Ford2 independent sources
2018 · Pickup (Regular Cab, SuperCab, SuperCrew)
2018 Ford F-150
The 2018 facelift of the thirteenth-generation F-150. The base engine dropped from 3.5L to a 3.3L V6, the 10-speed automatic spread to every engine above it, and a 3.0L Power Stroke diesel joined the range for the first time. The aluminium-alloy body introduced in 2015 carries over. Five engines were offered, and which one a truck has changes both what it can do and what it is known for.
Power250–395 hpTorque265–470 lb-ftEPA comb.19–25 mpgTows up to13,200 lbs
2018 Ford F-150 Lariat Crew Cab 3.5L EcoBoost front 4.22.19 by Kevauto · CC BY-SA 4.0 · cropped and resized
Facelift year
What changed for 2018
- Facelift year. The base engine dropped from a 3.5L to a 3.3L Ti-VCT V6.
- The ten-speed automatic spread to every engine above the base V6, which kept the six-speed.
- A 3.0L Power Stroke diesel joined the range for the first time.
- The 5.0L V8 moved to the third-generation Coyote, rated 395 hp against the previous 385 hp.
Before you hand over money
Check before you buy
- Check the title status first — clean, salvage, rebuilt or flood. On a truck this age a rebuilt title is common enough to be worth confirming before anything mechanical.
- Identify the engine from the VIN rather than the badge, and confirm whether the truck has the 6-speed or the 10-speed. Only the 3.3L uses the 6-speed.
- On an EcoBoost, listen at cold start for a rattle from the front of the engine that fades after a few seconds, and ask whether the cam phasers or timing chain have been touched.
- Look for open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov. This model year carries 19 recall campaigns, and dealers fix open ones free.
Five engines offered that year
Engines
Which engine a listing has is the first thing that changes the answer.
| Engine | Power | Torque | Transmission | Drive | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.3-TiVCT3.3L V6 | 290 hp | 265 lb-ft | 6-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 19 city / 25 hwy / 22 combined2WD |
| 2.7-EcoBoost2.7L V6 turbo | 325 hp | 400 lb-ft | 10-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 20 city / 26 hwy / 22 combined2WD |
| 3.5-EcoBoost3.5L V6 turbo | 375 hp | 470 lb-ft | 10-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 18 city / 25 hwy / 21 combined2WD |
| 5.0-Coyote5.0L V8 | 395 hp | 400 lb-ft | 10-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 17 city / 23 hwy / 19 combined2WD |
| 3.0-PowerStroke3.0L V6 turbo diesel | 250 hp | 440 lb-ft | 10-speed automatic | RWD or 4WD | 22 city / 30 hwy / 25 combined2WD |
EPA city / highway / combined, from fueleconomy.gov.
NHTSA public records
Complaints and recalls
Where the complaints land · top 6
POWER TRAIN696
ENGINE281
STRUCTURE159
UNKNOWN OR OTHER140
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM106
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING82
All other categories391
A complaint count is not a failure rate. It tracks how many of these were sold and how much attention a problem drew, so a popular car will always show more complaints than a rare one. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, retrieved 2026-08-11.
Against the rest of the generation: 1.59 where 1.00 is the average complaint volume per year on the road across the 6 model years written up here. Dividing by age is what makes the comparison mean anything; the raw counts alone favour whichever year is youngest.
Same car, different year
This year, or the one next to it?
This is the facelift, so the gap to 2017 is the widest in the generation: a new 3.3L base engine, the ten-speed automatic on every engine above it, the first Power Stroke diesel and the third-generation Coyote V8. It also carries the generation's highest complaint volume, and by a margin that survives adjusting for age - 1.59 against the generation average, where the next highest is 1.17. Against 2019, the powertrains are identical and the complaint record is not: 2019 sits at 0.95.
Documented mechanisms
Known problems
Charging system: battery and alternator
The alternator charges the battery while the engine runs and powers everything electrical. Both are consumable parts with a service life, and on a used car at least one of them has usually been replaced already — or is due.
Air conditioning compressor failure
The compressor is the pump in the air conditioning loop. When it seizes it can send metal debris through the whole system, which turns a component replacement into a system job.
Suspension and steering noise
Bushings, ball joints, link rods and strut mounts are rubber and grease components that wear continuously. They rarely fail suddenly; they get gradually noisier and vaguer, which is why a test drive on a rough road tells you more than one on smooth pavement.
Turbocharger wear and failure
A turbocharger runs at very high speed on an oil-fed bearing, driven by exhaust gas. Its condition is tied directly to the engine's oil history, which makes service records more informative here than on most components.
Carbon buildup on intake valves
In a direct-injection engine the fuel is sprayed into the cylinder rather than at the intake valve. Nothing washes the back of that valve, so deposits from crankcase ventilation and exhaust gas recirculation accumulate there over time.
Metallic rattle from the bellhousing on the 5.0L
A grinding or rattling metallic noise from where the engine meets the transmission. It sounds like an expensive transmission problem and is not one: Ford traced it to the torque converter studs touching a spacer plate, and the fix is a redesigned plate. Worth knowing before a noise like this talks you out of an otherwise sound truck — or into paying for a gearbox.
Cam phaser rattle on the 3.5L EcoBoost
A rattle on a cold start, or a knock at warm idle. Ford ran two programmes for it in 2021 — a software reflash and, for trucks that took the reflash in time, replacement of all four cam phasers. Both have expired, so what is left for a buyer is the paperwork: whether this particular truck was reflashed, and whether the phasers were ever changed.
Seat belt pretensioner that can start a fire in a crash
A front seat belt pretensioner fires in a crash, as it is supposed to, and the sparks it throws can set light to the insulation inside the door pillar. Ford recalled 1,619,112 F-150s for it. The repair is free with no expiry, and the cab style tells you in seconds whether a particular truck is in scope.
Engine block heater cable and the risk of fire
A cold-weather option most owners never think about, recalled three times in three years — including once for damage caused by the previous recall repair. If the truck has a block heater, "recall completed" on a VIN check is not the end of the question here; what matters is whether the cable was replaced or only switched off.
Shift quality on the Ford 10R80 ten-speed
Owners of F-150s with the ten-speed automatic report harsh, abrupt and unpredictable shifting. Ford's position has been that the behaviour is normal for the transmission and it has not been recalled; a consolidated federal class action disputing that survived a motion to dismiss in 2021 and the claims are on the record. This file describes what is reported and what is documented, not a failure rate.
What it is good at
Strengths
Running it
Ownership and maintenance
Drivetrain
RWD or part-time 4WDTows up to 13,200 lbs (3.5L EcoBoost, properly equipped)Maximum tow and payload ratings depend on engine, cab, bed length, axle ratio and whether the truck has the tow package. The door-jamb sticker and the door label give the numbers for that specific truck; a range quoted for the model does not.
Parts
Common — parts and independent shops are easy to findThe best-selling vehicle in the US for over four decades. Both original and aftermarket parts are widely stocked and independent shops know the truck well. The exception is body repair: the aluminium panels need a separately equipped shop.
Transmission note
6-speed automatic · 10-speed automaticThe 10R80 10-speed drew shift-quality reports on this generation — harsh engagement, hunting between gears and a shudder at low speed. Ford addressed several of these through software recalibration. Ask whether the transmission control software is at the latest level before assuming the fault is mechanical.
Service intervals
Engine oil and filterPer the Intelligent Oil-Life MonitorThe interval is calculated rather than fixed. Turbocharged engines are less forgiving of a stretched interval than the naturally aspirated ones.
Transmission fluidPer the manufacturer's stated intervalThe 10-speed 10R80 uses a specific fluid specification. Shift quality complaints are sometimes addressed with a software update before any hardware work.
Spark plugsPer the manufacturer's stated intervalNot applicable to the diesel.
Engine air filterPer the manufacturer's stated interval, shorter in dusty use
Diesel exhaust fluidRefilled as consumed3.0L Power Stroke only.
Cost items
Relative bands only. What a job costs depends on your region, the shop and where the parts come from, so a dollar figure written here would be wrong for most readers — and a wrong number costs more trust than a missing one.
HighCam phaser or timing chain workThe largest likely engine expense on the EcoBoost engines, and labour is the bigger share of it.
HighTurbocharger replacementEcoBoost engines only.
MediumTransmission service or software update
MediumBrakes and suspension wear itemsLoads and towing use shorten these intervals.
HighAluminium body panel repairAluminium repair needs a shop equipped and certified for it, which is a smaller pool than for steel.