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Steering Tie Rod Failure at Speed - Ranger Raptor

Jason B

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The Bronco Raptor suspension is completely different from the RR suspension. But the standard Bronco suspension is very similar to the RR. The RR arms are just a little wider than the standard suspension.
I see. I assumed that since Bronco and Ranger were on the same platform, that the Raptor versions were also.
 

cc1999

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I see. I assumed that since Bronco and Ranger were on the same platform, that the Raptor versions were also.
Bronco Raptor shares a lot of its suspension with the F150 Raptor.
Ranger Raptor is pretty much its own thing.

Even the bolt pattern on the wheels of the BR is the same as the F150s where the regular Bronco's shares the same bolt pattern as all the Rangers.
 

Onceaneagle

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Sorry for my rant here, which is about not understanding what is going on here with Ford Performance. I do not offroad. I do not abuse my trucks. But I expect them to perform, as built, within the engineered specs.​
So, if I got this right, the RR tie rod is weak or not as strong as it should be on a Ford Performance truck built to take a beating right out the factory door as built, just like a BR which apparently now has a beefier tie rod after having issues.​
So how many adults and kids must be killed or injured in a RR during loss of steering control with the ensuing lawsuits before Ford's leadership decides maybe this tie rod and the entire RR steering system needs to be beefed up as stock, even if it means raising the price? Not saying there are deaths and injuries due to tie rod failure because we have not seen any data on it, although the BR Forum has comments claiming broken tie rods are more common than I thought.​
And I understand lawyers and corporate "acceptable risk" assessments, and cost cutting, and how much money companies like Ford set aside to pay for law suits.​
But I am still having difficulty understanding how Ford makes a RR tie rod underengineered to the point to be "sacrificed" that can also cause loss of control and death or injury that does not get investigated by the feds.​
One solution seems to be well, just put these BR parts on the RR because these are beefy and should fit, or just buy this after market sleeve and life will now be good.​
Yet, dangerous is still dangerous and not everyone has the expertise or the money to swap out OEM parts that should not have to be swapped out to begin with, not as upgrades to make what is strong already to become even stronger, but to make what is weak now strong enough to make the vehicle safe enough to drive offroad as a performance truck, as it was intended to be driven.​
Are you RR owners happy about this? Because as of now I am glad I did not buy one, as I would not trust it driving down my county roads under the same conditions that the OP went through and thankfully was not hurt or worse.​
 

daytoncarter

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Sorry for my rant here, . . .​
I'm not sure there's evidence of anything more than a one-off issue at the moment, meaning the outrage might not yet be warranted. As many have suggested it could've been any number of issues, not necessarily a design defect.


I asked for pictures days ago and still haven't seen the impacted side of the truck or wheel/tire. My undisclosed theory is the truck lost grip in the front, spun, hit the ditch snapping the tie rod. So far, this theory hasn't been dispelled by any evidence.
 

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cc1999

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Sorry for my rant here, which is about not understanding what is going on here with Ford Performance. I do not offroad. I do not abuse my trucks. But I expect them to perform, as built, within the engineered specs.​
So, if I got this right, the RR tie rod is weak or not as strong as it should be on a Ford Performance truck built to take a beating right out the factory door as built, just like a BR which apparently now has a beefier tie rod after having issues.​
So how many adults and kids must be killed or injured in a RR during loss of steering control with the ensuing lawsuits before Ford's leadership decides maybe this tie rod and the entire RR steering system needs to be beefed up as stock, even if it means raising the price? Not saying there are deaths and injuries due to tie rod failure because we have not seen any data on it, although the BR Forum has comments claiming broken tie rods are more common than I thought.​
And I understand lawyers and corporate "acceptable risk" assessments, and cost cutting, and how much money companies like Ford set aside to pay for law suits.​
But I am still having difficulty understanding how Ford makes a RR tie rod underengineered to the point to be "sacrificed" that can also cause loss of control and death or injury that does not get investigated by the feds.​
One solution seems to be well, just put these BR parts on the RR because these are beefy and should fit, or just buy this after market sleeve and life will now be good.​
Yet, dangerous is still dangerous and not everyone has the expertise or the money to swap out OEM parts that should not have to be swapped out to begin with, not as upgrades to make what is strong already to become even stronger, but to make what is weak now strong enough to make the vehicle safe enough to drive offroad as a performance truck, as it was intended to be driven.​
Are you RR owners happy about this? Because as of now I am glad I did not buy one, as I would not trust it driving down my county roads under the same conditions that the OP went through and thankfully was not hurt or worse.​
Well, I can say I am little concerned, at least to the point I really would like to know what caused the failure in this truck.

However, unless I missed something here, we really don't know what caused it to fail, nothing definitive. With it being the only one reported like this on here, I don't think it is time for everyone with a RR to be worried about it.

I truly believe the issues seen on the Bronco's were more related to some of the extreme uses and or modifications being done on some of those Bronco's. None of which were the case here with this new truck.

I am still thinking it was likely damaged somehow in the transport process prior to being sold.
Nothing the OP described doing with the truck would have ever caused it to fail like that.

It is a scary thing not knowing what caused it and what could have been the outcome.
I sure hope we eventually find out.
 
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spazzyfry123

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I'm not sure there's evidence of anything more than a one-off issue at the moment, meaning the outrage might not yet be warranted. As many have suggested it could've been any number of issues, not necessarily a design defect.


I asked for pictures days ago and still haven't seen the impacted side of the truck or wheel/tire. My undisclosed theory is the truck lost grip in the front, spun, hit the ditch snapping the tie rod. So far, this theory hasn't been dispelled by any evidence.
Well, I can say I am little concerned, at least to the point I really would like to know what caused the failure in this truck.

However, unless I missed something here, we really don't know what caused it to fail, nothing definitive. With it being the only one reported like this on here, I don't think it is time for everyone with a RR to be worried about it.

I truly believe the issues seen on the Bronco's were more related to some of the extreme uses and or modifications being done on some of those Bronco's. None of which were the case here with this new truck.

I am still thinking it was likely damaged somehow in the transport process prior to being sold.
Nothing the OP described doing with the truck would have ever caused it to fail like that.

It is a scary thing not knowing what caused it and what could have been the outcome.
I sure hope we eventually find out.
As an update of sorts from my side, I have received zero contact from the dealer nor Ford on this since Saturday aside from when I initiated a call in to the dealer on Monday to find out they had no idea who I was nor why the truck was there. The implied promise from the dealer at that time is that they would have an idea as well as next steps and/or time to resolution by today at the latest. That would also include a rental car by today. We are at close of business Wednesday with nothing, so the tally marks keep continuing on this poor customer service experience.

I have no idea what the root cause is here and my assumption is it will be difficult to pin point without understanding what Ford's diagnostic practices and abilities will be. From my side, all I know is I lost steering input and came to a stop in a ditch opposite my lane pointing the opposite direction of travel. Did the tie rod snap and is what caused all of that to unfold? Did something else cause steering loss with the tie rod snapping at the point of contact in the ditch? Was the tie rod defective? Was it damaged prior to my ownership with the failure occurring at this moment?

Tune in (likely at this rate) next week to find out!
 

smokinjoe64

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As an update of sorts from my side, I have received zero contact from the dealer nor Ford on this since Saturday aside from when I initiated a call in to the dealer on Monday to find out they had no idea who I was nor why the truck was there. The implied promise from the dealer at that time is that they would have an idea as well as next steps and/or time to resolution by today at the latest. That would also include a rental car by today. We are at close of business Wednesday with nothing, so the tally marks keep continuing on this poor customer service experience.

I have no idea what the root cause is here and my assumption is it will be difficult to pin point without understanding what Ford's diagnostic practices and abilities will be. From my side, all I know is I lost steering input and came to a stop in a ditch opposite my lane pointing the opposite direction of travel. Did the tie rod snap and is what caused all of that to unfold? Did something else cause steering loss with the tie rod snapping at the point of contact in the ditch? Was the tie rod defective? Was it damaged prior to my ownership with the failure occurring at this moment?

Tune in (likely at this rate) next week to find out!
@spazzyfry123 pace and comms from dealer and Ford => TOTALLY UNSAT!
What if RR was only means of transportation? No rental, loaner offered to-date...? WTF!!!

Unfortunately, the 'weak link' in many issue resolutions originates with dealerships.
Dealers have direct access to Ford Tech Services. Customers do not have tangle ability for direct comms with Corp Teams established and set-up to actually evaluate such cases.

IMO, it's time for proactive PUSH & Escalation... beyond dealer service people. Start with written documentation, pics and convo with dealership GM/Management.
With dealer 'desire' to assist and support, Ford typically dispatches field engineer resources for in-person assessments [i.e. measurements, analysis etc] particularly for potential safety issues having nothing to do with abuse, off-roading of a brand new `25 RR.
If no joy, begin PUSH & Escalation directly to FoMoCo bureaucracy, NTSA, even potentially local broadcast investigative reporters [many luv to report on these types of cases].

Bottomline...this all sucks. You deserve reasonable treatment, assistance, support, and answers from Ford et all - full stop.
 
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cc1999

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We used to have Ford reps chiming in here to try and help customers with problems like this.
Maybe one will see this thread and chime in at least with an offer to try and help.
 

smokinjoe64

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We used to have Ford reps chiming in here to try and help customers with problems like this.
Maybe one will see this thread and chime in at least with an offer to try and help.
You are correct...know from personal experience and as an engineer at Ford years ago.
Resources exist, it's a matter of 'will' getting, bringing to bear on this issue.
 

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Oh Ford and dealer are probably scrambling for Teflon suits for this problem. 🤣
 

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I'm not sure there's evidence of anything more than a one-off issue at the moment, meaning the outrage might not yet be warranted. As many have suggested it could've been any number of issues, not necessarily a design defect.
I came here to say the same thing. Forums are great for idea sharing, but awful for creating unnecessary concerns. Not every part failure is a sign of something bigger. Warranties are there to take care of defects in material or workmanship. Until a true trend is identified, let's not condemn Ford.
 

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The part of this theory that doesn't add up is this: If the damage was existing at delivery and bad enough to cause a break like that, it would have been noticeable as it would have tracked horribly from day 1. I think, like @embedded rock first suggested, that there was some kind of a steering failure leading to the mishap and when the truck went sideways into the ditch the wheel was forced hard against the side of the ditch and bent/snapped the tie rod.

The worrisome part is that the dealer may find nothing wrong with it besides the broken tie rod and may call it "driver error" or "accident damage".
These new Fords have programs that make the vehicle steer correctly even when alignment is out. That's why it so important to check tire wear and get alignments regularly. Do not go by the steering feel the computer adjust all kinds of things to keep the vehicle going straight.
 

smokinjoe64

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I came here to say the same thing. Forums are great for idea sharing, but awful for creating unnecessary concerns. Not every part failure is a sign of something bigger. Warranties are there to take care of defects in material or workmanship. Until a true trend is identified, let's not condemn Ford.
No slight intended...Nonsense! this Ford customer and incident deserves timely actions - - more than 'jus wait-n-see'.

> Forums - Excellent resource for consumer audiences, awareness, sharing and communication
> Dealers/Manufacturers - Obligated to stand behind post sale product, service, support customer, sub-optimal "warranted" failures and results.

To-date:
  • Ford et all provided no tangible efforts, customer support, timely communication , answers
  • Speculation/ Guessing- Easily dispensed with appropriate Ford action, data, analysis, answers. In absence of such concerns remain - - Ignorance ain't bliss
  • "Oh Well, Maybe???" - Hope is not a strategy and passivity certainly not a path to redress the issue or loss of vehicle use...which may easily been catastrophic.
 
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Had a code brown moment yesterday. Truck has 900 miles on it and still on dealer drive out plates. 2025 Ranger Raptor.

I'm up by my parent's place in North Carolina to spend the day with daddio sighting in his new rifle at the range. On our way back from a pitstop at the local gun store, probably less than a mile from their house on a paved, rural B-road, the truck begins to rotate on me as I'm coming out of a turn. I'm guessing here, but maybe 40 mph? A sensation I can only describe as hitting a patch of ice. Steering input is seemingly doing nothing and I'm trying both brake and gas to see if I can get something to connect. The truck rotates on me doing a 180 with tires squealing and stops in a ditch on the opposite site of the road. At this point I have utterly no idea what had happened, but it was evident that it was something in the steering as hand inputs really felt like the steering wheel was air-gapped from the wheels.

The ditch is no big deal - a simple thing a golf cart could get out of. The truck is struggling a bit to get out, but there wasn't time to get out and assess as I'm sitting on a blind turn. I give it some gas and get out with some good vibration going through the truck and I drive it maybe 100 feet to a turnout on the side of the road. Yep, snapped tie rod. Driver wheel aimed maybe 10 degrees left and passenger full lock right.

I'm new to this platform, but is this some kind of fluke or is this an actual problem with these trucks? I am completely shocked to see a critical component fail. I had a slight driver's door panel rattle and a much louder rattle, almost clunk that was coming from what I had assumed to be behind the dash near the firewall on the passenger side that I had planned to bring into the dealer this week. Now I am convinced this passenger side noise had something to do with this tie rod and here we are. The rattles were disappointing to see as that is something that I've seen mentioned in all of the videos and reviews leading up to my purchase - EVERYONE said that there are just zero rattles, and it was absolutely a deciding factor in what lead to my ultimate purchase.

If I can spin this into some sort of a situational positive, had the snap occurred maybe 50 feet later, instead of a ditch bringing me to a stop it would have been a recent stack 3' diameter trees. This drive was for me to drop my dad off (everyone is okay) which was to be immediately followed by me heading back home over the mountain with a million switch backs and commonplace for 100'+ drops. All things considered, this was absolutely the best place for it to fail.

1763302217346-es.webp


Now for some comments on Ford - specifically their customer service. And I'm going to dump, so I apologize for the novel.

