--- title: "F-250 crew cab steering column clunks" kind: "owner-report" recall: false brand: "ford" model: "f-250-crew-cab" year: 2024 slug: "ford-f250-crew-cab-steering-shaft" url: "https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-250-crew-cab/2024/ford-f250-crew-cab-steering-shaft" markdownUrl: "https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-250-crew-cab/2024/ford-f250-crew-cab-steering-shaft.md" --- # F-250 crew cab steering column clunks Owner reports are not official NHTSA recalls. Each report cites a public complaint, bulletin, forum thread, or manufacturer page. It is not a failure rate, a diagnosis, or a repair procedure. **Owner report** · Steering · 2024 Ford F-250 (Crew Cab) ## Symptoms Ford special service message SSM 53169 says some 2023-2024 F-Super Duty trucks, built on or before July 12, 2024 and not equipped with an electronic steering actuator, may make a popping, thumping, clunking, or knocking noise from the steering column while turning, accelerating, or braking. The message says the actuator sits on the steering shaft and can be seen through the left fender opening or under the hood near the driver's side frame rail. It points to workshop manual section 211-02 for pictures. NHTSA complaint ODI 11741744, filed June 3, 2026, is on the complaints list for the 2023 F-250 crew cab. The text says the truck is an F-250 with about 50,000 miles and a clunk from the steering shaft. It does not say crew cab. The owner wrote that the truck was at the dealer for a trailer-module recall, that the dealer said the whole steering shaft needs replacement, that coworkers' F-250s make the same noise, and that the dealer called it common. On the Ford Tremor forum, Arsenix2001 wrote on June 26, 2025, that an early 2024 build clunked over bumps, on the throttle, and on the brake. This site lists Tremor on its own pages. That post is not filed as a crew cab. ## Likely causes SSM 53169 says the noise may be the steering column lower shaft. It applies when the truck is a 2023 or 2024 F-Super Duty, the build date is on or before July 12, 2024, and the truck does not have an electronic steering actuator. The message does not name a cab. The 2023 complaint describes a clunk from the steering shaft and a dealer who wanted to replace the whole shaft. That is a wider part than the lower shaft in the message. The Tremor owner wrote that the old lower shaft was sticky once it was off the truck. The posts do not show one clunk on every 2023 or 2024 F-250 crew cab. A truck built after July 12, 2024 is outside the message. ## Common fixes If the column clunks while turning, accelerating, or braking, tell the dealer the build date and ask whether SSM 53169 applies to that VIN. The correction in the message is to replace the steering column lower shaft, service base part number 3B676, and the one-time-use fasteners, using workshop manual section 211-04. Causal part 3B676 is what the message says to claim. The 2023 owner was told the whole shaft needed replacement. Ask which part the dealer means before you approve work. The Tremor owner bought lower shaft PC3Z-3B676-D and two bolts, wrote that the parts were about $75, and wrote that the swap took about 20 minutes and the noise was gone. That driveway swap is one owner's account. It is not the procedure in the service message. A reply on September 9, 2025, from Jman1469, says a dealer replaced the shaft under the service message and the clunk was gone. That reply does not name a year or a cab. The 2018-2021 steering oscillation report and the 2022 tow/haul downshift report are different pages. The F-350 crew cab column-clunk report covers the same service message on that model. ## DIY difficulty SSM 53169 is a dealer instruction. It points to the workshop manual. The Tremor owner described a driveway swap and asked for a torque number. This page does not give one. There is no published driveway procedure here. ## Parts needed SSM 53169 names steering column lower shaft service base part number 3B676, one-time-use fasteners, and causal part 3B676. The Tremor owner listed the parts used on that truck: shaft PC3Z-3B676-D, upper bolt W715479S439, and lower bolt N808684S101. Those numbers are that owner's purchase. This page does not pick them for another VIN. ## Warranty notes This is not a recall. SSM 53169 does not say who pays. The Tremor owner paid about $75 for the shaft and bolts. Jman1469 wrote that a dealer replaced the shaft under the service message. The 2023 complaint records what the dealer said and does not say the shaft was replaced. A complaint is not a coverage decision for another F-250. The years on this page are 2023 and 2024, which are the years the service message names. The Tremor post is an early 2024 build on a different model page. A 2025 or 2026 F-250 crew cab is not on this page. ## Sources - [Ford SSM 53169 on 2023-2024 F-Super Duty steering column noise](https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2024/MC-11010853-0001.pdf) - [NHTSA complaints for 2023 Ford F-250 crew cab (ODI 11741744)](https://api.nhtsa.gov/complaints/complaintsByVehicle?make=FORD&model=F-250+%28CREW+CAB%29&modelYear=2023) - [Ford Tremor forum thread on an early 2024 build and SSM 53169](https://www.fordtremor.com/threads/steering-clunk-ssm-53169.21574/) Year page: [2024 Ford F-250 (Crew Cab)](https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-250-crew-cab/2024) HTML page: https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-250-crew-cab/2024/ford-f250-crew-cab-steering-shaft