"How reliable is the 2004 Ford F-150?"

"Based on 2429 NHTSA complaints, the 2004 Ford F-150 has a median complaint mileage of 59312 miles. The most common issue is VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS."

"What are common problems with the 2004 Ford F-150?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2004 Ford F-150 is VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS, accounting for a significant portion of the 2429 total complaints filed."

2004 Ford F-150: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 2429 complaints

2429

Total Complaints

59,312mi

Median Mileage

VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

28,000 25th Percentile

59,312 Median Mileage

89,950 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS

615

VISIBILITY

205

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

109

ENGINE

POWER TRAIN

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

SUSPENSION

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

STRUCTURE:BODY

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"CONSUMER NOTICED THE HAD ADJUSTABLE PEDAL MOVED UP, WHICH CAUSED THE CONSUMER TO DEPRESS THE FUEL PEDAL WHILE STOPPING. THIS RESULTED IN THE VEHICLE RUNNING INTO A POST. *AK THE REAR TIRES SPUN AND SMOKED AND SMOKE ENTERED THE CABIN OF THE VEHICLE.*TS *JB"

"WHEN PULLING INTO TRAFFIC SOMETIMES TRANSMISSION SLIPS. THIS CAUSES VEHICLE TO LOOSE POWER, AND COULD RESULT IN A REAR END OR FRONTAL COLLISION. *AK"

"WHILE DRIVING WITH THE REAR WINDOW OPEN, THE VEHICLE VIBRATED. THE DRIVER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER FOR ANALYSIS. *PH EXTREME VIBRATION OF THE CAB WAS ENCOUNTERED UPON LEAVING EITHER OR BOTH REAR DOOR WINDOWS BELOW 30%WHILE DRIVING ABOVE 35 MPH. THE VIBRATION INCREASED WHEN THE SPEED INCREAS..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS 615 complaints

25th: 49,000 mi Median: 65,000 mi 75th: 85,970 mi

VISIBILITY 205 complaints

25th: 45,259 mi Median: 61,000 mi 75th: 75,000 mi

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 109 complaints

25th: 45,750 mi Median: 81,500 mi 75th: 100,605 mi

ENGINE 92 complaints

25th: 75,500 mi Median: 108,588 mi 75th: 140,000 mi

POWER TRAIN 88 complaints

25th: 40,000 mi Median: 85,000 mi 75th: 114,350 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

TX: 251 CA: 250 FL: 142 PA: 115 GA: 107 VA: 98 OH: 98 MI: 85 NC: 71 KY: 69

Who Files Complaints?

22.8%

Original Owners

77.2%

Second+ Owners

Ford F-150 — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	25	76,696	FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM	0
1991	357	110,000	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY	12
1992	553	130,325	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:AUXILLARY TANK:SELECTOR DEVICES	25
1993	753	140,000	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY	32
1994	908	130,000	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP	79
1995	788	117,000	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP	61
1996	383	113,250	VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:CRUISE CONTROL	22
1997	3285	108,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	205
1998	1624	112,337	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE	96
1999	1322	98,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	116
2000	1269	91,032	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE	102
2001	1451	98,000	VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL	113
2002	963	90,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING	63
2003	520	64,266	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	57
2005	1363	62,000	VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS	66
2006	735	62,000	ENGINE	72
2007	623	60,000	ENGINE	51
2008	455	60,346	ENGINE	48
2009	397	53,500	VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL	34
2010	1131	56,183	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	33
2011	2938	68,500	POWER TRAIN	70
2012	2422	59,000	POWER TRAIN	57
2013	3849	72,000	POWER TRAIN	102
2014	1859	64,000	POWER TRAIN	56
2015	2036	48,000	SERVICE BRAKES	64
2016	2373	42,000	POWER TRAIN	67
2017	1595	46,500	POWER TRAIN	47
2018	2627	38,000	POWER TRAIN	104
2019	1532	59,142	POWER TRAIN	30
2020	797	33,000	POWER TRAIN	30
2021	1138	40,000	POWER TRAIN	19
2022	702	25,000	POWER TRAIN	29
2023	494	18,614	POWER TRAIN	25
2024	195	3,700	EXTERIOR LIGHTING	25
2025	112	6,500	POWER TRAIN	7

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28