Which one, and which years, drew fewer problems per car sold
The short answer
Across the 2012 to 2022 model years the two are close, at 275 and 297 owner complaints per 100,000 sold. For newer cars the picture flips: from 2019 to 2022 the Ford F-150 has the cleaner record. The best years to target are 2017 and 2020 for the F-150 and 2018 and 2020 for the 1500.
Ford F-150
By age group
| Model years | F-150 | 1500 | Fewer problems |
|---|---|---|---|
| Older (2012 to 2015) | 370 | 453 | F-150 |
| Middle (2016 to 2018) | 277 | 272 | About even |
| Newer (2019 to 2022) | 181 | 207 | F-150 |
Owner complaints per 100,000 cars sold, pooled across the years in each group. Lower is better. A model counts as ahead only when it is at least 10% lower.
Year by year
| Year | F-150 | 1500 |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 397 | 321 |
| 2013 | 546 | 481 |
| 2014 | 270 | 540 |
| 2015 | 273 | 432 |
| 2016 | 327 | 426 |
| 2017 | 191 | 236 |
| 2018 | 317 | 166 |
| 2019 | 170 | 315 |
| 2020 | 107 | 152 |
| 2021 | 269 | 161 |
| 2022 | 187 | 182 |
| 2023 | Too new | Too new |
| 2024 | Too new | Too new |
Complaints per 100,000 sold for each model year. Green is a good year for that model, amber average, red a year to watch out for.
Most reported problems
Questions
Is the F-150 or 1500 more reliable?
Across the 2012 to 2022 model years the two are close, at 275 and 297 owner complaints per 100,000 sold. For newer cars the picture flips: from 2019 to 2022 the Ford F-150 has the cleaner record. The best years to target are 2017 and 2020 for the F-150 and 2018 and 2020 for the 1500.
Which F-150 and 1500 years should I avoid?
For the F-150: 2012, 2013. For the 1500: 2013, 2014.