My 07 F150 has less than 12,000 miles on it, and I just lost my second valve stem! They both cracked on the inside edge, and leak when going down the highway. I believe that I read somewhere that there has been a problem with "made in China" valve stems failing, and I wonder if that is the problem with these Fords. These are the original tires and rims! I know that there had been a problem in the Super Duty trucks, but I'm only running 41 psi, as recommended! Has anybody else had these things go bad? I don't like to be changing tires on the side of the road because of junk valve stems............

 

No answers yet? I wanted to get this fixed today, and if it is a recognized problem, I was going to work at getting Ford to replace ALL of them. Am I the only F150 this has happened to?

 

Mine is an 04 and never had a valve stem issue...

 

My 07 has encased metal valve stems. But you should get yours changed if its a problem. A tire shop should do it ofr about $10.00 each. The question is,, is $40.00 worth it to you for no more problems

 

Warning issued on faulty tire valve stems following rollover death: Consumer Reports on Safety

If you can get valve stems replaced for $10.00 each, labor must be way cheap there.

 

decent tire shop. Last year they swapped out 4 tires for me and only charged me $50.00. Not bad $12.50 per tire.

 

Could also be the valve stem openings on your rims. Sometimes they'll have a burr on them that'll cut into the valve stem. Check for burrs when you replace them, I'd go with the metal stems, they cost a little more but are worth it.

 

I'm thinking that I'll be getting the stems changed. I checked with my dealer tech writer, and described what was happening. He called me back, said Ford had nothing on the F150, but that two cars had come in with the same condition! I think I will definately be getting the metal stems. That's cheaper than gettin' killed changing a flat in the dark on a busy road, eh? Thanks for the replies......

 

yours is the first time I've heard of the issue.

good luck and I agree that about $10/tire is reasonable

 

41 lbs of air?? That cant be the stock specification, although that shouldnt have anything to do with your problem!

 

No, 41 lbs is exactly what is called for. The tires and wheels are also completely bone-stock.

 

I had the same problem about 2 weeks ago. Mine is an '07 with about 20,000 miles. One stem leaked. Two others were cracking. Dealer replaced all 5 (including spare) under waranty.

 

I just had this valve stem issue a couple of weeks ago on my '92 F-150. I had just checked all 4 tire pressures, went down the highway and the right front went flat as fast as if it had been sliced! Chewed up the tires sides really bad, couldn't get off the road fast enough.
Problem was **** poor install. And cheap chrome aftermarket wheels. One wheel's hole was oval, had to put a bolt-on stem.
After reading this thread I'll keep a close eye on my '08 STX.
Thanks y'all.

 

I think you guys are reading too much into this.


I'm at 18 vehicles so far since I turned 16. I owned 13 of them, and the other 5 were family cars I drove also...crap...make that 19, forgot 1.


and I have never ever had an issue with a bad valve stem with any of those vehicles. flats from the following: nails, tread seperation, tacks, rocks, knife slashing, burnout to blowout...yes. bad valve stem...no

 

tylus,

I've never seen a valve stem fail either, until now. I had noticed the cracking on 3 of the tires the last time I had checked tire pressures, which was about 2 weeks prior to having a failure. The cracks ran around 1/2 to 3/4 the circumference of the stem about 1/8" to 3/16" out from the edge of the wheel.

When low tire pressure warning light came on, I pulled over and checked pressures and the right front was down to 22lbs. I could bend the stem slightly and hear and feel the leak. It did no damage that I could see to the tire. I put the spare on and took it to the dealer the next morning. The regular guy in the service lane only wanted to replace the stem that had failed, but the service manager didn't hesitate to replace all 5 at my request.

I don't now if it was bad installation, faulty stems, or what, but I have seen a valve stem fail.

Ray.