2003 Ford E-150 problems
NHTSA has received 31 complaints about the 2003 Ford E-150, and 13% of them involve electrical system. Next are engine (13%) and brakes (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 31 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 13% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 9 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 2 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 15,000 miles 25 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 15 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 2 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 0 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 1 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 1 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 0 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 5 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 1 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 25 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 15,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 9 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 2 injuries reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 91% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2003 ranks 14th most-complained-about out of 15 model years of the Ford E-150 with enough data (20 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 5 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tl- the contact owns a 2003 ford f1-50. The contact experienced the failure april 26, 2014. The vehicle air bags deployed while sitting in traffic. The contact current millage over 240,00. The contact was driving 5 MPH in traffice . The contact hit the vehicle in front of him. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not taken in for repairs. The contact did not notify the manuficature. Lg
While the vehicle was warming up in the driveway consumer's neighbor alerted him that vehicle was on fire. The fire department extinguished the fire, but could not determine what the cause was. There were no injuries relating to the fire. Dealer examined the vehicle several times, but the results were inconclusive.
2003 ford e150 van with triton 5.4 engine spark plug blow out on (2) separate occasions. Spark plug blows without any warning. The last blow out happened on jan 8th 2009 while traveling on the ny state thruway during severe winter weather. The incident caused immediate loss of power to my engine and an inability to navigate my vehicle safely. An accident nearly occurred, however I was lucky to make it off the hi-way without serious injury. However, I was stranded in sub-zero temperatures until help arrived.
2003 e150 conversion van gas pedal got stuck 3 times causing an accident. The rear cargo door was repaired, the fan clutch was replaced. The running board did not fit correctly. Air conditioner blown warm air. The exhaust was blowing out white smoke. There was a knocking sound coming from the engine. The gas tank was not completely full even though the consumer filled up the tank.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford e-150. The contact stated that the cruise control and horn failed to work and the air bag light remained illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 125,000.