Automatic Transmission Control Module problems of the 2020 Ford F-150

I am writing to provide supplemental information regarding my existing safety complaints (ids xxxand xxx). This update concerns a documented failure by Ford’s authorized dealer network to perform mandated customer satisfaction programs (csps) that directly correlate to the catastrophic powertrain failures I have experienced. Timeline and documentation of failure: • August & September 2025: as previously reported, my vehicle suffered sudden "reduced power" malfunctions while in motion (p0734/p07f7), leading to a full transmission replacement. Discovery of non-disclosure: my records now confirm that on November 11, 2022—just weeks before I purchased this vehicle as a Ford blue advantage gold certified unit—crossroads Ford (dunn, nc) documented that 21n03 (cam phasers), 21n08 (pcm reprogram), and 21m06 (tailgate) were outstanding. • breach of duty: despite this knowledge, the dealership sold me the vehicle on December 3, 2022, without completing these safety-related service actions. Furthermore, as the registered owner, I never received the required notification from Ford motor company regarding the 21b10 program or its supplements. Safety implication: the failure to apply the 21b10/21n08 updates directly contributed to the mechanical failure of the cam phasers and transmission. This resulted in the vehicle entering "limp mode" during highway operation, creating a severe risk of rear-end collisions due to the sudden loss of motive power. I request that these facts be added to my existing case files. The lack of manufacturer oversight regarding "certified" vehicle standards has resulted in a vehicle that was represented as safe and fully maintained while actually harboring known, unaddressed mechanical defects. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

At around 61,000 miles my transmission started having a shuttering noise and had a harsh jerky shift from 3rd to 5th when vehicle was recently started up for the first time of the day. Multiple TSB's on Ford's website for this issue including the latest TSB 25-2301. It appears that the interior drum has failed which has been a known issue. Dealer states $6219. 87 to repair the transmission. Cdf TSB, replace the valve body, and reprogram the pcm.

I was driving eastbound on city streets at 30 mph with my three young children when the vehicle exhibited abnormal shifting behavior, searching for a gear. Despite being in 9th gear, traveling the speed limit, and lightly pressing the pedal, the vehicle experienced a rough downshift and lost power while going up a small incline over a freeway overpass. I turned on my hazards and attempted to move over to avoid an accident, which I successfully did. The vehicle regained power after restarting with rough shifts in the lower gears. I put the vehicle in manual mode to better control the shifting, though it remained incredibly rough. The kids were shaken and refuse to drive in the vehicle. Since then, I’ve only driven it to have it serviced at our local Ford dealer. They stated everything was fine after the transmission fluid exchange and battery replacement. However, the vehicle still exhibited rough shifting behavior on the short drive home. A friend pulled codes from the tcm/ecu and found p0734-00, p07f7-00, and p2535-00. He assisted, backed up the ecu/tcm, re-flashed the onboard ecu/tcm with the latest mappings, and reset the adaptive learning. He then drove the vehicle with diagnostics equipment connected and recorded the driving data, finding that the transmission was losing pressure and the shift behavior was slightly better but still rough shifts between 2-4 and 7-8 gear. Once the drive/test was completed, codes p0761 and p2702 appeared on the reader. He explained that the issues pointed to a cdf drum defect, which has several TSB’s published. He advised me to stop driving it and reach out to the dealer or local qualified shop. I was quoted between $7,677-$8,978 to replace trans with reman unit. Vehicle has been maintained with all records on file and is in nearly perfect condition with exception of the transmission due to the cdf defect. I would love to see action taken to prevent injury/death as I could see that occurring at some point.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that while the vehicle was locked and parked on the street with the engine running and unoccupied, the transmission erroneously shifted into gear and the vehicle drove forward. The contact stated that the vehicle crashed into another parked vehicle and landscaping and missed crashing into another vehicle that was driving in the opposite direction. The contact expressed concerns because no one was present inside the vehicle during the failure. The contact stated that the police department was contacted but no officers showed up on scene. No injuries were reported. The cause of the failure was not determined. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the pcm needed to be reprogrammed; however, the vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 22,000.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. In addition, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the transmission shuddered. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the contact was informed that a tune-up was needed. The tune-up was performed; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed with catalytic converter failure. The contact was informed that the catalytic converter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle was repaired under an unknown recall and the pcm was reprogrammed. The unknown recall repair was performed the day prior to the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,400.

On [xxx] while attempting to take a trip to wv we were traveling on [xxx] nearing waynesboro, va. While driving up the mountain on [xxx] near the rockfish gap overlook I noticed our F-150 seemed to mis-shift or slip. As we’d experienced issues during a previous trip that required the transmission to be serviced under warranty I switched the display to the transmission temperature near 245 degrees. I attempted to put the truck in eco mode and slowed below the speed limit to the top of the mountain. While going down the west side of the mountain I left the truck in cruise. Past the [xxx] exit I noticed smoke which began to increase. I then checked the temperature again which reported 267 degrees. The wrench warning light came on indicating reduced power. I also received the notification on the Fordpass application. The truck quickly slowed down and would not accelerate forcing me to hastily move to the shoulder in heavy traffic. We pulled over at stopped right in front of mile marker [xxx]. A large amount of transmission fluid observed pouring out from above the bell housing onto the exhaust. It appeared and smelled like it was possible to catch on fire so I did not park over grass, remaining on the concrete shoulder. After a dealer tech simply reset the computer and stated it was fine we drove the truck home, but did not feel safe or sure that it would make the trip. The transmission temperature remained below 220 the trip home but did have delayed shifts. The next day I had three incidents after exiting the interstate of a failure to find a gear for a moment as I attempted to take a turn. Our dealer that we trust has already completed two TSB actions related to the transmission. The other dealer cleared the computer and did nothing to repair the issue. They also attempted to charge me for a diagnostic fee, even though it’s under warranty and clearly had issues to include gear ratios being wrong and ecm/pcm and bcm communication failures. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia.

My truck started to throw codes p0240 and p0430 when my truck hit 81000 miles. I am now at 141000 miles. I have since replaced both of my catalytic converters, all 4 of my O2 sensors and I still have the same p0240 and p0430 codes. I also took my truck into Ford on Feb 26, 2025 for the recall on my pcm reprogramming. They claimed to have redone the programming but ever since they did that, I now have shifting problems, surging, clanking, hard shifting, random and sporadic shifting with no end in sight. This should be addressed by Ford TSB 24-2101 but again, they did nothing and claim there is nothing wrong with my truck. I have had a fluid replacement and filter replacement with no issues noted, no metal parts, no burnt smell or burnt fluid. Today I came across Ford TSB 24-2184 where they acknowledge that there is an issue with the calibration and controls sensitivity and that replacement of catalytic converters may be necessary. Ford never did any of this. The recall on my truck, which was reprogramming of my pcm also leads to dirty and fouling of the catalytic converter. I have spent over $3000 so far to fix Fords mistakes and not only in nothing fixed, I still have the exact same issues. When I take it to Ford, all the do is clear the codes and then the codes come back on before I get home. So Ford is aware of the issues, knows about the issue and yet will do nothing to fix it.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that the check engine warning light remained illuminated due to the excessive oil consumption of the vehicle. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who diagnosed that the pcm module failed and needed to be replaced. Additionally, the dip stick needed to be replaced with a longer dip stick. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 72,000.

My check engine light came on. Vehicle would not operate. Checked oil and it was down over 5 quarts of oil but I still had 2,000 miles until oil change was needed. Took to hiller Ford with excessive oil consumption complaint. New oil dipstick, oil plug, oil change, and reprogrammed pcm. Returned at later date with same issue. Was told to monitor oil levels and sent on my way. Returned to hiller at a later date with even faster consumption than earlier visits. Was told I had to pay for oil change and come back in 2,000 miles. At 1,000 miles engine sounded rough so I returned to hiller Ford who agreed the oil was low. They topped off oil abs told me to come back in another 1,000 miles. 500 miles later I checked oil and barely appeared on the dipstick. I returned to hiller Ford who agreed my truck was consuming oil faster than it should per Ford specs. Hiller kept my vehicle and ran compression test and then scoped my motor to observe damages. Hiller said that I needed a new motor and it falls under warranty and has been approved by Ford. They then followed up with the new motor would not be available for 18 months. I was told that no rental reimbursement allowance and that I'd have to operate my non conformity vehicle for 18 months. Operating this vehicle is unsafe and is prone to cause damage to other components of the vehicle. Engine could over heat causing its to seize or even start on fire. The increased emissions are not only bad for the environment but would decrease fuel efficiency and be very costly having to add a quart of oil every 500 miles.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the transmission shifted into gear, and the vehicle made an abnormal sound. Additionally, the transmission was slipping while driving. The transmission later failed to shift into gear, and the engine revved loudly. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be rebuilt. The vehicle was then taken to bz Ford (309 us-6, ligonier, in 46767), where the pcm was reprogrammed and the drive cycle was completed; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to bz Ford, and it was determined that the transmission needed to be rebuilt. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the transmission hesitated and made an abnormal clunking sound. In addition, the rear of the vehicle was shaking abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the failure was not duplicated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer several times due to the failure. The contact stated that the transmission was rebuilt in 2023. In addition, the contact stated that the pcm was reprogrammed in 2022. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.

(1) 12/23/2024, transmission clunk between 3 rd and 4 th gear, ( replaced main control valve body). Miles 42,110 11/27/2024, transmission clunk between 3 rd and 4 th gear, ( found code p2705 found valve sticking-worked valves manually to unstick). Miles 41,442 3/13/2024 transmission stuck in 5 th gear , would not go in reverse either. This problem started after driving 233 miles after repair, of 2/28/2024 miles 35,113 2/28/2024 transmission clunk between 3 rd and 4 th gear, ( installed new cdf drum and components). Miles 34,880 3/17/2022 transmission clunk between 3 rd and 4 th gear ( found pcm update preformed ) miles 14,061.

This appears to be a possible pcm relay failure or electrical system malfunction . This seems to be a documented issue out there on various websites and forums. I was with my wife and son when the vehicle started running extremely rough and lost nearly all power on a busy roadway. This caused a very dangerous situation for my family in attempting to get the vehicle off the main roadway. Multiple dash lights came on and the system advised of "park brake limited service required", "hill assist not available" and "drive modes not available". After getting the vehicle off the roadway and parked, the vehicle stalled and would not start or run. I have not taken this to the dealer yet to determine the issue.

Bought the truck new October 2020 and checked the oil after a month having the truck having 1600 miles on it and there was no oil on the dipstick. It's a 5. 0 coyote v8. Took it to the dealer immediately and they added 5 qts of oil! there is a TSB out where they change pcm software and replace the dipstick. Shouldn't this be done before I took the truck home if they knew about it??.

The contact owns a 2020 Ford F-150. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the transmission shifted hard and shifted into neutral unintendedly. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred two weeks later. The vehicle was taken to the same dealer where it was it was determined that the tcm needed a second software update. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.