Rust on rear end of 2021 F-150 -- any others?

[jcaspar]

What

You aren't the only one laughing.

The Ford dealers stuffing tens of thousands of your dollars in their pockets as you drive your rust bucket to the local hardware store to buy brillo pads and cans of rustolium must be wetting their pants.

I guess P.T. Barnum was right.

Correct me if I am wrong but you haven't even gotten your F-150 yet right??

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[UNIKRN150]

"Jim... take this box of chips, head out to Ramp 59 and get them installed so we can start shipping these trucks!"

 

[texag]

So this thread got me thinking about what the rear end on my 2010 Silverado looked like so I climbed underneath this morning and took these pictures. I should be picking up my 21 King Ranch to replace the Silverado and am hopeful the rust problem has been mitigated and I don’t have to deal with any of these issues. Truck was built on n 16 Apr in KC.

11 year old rear end of my 2010 Silverado that’s got 165,000 miles that was bought in TX went to ND then moved with me to CA, CO (with numerous trips up to the mountains in the 3 winters I was there) then to NE, and now back in CA. Everything is original.

 

[NY Cowboy]

Your 2010 GM has less rust and corrosion then my brand new 2021 Ford.

 

[UNIKRN150]

Your 2010 GM has less rust and corrosion then my brand new 2021 Ford.

A lot of people, especially contractors replace their trucks every few years just because they wear them out that fast.

Rust in that situation really isn't an issue.

But for some of us, this may be the last new vehicle we ever buy before we die.

I bought my last new truck in 1991 and it has 265,000 miles on it.

If my new F150 lasts 20 years I'll be well into my 80's and there is no way in hell I'm going to be replacing brake calipers and exhaust between now and then because I took delivery of brand spanking new rust bucket.

So I understand overlooking some rust on a truck you know you won't have anymore 5 or ? years from now. And who knows.. I might sell mine and get one the Gucci "Land Yachts" after I retire.

But right now, I don't care HOW LONG I have to wait... there is NO WAY I'll take delivery if my undercarriage doesn't look as new as my cab.

 

[UGADawg96]

It does seem that people's acceptance of this issue is based on perspective. If you live in a northern snow/salted roads state and/or are a person who leases, you are more likely to not care about rust. However, if you keep your vehicles for 10+ years or don't live in one of those northern snow/salted roads states, then this is a major concern. It probably doesn't help that Ford is based in a northern snow/salted roads state, so that may also be why they are skewed to that view as well. To add in, many people suggest undercoating as a normal thing. If it was a normal thing in the south, there would be businesses that do that, but guess what, there aren't, because rust isn't normal down here. ymmv.

 

[Eric]

This is what it looks like after one week, about five drive-thru car washes(includes underbody wash) and about 550kms.

A view from the back looks almost rust-free. But looking at it from the front shows two particular spots with rust. I know I’m gonna get roasted nicely for this one since I don’t know the name of this component but that part in the red circle that seems to be connecting some very important parts looks really bad.
I’m clearly not a rust or car pets expert but that thing looks so rusted that if I smashed it with a single good hit it would crumble like feta.
On the other hand I may be completely wrong and that could just be some simple surface rust that can be easily brushed away.

 

[mnstang]

This is what it looks like after one week, about five drive-thru car washes(includes underbody wash) and about 550kms.

A view from the back looks almost rust-free. But looking at it from the front shows two particular spots with rust. I know I’m gonna get roasted nicely for this one since I don’t know the name of this component but that part in the red circle that seems to be connecting some very important parts looks really bad.
I’m clearly not a rust or car pets expert but that thing looks so rusted that if I smashed it with a single good hit it would crumble like feta.
On the other hand I may be completely wrong and that could just be some simple surface rust that can be easily brushed away.

That area circled is your U-joint (universal joint) which connects the driveshaft to your differential. You can wirebrush that rust off, it will take more work than most areas, but can be done.

 

[flatag]

Maybe, just maybe, the reason Ford builds rusty trucks is customers are too accepting of rust on a brand new truck. Maybe, just maybe, if customers started demanding that Ford build trucks that can go through a couple winters in the rust belt with out rusting up Ford would. It truly is amazing to me the number of time people post “it gonna rust anyway”. Well guess what, 3/4 of the country isn’t the rust belt and rust is unacceptable.

 

[Madman]

That area circled is your U-joint (universal joint) which connects the driveshaft to your differential. You can wirebrush that rust off, it will take more work than most areas, but can be done.

@mnstang,

Great post.

I am hopeful that you (or others who are on this exceptional Forum) can provide guidance on something related here -

I am among the many waiting for my truck to be built. There havebeen some great posts by folks who have taken it upon themselves to remove the rust and apply a protective coating (FluidFilm, Rustoleum, CRC Marine, et al) to their undercarriages. I intend to do same.

Q: I understand that one shouldn’t apply such coatings to the exhaust system but is it OK to do so to the U-Joint? Any words of caution in doing so?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated! Thx!

 

[Snowboarder_15]

I contacted my dealer to see if they would do anything about the rust issues and they told me to contact Ford Corp. So I reached out to both customer relations as well as warranty. Ford warranty said to see if the dealership would cover it under paint warranty, but it would be up to dealer's discretion. Both Ford warranty and customer relations said they weren't aware of any rust issues on the new F150s (surprise). I filed a complaint through Ford warranty and opened a case file. Since Ford is saying they aren't aware of the rust issues, I would suggest as many of us as possible file a complaint and open a case file with Ford Corp like I did. The more complaints and cases they get, the more likely Ford is to acknowledge and address the rust issue.

 

[NY Cowboy]

Ford has been aware of this since February. They have said in writing they will be buying my truck back and ordering me a new one without rust and corrosion. See what my exhaust looked like when I found out on my brand new truck.

 

[Daily22ssv]

Ford definitely knows about it. Many news articles and YouTube videos out there. Ford wanted to ignore it when I filed it. Dealer made it right and repaired.

 

[Lippy]

Ford has been aware of this since February. They have said in writing they will be buying my truck back and ordering me a new one without rust and corrosion. See what my exhaust looked like when I found out on my brand new truck.

It’s be good to understand this better. So they offered to buy back your truck instead of just repairing it? All I want is a replacement of the pitted exhaust. I can even take care of the diff myself. But I can’t even get Ford to respond to me. Curious how you were able to swing a replacement truck.

 

[macsinbragg]

Has anyone recently got their custom order delivered (like in April) and what is the rust looking like. Mine should be delivered 5/16.

Picked up mine april 14. ZERO rust

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