Ford F 350 Regular Cab
Problems & Worst Years

From 2015 through 2019, the Ford F-350 Regular Cab's record is a study in highway-speed steering shake, with 2017 as the clear peak: 501 reported occurrences spread across 38 distinct problems, six of them safety-severity — the most of any year here on both counts. Death wobble alone accounts for 164 of 2017's reports, with suspension shaking and steering oscillation adding roughly 90 more. 2019 is the second-heaviest file at 397 occurrences, split almost evenly between suspension issues causing violent shaking (117) and steering wheel shake during high-speed driving (116), plus another 56 reports of shaking with loss of control. The earlier and later years — 2015, 2016, and 2018 — carry the same complaints at totals between 121 and 178.

A few side notes surface along the way. Tailgates that open uncommanded show up repeatedly: 40 reports in 2018, 48 in 2019, 26 in 2017. The 2015 file includes six odometer fraud complaints — a used-buyer concern rather than a mechanical one, and a reminder to verify mileage against title and service records. 2020 breaks the pattern: just 102 occurrences, led not by wobble but by a steering column defect (18 reports, safety-severity) and transmission failure (18), with electrical and fuel system complaints behind.

Shopping guidance follows directly. On 2015–2019 trucks, insist on a highway-speed drive over rough pavement and a front-end inspection; prior steering-damper or suspension work in the records is a plus, not a red flag. On a 2020, focus on the steering column and shift quality. Cycle the tailgate on everything.

These counts are what owners filed with NHTSA — not measured failure rates — and newer years have had less time to build a file. A pre-purchase inspection and honest service history on the individual truck beat the model-year math every time.