CSR

Ford · NHTSA safety record

2021 Ford F-53

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 13 safety complaints about the 2021 Ford F-53 with the US government. Of those, no death is recorded. 2 recall campaigns are open against it, covering the suspension.

The most complained-about system is the suspension, named in 5 complaints, 38% of the total.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers September 2021 to March 2025 · How this is counted

What is on file

13 complaints on file

13

Complaints

0

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

0

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
SUSPENSION 5 · 38%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 3 · 23%
EQUIPMENT 2 · 15%
POWER TRAIN 2 · 15%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 2 · 15%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 2 · 15%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 · 8%
SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 8%
STEERING 1 · 8%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 · 8%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 13.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2022 at 6.

8 6 4 2
21 22 23 24 25

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2021 to 2025.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA has not crash tested the 2021 Ford F-53. Its New Car Assessment Program tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It is not a low score.

What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke during ordinary use.

Recall campaigns

2 on file

SUSPENSION:REAR

22V731000 · September 30, 2022

The defect
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2021 F-53 recreational stripped chassis vehicles. The rear stabilizer bar attachment brackets may break and separate from the vehicle.
The risk
Brackets that separate from the vehicle can create a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect the bolt tightness for both rear stabilizer attachment brackets and replace the weld nuts and bolts, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 8, 2023. Remedy parts are expected to become ready February 28, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 22S62.

Ford Motor Company · up to 13,455 vehicles across all model years covered

SUSPENSION:REAR

21V202000 · March 24, 2021

The defect
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2020-2021 F-53 Motorhome Stripped Chassis and F-59 Commercial Stripped Chassis vehicles. An inadequate amount of rear axle lubricant may cause rear wheel bearing damage and bearing seizure, and rear axle or driveshaft failure.
The risk
Failure of the rear axle or driveshaft may cause the loss of motive power, failure of the parking brake, and the inability to shift the transmission into "PARK," increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace the rear wheel bearings, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 12, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S17.

Ford Motor Company · up to 16,128 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

EQUIPMENT:MECHANICAL:INTEGRATED JACK/LEVELER/STABILIZER:HOSES/CABLES/RODS/GEARS/STRUT/CYLINDER

8,166 miles

The contact owns a 2021 Ford F-53. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact noticed that the chassis was lowered down. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact looked underneath the trailer and noticed that the chassis had lowered down. The vehicle was taken to a dealer however, the dealer declined to diagnose the vehicle. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not repaired because the vehicle was not under recall. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 8,166.

NHTSA complaint 11650566. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SUSPENSION
22S62 - Loose Rear Stabilizer Bar Bracket Bolts. The rear stabilizer bar attachment brackets may break and separate from the vehicle during usage. NOTE: This is a safety risk that I do not want to take. Ford Pro has not been able to locate a Ford Repair in the local area(within 100 miles) that can do this repair. NOTE2: The offical notice was issued in Jult 2024 from Ford, P,O, Box 1904, Dearborn, MI 48212-1904.

NHTSA complaint 11612549. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SUSPENSION
Front bump stops for suspension fell of in first 5k miles. I had them replaced and less than 1k miles later one of them is falling off again. This is a common issue with ford F53 RV owners, regardless of final RV maker (mine is Tiffin, but Thor and Fleetwood owners all are having this issue). According to the service ticket this was a revised part. This is a real safety issue as the front springs are now steel on steel in a bump scenario and could cause an driver to loose control..

NHTSA complaint 11586542. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

2,981 miles

The contact owns a 2021 Ford F53. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the electronic braking system independently engaged, causing all the rear tires to shake without warning. The contact pulled off to the shoulder of the highway with white-colored smoke coming from the rear end of the vehicle. The contact called for assistance, but the contact was instructed to drive the vehicle in 20-minute increments until he arrived at a service center. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the dealer where it was determined that the electronic brake had overheated. The manufacturer was notified of the failure by the dealer and the contact was informed that the vehicle would not be covered

NHTSA complaint 11560664, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SUSPENSION
The contact owns a 2021 Ford F53. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V731000 (Suspension) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. Several local dealers were contacted, and the contact was informed that an appointment to repair the vehicle was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed there was no appointment yet available to repair the vehicle under recall. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA complaint 11541138. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL
The contact owns a 2021 Ford F53. The contact stated that the automatic headlight switch failed to turn on. The contact was unable to view the instrument cluster. The contact had to utilize the windshield wipers for the automatic headlights to operate as needed. The contact covered the electric eye while activating the headlights. The contact called and notified an unknown local dealer of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA complaint 11529386. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Ford F-53

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2020 32 2 —
2018 11 1 —
2016 15 1 —
2014 17 1 —
2013 8 1 —

Other 2021 Ford models

Every Ford on this site — 359 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst