NHTSA Complaint #11716740 — 2015 FORD F-150

My pickup is a 2015 F-150 4WD Supercrew (5.0/6 speed auto). I was driving on an Interstate and pulling a loaded flatbed trailer. The transmission was in the “towing” mode. While leaving a rest area my truck would not shift up from first gear. I turned the truck off and re-started it and it seemed to work for a short time, but as soon as I got back to speed on the Interstate the pickup SUDDENLY shifted into a lower gear. There was no warning at all. This made the truck's engine momentarily overspeed and I felt like I was going to crash because it went from high speed to low in a very short distance. Fortunately, I was wearing a seatbelt, there was light traffic, and the roadway was slightly wet from rain. After this incident I was able to slowly "limp" it off the Interstate. It was taken to an independent transmission shop that said this was caused by a "lead frame" failure and that it was a known issue but Ford would only warranty it if it was a 2014 or older. They told me that the “speed sensor” is part of that component. They were able to repair it for me by replacing the "lead frame" - it did not appear to damage the engine or other parts of the transmission and the truck seems fine now. I do have a post warranty service contract, service contract agent said they do not specifically cover "shift plates" in their policy and it cost me over a thousand dollars out of my own pocket.