--- title: "F-350 crew cab steering column clunks" kind: "owner-report" recall: false brand: "ford" model: "f-350-crew-cab" year: 2024 slug: "ford-f350-crew-cab-steering-shaft" url: "https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-350-crew-cab/2024/ford-f350-crew-cab-steering-shaft" markdownUrl: "https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-350-crew-cab/2024/ford-f350-crew-cab-steering-shaft.md" --- # F-350 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-350 (Crew Cab) ## Symptoms NHTSA complaint ODI 11726272, filed March 23, 2026, is on the complaints list for the 2024 F-350 crew cab. The text describes a clunk in the steering when pulling trailers, and says the clunk is absent when the truck is unladen. The mileage in the complaint is 2,480. The owner wrote that the dealer would not fix it because the noise could not be repeated, cited special service message SSM 53169, and wrote that the truck was built before July 12, 2024. The complaint text does not say crew cab. 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. On the Ford Tremor forum, Arsenix2001 wrote on June 26, 2025, about the same message on an early 2024 build. This site lists Tremor on its own pages. That post is not an F-350 crew cab. ## Likely causes SSM 53169 says the noise may be the steering column lower shaft, on a 2023 or 2024 F-Super Duty built on or before July 12, 2024, without an electronic steering actuator. The message does not name a cab. The 2024 complaint describes a clunk only while pulling a trailer, at 2,480 miles, and a dealer who could not repeat it. The Tremor owner wrote that the removed lower shaft was sticky. The posts do not show one clunk on every 2023 or 2024 F-350 crew cab. A truck built after July 12, 2024 is outside the message. ## Common fixes Tell the dealer the build date and whether the clunk shows up only with a trailer on the hitch. Ask whether SSM 53169 applies to that VIN. The message tells the dealer to replace the steering column lower shaft, service base part number 3B676, and the one-time-use fasteners, and to follow workshop manual section 211-04. The 2024 owner wrote that the dealer declined the repair because the noise would not repeat. The Tremor owner bought shaft PC3Z-3B676-D and two bolts for about $75, did the swap in about 20 minutes, and wrote that the noise was gone. That is one owner's account, not Ford's procedure. Jman1469 wrote on September 9, 2025, that 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 2020-2021 steering oscillation report and the 2022 tow/haul downshift report are different pages. The F-250 crew cab column-clunk report covers the same service message on that model. ## DIY difficulty SSM 53169 points the dealer to the workshop manual. The Tremor owner's 20-minute swap is that owner's account. This page does not include a torque number or a driveway procedure. ## Parts needed SSM 53169 names lower shaft service base part number 3B676, one-time-use fasteners, and causal part 3B676. The Tremor owner used shaft PC3Z-3B676-D, upper bolt W715479S439, and lower bolt N808684S101. Those are the parts that owner bought. ## Warranty notes This is not a recall. SSM 53169 does not say who pays. The 2024 complaint says the dealer would not fix the clunk because it could not be repeated. Jman1469 wrote that a dealer did replace the shaft under the service message on a truck the reply does not identify. The Tremor owner paid about $75. A complaint is not a coverage decision for another F-350. The years on this page are 2023 and 2024, which are the years the service message names. The complaint on this page is a 2024 truck. A 2025 F-350 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 2024 Ford F-350 crew cab (ODI 11726272)](https://api.nhtsa.gov/complaints/complaintsByVehicle?make=FORD&model=F-350+%28CREW+CAB%29&modelYear=2024) - [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-350 (Crew Cab)](https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-350-crew-cab/2024) HTML page: https://www.rigfixhq.com/issues/ford/f-350-crew-cab/2024/ford-f350-crew-cab-steering-shaft