1978 Ford F250 Recalls, Complaints & Specs

9 safety recalls list the 1978 Ford F250, and owners have filed 2 complaints with NHTSA. Check your own VIN below.

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9 safety recalls for the 1978 Ford F250

Most recent first. Recall repairs are free at any authorised dealer. Click a recall for the full defect, consequence and remedy text.

1. Retractor (seat belts)

   NHTSA 78V168000 Reported August 7, 1978 7 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   The driver"s side shoulder belt retractor mounting bracket assembly contains a weld nut which was improperly attached to the bracket. This fails to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 210, "seat belt assembly anchorages".

   Remedy: The dealer will repair the left side shoulder belt retractor mounting bracket on the involved vehicles free of charge.

2. Linkages (steering)

   NHTSA 78V109000 Reported May 15, 1978 77 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   These vehicles may be equipped with steering linkages on which cotter pins may not have been installed on castellated nuts to secure the steering drag link and tie-rod connections. Also, these attaching nuts may not have been tightened to specifications. This could allow linkage separation.

   Remedy: The dealer will perform necessary corrections to the steering linkage attachments.

3. Automatic transmission (power train)

   NHTSA 78V096000 Reported April 28, 1978 61,417 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   Some of these vehicles may be equipped with automatic transmissions that were assembled with improperly manufactured cast iron extension housings. The housings have mislocated cast cam plate stops. A mislocated stop may prevent the transmission from locking in the park position when the gear shift selector lever is placed in the "p"…

   Remedy: Dealer will inspect and, if necessary, replace the transmission extension housing without charge to owner.

4. Column shift (power train)

   NHTSA 78V035000 Reported February 16, 1978 47,339 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   The shift selector reaction springs may be deformed as a result of improper installation of selector levers during column buildup. Thus the lever may not be able to be moved into the insert detents located in the steering column assembly. This could prevent the "park" gear from being engaged.

   Remedy: Dealer will inspect and, if necessary, replace the shift selector reaction spring without charge to owner.

5. Multi piece (wheels)

   NHTSA 78V024000 Reported January 30, 1978 9,000 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   The wheel rim diameters on these vehicles may exceed dimensional specifications. This may cause the tires and tubes to be overstressed during mounting or improperly mounted.

   Remedy: The dealer will inspect and, if necessary, replace the wheels, and the tires and tubes mounted on these wheels.

6. Carburetor system (fuel system)

   NHTSA 77V198000 Reported November 15, 1977 30,000 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   On the involved vehicles, leakage may occur at the threaded carburetor-to-fuel filter connection on the suspect carburetors. This is due to an improperly machined carburetor fuel inlet connection.

   Remedy: Dealer will inspect and, if necessary, will replace the carburetor without charge to owner.

7. Column shift (power train)

   NHTSA 77V185000 Reported October 25, 1977 19,000 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   On the involved vehicles, the park actuation support plates are defective due to their susceptibility to cracking due to improper heat treatment during manufacture. As a result, fragments from a broken plate can become lodged in the transmission parking pawl mechanism. This could prevent the transmission parking pawl from engaging when…

   Remedy: The dealer will replace the park actuation cam support plates, free of charge, on all affected vehicles.

8. Linkages (steering)

   NHTSA 77V169000 Reported October 12, 1977 13,707 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   The pitman arm to steering gear attachment nuts may not have been properly tightened on the involved vehicles. The nut could come off during vehicle operation.

   Remedy: Dealer will tighten the pitman arm attaching nut to the correct specifications without charge to owner.

9. Vehicle speed control

   NHTSA 77V161000 Reported September 23, 1977 16,000 vehicles potentially affected FORD MOTOR COMPANY

   Some of the involved vehicles may have defective carburetors in which, under certain circumstances, the secondary throttle plates may stick open.

   Remedy: Dealer will inspect and, if necessary, replace the carburetor at no charge to owner.

2 owner complaints filed with NHTSA

Owners of the 1978 Ford F250 have filed 2 complaints with NHTSA. The average mileage at failure in those reports is 120,000 miles. Complaints peaked in 1996 with 1 filed that year.

Most-reported components

• Engine and engine cooling: manifold/header/muffler/tail pipe1
• Fuel system, gasoline1
• Power train: automatic transmission1

What owners are reporting

“We have a 1978 f250 and according to what i can tell there are several safety recalls. How can i know whether or not they were fixed. This was before ford kept computer records (maybe). Any help you c”

Owner complaint to NHTSA, December 17, 2009 · Power train

“Warped engine exhaust manifold due to design flaw. *ak”

Owner complaint to NHTSA, June 24, 1996 · Engine and engine cooling

Compare Ford F250 model years

Recall and complaint counts for every Ford F250 model year in NHTSA's database.

Checking a specific 1978 Ford F250

Other Ford models

• F-15037,961 complaints
• Explorer34,566 complaints
• Escape27,430 complaints
• Fusion22,405 complaints
• Focus22,096 complaints
• Taurus18,159 complaints
• Windstar14,158 complaints
• Edge14,065 complaints

Source: NHTSA recall and complaint databases and EPA fuel economy data, October 2026. Complaint counts are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. Recall counts are safety campaigns that list this model year; whether a particular car was already repaired depends on its VIN. How this data is compiled.