Complaint volume
908 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2021 Ford F-150 Complaints
908 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2021 Ford F-150, grouped by component category.
908 Total complaints
13 Crash reports
4 Fire reports
6 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are power train, exterior lighting, visibility. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 13 crash reports, 4 fire reports, 6 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 203 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 45,841 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to power train, exterior lighting, visibility?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2021 Ford F-150?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2021 Ford F-150
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2021 Ford F-150 complaints?
13 Crash
4 Fire
6 Injury
0 Fatality
27 Towed
3 Medical attention
What are the most common 2021 Ford F-150 complaint categories?
POWER TRAIN 200
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 75
VISIBILITY 64
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 52
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 52
VISIBILITY/WIPER 41
ENGINE 33
STEERING 24
SERVICE BRAKES 19
BACK OVER PREVENTION 18
908 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the ABS, Advancetrac, and several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was confirmed that the failure was due to an unrepaired recall. The contact was informed that parts were on back order. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V896000 (Power Train). Additionally, the contact stated that the parts had been on back order since January 2025. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 35,000 |
| Jan 2026 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Driver side LED DRL light has failed. This is a common problem occuring with many people with 2021+ year models of the Ford F-150. Truck is barely outside of warranty and with 51,000 miles and should not have a failing LED DRL. Additionally, Ford has made this part unrepairable and according to the dealership closest to me will require a full headlight assembly replacement. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 4 months after taking vehicle in for recall fixes, both recalls on vehicle have not been remediated due to parts not being available. No ETA on availability and get a run around when asking for more info. Hub Shaft Recall stats that driving the vehicle with a broken hub bolt will wear shafts but no loaner was given so I have no choice but to drive vehicle with a broken bolt. Ford customer service told me its ok to drive the vehicle but never stated if they are replacing the entire rear end or just the parts listed on the recall.. What is dirving the vehicle ruins the splines on the shafts. Are they going to replace those as well? | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I was in the parking lot of my local grocery store, and the truck all of a sudden gave me an indicator that there is a "park brake fault-service now." I was stranded and had to have someone pick me up for this, This is after hours so I cannot call the Ford dealership until the following day. I now see Ford issued a recall for this under 23S35. However, when I look up my VIN under Ford, that did not show, and thus, we did not address this earlier when that should have happened. That is a problem and needs to be addressed with Ford ASAP. What if I was driving and this happened??!! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Rearview camera stop displaying image for 24 hours. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | I own a 2021 Ford F-150 that is part of recall 25S75 for the low‑pressure fuel pump. Ford announced this recall years ago, but there is still no fix or parts available. This is a safety issue because the fuel pump can fail and cause the truck to stall or not start. I rely on this vehicle, and it’s frustrating that there is still no remedy after all this time. Many other F-150 owners are reporting the same problem and also cannot get their trucks repaired. I am asking NHTSA to push Ford to release the repair and make parts available. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | DRL on the passenger side of my truck is half burnt out. I have seen many of the same style headlight with the same daytime running light halo burnt out or partially burnt out on at least 1 side of the truck. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | The daytime running lamp assemblies on both headlights are failing. On the driver's side, the entire LED array around the outside of the headlight has failed. On the passenger's side, the vertical LED array is extremely dim and will probably fail soon. The topmost horizontal LED array on the passenger's side is currently the only array still working. Obviously this poses a safety risk as these lights provide visibility of the vehicle in low light and low visibility driving conditions. I have seen many forum posts and YouTube videos about this problem and as the parts are integrated into the headlamp assembly, the only way to fix is a complete replacement of the assembly which is a $2000-$2500 repair PER ASSEMBLY. This problem appears to be related to heat dissipation issues, indicating a manufacturers defect. In older model vehicles, a daytime running lamp used to be a $5-$20 bulb replacement. The fact that I now have no choice but to pay $2000 to restore functionality of a safety feature is completely unacceptable. At the very least, Ford should redesign the LED module to be replaceable independent of the larger assembly, reducing the cost to the owner. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Guessing the date below Truck shuts off when trying to take off and go. This has happened a few times and even pulling onto a main highway. This is a very dangerous situation, and I have contacted Ford and they have stated there is no fix for this. I have contacted Carvana which is where I recently purchased the truck within the past month and they state the recall was listed and there's nothing they can do it's up to Ford to fix a recall. They will not take the truck back and now we are stuck paying for over $30,000 on this truck and it keeps stalling on us. We cannot afford for it to just sit in our yard and pay for it if it's not running. We need help to get this fixed. We have no idea what's causing it but assuming it could have everything to do with the open recall or the battery. That battery is over $4000 if we have to replace it. Another thing we noticed is the LED lights on the headlights went out randomly and haven't come back on. Another very expensive fix for a truck we just purchased less than a month ago. We took the truck in the shop within the first few days of owning it due to a few issues we felt were not right like pulling to one side, feeling as if it were going over rutted areas on the roadways with a bump and jerk to it as well like it was a transmission issue. The insurance company with Carvana choose the place to take it to and we dropped it off and the next day they called and stated nothing was found to be wrong with it and Carvana knew we were out of return in time to replace it when they had us drop it off it was like another day. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | WHEELS | The manufacturer is unwilling or unable to perform recall 23V896 in a timely manner. I have submitted my truck for inspection at an authorized dealer, Gullo Ford of Conroe, TX, on October 6, 2025 per manufacturer requirements. As of this writing, January 14, 2026 I have not been advised of availability of parts to remedy the defect. I am asking that necessary parts be supplied and the recall be performed in a timely manner, as soon as possible at this point. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | We own a 2021 Ford F-150, that is down since the first of September, 2025, due to recall 23S65. We've been in weekly contact with our local dealer since then. They are doing everything possible to get the parts in to repair our truck, but parts are and have been on backorder, with no ETA from Ford. We have also been in contact with Ford customer service in Dearborn and had an open case with them. They have closed our case because they can't help and told us the local dealer is responsible, then they moved us to recall department now and no longer respond. We feel 4 months is a ridiculous amount of time on Ford's part for these parts to be on and still on backorder. We have no option for help and wondering if you could. It's has been an extremely difficult situation for us to be without our truck for this extended amount of time. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | STEERING | September 2025, we were on a vacation when we noticed that the column gear shifter on our 2021 Ford F150 seemed a bit "loose" when shifting. No issues getting into the appropriate gear…but a weird loose feeling. My husband pulled off the leather boot on the column (not sure if this is what it is called, I believe it keeps dust out) and found the problem. Two missing bolts! Earlier that year, I had found a bolt in the floor of the truck, and, unable to find where it came from (or did it even belong to the truck? I did not know) I put it in a ziploc bag, into the glove box. Turns out that bolt fit. So we had one bolt, and the shifting felt okay. But we still needed one bolt, so I did some internet sleuthing. I found the part (W790628S900) and ordered it, and we installed it when we got home. We theorize that the “ziploc bolt” came loose early in 2025, and the second bolt (never found) came loose on our trip. We know that up until this problem, we had never, ever, removed that dust cover, so we were not responsible for the two bolts coming loose. Components: that "failed" would be the two bolts on the column gear shifter (under the dust cover) Safety: we were very worried that without the two bolts, we would not be able to shift at some point! Confirmed: no, because we were camping on vacation, and did the troubleshooting ourselves Inspected: we will ask our mechanic when we next take the truck in Warning: no, just that we noticed that the column gear shifter was "loose" (again, likely that this was after the 2nd bolt came out). | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | Due to waiting for a recall fix for ( NHTSA #-25V455 ) My F150 Raptor has been having all listed failing issues, Miss fire at idle or when fuel is hot, issue starting on a handful of times. I have been driving it after 4 -5k miles of this and I was alerted today after replacing ( All Injectors, Coils, Spark Plugs, ETC ) That I may need a new engine. This could have caused a crash and is now costing me an entire engine due to no fix or parts availability. Thousands of Dollars for a new engine out of my pocket due to fuel starvation. Cylinder 4 Miss fire's at idle. They appeared once I returned home from the mountains back to texas with hot weather. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES | Started after McGee ford did a service on my truck Apparently they told ford they repaired electrical recalls which I wasn’t having issues with nor did I know They did anything! They did however erase the recalls so that was 8-2024 shortly after my truck experienced major electrical issues, another dealership told me it was gonna be 6k and 4 weeks to fix I was in awe I left with my truck that had no blinkers no air bags and so on 15 safety codes! I battled this for a year and then my parking break locked up while driving 70 on the highway! That’s the recall megee claimed they fixed I’m not rich single dad 100% of rhe time and I sure my kids everywhere daily, I do research call ford find intact i had a recalll so im thinking it will get fixed! 6 weeks later they not fixed i was told 2 days Now heritage and ford won’t fix it they want megee ford the certified service and dealer to pay for it. It’s winter im a contractor in Vermont they let me borrow a Sentra with summer tires on it. Couldn’t make it off my road. I’m still driving my kids around! I almost reck once a day as the whole system is messed up now! I feel like I’m being bullied and picked on because of my nationality | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | My vehicle has been with the Ford dealership for about a month and the mechanic and the engineers still have not found why my vehicle is giving a service wrench warning. When driving the vehicle will flash red warning lights which makes the vehicle unsafe to drive. I have paid for an Auxiliary Transmission Pump and battery. This did not fix my truck. The dealership said they replaced the PCM, but it didn’t fix the truck. I seen that these trucks had recalls. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | Please see attachment: To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to formally request NHTSA’s review and further action regarding Ford Motor Company’s handling of Safety Recall 23V‑896 and 23S-65, affecting my 2021 Ford F‑150 (F1 3509). I appreciate NHTSA’s oversight of this recall; however, based on my direct experience and the technical information available, I believe the current remedy strategy leaves owners exposed to ongoing safety risks. My vehicle experienced fractured rear axle hub bolts, a failure mode that Ford’s defect report attributes to micro‑movement and backlash between the axle shaft splines and the wheel‑end hub splines. This movement leads to loss of clamp load, fretting wear, and ultimately bolt fatigue and fracture. The fractured bolts on my truck confirm that this failure chain had already progressed to an advanced stage. Ford performed what they describe as an interim repair, which consisted of replacing the fractured bolts and inspecting the hub and axle components. However, Ford has acknowledged that the final remedy is not yet available, and that the interim repair does not address the underlying design issue that allows spline movement and progressive wear. As a result, the same conditions that caused the initial failure may reoccur. From a mechanical and safety standpoint, replacing bolts without correcting the root cause — the loss of clamp load and resulting spline backlash — does not eliminate the defect. It merely resets the system temporarily. Ford’s own documentation confirms that the interim repair uses the same bolt design, with the same torque and elongation characteristics, and therefore the same long‑term vulnerability. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | My Rear axle bolt broke in early October. It has now been over 3 months and I have zero update on when my recall will be addressed. I have a rental, but this is beyond the fair and reasonable time frame to repair a recall. The Service center can provide zero update or status of when this will be resolve. I'm making 4 payment on a vehicle that I don't have. What other recourses do we have. Can manufacturers just take months on end to repair when customer are without their personal or work vehicles? | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | When temperatures are below freezing, the passenger side door remains locked, and cannot be unlocked with the key fob or the unlock buttons on either the driver side or passenger side door. The manual door lock cannot be pulled out, as it sinks down inside the door, and there is no external locking/unlocking mechanism to use the key to manually unlock the passenger side door. Dealer said there was nothing wrong with it, but brought it into the shop to look at it, where the temperature is higher than freezing. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | POWER TRAIN | Reference NHTSA Safety Recall 23V896. On our truck, the right rear axle hub bolt broke the last week of July 2025 (exact date unknown; bolt head caught behind hub cap). I made a an appointment with our local Ford service on August 4. To date (January 6, 2026 or 5 months), the repair has not been completed because the replacement parts are backordered nationwide. Per the recall notice, driving the truck risks further damage and possible injury or crash. Anecdotally (online forums and other resources) and despite the reported backorder, the recalls are being completed in a timely fashion in parts of the country. Some recalls apparently are being completed even on trucks where the bolts have yet not failed. Obviously parts are available because Ford is selling new trucks which presumably are not subject to the recall. In December, we were 14,000+ "in line" for the parts according to Ford service. Apparently we moved up about 1,000 places in one month. At that rate, we think it is unacceptable to not have full use of our truck until 2027, are frustrated to have to continue to pay insurance and licensing costs, and are very disappointed at the prospect of canceling summer plans again. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | The daytime running lights only partially work and are very dim, blue, or completely off. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING | Daytime Driving Lights Are disabled due to an electrical defect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,POWER TRAIN | The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-150. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V896000 (Power Train) and 25V455000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The local dealer was contacted and confirmed that the recall remedy part was not available. The contact was unable to reach the manufacturer due a prerecorded message. The contact had not experienced a failure. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jan 2026 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | This report is being made within 1 1/2 hours after the incident. It has not been inspected by a dealer, service center, nor any other agency. I was stopped at a local fast food restaurant waiting to pay for my purchase. The 2021 Ford F-150 was in drive with my foot on the brake. No warning lights or other indication were present. Without warning, the engine revved to a high rpm and the truck shot forward about 15-20 feet before I could react by putting my full weight on the brake pedal. The engine quickly slowed. I then put the vehicle in reverse and backed up to the window and placed the transmission in park. The truck is equipped with adaptive cruise control but it was not active at the time of the incident. Had there been another vehicle in front of me, I would have rear-ended them. I work from home and use the truck a couple of times per week and it is available for inspection most days. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | EXTERIOR LIGHTING | There is a known problem with the DRLs burning out, which poses a safety issue. Many people have had this problem causing an expensive repair out of warranty. The entire headlamp assembly has to be replaced. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Dec 2025 | POWER TRAIN | Dealer has now had my car for almost 60 days with no resolution Manufacturer Recall Number23S65 NHTSA Recall Number23V896 My asset is basically frozen at this point with zero ETA and any care from FORD. I am willing to trade it in at this point but can’t even do that. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |