VehicleVerdict

2003 Ford F-150 engine problems

The 2003 Ford F-150 has 98 engine complaints filed with NHTSA — 19% of the year's total, and down from the prior model year.

98

Engine complaints

19%

Share of year

0

Crash-involved

0

Related recalls

Engine complaints by year

F-150 engine complaints by model year578 complaints1966: 1 complaints1978: 2 complaints1983: 3 complaints1984: 2 complaints1985: 4 complaints1986: 10 complaints1987: 10 complaints1988: 13 complaints1989: 18 complaints1990: 23 complaints1991: 19 complaints1992: 39 complaints1993: 57 complaints1994: 57 complaints1995: 76 complaints1996: 27 complaints1997: 578 complaints1998: 198 complaints1999: 256 complaints2000: 159 complaints2001: 282 complaints2002: 263 complaints2003: 98 complaints2004: 262 complaints2005: 228 complaints2006: 151 complaints2007: 146 complaints2008: 77 complaints2009: 51 complaints2010: 138 complaints2011: 513 complaints2012: 499 complaints2013: 564 complaints2014: 186 complaints2015: 276 complaints2016: 339 complaints2017: 374 complaints2018: 575 complaints2019: 375 complaints2020: 131 complaints2021: 96 complaints2022: 36 complaints2023: 26 complaints2024: 15 complaints2025: 5 complaints
F-150 engine complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

What owners report

“On 11/27/2022 at or around 4:30 P.M. my 2003 Ford F-150 burned almost completely, without any mechanical failures or warnings, thirty full minutes after being parked and then after only having been run for three to four miles. The fire department ended up putting it out before it was fully consumed.”

Complaint filed with NHTSA · Engine · November 27, 2022 · fire

Common questions

How many engine complaints does the 2003 Ford F-150 have?

NHTSA has 98 complaints about the 2003 Ford F-150 engine — 19% of all complaints filed for that model year.

Related

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.