2011 Ford F-150 Visibility/wiper Problems

Source: NHTSA · Updated Oct 2, 2026 · 91 complaints analyzed

Owners have filed 91 complaints with NHTSA about visibility/wiper problems on the 2011 Ford F-150, 4% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 64,500 miles. The words owners use most often: “rear window” (56% of reports).

91visibility/wiper complaints
64,500median miles at failure
1mention a crash
2mention an injury
0related recalls
22%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph

What owners describe

Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.

Rear window: mentioned in 51 of 91 complaints (56%)
Passenger side: mentioned in 29 of 91 complaints (32%)
Heard loud: mentioned in 18 of 91 complaints (20%)
Glass shattered: mentioned in 8 of 91 complaints (9%)

At what mileage do visibility/wiper problems happen?

Based on 86 complaints that reported the odometer reading.

Under 10k miles2 · 2%

10k–25k miles9 · 10%

25k–50k miles17 · 20%

50k–75k miles24 · 28%

75k–100k miles12 · 14%

100k–150k miles17 · 20%

150k+ miles5 · 6%

How serious are the reports?

Of 91 complaints, 1 mention a crash, 2 a fire, 2 an injury.

Ford F-150 visibility/wiper complaints by model year

Peak: 2013, with 146 complaints

n = 1,038 complaints · Source: NHTSA

Model year	Visibility/wiper complaints	Share of that year	Median miles
2025 F-150	6	6%	—
2024 F-150	4	2%	20
2023 F-150	17	4%	—
2022 F-150	25	4%	13,000
2021 F-150	56	5%	33,230
2020 F-150	25	3%	4,732
2019 F-150	25	2%	2,200
2018 F-150	54	2%	19,000
2017 F-150	39	3%	40,894
2016 F-150	107	5%	45,000
2015 F-150	77	4%	40,000
2014 F-150	117	8%	51,500
2013 F-150	146	5%	56,000
2012 F-150	95	5%	60,000
2011 F-150	91	4%	64,500
2010 F-150	104	12%	73,000
2009 F-150	1	0%	186,000
2008 F-150	4	1%	90,000
2006 F-150	2	0%	110,000
2005 F-150	9	1%	114,000
2004 F-150	23	1%	82,750
2003 F-150	4	1%	103,500
2002 F-150	2	0%	145,000
2001 F-150	2	0%	149,390
1999 F-150	2	0%	45,250
1997 F-150	1	0%	200,000

When owners reported it

Peak: 2015, with 23 complaints

n = 91 complaints · Source: NHTSA

Related recalls (0)

No safety recall lists visibility/wiper for the 2011 Ford F-150. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.

What owners report

Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.

Back passenger side rear window shattered was in one piece until I closed my door while all other windows were closed which resulted in the window falling inside of truck and in back bed ford states no recalls and never heard of it being a problem however when I look online at other complaints it…
Received Apr 2, 2023 · NHTSA complaint 11515010

The contact owns a 2011 Ford F-150. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH and coming to a stop, the vehicle downshifted from 4th gear to 1st gear. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to drive from the complete stop. The contact stated that the failure had been reoccurring…
Received Nov 25, 2022 · NHTSA complaint 11494858

For no reason back windshield shattered while driving. No impact. 800 to replace. This is awefull. Glass everywhere with children in the car.
Received Apr 2, 2021 · NHTSA complaint 11406085

Frequently asked questions

Do all 2011 Ford F-150s have visibility/wiper problems?

No. NHTSA has 91 owner complaints about visibility/wiper for the 2011 Ford F-150 (4% of the 2,191 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.

Was there a recall on the 2011 Ford F-150 visibility/wiper?

No recall currently lists visibility/wiper for this vehicle.

At what mileage do visibility/wiper problems start?

The median reported mileage is 64,500 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.

What do owners say about visibility/wiper problems on the 2011 Ford F-150?

The most frequent phrase is “rear window”, in 51 of 91 complaints, followed by “passenger side” (29).