2011 Ford F-250 suspension problems

SUSPENSION

The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-250. The contact stated that while driving over a bump at a high rate of speed, the contact experienced the death wobble and the contact temporarily lost control of the vehicle. The contact slowed down and the violent shaking ceased. The contact stated that the tie rods, ball joints, and other front-end parts were replaced to reduce the risk of the failure recurring. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH and towing a trailer, the contact experienced the death wobble. The vehicle drifted from the far-left lane over to the far-right lane and the contact lost control of the vehicle. The contact called a local dealer and was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The contact was then referred to the manufacturer and was provided a case number. The manufacturer advised the contact to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 263,000.

NHTSA complaint #11675333 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

When driving over 55mph and hitting a bump, pothole, etc....the death wobble starts taking excessive force to keep the truck on the road with the steering wheel nowhere aligned to where the tires are aimed. Dealership stated they wouldn't take the vehicle on trade due to the steering box needing to be addressed first. no warning lamps illuminate. Happens every time while driving from mileage 170K - 189K.

NHTSA complaint #11637880 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

We have experienced the well-reported Death Wobble multiple times - beginning approx in 2020 - going approx 55 mph on a one-lane highway and hit a slight bump in the road. Could not control the vehicle, the steering wheel started shaking violently as we headed for a concrete bridge. Had to stop the vehicle completely. Then we experienced the same Incident on different roads. We had the vehicle front end fixed by a reputable mechanic, and we’ve ended up having the front end suspension rebuilt, so far 3 times. The latest incident was in 2024, we experienced it again driving about 60 mph. This truck is standard stock - has not been lifted or modified in any way. We do not drive it very often as it is used as a farm vehicle.

NHTSA complaint #11618620 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the front of the vehicle was shaking abnormally. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the steering column had failed and needed to be repaired. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.

NHTSA complaint #11616403 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

This truck consistently gets the death wobble even after having several things repaired on It to fix the problem. This needs to be looked into. This has happened several times with this truck

NHTSA complaint #11594609 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

Keeps having a death wobble when I hit a bump going faster than 50 miles per hour that can't be controlled or stopped without pulling over to a stop or near stop.

NHTSA complaint #11540987 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-250. The contact stated while driving 65 MPH and switching lanes and depressing the brake, the vehicle started to shake abnormally. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that after decelerating, the vehicle stopped shaking. The dealer was contacted and made aware of the failure. The contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The contact was referred to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was contacted and informed about the failure. The manufacturer confirmed that the VIN was not under recall and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 160,000.

NHTSA complaint #11500183 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

Going over unsmooth roads ,or very little change in road height,vehicle shakes violently have to come to complete stop and risk getting ran over in middle of highway interstate or whatever couple close calls but no accident,YET

NHTSA complaint #11494258 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

I own a properly maintained 2011 Ford F-250. Today, 14 instances of what is commonly know as "Ford Death Wobble" occurred to me on the interstate highway while I drove 250 miles. Violent front end shaking at speeds over 55mph after driving over rough bridges or bumps in the road. Several times I almost lost control of my truck it shook so badly. I had to sharply decrease speed below 35 mph before shaking would stop and I could regain control. I can easily reproduce this problem, but I learned to drive no faster than 50 mph the rest of the way home on the interstate in order to mostly avoid further cases of violent shaking. In addition to almost losing control of my truck, having to slam on my brakes to reduce speed put myself and other vehicles at risk on a highway with fast-moving vehicles. I will be taking it to a Ford dealer tomorrow to see if they can resolve this very dangerous defect.

NHTSA complaint #11485109 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

Death Wabble. Truck uncontrollably shakes in the front end while driving on the highway over 50mph. Extremely scary. It seems like the truck may flip over. Reducing speed below 25mph is the only way to stop it from shaking. Cannot apply brakes while shaking because the truck shakes even more. Allowing the truck to reduce speed on its own is the only safe option.

NHTSA complaint #11470268 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

Driving on highway at about 60 mph and truck wheel started wobbling violently ….. searing wheel violently oscillating right left right left uncontrollably!!! Finally stopped after slowing down to below speed on highway … totally unsafe !!! My shoulders and neck hurt for several days from trying to keep the truck straight. Thank God it was not a busy freeway at the moment or I would have been hit or my horse trailer which I was pulling. No way to stop the violent oscillation except slow to almost stop

NHTSA complaint #11467840 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

The truck has developed the "death wobble" at speeds between 50 and 60mph. Driving becomes uncontrollable as the truck shakes and bounces very hard and I have to rapidly come to a stop. I've had some work done on it at a local shop but it hasn't solved the problem. It's basically not highway road worthy but I can drive it around town.

