2018 Ford F-150: Excessive oil consumption rattling noise
Common wear/failure (not a recall)
Symptoms
Owners of the 2018 F-150 report: excessive oil consumption rattling noise. CarComplaints.com lists 9 owner complaints, average mileage 28,200 miles.
NHTSA has 532 owner complaints for the 2018 F-150 in this area. Examples:
- NHTSA complaint ODI #11770145 (filed 10/09/2026): “The vvt cam phasers had a " consumer satisfaction program" that didnt include my vin but included the year which was 2017-2021 3.5 ecoboost engine that mine has. the program has now expired and my truck has this exact issue. not fixing the issue can cause en…”
- NHTSA complaint ODI #11769152 (filed 10/05/2026): “My truck has the 3.5 ecoboost twin turbo engine with the known cam phaser problem. ford dealership replaced cam phasers 4 years ago and told they were putting in new designed cam phasers to prevent this from happening again. last week, i changed the v v t cyl…”
Likely causes
Sources do not establish a single root cause; diagnosis is needed. Owner-reported fixes are listed below.
Fix, in plain English
Most common owner-reported solutions on CarComplaints.com: replaceing dip stick pcv and reprogram (3 reports) ford wants $17,000 to replace the engine (1 reports) i had to replace motor at cost of $14,000 (1 reports). Check for open recalls and extended warranty coverage with a dealer before paying out of pocket.
DIY difficulty: Pro
Internal engine work (lifters, oil consumption, fuel dilution diagnosis) requires engine teardown or dealer software/tests. (Our assessment.)
Cost
CarComplaints.com owners report a typical repair cost of about $10,340 (owner-reported average, not a quote).
Typical parts (search links, no affiliate codes)
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