2008 Ford E-350 problems & reliability
38 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2008 Ford E-350, alongside 29 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
1 complaint report injuries (2 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2008 Ford E-350 vehicles were involved in 17 fatal crashes with 3 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Steering → | 12 | 32% |
| Suspension | 7 | 18% |
| Structure | 6 | 16% |
| Service Brakes | 4 | 11% |
| Engine | 3 | 8% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 3 | 8% |
| Tires | 3 | 8% |
| Unknown OR Other | 3 | 8% |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 2 | 5% |
| Power Train | 2 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 60,000 miles (middle 50% between 24,000 and 101,000 miles), based on 29 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“When there is any dew or moisture of any kind on the road the truck wont stop without the front breaks locking up and wont stop, Also the spark plugs have blown out of the motor prior to this it starts to develop A misfire, And The rear sustention is so weak the rear of the truck drags the ground when there is A low…”
Engine · filed Jun 20, 2025
“Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford e-350. The contact stated that when about to drive of, a thud or clunk was heard without warning. The vehicle was taken to the barber ford ventura dealer (805-691-8436, 3440 main st, ventura ca 93003) where it was diagnosed that there was a "slip yoke" in the drive shaft. The…”
Power Train · filed Oct 30, 2018
“Ford trucks 2008-10 are known to have turbo, emission and radiator problems. Causing the vehicles to stop running. They have a pipe before turbos that burns on the inside causing it not to clean out. We take good care of our vehicles, we do oil changes every 4000 miles, we change tires and keep everything clean and up…”
Engine · filed Feb 20, 2018
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- HVAC Switch Failures
Engineering Analysis EA10003 · opened Apr 13, 2010 · closed Mar 5, 2012
- HVAC Switch Failures
Preliminary Evaluation PE09055 · opened Dec 7, 2009 · closed Apr 21, 2010
Technical service bulletins
26 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2008 Ford E-350. The 10 most recent:
Ford and Lincoln vehicles equipped with wired keyless entry keypad systems and accessory wireless keyless entry keypad systems may or may not come with a wallet card containing the master code. Unlike the integrated…
SSM 54601 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 24, 2026
All accessory stick-on keyless entry keypads come with a wallet card containing the master code. If the accessory keypad was factory installed, this card will be placed in the glove box and should be handed to the…
SSM 52476 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 24, 2024
When performing any transmission fluid changes or topoffs involving MERCON SP, MERCON LV has replaced all versions of MERCON SP and can be used going forward. Mixing MERCON LV and MERCON SP in the same transmission is…
SSM 51909 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 7, 2023
Replacing the original equipment SYNC/Navigation system with either an aftermarket SYNC/Navigation kit or modifying original SYNC/Navigation parts to provide additional features is not recommended nor supported on any…
SSM 47201 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 30, 2018
The Accessory (Wireless) Keyless Entry Keypad can only be used with vehicles that are factory built with Remote Keyless Entry (RKE). The master code for the Accessory (Wireless) Keyless Entry Keypad can be retrieved…
SSM 47009 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 10, 2018
4R75E Transmission - Grinding/Whine/Vibration/Gear Slippage - Serrvice Kit available
TSB160032 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2016
4R75E TRANSMISSION - GRINDING/WHINE/VIBRATION/GEAR SLIPPAGE - SERVICE KIT AVAILABLE ISSUE A service kit has been released to assist with proper repair of the 4R75E transmission in 2008 Mark LT, 2008-2010 F-150…
16-0032 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2016
Ford/lincoln/mercury: failure of planetary gear assembly is due to transmission, on certain vehicles, exhibiting grinding, gear slippage, whine type noise, vibration, while driving or loss of reverse. *pe
TSB-14-0153 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 21, 2014
Ford: when shifting between park, reverse and/or during 2-3 shift, an intermittent clunk occurs with a torqshift transmission. Model 2003-2014 f-super duty, e series, excursion, f-53 motorhome chassis, low cab forward…
ASI-44534 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 1, 2014
Ford/lincoln/mercury: the indicator may illuminate overdrive off and/or slipping in 3rd or no 4th gear, due to direct clutch failure and diagnostic trouble code (dtc) p0733 and/or p0734. Model 2008-2013 mark lt, f-150…
ASI-44538 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 1, 2014
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2008 Ford E-350 has 29 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2008 Ford E-350?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 60,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.