 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle sporadically shifted right and then lost power steering assist. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed the contact that the steering control arm failed; however, the part to do the repair was on back order. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 88,000.
NHTSA complaint #11514648 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The steering on my Ford F-150 has begun to be (hard) ... it jerks and is sometimes difficult to turn the steering wheel ... it behaves like it is low on power steering fluid, which is what I initially thought until I brought it to a repair shop. The shop owner told me my Ford does not use power steering fluid ... it is (electric). The (rack & pinion) are controlled by an electric motor.
NHTSA complaint #11514304 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated upon starting the vehicle, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The message "Service Auto Trak" was displayed. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle responded as needed. However, the failure reoccurred inadvertently while driving. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the electric power steering assist had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in a recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000.
NHTSA complaint #11506247 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist with the Advancetrac warning light illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle made abnormal sounds while driving. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
NHTSA complaint #11494878 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
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Driving down the road and my steering became difficult almost like the power steering stop working. After a while it started to work. This has happened several times in the last 5 years.
NHTSA complaint #11494607 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.