1998 Ford F-250: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 1998 Ford F-250
On the 1998 Ford F-250, the failure owners report most often is other suspension problem, with 10 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 115,000 miles. Overall it scores 58 out of 100, elevated risk for a 1998.
Elevated risk for a 1998 — 243rd riskiest of the 271 1998 vehicles we can rate. 76 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
What owners report breaking
Owners have reported 22 named failure modes on the 1998 Ford F-250, and the three most-reported carry 33% of everything filed, which is an unusually even spread for one model year.
Other suspension problem leads with 10 reports and about 0.1 per 1,000 vehicles.
Other body or interior problem follows with 8 reports.
ABS module or sensor failure follows with 7 reports.
By system, the reports fall mostly into suspension (15), brakes (13) and engine (11).
When these failures get reported
23 of the reports on the 1998 Ford F-250 came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 115,000 miles.
Cumulatively, 13% by 50,000 miles, 30% by 100,000 miles and 83% by 150,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed, with 2 filed above the top of the chart.
The busiest stretch is between 100,000 and 110,000 miles, which alone holds 17% of the dated reports.
13% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
Showing the 12 most-reported failure modes of 22. The full list is in the table below.
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A further 2 reports came in above that, which is why the line stops short of the top. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
- Dashed the median reported mileage
Severity, and what it costs
Across the named modes, 1 mentions a crash and 1 a fire. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 3.58, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: other suspension problem at $350–$2,000, other body or interior problem at $200–$2,000, ABS module or sensor failure at $500–$2,400 and fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure at $250–$1,800. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
17% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other suspension problem | suspension | 10 | 1 | — | 55k | — | 0.1 | $350–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 8 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| ABS module or sensor failure | brakes | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $500–$2,400 | High |
| Fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure | fuel | 6 | 6 | — | 109k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Air suspension failure | suspension | 5 | 2 | — | 115k | — | 0.0 | $900–$4,500 | High |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 5 | 1 | — | 9k | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Other wheel or tire problem | wheels | 5 | 5 | — | 149k | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,500 | High |
| Misfire or rough idle | engine | 4 | 2 | — | 78k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,600 | Moderate |
| Other engine problem | engine | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| Steering rack, gear or tie rod failure | steering | 3 | 1 | — | 190k | — | 0.0 | $700–$2,600 | High |
| Head gasket failure | engine | 2 | 2 | — | 36k | — | 0.0 | $1,400–$4,000 | Critical |
| Fuel leak or fuel odor | fuel | 2 | 2 | — | 105k | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,500 | Critical |
| Tail light, brake light or signal failure | lighting | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $100–$900 | Moderate |
| Other speed control problem | adas | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$2,000 | Critical |
| Other visibility problem | glass | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $150–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Engine bay fire | engine | 1 | 1 | — | 153k | — | 0.0 | $4,000–$20,000 | Critical |
| CV axle or driveshaft failure | drivetrain | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,200 | High |
| Premature brake pad or rotor wear | brakes | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | airbag | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $1,000–$5,000 | Critical |
| Other powertrain problem | transmission | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $400–$4,500 | High |
| Other fuel system problem | fuel | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,200 | High |
| Other steering problem | steering | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Unclassified problem | other | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | — | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 1998 Ford F-250 draws about 0.4 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 70th percentile of complaint rates among 1998 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 190,000 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 1998 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The odometer reading is the one the owner gave.
Other suspension problem
Broken front torsion bar. Started motor, shifted from park to reverse, and without moving from the spot, heard a loud crack and the torsion bar had snapped. My garage was told by their parts supplier that, until this past month, they never had a request for this part before. This is now the second request in the past month. Kept the broken bar after replacement.
Recalls on the 1998 model year
NHTSA has issued 9 recall campaigns covering the 1998 Ford F-250, affecting an estimated 614,923 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover fuel system, gasoline:storage:tank assembly:mounting, equipment:electrical, exterior lighting:headlights and vehicle speed control. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
One caution about reading these together: a recall usually raises the complaint count for the same part, because owners who read about it go and file. The mileages stay informative; the counts get noisy.
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY:MOUNTING
1,100,000 vehicles 2011-07-29- Defect
- Ford is recalling certain 1997 through 2003 model year ford f-150, 2004 model year ford f-150 heritage, 1997 through 1999 model year f-250 less than 8,500 lbs. Gross vehicle weight rating (gvwr), and 2002 and 2003 lincoln blackwood vehicles manufactured from june 20, 1995, through august 4, 2004, originally sold, or currently registered in, connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin, and the…
- Consequence
- As a result of the corrosion, one or both straps may fail allowing the fuel lines to separate from the tank, or in some cases, causing the tank to contact the ground. Either scenario may result in a fuel leak presenting a fire hazard.
- Remedy
- Ford will notify owners and instruct them to take their vehicles to a ford or lincoln dealer to have the fuel tank straps replaced with straps that have increased corrosion protection. Early in this campaign, if replacement straps are not available, dealers may install a cable support under the strap as an interim repair or a steel reinforcement over the existing strap as a permanent repair. Any repairs will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on september 16, 2011. Owners may contact ford motor company customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332…
EQUIPMENT:ELECTRICAL
175 vehicles 2007-08-28- Defect
- Certain cequent 90 degree 7-way right angle adaptors sold by distributors in tow packages for aftermarket sales to tow 5th wheel rv travel trailers. Due to incorrect wiring of the harness, the trailer lights may not operate properly.
- Consequence
- If the trailer lights are not working properly, a vehicle crash can occur.
- Remedy
- All of the defective tow packages are still at the distributor level and have not been sold to any consumers.