I will confidently say that this was one of the worst exchanges I have ever experienced. All in from the time the incident occurred to my truck being rolled off in the staging lanes at the dealer's service department was about an eight hour ordeal. Maybe more? I still feel like I'm in a bit of a daze. My father-in-law picked me up from the dealer to bring me back home with us getting in the driveway a bit after midnight.

It's evidently not possible to work with humans to get things resolved, and the ones that you are able to interact with are severely incompetent with the primary focus being to read a script with a chipper demeanor.

I call in for roadside assistance, navigate through the myriad of prompts to then be sent a link via text with the AI voice on the other side basically telling me to click on the link sent to me, a slap on the ass with a "go get 'em tiger, good luck" approach, and the line disconnects.

I run through the app questionnaire prompted to me via the link sent, and I select the dealer that is closest to my house that is presented to me by the app. I am told that I owe them $22.50 for the tow; I'm chuffed that I need to come up with anything, but at this point I just need this taken care of. At questionnaire completion I'm told everything is done and to wait for the towing company to call me with an ETA. Hmm, I guess they'll collect payment when the tow happens? I dunno? 30 minutes pass and I've got nothing, so I call back in to see what's going on.

After 15 minutes of being ping ponged around through their queue, I finally get a hold of someone that tells me that they are waiting on my payment and to follow the link that was texted to me. "Well, no link was texted to me?" "Oh, strange. Let me get you over to the payment department to take care of this." 30 more minutes of being on hold, I'm now with the payment lady that tells me that I need to follow the link that was texted to me.

"NOTHING HAS BEEN TEXTED TO ME."
"Oh strange, let me send that back over to you."
"Okay, thanks. Please stay with me so we can confirm it was sent over."
"Sorry sir, we are unable to stay on the line as we need to keep the lines open for emergencies."
"How is this not an emergency? My steering failed at speed and I am on the side of the road."
"Sorry sir, we are unable to stay on the line as we need to keep the lines open for emergencies."
"I'm sorry, but this texted link for payment has failed multiple times now. I can't go through your prompts again, please just resend it so we can both confirm so we can get this tow truck here."
"Sorry sir, we are unable to stay on the line as we need to keep the lines open for emergencies."
"......"
"Sir? I am sending the link now. I hope you have a great rest of your day!"
Disconnected

Another probably 20 minutes go by, still no link has been texted to me. I receive a phone call and it's the same lady that I talked to last.
"Hi, just calling to make sure you received the link that I sent you. I don't show that we've received payment."
(In my head, "I thought you were unable to stay on the line to confirm the link was sent and that this was for emergencies") "Nothing has been texted to me."
"Okay sir, let me just take your payment over the phone."
"...."
"Sir?"
"Yes, I have my credit card ready."

Fast forward another hour (which at this point, we're probably 3 hours since the tie rod snapped), I receive a call from the tow truck guy to tell me he's about 1.5 hours out. Okay fine, let's get this done. About 30 minutes later, tow truck guy calls me back to say they need another $600. I tell them to take it up with Ford; I've already paid for the tow. He tells me he's canceling the trip because Ford told them they were delivering my truck to Tennessee, not Georgia. "Sorry bro." Aaaaand disconnect.

I now call Ford back again and navigate my way through another 30 minutes of prompts and hold music to start the entire process over again. Then after doing what's effectively a copy/paste of what's above, I finally have a confirmed truck on the way that will be to me in about two hours' time.

A dude shows up in an F-350 with a trailer. The only detail he had was that it was a Ranger and didn't know that the steer wheels were disconnected. Not realizing that it was a Raptor (wider), you could see it in his face that he didn't have the right kit for the job. I told him I don't care how, but this truck is getting on your trailer. For about the next hour and a half, I'm in the driver's seat of the Ranger inching it forward onto his trailer with him giving me spotter directions and man-handling the now limp passenger front wheel to keep it straight. The trailer wheel wells afforded us about an inch or so on either side of the truck wheels, so this was no small task given we really had no true control of the truck.

1763305664684-l0.webp


Over the mountain we go. All the while, the driver is crossing over into opposite lane traffic to avoid the switch backs. Nice guy, fun conversation, but damn. We arrive at the dealer and we then have to reverse the hour and a half process to get it off the trailer and in a parking place at the dealer.

As it sits now, I have no idea what the next steps are. I have no idea if the dealer even knows why my truck is in their parking lot. I have no idea if I should be expecting a rental. Oh and that $22.50 that generated hours and hours of back and forth? That's because the dealer location was a 53 mile tow. 3 miles outside of the 50 mile radius.
Reminds me of when my transmission went out in the middle of nowhere Nevada. Took three days to get a tow from Roadside Assistance. Nothing good to say about Ford service.
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