NHTSA complaint #11450677 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

I was going 65 MPH in center lane, hit a pothole. The right front wheel began to vibrate wildly. I thought it was going to fall off. I slammed my brakes and veered sharply right to reach the breakdown lane. We were nearly in a violent collision. The car behind me slammed his breaks, leaving skid marks, the car in the lane to my right was forced into the breakdown lane, also leaving skid marks. We had 200 miles to home which we drove slowly without further incident. I had to replace: tie rod ends, steering damper, ball joint, stabilizer bar. Truck needed an alignment. $1008.37. 4 months later, I hit a pothole. The LEFT front tire vibrated wildly. Now I knew what do do.

NHTSA complaint #11436166 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION:FRONT

While traveling on the highway, after driving over a slight bump prior to an overpass, the front wheels shook violently while jerking the steering wheel from my hands. This occurred three separate times.

NHTSA complaint #11434372 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

This truck developed "death wobble" after a simple tire rotation. At approximately 53mph, any bump in the road surface would cause the front end to shake violently and cause the truck to be uncontrollable. While violent, it locks the truck into an unsteerable condition and only hard braking can stop the truck. the truck shuttered violently until stopped. From the repairs it appears a combination of weakening shocks and steering stabilizer cause the front end to shutter mildly and probably constantly until the bushings on the track bar are worn enough to cause problems. Then any alteration in front end components, like rotating the tires will unbalance the entire precarious set-up. Once "death wobble" has occurred, it becomes more violent and happens more often until the truck is fixed. Worst of all, there is no single fix or known fix for this problem. The owner if forced to spent thousands of dollars trying every known fix until the problem stops. It was so violent, I was concerned the truck could possibly destroy itself. I was astounded the entire truck did not shake itself apart, it was extremely violent and made steering impossible. I had to drive back to the tire shop at 45mph and carefully avoid even the most minor bump in the road to stop the truck from shaking itself to pieces or killing us.

NHTSA complaint #11423865 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

The problem with this vehicle is Death Wobble from the front suspension of the truck. Over the years it has done this and is quite dangerous when at highway speed, because when it happens, you will have to slow to 30 MPH to regain control of the the truck. I have had this issue fixed two separate times, about every four years, by replacing the ball joint and track bar. These repairs are costing about $450 usd. There are no warning before this problem happens. You simply have to hit a bump in the road going 60-70 MPH for it happen.

NHTSA complaint #11419371 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

2011 FORD F250 DEATH WOBBLE. FRONT END REPAIRED AFTER SEVERAL WOBBLE INCIDENTS IN 2018. VEHICLE NOW BEGINS SHAKING AT SPEED OF 45MPH AND UNCONTROLLABLE AT 65MPH. I EITHER HAVE TO SLOW DOWN, OR ACCELERATE TO 70+ TO AVOID THE WOBBLE, BUT STEERING STILL SHAKES

NHTSA complaint #11415701 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

EXPERIENCE DEATH WOBBLE EVERY TIME I MERGE ONTO THE HIGHWAY. RESULTS IN LOSS OF CONTROL AND IS VERY HARD TO CONTROL AND MAINTAIN IN MY LANE.

NHTSA complaint #11414217 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS IF HITTING A DEFECT IN THE ROAD, LIKE A POTHOLE OR SOME KIND OF DIP, MY FRONT END STARTS SHAKING VIOLENTLY AND I CAN BARELY KEEP CONTROL OF THE TRUCK. THIS IS KNOWN AS DEATH WOBBLE. THIS HAS HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY.

NHTSA complaint #11408112 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

FRONT END SHIMMY THAT IS FELT IN THE STEERING WHILE MOVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS.

NHTSA complaint #11407045 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

TRAVELING ON INTERSTATE ONRAMP GETTING UP TO SPEED AND AT APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH HIT A SMALL BUMP AND FRONT END STARTED TO SHAKE VIOLENTLY TO THE POINT I HAD TO SLOW TO 30 MPH FOR IT TO STOP ALMOST CAUSING ACCIDENT. ACCELERATED UP TO 75 MPH AGAIN WITH NO ISSUE. APPROXIMATELY 3 MILES AFTER THE FIRST INCIDENT I WENT ACROSS A BRIDGE AND THE BUMP AT BRIDGE TRANSITION CAUSED THE TRUCK TO AGAIN VIOLENTLY SHAKE UNTIL I SLOWED DOWN TO 30MPH. NO MODIFICATIONS TO THE VEHICLE SUSPENSION. TRUCK HAS 112000 MILES. DEALER SAYS NOTHING WRONG EVEN THOUGH IT HAPPENED WHILE TESTING IT. IT DOES NOT HAPPEN EVERYTIME I HIT A BUMP. BUT IT DOES HAPPEN 2-3 TIMES PER MONTH

NHTSA complaint #11404693 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

ALMOST KILLED ME AND MY FAMILY FROM DEATH WOBBLE ON THE HIGHWAY. TRUCK VIOLENTLY SHAKES WHEN BUMPS ARE HIT GOING OVER 50MPH. EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD. HIT A BUMP ON I-25 AND SHOOK ACROSS 3 LANES OF TRAFFIC. THIS IS ABOUT 6 TIMES SINCE I BOUGHT THE VEHICLE AND THE DEALER SAYS THERE ARE NO ISSUES WITH THE TRUCK. I KNOW 8 FORD OWNERS WITH THE EXACT SAME ISSUE.

NHTSA complaint #11398145 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

I'M EXPERIENCING THE DEATH WOBBLE WHILE DRIVING AFTER HITTING A BUMP IN THE ROAD. IT HAPPENS ON REGULAR ROADS AND INTERSTATES. I HAVE CHANGED ALL FRONT END PARTS AND SHOCKS, GOT NEW TIRES BALANCED AND ALIGNED, AND IT'S STILL NOT FIXED. I'M TOLD THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT CAN BE DONE. IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING FOR OVER A YEAR. IT HAS HAPPENED ANYWHERE BETWEEN 40MPH AND 70MPH.

NHTSA complaint #11397675 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

MY FORD F-250 STARTS SHAKING VERY VERY BAD WHEN I HIT A SMALL BUMP ON THE FREEWAY. TO GET THE VERY SCARY WOBBLE TO STOP I NEED TO SLOW DOWN ON THE FREEWAY BETWEEN 20-30 MILES PER HOUR. THIS HAS HAPPENED OVER 50 TIMES. I'VE HAD IT HAPPEN 3 TIMES WITHIN TEN MILES BEFORE. SLOWING DOWN TO 20-30 ON THE FREEWAY HAS BEEN VERY DANGEROUS. AND I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN A FEW ACCIDENTS BECAUSE OF IT. IT IS SO BAD AND DANGEROUS THAT I TRY NOT TO EVER HAVE ANYONE RIDE IN MY TRUCK WITH ME. MY FAMILY IS SCARED TO RIDE IT IT ANYWAYS.

NHTSA complaint #11389813 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

DEATH WOBBLE. AS I WAS ACCELERATING TO ENTER FREEWAY TRAFFIC MY RIGHT FRONT WHEEL HIT A POT HOLE ON THE ON RAMP. I WAS DOING APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH. THE TRUCK IMMEDIATELY WENT INTO A WOBBLE THAT WAS ALMOST UN-CONTROLLABLE. I WAS ABLE TO SLOW MY TRUCK AND DRIVE TO THE SHOULDER OF THE FREEWAY. I INSPECTED THE FRONT END, TIRES, SHOCKS, STEERING DAMPENER (WHICH WERE NEW) AND DID NOT FIND ANY PROBLEMS.

NHTSA complaint #11389501 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

WAS DRIVING TRUCK APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH WHEN IT BEGAN EXPERIENCING DEATH WOBBLE. THIS HAS BEEN OCCURRING MORE AND MORE FREQUENTLY OVER THE PAST 6 MONTHS AND I RECENTLY HAD THE SHOCKS, STEERING DAMPENER, & DRAG LINK REPLACED AND IT ONLY MADE THE WOBBLE WORSE. I HAD TO PULL OVER TWICE WITHIN 5 MILES TO GET THE STEERING WHEEL TO STOP SHAKING.

NHTSA complaint #11389309 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

DEATH WOBBLE, SHAKING UNCONTROLLABLY WHEN HITTING BUMPS OR UNEVEN ROADS ON HIGHWAY AT 65MPH

NHTSA complaint #11387493 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

FORD F-250 CREWCAB WITH NO AFTERMARKET PARTS & FORD RECOMMENDED RIMS/TIRES: A MONTH AGO I NOTICED WOBBLING/SHAKING SIMILAR TO THE DESCRIBED 'DEATH WOBBLE'. PLACED TRUCK IN FOR SERVICE AND A RECOMMENDATION FOR A SOLUTION. WHILE DRIVING OVER 50 MPH AND THE VEHICLE RUNS OVER BUMP ON THE HIGHWAY, THE STEERING WHEEL AND TRUCK WILL SHAKE VIOLENTLY. AS THIS SO CALLED DEATH WOBBLE OCCURS I WILL COAST OVER TO THE EMERGENCY LANE AND COAST TO A STOP. I HAVE NOTICED VEHICLES BEHIND ME SLOW DOWN QUICKLY AND I AM ASSUMING THEY ARE SEE TRUCK SHAKE VIOLENTLY, TOO. IF OTHER DRIVERS ARE SEEING THIS DEATH WOBBLE OCCURRING I AM WONDERING IF THESE DRIVERS ARE TAKING EMERGENCY AVOIDANCE ACTIONS WHICH COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT TO OTHERS. HOW SAFE ARE F-250/F-350 TO BE ON THE ROAD? THE PICKUP HAS BEEN THE SHOP TWICE FOR REPAIRS AND NOW I NEED TO CONTACT THE SHOP AGAIN FOR THIRD RECOMMENDATION. ALL OF THE FORD RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE BEEN COMPLETED BUT THE DEATH WOBBLE RETURNS AGAIN IN LESS THAN 60 MILES. I CANNOT SELL THE PICK-UP BECAUSE I KNOW THE PICK-UP HAS THE DEATH WOBBLE. 'SO NOW I AM STUCK WITH A PICK-UP THAT CANNOT BE DRIVEN ON THE HIGHWAY. PLEASE POST ANY SUGGESTIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A REPAIR FOR THE DEATH WOBBLE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP

NHTSA complaint #11383163 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

LET ME START BY SAYING THAT MY TRUCK DOES NOT HAVE ANY AFTERMARKET CHANGES - IT IS COMPLETELY STOCK/OEM. AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS (60MPH+), THE FRONT END OF MY TRUCK SOMETIMES SHUDDERS SEVERELY AFTER GOING OVER SMALL ROAD SURFACE CHANGES SUCH AS JOINTS/SEAMS IN THE HIGHWAY. AT FIRST IT ONLY OCCURRED DURING SWEEPING HIGHWAY TURNS, BUT IT HAS PROGRESSED TO HAPPENING ON STRAIGHTS AS WELL. THE SHUDDER IS SO SEVERE THAT THE STEERING WHEEL NEARLY SHAKES OUT OF MY HANDS AND THINGS IN THE STOWAGE SPOTS ON THE DOORS ARE SHAKEN OUT. I NOW HAVE TO SLOW TO <30MPH IN ORDER TO SETTLE THE FRONT END WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY EXTREMELY DANGEROUS TO HAVE TO SUDDENLY DO ON A HIGHWAY. THE INITIAL EVENT OCCURRED AT ROUGHLY 80K MILES AND ONLY HAPPENED A FEW TIMES A YEAR. I NOW HAVE 130K MILES AND THE PROBLEM HAS OCCURRED 3 TIMES WITHIN THE LAST MONTH. I'VE RECENTLY REPLACED ALL SHOCK ABSORBERS AND THE STEERING DAMPENER, HAD AN ALIGNMENT AND THE TIRES BALANCED AND ROTATED - TO NO AVAIL. THE TRUCK IS CURRENTLY IN THE SHOP WHERE THEY ARE TRYING TO IDENTIFY THE SPECIFIC PROBLEM BUT HAVE TOLD ME THIS IS RELATIVELY COMMON AMONG FORD SUPER DUTY TRUCKS. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH ONLINE I HAVE FOUND NUMEROUS ONLINE COMMUNITIES DISCUSSING THIS PROBLEM THAT HAS APPARENTLY BEEN OCCURRING WITH FORD SUPER DUTY TRUCKS FOR OVER A DECADE AND IS STILL OCCURRING ON NEW UNITS WITH AS FEW AS 15K MILES.

NHTSA complaint #11374095 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

SUSPENSION

MY TRUCK VIOLENTLY SHAKES AFTER HITTING A BUMP OR GROOVE. I AM BARELY ABLE TO CONTROL IT AND IT WILL NOT STOP UNTIL YOU BRING THE VEHICLE TO A STOP.

NHTSA complaint #11366398 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.