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2008 Ford F-250 Sd

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2008 Ford F-250 Sd do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 89.

Counts are not adjusted for sales, age, mileage exposure or reporting. A lower count does not establish that a car is problem-free.

About this comparison →
141Owner complaints

Model-year median: 89

0Recall campaigns

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1Investigations

View investigation details →

Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗ Model-level counts do not show whether a particular VIN is affected or repaired.

Inspection summary

2008 Ford F-250 Sd

NHTSA snapshot: September 18, 2026. 141 owner complaints · 0 recall campaigns · 1 investigations.

Counts are not failure probabilities and are not adjusted for sales, age, mileage exposure or reporting. One report may name several categories. Comparison method and limitations.

Top reported categories (up to 5)

  • Steering: 39 reports
  • Engine And Engine Cooling: 33 reports
  • Tires: 12 reports
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic: 10 reports
  • Electrical System: 9 reports

Full reported-category list and vehicle report

Recall links

    No recall campaigns in this snapshot.

    Check a VIN with NHTSA. Model-level history does not establish whether a particular VIN is affected or repaired.

    Print the top reported categories, recall links, snapshot date and comparison limits.

    How this year compares

    Owner complaints by model year

    Other model years Selected year
    295
    2005    274
    2006    54
    2007    141
    2008    23
    2009    32
    2010    122
    2011
    Compare all F-250 Sd years →

    Counts vary with age, sales, mileage exposure and reporting. They are not failure rates.

    What owners reported most

    Steering
    39    Engine And Engine Cooling
    33    Tires
    12    Service Brakes, Hydraulic
    10    Electrical System
    9
    All reported categories
    Engine
    9    Service Brakes
    8    Power Train
    7    Structure
    7    Unknown Or Other
    6    Vehicle Speed Control
    6    Suspension
    5    Fuel System, Diesel
    4    Fuel/propulsion System
    3    Seat Belts
    3    Wheels
    3    Air Bags
    2    Equipment
    1    Fuel System, Gasoline
    1    Fuel System, Other
    1    Traction Control System
    1    Trailer Hitches
    1    Visibility
    1

    Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

    When problems were reported

    Mileage at the reported incident

    127 reports with mileage · 14 unknown

    NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

    What to inspect

    Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

    • Steering. Review the 39 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
    • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 33 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
    • Tires. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

    NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

    6 crash reports3 fire reports2 injury reports

    Wheels complaints

    3 reports
    Clear category filter
    71,000 miles · Feb 26, 2015
    SteeringUnknown Or OtherWheels

    WHILE DRIVING MY 08 FORD F250 SD, I EXPERIENCE SEVERE SHIMMY GOING OVER A BUMP IN THE ROAD OR SMALL DIP. MORE NOTICEABLE WHEN GOING ABOUT 45 AND I HIT A BUMP AND THE WHEEL JERKS AND THROWS THE TRUCK WHAT FEELS LIKE FEET. I HAVE NOT REPLACED ANY PARTS YET NOR HAVE I SPOKEN WITH THE DEALER. THE FIRST I EVER KNEW THERE WAS A PROB…

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    WHILE DRIVING MY 08 FORD F250 SD, I EXPERIENCE SEVERE SHIMMY GOING OVER A BUMP IN THE ROAD OR SMALL DIP. MORE NOTICEABLE WHEN GOING ABOUT 45 AND I HIT A BUMP AND THE WHEEL JERKS AND THROWS THE TRUCK WHAT FEELS LIKE FEET. I HAVE NOT REPLACED ANY PARTS YET NOR HAVE I SPOKEN WITH THE DEALER. THE FIRST I EVER KNEW THERE WAS A PROBLEM NOTED BY FORD WAS WHEN I RECEIVED AN ALERT ON FLMOWNER.COM AND IT STATED FIELD SERVICE ACTION NUMBER: 09L02 FSA TITLE: CUSTOMER MAINTENANCE REMINDER VEHICLE SHIMMY AND TIRE INFLATION PRESSURE I ALWAYS MAINTAIN PROPER TIRE PRESSURE AND HAVE THEM BALANCED AND ROTATED ON A REGULAR BASIS THROUGH DISCOUNT TIRES (WHERE I BOUGHT NEW TIRES IN 2011). I DON'T HAVE A LIFT AND HAVEN'T ALTERED ANY OF THE STOCK SUSPENSION PARTS. MILEAGE AND TIME FRAME ARE AN APPROX AS I WASN'T AWARE OF THIS SERVICE ISSUE PRIOR TO THIS WEEK. THOSE ARE THE APPROXIMATES TO WHEN I MOVED TO CO.

    NHTSA ODI #10690980

    Mileage unknown · Nov 5, 2010
    Wheels

    18" RIMS ON FORD F-250SD REPLACED IN AUG. 2009 WITH SAME STYLE RIM. OUTER COVER SEPARATES FROM RIM. NOW, OCT. 2010, SAME PROBLEM, NEED TO BE REPLACED AGAIN. ONLY THING HOLDING THE "GLUED" COVERS ON WERE THE WHEEL WEIGHTS. RIM COVERS COULD OF FLEW OFF TRUCK AT ANY TIME. FORD IS WILLING TO COMPROMISE AND HELP OUT (AFTER CONTACTI…

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    18" RIMS ON FORD F-250SD REPLACED IN AUG. 2009 WITH SAME STYLE RIM. OUTER COVER SEPARATES FROM RIM. NOW, OCT. 2010, SAME PROBLEM, NEED TO BE REPLACED AGAIN. ONLY THING HOLDING THE "GLUED" COVERS ON WERE THE WHEEL WEIGHTS. RIM COVERS COULD OF FLEW OFF TRUCK AT ANY TIME. FORD IS WILLING TO COMPROMISE AND HELP OUT (AFTER CONTACTING DEALER PRESIDENT) BUT STILL HAVE TO PAY MONEY TO UPGRADE TO ALUMINUM RIMS. DON'T SEE WHY I HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING FOR AN OBVIOUS FORD DEFECT. LIKE I STATED BEFORE THIS IS THE SECOND TIME IN A YEAR. *TR

    NHTSA ODI #10364126

    114,000 miles · Feb 18, 2010
    Wheels

    BOTH FRONT WHEELS ON MY 2008 FORD KING RANCH F-250 PICK-UP ARE CRACKING AND NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE CRACKS ARE IN THE WELD AREA ON THE FLAT PART OF THE WHEEL UNDER THE TIRES CAUSING THE TIRES TO NO LONGER HOLD AIR. FORD CUSTOMER SERVICE CLAIMS THE PROBLEM IS MINE SINCE THE TRUCK RECENTLY SURPASSED WARRANTY MILEAGE HOWEVER I AM …

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    BOTH FRONT WHEELS ON MY 2008 FORD KING RANCH F-250 PICK-UP ARE CRACKING AND NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE CRACKS ARE IN THE WELD AREA ON THE FLAT PART OF THE WHEEL UNDER THE TIRES CAUSING THE TIRES TO NO LONGER HOLD AIR. FORD CUSTOMER SERVICE CLAIMS THE PROBLEM IS MINE SINCE THE TRUCK RECENTLY SURPASSED WARRANTY MILEAGE HOWEVER I AM CERTAIN THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE. THE WHEELS ARE READY TO COME APART AND COULD HAVE CAUSED A SERIOUS ACCIDENT . IF THE TIRES HAD NOT BEGUN TO LOSE AIR I WOULD HAVE NEVER KNOWN THEY WERE CRACKING. THIS TRUCK HAS HAD THE BEST OF CARE AND HAS NEVER HIT ANYTHING OR BEEN IN ANY KIND OF ACCIDENT. FORD DENIED RESPONSIBILITY WITHOUT EVEN EXAMINING THE CRACKED WHEELS. THE TIRE SHOP BELIEVED THE SITUATION WAS SO UNSAFE THAT THEY RECOMMENDED TOWING INSTEAD OF DRIVING THE TRUCK. THIS CASE # 1526770470 WITH FORD WAS DENIED AND THEY QUOTED OVER 800 DOLLARS PER WHEEL TO REPLACE THE CRACKED WHEELS. ALL AFTER MARKET WHEELS I CHECKED ON WERE AROUND 250 DOLLARS WITH A LIFETIME GUARANTEE. I HAVE WORKED IN CONSTRUCTION FOR OVER 30 YEARS AND HAVE OWNED SEVERAL VEHICLES AND HAVE NEVER ENCOUNTERED ANYTHING LIKE THIS. *TR

    NHTSA ODI #10311622

    Recall campaigns

    0

    No recalls in this snapshot.

    Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

    Defect investigations

    1

    PE13014 · Alleged Loss Of Steering

    Opened May 7, 2013 · Closed Jan 31, 2014

    Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Steering; Steering:gear Box (other Than Rack And Pinion)

    The Office of DefectsInvestigation (ODI) opened PE13-014 after identifying five complaints alleging steering gear failure in model year (MY) 2008 Ford F-250 and F-350 Super Duty pick-up trucks and to evaluate the relationship between the design history of the steering gear assembly and the alleged defect.As background, ODI investigated steering gear sector shaft fractures in approximately 1.3 million MY 1999 - 2001 Ford Super Duty pick-up trucks and MY 2000 - 2001 Ford Excursion sport utility vehicles in Engineering Analysis EA01-009.The investigation determined that the sector shaft failures were the result of extraordinary, possibly multiple, impacts and not the result of fatigue.No defect in design, manufacturing or materials was identified in the sector shaft.EA01-009 was closed August 19, 2003 with 169 complaints, resulting in a rate of 12.9 incidents per 100,000 vehicles after approximately one year of service.Ford increased the diameter of the sector shaft from 1.375 inches to 1.625 inches at the start of MY 2005 production, increasing the resistance of the steering gear assembly to torsional overload by approximately 48% and changing the failure mode from sector shaft fracture to cracked or broken sector shaft gear teeth.The redesigned steering gear assembly was used in approximately 1.1 million MY 2005 through 2009 Ford Super Duty pick-up trucks, including the subject vehicles.Figure 1 shows the basic steering system design used in Ford Super Duty trucks investigated in EA01-009 and PE13-014. Figure 2 shows the locations of failures resulting from impact related torsional overloading of the sector shaft for the subject vehicles and the prior generation Ford Super Duty trucks investigated in EA01-009.Figure 3 shows an example of a failed sector shaft investigated in EA01-009 and comparisons of fracture surfaces of sector shafts failing from fatigue loading and from torsional overload.Ford provided field return part analysis of failed steering gears from MY 2005 through 2009 Super Duty trucks found evidence of broken sector shaft gear teeth and piston damage consistent with incidents of single event overload (Figure 4).Laboratory analysis found no evidence of fatigue or material property defects in any of the fractures.Analysis of complaint rates by vehicle build month showed no patterns indicating potential manufacturing quality issues and no difference before and after Ford introduced design changes to the input shaft and sector shaft seals in July 2007 to address potential leak concerns (Figure 5).Analysis of failures by time in service indicates a random failure pattern/distribution, consistent with incidents of impact induced overload (Figure 6). The complaint rate for the subject vehicles after approximately 5 to 6 years, 7.1 incidents per 100,000 vehicles, is lower than the rate observed in EA01-009. Furthermore, similar to the condition investigated in EA01-009, a number of incident records include evidence of impact loads (e.g., curb strikes) and several alleged crashes include incidents in which information suggests that the steering gear failure was most likely a result of crash forces, rather than the cause of the crash.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor this issue and reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.The ODI complaints cited above can be reviewed at ww

    Additional source detail variants (2)

    Steering

    The Office of DefectsInvestigation (ODI) opened PE13-014 after identifying five complaints alleging steering gear failure in model year (MY) 2008 Ford F-250 and F-350 Super Duty pick-up trucks and to evaluate the relationship between the design history of the steering gear assembly and the alleged defect.As background, ODI investigated steering gear sector shaft fractures in approximately 1.3 million MY 1999 - 2001 Ford Super Duty pick-up trucks and MY 2000 - 2001 Ford Excursion sport utility vehicles in Engineering Analysis EA01-009.The investigation determined that the sector shaft failures were the result of extraordinary, possibly multiple, impacts and not the result of fatigue.No defect in design, manufacturing or materials was identified in the sector shaft.EA01-009 was closed August 19, 2003 with 169 complaints, resulting in a rate of 12.9 incidents per 100,000 vehicles after approximately one year of service.Ford increased the diameter of the sector shaft from 1.375 inches to 1.625 inches at the start of MY 2005 production, increasing the resistance of the steering gear assembly to torsional overload by approximately 48% and changing the failure mode from sector shaft fracture to cracked or broken sector shaft gear teeth.The redesigned steering gear assembly was used in approximately 1.1 million MY 2005 through 2009 Ford Super Duty pick-up trucks, including the subject vehicles.Figure 1 shows the basic steering system design used in Ford Super Duty trucks investigated in EA01-009 and PE13-014. Figure 2 shows the locations of failures resulting from impact related torsional overloading of the sector shaft for the subject vehicles and the prior generation Ford Super Duty trucks investigated in EA01-009.Figure 3 shows an example of a failed sector shaft investigated in EA01-009 and comparisons of fracture surfaces of sector shafts failing from fatigue loading and from torsional overload.Ford provided field return part analysis of failed steering gears from MY 2005 through 2009 Super Duty trucks found evidence of broken sector shaft gear teeth and piston damage consistent with incidents of single event overload (Figure 4).Laboratory analysis found no evidence of fatigue or material property defects in any of the fractures.Analysis of complaint rates by vehicle build month showed no patterns indicating potential manufacturing quality issues and no difference before and after Ford introduced design changes to the input shaft and sector shaft seals in July 2007 to address potential leak concerns (Figure 5).Analysis of failures by time in service indicates a random failure pattern/distribution, consistent with incidents of impact induced overload (Figure 6). The complaint rate for the subject vehicles after approximately 5 to 6 years, 7.1 incidents per 100,000 vehicles, is lower than the rate observed in EA01-009. Furthermore, similar to the condition investigated in EA01-009, a number of incident records include evidence of impact loads (e.g., curb strikes) and several alleged crashes include incidents in which information suggests that the steering gear failure was most likely a result of crash forces, rather than the cause of the crash.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor this issue and reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.The ODI complaints cited above can be reviewed at ww

    Steering:gear Box (other Than Rack And Pinion)

    The Office of DefectsInvestigation (ODI) opened PE13-014 after identifying five complaints alleging steering gear failure in model year (MY) 2008 Ford F-250 and F-350 Super Duty pick-up trucks and to evaluate the relationship between the design history of the steering gear assembly and the alleged defect.As background, ODI investigated steering gear sector shaft fractures in approximately 1.3 million MY 1999 - 2001 Ford Super Duty pick-up trucks and MY 2000 - 2001 Ford Excursion sport utility vehicles in Engineering Analysis EA01-009.The investigation determined that the sector shaft failures were the result of extraordinary, possibly multiple, impacts and not the result of fatigue.No defect in design, manufacturing or materials was identified in the sector shaft.EA01-009 was closed August 19, 2003 with 169 complaints, resulting in a rate of 12.9 incidents per 100,000 vehicles after approximately one year of service.Ford increased the diameter of the sector shaft from 1.375 inches to 1.625 inches at the start of MY 2005 production, increasing the resistance of the steering gear assembly to torsional overload by approximately 48% and changing the failure mode from sector shaft fracture to cracked or broken sector shaft gear teeth.The redesigned steering gear assembly was used in approximately 1.1 million MY 2005 through 2009 Ford Super Duty pick-up trucks, including the subject vehicles.Figure 1 shows the basic steering system design used in Ford Super Duty trucks investigated in EA01-009 and PE13-014. Figure 2 shows the locations of failures resulting from impact related torsional overloading of the sector shaft for the subject vehicles and the prior generation Ford Super Duty trucks investigated in EA01-009.Figure 3 shows an example of a failed sector shaft investigated in EA01-009 and comparisons of fracture surfaces of sector shafts failing from fatigue loading and from torsional overload.Ford provided field return part analysis of failed steering gears from MY 2005 through 2009 Super Duty trucks found evidence of broken sector shaft gear teeth and piston damage consistent with incidents of single event overload (Figure 4).Laboratory analysis found no evidence of fatigue or material property defects in any of the fractures.Analysis of complaint rates by vehicle build month showed no patterns indicating potential manufacturing quality issues and no difference before and after Ford introduced design changes to the input shaft and sector shaft seals in July 2007 to address potential leak concerns (Figure 5).Analysis of failures by time in service indicates a random failure pattern/distribution, consistent with incidents of impact induced overload (Figure 6). The complaint rate for the subject vehicles after approximately 5 to 6 years, 7.1 incidents per 100,000 vehicles, is lower than the rate observed in EA01-009. Furthermore, similar to the condition investigated in EA01-009, a number of incident records include evidence of impact loads (e.g., curb strikes) and several alleged crashes include incidents in which information suggests that the steering gear failure was most likely a result of crash forces, rather than the cause of the crash.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor this issue and reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.The ODI complaints cited above can be reviewed at ww

    An investigation is not a finding of a defect, and closure does not prove a vehicle is problem-free.