The F-150 Shudder..... and the fix
 

As I had mentioned in another thread, I have a '12 XLT that had the infamous "shudder" in the driveline. Did I mention how annoying that shudder is? Anyway..... the truck went into the dealer on Monday, and Tuesday morning it was fixed.

They performed a service bulletin which called for the tech to "clean and lube the slip joint splines." I have no idea what or where those are, but I am pleased to report it did seem to correct the problem. I drove it this morning and could not detect any of the previous "shudder" during starting and stopping.

Let's hope it stays that way. :-X22:-X22 This option seems better than tearing the rear end apart.

Michael

I sure hope so, south. I was just reading about this issue on another F150 forum, and some are saying the Raptor transmission mount is fixing shudder. I've read a heap about this shuddering, and to me it seems like a combination of greasing the slip joints and Raptor mounts is working. Keep us posted.

Great news, Michael! If you need any assistance in the future, don't hesitate to reach out to me; I'll be happy to do what I can to help. :)

Crystal

I'm glad to hear that they fixed the problem Michael!


Not every truck has a slip joint though. Mine doesn't, and I'm pretty confident none of the 145" wheelbase trucks do. But PrinceValium's truck is shuddering. :confused:

Yeah it is...and so was the brand new truck we took off the lot with 3.73's that day. The service manager noticed it like I did right away. Oh btw...I called the Ford Service rep that was assigned to my case...left two messages...and never got a call back. (Are you listening Crystal???)

Hi PrinceValium,

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I contacted your regional customer service manager and requested that they reach out to you. Please let me know if you have any difficulty getting in touch with someone; I'll be happy to step in and assist.

Crystal

What about that Raptor transmission mount I read about on one of the F150 forums (I'm on too many!)?

Ford is not authorizing any "investigative" or "trial" fixes according to the service manager.

Prince, does your truck do the shudder all of the time?

Well..yes it is there all the time from 0-5 mph. Then after going down the road there is a vibration at about 55-60 mph. (almost like the feeling of a U joint starting to go bad, you know that constant vibration) It gets worse when towing something.

Personally I think the low mph shudder is from the rear end...but that is speculation on my part. It cannot be axle wrap because it does it at even the slightest of acceleration.

Take some heavy duty c clamps and clamp those springs together where they are separated at the farthest point from the axle and see what happens.

I've been a member of the forum for almost a week now. My probation period is just about up and I should be able to post a pic of the truck.

In that week I've taken in a considerable amount of info regarding our trucks...... some good and some not so good. Thanks go to the knowledgeable forum members for providing us with that information.

Little did I realize the scope of problems experienced by others here on the forum. I feel fortunate my issue was resolved for the most part, and I do hope it remains that way. But.... like others have mentioned, I have lost a little faith in a brand of truck I've driven for 40+ years. :(

My previous truck was a '05 Lariat with 130,000 miles, and I had zero issues with that truck. It was no doubt the best truck I've had and was a pleasure to own.



Michael

First off, you can post pictures right now. Check out this for a nice howto:

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...he-forums.html

Secondly don't let what you read online get you down! Remember that the overwhelming majority of people come to FTE and other internet forums only because of an issue they're having. If you have 100 people on a forum and 95 of them are there because of an issue, you can be it's gonna look pretty negative. But what about the other 10,000 that AREN'T having issues and posting on this theoretical message board?

Rest assured that even though there is plenty of bad news on forums, the overwhelming majority of people are having great luck with their trucks. Mine has been fantastic, and if something were to happen to it I would buy another without a second thought.

Thanks Tom. Yes you're right. The negativity can definitely get a person down. I know they are awesome trucks!:-X22

Here's my red rider.



http://i1201.photobucket.com/albums/...ps885c845a.jpg

2012 XLT with ARE Tonneau cover and DeeZee tailgate assist

Thanks for the pic, it looks great!