Summary
The Ford F-550 has 17 recalls spanning 1999 through 2021 model years, with the most serious being a 2020 model year rear axle differential that may have insufficient fluid, causing the axle assembly to fail and the driveshaft to separate, which can result in sudden loss of drive power and a crash.
Nearly all of these recalls apply to vehicles that were upfitted or converted by third-party manufacturers into ambulances, fire trucks, dump trucks, transit buses, and similar specialty configurations, so whether a given recall applies depends on how the vehicle was built out after leaving the factory.
On 2011-2012 models converted to run on compressed natural gas, the brackets holding the passenger-side CNG fuel tank can break and allow the tank to drop away from the frame, raising the risk of a crash or fire. Several separate recalls covering 2009-2013 models address a shared problem on vehicles with power take-off assemblies: a pressure switch in the PTO can leak oil onto a thermal blanket wrapped around the exhaust, and the heat from the exhaust can ignite that soaked material. On 2011 model year vehicles with a 6.7L diesel engine built into ambulance packages, an exhaust gas temperature sensor fault triggers a warning, reduces engine torque by 70 percent over 45 seconds, and can eventually stall the engine below 5 km/h.
On 2018-2019 first responder and emergency vehicles equipped with Whelen brake lights, faulty wiring can cause the brake lights to illuminate when the brake pedal has not been touched, which can confuse following drivers. Several 2018 model year vehicles with ASA Electronics Voyager backup camera monitors can revert to factory default settings and display a mirror-reversed image, causing the driver to steer the wrong direction when backing up. The same reversed-camera issue affects certain 2018-2019 vehicles built by a separate coachworks manufacturer. On 2014-2015 emergency vehicles, a faulty exhaust gas temperature sensor can falsely indicate overheating and shut the engine down, requiring a cool-down period before restart.
Going further back, a 2005 model fitted with an IOTA 50-amp transfer switch has electrical bus bar connections that can loosen under heavy load, overheat, and start a fire. The 1999 model year has a separate issue where valve stems may have been over-inserted during installation, tearing the rubber base and allowing tires to lose air pressure.
