1999 Ford E-350: common problems

Owners of the 1999 Ford E-350 filed 72 complaints with NHTSA, most often about tires and engine and cooling. Details by component below, with sources.

Key figures

Owner complaints: 72
involving a crash: 5

What fails most often

1 Tires 33% of all complaints
2 Engine and cooling 17% of all complaints
3 Fuel system 8% of all complaints
4 Steering 8% of all complaints
5 Electrical system 7% of all complaints
6 Service brakes 7% of all complaints
7 Air bags 4% of all complaints
8 Fuel/propulsion system 4% of all complaints

Circle size and colour show each component’s share of NHTSA complaints. Schematic only, not a drawing of the exact model.

Tires: 24 complaints (33% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Engine and cooling: 12 complaints (17% of all).
Fuel system: 6 complaints (8% of all).
Steering: 6 complaints (8% of all), 2 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
Electrical system: 5 complaints (7% of all).

Symptoms owners describe

How many of the 72 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).

tires: bulges, blowouts7 · 10%
vibration6 · 8%
smoke, burning smell, fire5 · 7%
rust, corrosion4 · 6%
warning lights, check engine3 · 4%
brake failure2 · 3%
fuel system, fuel smell2 · 3%
knocking, grinding or other noise2 · 3%
oil leak or consumption2 · 3%
overheating, coolant loss2 · 3%

Components owners complain about

Component	Owner complaints	involving a crash
Tires	24	1
Engine and cooling	12	0
Fuel system	6	0
Steering	6	2
Electrical system	5	0
Service brakes	5	0
Air bags	3	2
Fuel/propulsion system	3	0
Suspension	3	0
Structure	2	0
Vehicle speed control	2	0
Wheels	2	0
Engine	1	0
Seat belts	1	1

What owners report

Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.

I was in an accident and my air bags did not work I have damage to front end and rear end
Air bags · crash · 2017-04-20 · NHTSA complaint #10979428
Consumer tread on left rear tire separated. The vehicle was towing a travel trailer at the time of the tread separation. The trailer/van fishtailed violently and went down an embankment. The trailer ended up rolling over and caused the van to also roll onto it's side.
Tires · crash · 2005-12-22 · NHTSA complaint #10146418
14 people in van at time of rollover. Only person thrown from vehicle did not have seatbelt on.
Steering · crash · 2002-05-20 · NHTSA complaint #762019
Loss of steering also came about in accident. Vehicle is gas powered, not diesel!!!
Steering · crash · 2002-05-02 · NHTSA complaint #8008982
Driver side air bag failed to deploy and the seat belt failed during accident, the driver suffered serious injuries to face, head and teeth. (the driver was mike madrill) yh
Air bags · crash · 2000-03-16 · NHTSA complaint #551201
I recently purchased a used 24' 1999 winnebago itasca spirit with very low mileage and at that time I noticed a shaking or vibration problem possibly coming from the tires. I owned a motor home in the past and have some experience.
Steering · 2019-11-16 · NHTSA complaint #11280548
The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel started violently shaking without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the front passenger side tire steel belt was fractured and needed to be replaced. The tire was not replaced.
Tires · 2015-11-27 · NHTSA complaint #10807189
The vehicle stalls on numerous occasions due to lack of fuel. Investigation proved that the interior paint of the gas tank peals blocking the fuel pump. Research shows that delamination of the gas tank is frequent in this model causing a very unsafe condition as the van can stop at anytime as it looses power and…
Fuel/propulsion system · 2015-04-13 · NHTSA complaint #10705496

When owners complained

NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.

19994
200010
20016
200215
20037
20043
20054
20075
20081
20091
20104
20112
20124
20131
20152
20171
20191
20221

Comparison

By complaint count this model year ranks 4,366 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 12% most complained about).

On average one model year of the E-350 has 27 complaints (44 years in the data). This year has 72, above average.

What to check before buying

Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.
Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
Fuel system. Fuel smell, leaks, rough running, fuel-system codes.
Steering. Steering play, power assist, rack and tie rods after a wheel impact.

Other years of this model

Questions and answers

What are the most common problems with the 1999 Ford E-350?

Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: tires, engine and cooling, fuel system. Total complaints: 72. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: tires: bulges, blowouts (10%), vibration (8%), smoke, burning smell, fire (7%).

How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1999 Ford E-350?

NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.

Should I buy a 1999 Ford E-350 from a US auction?

Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.

Other 1999 models

Read also

Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.