2003 Ford Ford Truck problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Wheels:rim (1) · Tires (1) · Structure:body:bumpers (1)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Ford Ford Truck model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (0)
No recalls on record for this model year (campaigns announced since 2010).
Service bulletins (2)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Electrical System 2003-06-01 · 16901 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
water in fuel (wif) lamp that does not turn off after water has been drained from the horizontal fuel conditioning module (hfcm) due to sediment build up in the water reservoir. 2003 super duty/excursion with a 6.0l powerstroke. *tt
Power Train:automatic Transmission:control Module (Tcm/Pcm/Tecm) 2003-04-01 · 16788 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
vehicles with the controller area network (can) may exhibit a powertrain control module (pcm) non-communication event, which could lead to an unnecessary pcm replacement using normal diagnostics. various models including the 2003 super duty. *tt
What owners report
2021-04-01 · Tires · 140,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2003 ford f-150 equipped with cooper tires, tire line: discover at3, tire size: 275/65/r18, dot number: utyjim62518. the contact stated that when the front passenger's side tire was replaced, he noticed a 2-inch blister on the inside of the tire. the vehicle was not taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. the tires …”
2008-01-16 · Engine And Engine Cooling · 75,000 mi“2003 ford expedition blew the spark plug and coil. *tr…”
2008-01-12 · Latches/Locks/Linkages:tailgate:latch · 52,000 mi“i have a 2003 ford explorer that like so many others has a crack(s) on the back tailgate right below the back glass. ford motor has told me that because my car is out of warranty that they will not fix it. there are a lot of explorers with the same problem and ford knows of this problem but will not extend a recall on it. isn't there a safety conce…”
2005-10-21 · Air Bags:frontal · 38,000 mi“i was driving my 2003 ford expedition to my children's school on friday, sept 30, 2005, at 8 am. while driving down the road, the driver's airbag deployed. the truck has not been wrecked, hit, or in any kind of accident. there was no reason for the airbag to suddenly & unexpectedly deploy while i was driving. ford has taken no responsibility. …”
2005-10-19 · Unknown Or Other“water leak witnessed by svc mgr & service writer, but they said their service dept cannot find leak, therefore they cannot repair. $41k truck is barely 2 yrs old and this is the 3rd time i brought truck there because of leak. in the 2 yrs i owned it, i've had 4 other repairs made on other items which "went". the a/c has been repaired twice, althoug…”
2005-08-31 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic · 22,802 mi“with less than 23,000 miles on my 2003 ford expedition, i had to replace the front brake pads and rotors to the tune of about $500.00. my brakes had recently begun the infamous squealing sound, so i brought it in for a look. the service advisor at courtesy ford in littleton, colorado would only say that it seemed kind of "early" to have to perfor…”
2005-08-22 · Seats:front Assembly:recliner · 💥 crash“on july 30, 2005,we were totally stopped, waiting to make a left turn when we were struck from behind by a driver going about 50 mph (in a 30 mph zone). we were in a 2003 ford windstar sport van with quad-captian seats. our front seats both collapsed backward and mine on the passenger struck our 9-yr old son who was directly behind me. he is sma…”
2005-07-19 · Power Train:automatic Transmission · 50,000 mi · 💥 crash“my 2003 ford expedition was parked on an incline with the parking brake set. the vehicle rolled down the hill and hit a building. it damaged the building and the vehicle(yet to be determined in amount). took the vehicle to the ford dealership to have it fixed and they found nothing wrong. called the ford satisfaction line and they are looking i…”
2005-06-02 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump · 45,000 mi“dt: while driving the fuel pump shut-off switch kept disconnecting .. the power steering and power brakes, and everything went out, and vehicle barley got off onto the side of road. this happened without warning. dealer checked the switch, connected it, and it ran fine. then, it happened again. manufacturer said they would fix it if it was a fau…”
2005-03-22 · Wheels:rim“all 4 rims on my 2003 ford explorer limited had severe corrosion around the lugs: nuts area. clearly a major design / quality issue that could lead to rim performance issues. ford replaced the rims under my bumper to bumper warrenty, however the exact rims were placed back on the vehicle. ford uses a newer rim on later model explorer limited mod…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.