2001 Ford F-150 electrical system problems

“The contact owns a 2001 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked and turned off the vehicle suddenly caught on fire and was destroyed. The fire department was called to the impoundment lot and extinguished the flames which came from the engine compartment. A fire report was taken at the scene. The cause of the fire was not determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 190,000.”

“The contact owns a 2001 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked in the driveway flames were suddenly present coming from the engine compartment. The fire department was called to the scene and extinguished the flames. During the incident, the vehicle was destroyed. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were not notified. The contact indicated that prior to the fire the vehicle had not been driven or turned on for two days. The failure mileage was 89,000.”

“WE PURCHASED OUR 2001 F150 SUPERCREW USED. I AM A MECHANIC, SO THE FIRST THING I DO WHEN BUYING A USED VEHICLE IS INSPECT IT THOROUGHLY. THERE WERE A FEW MINOR ISSUES, BUT ONE STOOD OUT AS A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD. UPON FURTHER RESEARCH, IT SEEMS TO BE EXTREMELY COMMON TO ALL 1997-2003 F-150S. SYMPTOMS - THIS ISSUE MAINLY AFFECTS THE REAR LEFT AND RIGHT BRAKE LIGHTS, TURN SIGNALS, AND HAZARD LIGHTS. THESE LIGHTS, PARTICULARLY BRAKE LIGHTS, CAN CEASE TO FUNCTION ENTIRELY, INTERMITTENTLY AND UNKNOWN TO THE DRIVER. CAUSE - THERE IS A WIRE HARNESS WHICH CONNECTS TO THE "MULTI - FUNCTION SWITCH". THIS WIRE HARNESS IS PULLED WHEN THE STEERING WHEEL IS TILTED DOWN. AS A RESULT, THE CONNECTOR OR INDIVIDUAL TERMINALS CAN BECOME LOOSE OR DISCONNECTED. THIS PROBLEM IS MOST PREVALENT WITH THE STEERING WHEEL IN THE DOWN POSITION, BUT ONCE LOOSE CAN HAPPEN AT ANY POSITION AND ANY DRIVING SITUATION. SOLUTION - REPAIR OR REPLACE WITH MOTORCRAFT PART# WPT607, AND ENSURE THE HARNESS HAS ENOUGH SLACK TO ALLOW STEERING WHEEL TILT WITHOUT TENSION ON THE HARNESS. IN OUR CASE, I REPLACED THE CONNECTOR AND PULLED THE WIRES ENOUGH TO ALLOW SLACK FOR STEERING WHEEL TILT. THERE ARE NUMEROUS…”

“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 FORD F-150. WHILE OPERATING THE VEHICLE, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL NOISE. THE CONTACT INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND NOTICED EXTENSIVE RED SMOKE AND FIRE UNDER THE FRONT END OF THE VEHICLE. THE FIRE SPREAD TO ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED BY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. A FIRE INSPECTION REPORT WAS PROVIDED. TWO VEHICLES HAD BEEN IMPACTED DUE TO THE FIRE. THE INSURANCE COMPANY HAD NOT YET INSPECTED THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT WAS NOT AWARE OR NOTIFIED OF A SPEED CONTROL SYSTEM MODIFICATION FROM JANUARY 27, 2005 AND NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 11V385000 (FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE) AS OF JULY 29, 2011. THE DEALER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 275,000.”

“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 FORD F-150. WHILE REVERSING, THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A TELEPHONE POLE WHEN SHIFTING THE GEAR INTO DRIVE. THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED TO APPROXIMATELY 70-80 MPH. THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, BUT FAILED TO STOP THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A GARAGE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC, BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 100,000.”

“ALL I KNOW IS I WAS AT A NEIGHBORS FOR AROUND 1 1/2 HOURS AND WE HEAR A LOUD BOOM. WE RAN OUT SIDE AND MY TRUCK HOOD WAS ON FIRE, IT BURNED EVERYTHING VISIBLE ON TOP OF THE MOTOR AND TOWARD THE DRIVER FIREWALL . IT BUSTED THE DRIVER SIDE TIRE AND COMPLETELY BURNED EVERYTHING VISIBLE UNDER THE HOOD. THE DASH COMPONENTS AS FAR AS THE EYE CAN SEE ARE NOT BAD, UNKNOWN OF INTERNAL DAMAGE.I'M NOT SURE WHAT CAUSED THE PROBLEM. I DID GO TO THE RECALL SITE TO SEE IF THERE MAY HAVE BEEN SOMETHING I DID FIND THIS CONTROL SWITCH FOR SPEED RECALL AND NOT SURE IF IT APPLIES TO MINE.EVEN THOUGH IT BROUGHT IT UP WHEN I ENTERED MY VIN #. I DID RECEIVE A RECALL ON THE GAS TANK STRAPS BUT DID NOT REPLACE THEM THEY WERE IN GREAT SHAPE. BUT I DID NOT RECEIVE ON ON THIS. I DO HAVE PICTURES IF YOU NEED THEM. THANKS”