Class action alleges 10-speed transmissions cause trucks to jerk, lunge, hesitate and stall.

February 17, 2020 — Ford F-150 automatic transmission problems have caused a class action lawsuit for Massachusetts owners and lessees of 2017-2020 F-150 trucks equipped with 10R80 10-speed automatic transmissions.

The lawsuit alleges the automatic transmissions shift erratically and cause the trucks to lunge, jerk and hesitate between gears, allegedly causing "potentially life-threatening" safety issues.

F-150 drivers say the clunking noise can be so loud they think other vehicles have hit their trucks to the extent of causing whiplash.

Ford allegedly knew or should have known the 10-speed automatic transmissions are defective and the plaintiff says a recall should have been issued long ago.

In addition, the plaintiff says Ford refuses to properly repair the automatic transmissions when customers complain about harsh shifting, and dealers typically tell customers the transmissions are performing normally.

Massachusetts plaintiff Robert Marino leased a 2019 Ford F-150 Sport in March 2019, but two months later he noticed a loud bang or clunk noise when starting the engine. He also claims the automatic transmission jerked and slipped when shifting gears.

In December 2019 he took the F-150 to his dealership because he allegedly couldn't drive it because of the transmission problems. Marino says he had to rent a vehicle while the truck was worked on, with technicians updating the automatic transmission software.

However, the plaintiff says the F-150 still has problems with the 10R80 transmission.

According to the class action lawsuit, Ford issued at least two technical service bulletins (TSBs) due to the automatic transmissions. The TSBs were sent to dealerships letting technicians know about F-150 customer complaints about harsh or bumpy shifting.

TSB 18-2274 was issued in September 2018: "Some 2018 F-150 vehicles equipped with a 2.7L, 3.5L or 5.0L engine and 10R80 automatic transmission and built on or before 15-May 2018 may exhibit harsh/bumpy upshift, downshift and/or engagement concerns."

According to the bulletin:

The trucks were “equipped with an adaptive transmission shift strategy which allows the vehicle’s computer to learn the transmission’s unique parameters and improve shift quality. When the adaptive strategy is reset, the computer will begin a re-learning process. This re-learning process may result in firmer than normal upshifts and downshifts for several days.”

Ford dealer technicians were told the reprogram the powertrain control modules.

Ford’s “adaptive transmission shift strategy” allegedly fails to fix the automatic transmission shifting problems in the F-150s, and the plaintiff says Ford has done nothing more for customers.

The class action alleges the trucks have lost value because of the automatic transmission problems and because of the dangers of driving trucks that lurch, hesitate and stall. According to the plaintiff, driving the F-150 trucks creates an "unreasonable and extreme risk of serious bodily harm or death" to all occupants and others on the road.

The Ford F-150 automatic transmission lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Boston Division: Marino, et al., v Ford Motor Company.

The plaintiff is represented by Greg Coleman Law PC, the Carlson Law Firm, P.C., and Brent Coon and Associates.

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