2009 Ford F-350 SD: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2009 Ford F-350 SD
On the 2009 Ford F-350 SD, the failure owners report most often is control arm, ball joint or bushing failure, with 3 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 15,000 miles. Overall it scores 80 out of 100, severe risk for a 2009.
Severe risk for a 2009 — 11th riskiest of the 295 2009 vehicles we can rate. 25 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
The failures owners actually file about
Owners have reported 14 named failure modes on the 2009 Ford F-350 SD, and the three most-reported carry 32% of everything filed, which is an unusually even spread for one model year.
Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure leads with 3 reports and about 1,000 per 1,000 vehicles.
Other engine problem follows with 3 reports, median 50,000 miles.
Cruise control failure follows with 2 reports, median 5 miles.
By system, the reports fall mostly into suspension (4), engine (3) and brakes (3).
The mileage the reports cluster at
24 of the reports on the 2009 Ford F-350 SD came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 15,000 miles.
Cumulatively, 58% by 50,000 miles and 79% by 100,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed.
The busiest stretch is between 0 and 10,000 miles, which alone holds 29% of the dated reports.
54% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles, which is early enough that a fair number of these cars were still under a factory warranty when the owner complained.
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 14. 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 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 an injury. 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 4.44, 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: control arm, ball joint or bushing failure at $400–$2,200, other engine problem at $300–$4,000, cruise control failure at $200–$1,400 and tail light, brake light or signal failure at $100–$900. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
20% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure | suspension | 3 | 3 | — | 145k | — | 1,000.0 | $400–$2,200 | High |
| Other engine problem | engine | 3 | 3 | — | 48k | — | 1,000.0 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| Cruise control failure | adas | 2 | 2 | — | 5 | — | 666.7 | $200–$1,400 | High |
| Tail light, brake light or signal failure | lighting | 2 | 2 | — | 5k | — | 666.7 | $100–$900 | Moderate |
| Other powertrain problem | transmission | 2 | 2 | — | 9k | — | 666.7 | $400–$4,500 | High |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 2 | 2 | — | 13k | — | 666.7 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Other steering problem | steering | 2 | 2 | — | 108k | — | 666.7 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Other wheel or tire problem | wheels | 2 | 2 | — | 33k | — | 666.7 | $200–$1,500 | High |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 2 | 2 | — | 6k | — | 666.7 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Loss of braking | brakes | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 333.3 | $400–$3,000 | Critical |
| Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | airbag | 1 | 1 | — | 7k | — | 333.3 | $1,000–$5,000 | Critical |
| Steering rack, gear or tie rod failure | steering | 1 | 1 | — | 75k | — | 333.3 | $700–$2,600 | High |
| Tire blowout or tread separation | wheels | 1 | 1 | — | 69k | — | 333.3 | $200–$1,500 | Critical |
| Other suspension problem | suspension | 1 | 1 | — | 70k | — | 333.3 | $350–$2,000 | 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 2009 Ford F-350 SD draws about 8,333 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 100th percentile of complaint rates among 2009 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 3 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2009 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.
Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure
Hit road bump & the 'death wobble' occurred causing the truck to shake uncontrollably & force us to the side of the road. I took it to ford dealership & they quoted me over $7k to fix virtually everything suspension related. I took it 2 local diesel mechanics who eventually fixed it after replacing apx $700 in parts. The part that fixed it was the track bar ball joint & track bar bushing. In searching online amongst ford enthusiast as well as other diesel truck owners....this is a scary, dangerous & somewhat common problem. Fords response in a lot of instances is that tire pressure, tire wear, etc... Is their common response. All I know is with as many guys that I've seen had this, this is a design flaw that is dangerous. If someone hasn't been killed because of this already, I'd be shocked. *tr
Hit road bump & the 'death wobble' occurred causing the truck to shake uncontrollably & force us to the side of the road. I took it to ford dealership & they quoted me over $7k to fix virtually everything suspension related. I took it 2 local diesel mechanics who eventually fixed it after replacing apx $700 in parts. The part that fixed it was the track bar ball joint & track bar bushing. In searching online amongst ford enthusiast as well as other diesel truck owners....this is a scary, dangerous & somewhat common problem. Fords response in a lot of instances is that tire pressure, tire wear, etc... Is their common response. All I know is with as many guys that I've seen had this, this is a design flaw that is dangerous. If someone hasn't been killed because of this already, I'd be shocked. *tr
Other engine problem
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 ford f350 sd. While traveling at speeds of 55 MPH, the contact abruptly depressed the brakes to avoiding crashing into an animal in the roadway. When the contact tried to accelerate after stopping, the vehicle had no power. When the contact tried to accelerate the second time, he observed gray smoke coming from the exhaust pipe. The failure occurred on two additional occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where he was awaiting a diagnosis of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 15,050 and the current mileage was 19,000 updated 07/16/10 *bf the consumer stated when he lost power, a large amount of smoke emitted from the exhaust. Updated 07/28/10*jb
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 ford f-350 diesel. The contact stated the fuel fumes emitted into the vehicle whenever it was in the exhaust cleaning mode. On occasions, blue smoke also came out of the exhaust pipe. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 48,000 and the current mileage was 57,988.
Cruise control failure
Tl*the contact owns a 2009 ford f-350. The contact stated that the electrical system malfunctioned intermittently and the vehicle stalled. The radio and instrument panel would not work at times. The vehicle would switch into cruise control mode and accelerate. The vehicle was difficult to stop and the contact had to use both feet to brake while hitting the off button for the cruise control. The dealer inspected the vehicle several times but was unable to duplicate the failure. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 5 and the current mileage was approximately 25,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2009 ford f-350. The contact stated that the electrical system malfunctioned intermittently and the vehicle stalled. The radio and instrument panel would not work at times. The vehicle would switch into cruise control mode and accelerate. The vehicle was difficult to stop and the contact had to use both feet to brake while hitting the off button for the cruise control. The dealer inspected the vehicle several times but was unable to duplicate the failure. The VIN was unavailable. The failure mileage was 5 and the current mileage was approximately 25,000.
Recalls on the 2009 model year
NHTSA has issued 5 recall campaigns covering the 2009 Ford F-350 SD, affecting an estimated 4 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 steering and equipment. 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.
STEERING
102 vehicles 2020-12-09- Defect
- Icon Vehicle Dynamics, LLC (Icon) is recalling all 05-UP FSD 2.5 Centerline Stabilizer Kits with part number 65050. The kits were sold as an accessory for certain 2005-2021 Ford F-250 4X4 and F-350 4X4 pickup trucks. The foam ring inside the stabilizer "through shaft" may block the piston ports, possibly causing the steering to lock up.
- Consequence
- If the steering locks, it can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Icon will notify owners, and dealers will install a new shock assembly with a revised foam ring and steel support disc, free of charge. The recall began December 21, 2020. Owners may contact Icon customer service at 1-951-689-4266.
EQUIPMENT
10 vehicles 2014-06-23- Defect
- Palfleet Truck Equipment Company, LLC (Palfleet) is recalling certain model year 2009-2013 Ford F-350, F-450, and F-550 super duty vehicles modified by Palfleet and equipped with certain Muncie Power Products PTO Assemblies. In the affected vehicles, oil may leak from the PTO pressure switch onto a thermal blanket covering the exhaust.
- Consequence
- The leaking oil may soak into the thermal blanket covering the exhaust, which when combined with heat from exhaust, may result in an increased risk of fire.
- Remedy
- Palfleet will notify owners, and dealers will install a new pressure switch kit that moves the switch away from the exhaust system, free of charge. The recall began on July 29, 2014. Owners may contact Palfleet customer service at 1- 502-376-2458.
EQUIPMENT
21 vehicles 2014-06-13- Defect
- Iowa Mold Tooling Co., Inc. will notify owners and dealers to inspect the Muncie PTO pressure switch to determine if it is from the range of defective switches and if required, remove the pressure switch assembly and put a plug in the port where the PTO switch had been installed. This switch was never being utilized. This will be done free of charge. The recall is expected to begin in mid-July 2014. Owners may contact Iowa Mold Tooling Co., Inc. at 1-800-247-5958.
- Consequence
- The leaking oil may soak into the thermal blanket covering the exhaust, which when combined with heat from exhaust, may result in an increased risk of fire.
- Remedy
- Iowa Mold Tooling Co., Inc. will notify owners, and dealers will install a new pressure switch kit that moves the switch away from the exhaust system, free of charge. The recall began on July 28, 2014. Owners may contact Iowa Mold Tooling Co., Inc. at 1-800-247-5958.
EQUIPMENT
10 vehicles 2014-06-12- Defect
- Stahl is recalling certain model year 2009-2014 Ford F-350 Super Duty, F-450 Super Duty, and F-550 Super Duty vehicles modified by Stahl and equipped with certain Muncie Power Products PTO Assemblies. In the affected vehicles, oil may leak from the PTO pressure switch onto a thermal blanket covering the exhaust.
- Consequence
- The leaking oil may soak into the thermal blanket covering the exhaust, which when combined with heat from exhaust, may result in an increased risk of fire.
- Remedy
- Stahl will notify owners, and dealers will install a new pressure switch kit that moves the switch away from the exhaust system, free of charge. Owners may contact Stahl customer service at 1-800-277-8245, or Muncie at 1-800-367-7867.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
4 vehicles 2014-06-10- Defect
- Somerset Welding & Steel, doing business as J&J Truck equipment (J&J), is recalling certain model year 2009-2013 Ford F-350, F-450, and F-550 Super Duty chassis with 6.8L gasoline engines modified by J&J to be equipped with certain Muncie Power Products PTO Assemblies. In the affected vehicles, oil may leak from the PTO pressure switch onto a thermal blanket covering the exhaust.
- Consequence
- The leaking oil may soak into the thermal blanket covering the exhaust, which when combined with heat from exhaust, may result in an increased risk of fire.
- Remedy
- Somerset will notify owners, and dealers will install a new pressure switch kit that moves the switch away from the exhaust system, free of charge. The recall began August 2014. Owner's may contact Somerset customer service at 1-800-777-2671.
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 2009 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
Where 2009 sits in the model line
Severe risk for a 2009 — 11th riskiest of the 295 2009 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 25 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 1999 comes out best at 63 and 2012 worst at 81, with 2009 itself at 80.
If the model year is negotiable, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2016, 2001, 2025, 2023, 2015, 2024, 2022, 2004, 2003, 2021, 2007, 2005, 2017, 2020, 2010, 2006 and 2018 score lower than 2009 by a margin worth acting on. Same body, same engines, different luck — usually a supplier change or a mid-cycle fix, which the complaint data can show but never explain.
Within the 2008–2014 generation specifically, 2010 is the strongest year at 75 and 2012 the weakest at 81.
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 2008-2014 generation, 2010 Ford F-350 SD scores best at 75 and 2012 Ford F-350 SD worst at 81.
The limits of complaint data
25 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 25 reports, 24 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 96% 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 2009 Ford F-350 SD?
The most-reported failures are control arm, ball joint or bushing failure (3 reports, median 145,000 miles), other engine problem (3 reports, median 50,000 miles) and cruise control failure (2 reports, median 5 miles). 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 2009 Ford F-350 SD reliable?
It scores 80 out of 100 on our risk index, which is severe — 11th riskiest of the 295 2009 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2009 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-350 SD is best?
Within the 2008–2014 generation, 2010 scores best at 75 out of 100 and 2012 worst at 81. 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