2003 Ford F-350 SD problems
Owners have filed 164 complaints about the 2003 Ford F-350 SD with NHTSA. Engine and engine cooling accounts for 31.7% of them — far more than any other system, ahead of fuel system, diesel at 9.8%.
Complaints164
Crashes7
Fires2
Injuries4
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Engine and engine cooling 31.7% · 52
Fuel system, diesel 9.8% · 16
Electrical system 9.1% · 15
Tires 9.1% · 15
Power train 7.9% · 13
Service brakes, hydraulic 4.3% · 7
Vehicle speed control 4.3% · 7
Steering 4.3% · 7
Severity
Of those complaints, 7 describe a crash, 2 describe a fire and 4 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 17 model years of the Ford F-350 SD in this data, 2003 sits 13th by complaint volume. 2017 draws the most.
Filings are rising — 5 in the last three years against 3 in the three before. For a vehicle this age that usually points to a wear-related failure owners are hitting now.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 45,000 miles.
In owners' own words
The engine stalled while driving and it took off really fast from a complete stop. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on 8/5/2003. The dealer did not identify the problem to the consumer. When picking up the vehicle from the dealer the vehicle still had the same problem. The dealer told the consumer to drive it for a couple of days and bring it back if it doesn't get better. Please provide details. Engine and engine cooling
2003 Ford f350. Diesel 6.0 Liter. Hard to start even when warm out, now is not starting at all, have had the same oil leaks, at speed of 55 to 60 jerks hard and has even stalled while driving. Just a few of the problems and we keep spending money to have fixed and they just recur again. Been reading people have been having the same problems as us. Ford is not doing anything to fix this. Engine and engine cooling · reported at 40,000 miles
Vehicle lost power (and never returned) while passing another vehicle on the highway. Check engine light came on after 20 miles of driving under the lost power condition. Took the truck to the dealer and they replaced the egr valve. This happened at only 3500 miles. I wish Ford would test their vehicles instead of having the consumer test them for them on the highways. *Nlm Engine and engine cooling · reported at 3,500 miles
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…
Other Ford F-350 SD years
2000 188 complaints · 21.8% engine and engine cooling 2001 188 complaints · 21.8% engine and engine cooling 2002 145 complaints · 28.3% engine and engine cooling 2004 159 complaints · 27.0% engine and engine cooling 2005 269 complaints · 19.3% engine and engine cooling 2006 192 complaints · 25.0% steering