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
19,413 vehicles 2006-08-01- Defect
- Certain maxzone headlight assemblies, depo brand, p/nos. 331-1129l-asn and 331-1129r-asn, sold for use as aftermarket equipment for the above listed passenger vehicles. These headlamps fail to conform to the photometric requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.
- Consequence
- Decreased lighting visibility may result in a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Maxzone will notify owners and offer reimbursement for any noncompliant headlights. The recall began on july 28, 2006. Owners may contact maxzone at 909-822-3288.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
1,200,000 vehicles 2006-08-01- Defect
- On certain trucks equipped with speed control, gasoline or natural gas engines, the speed control deactivation switch may overheat.
- Consequence
- Overheating could result in smoke or burn and an underhood fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a fused wiring harness into the speed control system free of charge. The recall began on august 7, 2006. Owners may contact ford at 1-866-436-7332. (note: also see recalls 05v017 and 05v388)
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
14,616 vehicles 2006-06-12- Defect
- Certain eagle eyes headlamps, p/nos. Fr208-b101r, fr208-b101l, fr208-b001r, and fr208-b001l, sold for use as replacement equipment for the passenger vehicles listed above. These headlamps fail to conform to the photometric requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.
- Consequence
- Decreased lighting visibility may result in a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Sabry lee will notify owners and offer full credit for any noncompliant headlamp. The recall is expected to begin on june 14, 2006. Owners may contact sabry lee account executive at 1-866-467-2279.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
4,500,000 vehicles 2005-09-07- Defect
- On certain pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles equipped with speed control, the speed control deactivation switch may overheat, smoke, or burn.
- Consequence
- A fire at the switch could occur.
- Remedy
- By letter dated september 12, 2005, owners were instructed to return their vehicles to their dealers to have the speed control deactivation switch disconnected. Owners who have had their speed control deactivated are being notified that parts will be available and advised to make an appointment to reconnect the speed control beginning in february 2006. Owners who did not have their speed control deactivated are being notified to have their system remedied beginning in february 2006. Owners are urged to avail themselves of the free disconnect service as soon as possible…
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
4,500 vehicles 2000-09-21- Defect
- Vehicle description: bi-fuel cng pickup trucks and bi-fuel cng vans, modified by cfi control systems, inc., fail to conform to the requirements of fmvss no. 303, "fuel system integrity of compressed natural gas vehicles." the label affixed to the fuel filler door by the vehicle modifier contains the inspection date and expiration date of the cng tank. However, it does not contain the statement "see instructions on the fuel container for inspection and service life."
- Consequence
- These vehicles do not comply with the requirements.
- Remedy
- Owners will be provided a label with the required statement, along with instructions for affixing the label at the fuel filler door. Owner notification began november 2, 2000. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1-800-392-3673.
WHEELS:LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS/STUDS
1,520,000 vehicles 1998-05-13- Defect
- Vehicle description: multi-purpose vehicles and light duty pickup trucks. The lug nuts on these vehicles may not create sufficient clamp load allowing wheel movement in relation to the hub/rotor mounting surface.
- Consequence
- This can result in the loosening of lug nuts, stud fatigue failure, and the potential for a wheel separation from the vehicle, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Owners of these vehicles will be receiving two notifications. The first notification, which began in may 1998, will provide an interim repair procedure until parts become available. This interim procedure can be completed by owners or their dealers. It specifies that the lug nut torque must be verified to be 100 lbs. Then the lug nuts need to be tightened an additional 1/8 to 1/4 turn more. There will be a second owner notification, which is expected to begin july 20, 1998, under which dealers will inspect the wheel studs and replace the wheel lug nuts.
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:GEAR POSITION INDICATION (PRNDL)
866,000 vehicles 1997-10-07- Defect
- Vehicle description: light duty pickup trucks and multi-purpose passenger vehicles. If the automatic transmission shift cable assembly was not fully attached to the steering column bracket, the shift cable assembly can come out of the bracket. The vehicle operator would then not be able to shift the transmission from one of the drive gear positions into the park position even though the gear shift selector would indicate "park."
- Consequence
- The condition would not allow a disengagement of the transmission from the park position or affect proper neutral start switch operation. Unintended vehicle movement could occur if the parking brake was not set.
- Remedy
- Dealers will make the proper attachment of the transmission shift control cable to the steering column bracket and add a tie strap to that connection.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 1998 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
How 1998 compares with the other years
Elevated risk for a 1998 — 243rd riskiest of the 271 1998 vehicles we can rate. Every score on this site is a rank inside its own model year, which is what makes a 2004 and a 2019 comparable at all.
Across the 19 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 1998 comes out best at 58 and 2004 worst at 80, with 1998 itself at 58.
No other year of this model scores meaningfully better than 1998, so if this generation is what you want, the year is not the lever.
Within the 1996–1998 generation specifically, 1998 is the strongest year at 58 and 1996 the weakest at 60.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Within the 1996-1998 generation, 1998 Ford F-250 scores best at 58 and 1996 Ford F-250 worst at 60.
What this page cannot tell you
76 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 76 reports, 23 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 30% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
The failure modes are assigned by software reading the owner's own words, which is accurate in bulk and wrong in individual cases. A mode with a handful of reports may contain a misfiled one.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 1998 Ford F-250?
The most-reported failures are other suspension problem (10 reports, median 55,000 miles), other body or interior problem (8 reports) and abs module or sensor failure (7 reports). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
Is the 1998 Ford F-250 reliable?
It scores 58 out of 100 on our risk index, which is elevated — 243rd riskiest of the 271 1998 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 1998 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Which year of the Ford F-250 is best?
Within the 1996–1998 generation, 1998 scores best at 58 out of 100 and 1996 worst at 60. Same body, same engines, different luck.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed