1999 Ford E-450 problems & reliability
73 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1999 Ford E-450, alongside 2 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 (1 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1999 Ford E-450 vehicles were involved in 1 fatal crash with 1 occupant death. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tires → | 38 | 52% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic → | 20 | 27% |
| Power Train | 7 | 10% |
| Wheels | 3 | 4% |
| Engine | 2 | 3% |
| Structure | 2 | 3% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 2 | 3% |
| Air Bags | 1 | 1% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 1 | 1% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 1% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 12 reported components →Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Driver reported intermittent cruise control issue. When researching possible solutions to the issue became aware of cruise control deactivation switch issue. It is under ford recall 05s28. It is by all accounts, a fire hazard. On 6/23/2015 took the vehicle in to a ford dealer in rochester, n.y.for service under the…”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed Jun 23, 2015
“Ford v10 triton blows up a spark plug while we are looking at the engine our rv filled with propane, with my handicap son and grandchild in the rv. Heard a loud lifter noise, pulled over to look at the engine, as my husband was looking at the engine then the loud explosion thought we blew a motor I came out to see if…”
Engine · filed Jan 29, 2015
“I found out that because of a design flaw in the ford triton engine cylinder heads they are prone to "spark plug blow out". In certain instances this can result in fire as the spark plug becomes a missile and can break fuel lines etc. After such an event the repair for out of warranty vehicles can easily be well into…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed Apr 25, 2008
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- HVAC Switch Failures
Preliminary Evaluation PE09055 · opened Dec 7, 2009 · closed Apr 21, 2010
- ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES
Engineering Analysis EA05005 · opened Mar 22, 2005 · closed Aug 2, 2006 · led to recall 08V025000
- RAPID TIRE DEFLATION
Engineering Analysis EA02018 · opened Aug 19, 2002 · closed Aug 22, 2003
Technical service bulletins
21 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1999 Ford E-450. The 10 most recent:
Cracks in the left or right spring tower flange. *tt spring tower weld repair and replacement procedure. *tt
0511 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 14, 2005
Vibration/harshness above 45 mph (72 km/h) after tire balance. *tt
05248 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2005
Fluid leaking from the vent on the transmission mounted parking brake assembly. *tt
18382 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2005
Clunk from front suspension. *tt
17520 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2004
Some vehicles without front brake dust shields may exhibit premature wear of the front wheel bearings. *tt
15591 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2002
Some cut-away vehicles may exhibit anti-skid brake system diagnostic trouble code c1229, c1230 and c1237. *tt
14963 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 1, 2001
Some vehicles with model 80 rear axles only may exhibit a whine above 35 mph. *tt
13822 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2001
The rear suspension system installation and maintenance guide revision d. (bfgoodrich velvet-ride suspension system). *tt
06811026D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 20, 2001
Some vehicles with model 80 rear axles only, may exhibit a whine above 35 mph. *tt
8048 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 1, 2000
Some vehicles with model 80 rear axles only may exhibit a whine above 35 mph. *tt
8048 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 1, 2000
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 1999 Ford E-450 has 2 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 1999 Ford E-450?
- · 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.