I've got quite a whine in the truck when in 4wd..the hubs are in auto mode and all im doing is turning the switch to 4hi. The noise gets loader with speed and it is still there under a coasting condition. I'm not sure if its in the transfer case or front end but it is the kind of whine that would occur from not having the backlash set right on a ring and pinion. The noise is loud enough to be rather annoying that the radio needs to be turned up quite a bit to drown out the noise. Every truck I have owned has been 4wd and I have used them all a decent amount and have never had one whine like this. Does anyone else have this noise?
Its an 11 CC SRW 350 FX4 Long Bed Ult Lariat and in case you work at autozone and are wondering...yes it has a sunroof

 

My truck does not make any whining noises while in 4wd. I do notice more 4x4 turning shudder on drier or less slippery surfaces than my 04. It is certainly within tolerable levels but it is noticeable. It works fine in the snow.

 

That is all I needed to hear before I took it to the dealer. BTW does it seems like with the whole transfer in progress bs that it takes a little while longer than previous models to actually engage in 4wd? Seems as if in my 06 it probably took half as long to engage than this one.

 

before my t case grenaded it would make a faint noise in 4wd but only when power was applied, something is wrong because I hear NO noise when the truck is in 4wd now.

 

My 4x4 system sounds normal when engaged.
Used it today for about a quarter mile under 30 MPH.

 

I brought this up awhile back in the 6.2 forum. The consensus seems to be it's normal. Several others have noticed the same thing. I'll be interested to see what the dealer says if you take it in.

I called it a howl.

 

Except those of us with the 6.7L already have a howl in our turbo so we have to come up with a different name, haha!

 

Well Im off to the dealer tomorrow. I'm gonna drive around a little while tonight with the hubs locked in 2hi and see if it makes the noise so I can give the dealer a bit more info.

 

Well I dropped her off tonight..we will see what they say tomorrow. Oh btw it also makes one helluva clunk when I engage into 4hi on the fly (below 50)

 

Mine makes the whine as well, but takes LESS time to engage than my '06 did. And sharp turning in 4wd is very jerky, more than in my '06. Less clunk during 4wd engage on the new model.

 

The verdict is still out on my opinion on this truck's 4WD system. If I were plowing with it, I would know in a hearbeat if it is working as designed and to my satisfaction. Loading the truck with ballast and a 1k blade, not to mention upgrading the tires, can make most weaker 4WD systems into snow beasts.

In an earlier thread, I was playing around with the ELD and thought it was not working correctly. I am still confused on what it is. I have driven lockers and spoolers and this guy falls in the middle. If you goose it, spinning the wheels going above the cut out speed -- do you basically lose it's functionality? Do you go from a "locker" to a single wheel drive after the cut out speed? Still playing with it...

As for the 4WD, I came to work today and cut through an unplowed parking lot on the site. Had the 4WD Hi engaged as well as the ELD. Granted the "snow" is more like packed snow/ice due to a freak rain storm -- but it did not feel sure footed at all. At one point, I thought I was going to get stuck in about 7 inches of this stuff. On my way out this afternoon, I will go through it again and add to my observations. Again, I am running the stock Michelins and zero weight in the bed...

 

I decided to drive around my place of work's parking lot at lunch time. I am probably on multiple security cameras -- every angle showing that classic Ford ear to ear grin. My defense, if challenged? As a scientist and engineer I am doing research!!

Here are my research notes (most of this you guys already know because you have more snow and more time in winter than me):

1) With the auto locks, better be in 4WD before you hit the real stuff. I tried starting off on a piece of packed snow & ice with the auto locks disengaged (not in 4WD). I got the message "Shift in Progress" but never a 4X4 indication! The truck was barely able to move with just the ELD engaged (and sidewards at that). Can someone explain how the auto locks work? How much distance is realistically needed for the auto locks to engage and the transfer case to do the same? On the manual lockers I've owned, it never appeared to be a very long distance.

2) With this "hard" snow (snow that was rained on a bit), 4Hi with ELD was doable but definitely different than other 4WDs I have owned. The biggest observation was that it appeared that one of the ELD wheels would grab and have a tendency to push the rear end around a bit. I think ballast will probably fix this. But it was a strange feeling, especially since the 4WD was engaged. I have always been used to the pulling of the front wheels and never really felt rear end movement like this.

3) 4WD Lo is a different beast. It was clear that the front end was getting the most power. Also noted the stability control was automatically shut off. As with other 4WD systems I have owned, gearing clearly set for "crawl and go".

4) I will reserve judgement on the tires. This was more "icy" than "snowy". When I get into some virgin powder, I will see how these Michelin 20" tires work out.

I am hoping to get more weather to further my research!

 

Well the dealer responded to my concerns rather early today. Evidentally the whine and clunk is normal. They changed the transfer case and front end design in 08 in order to strenthen the driveline due to blowing out too many transfer cases. The tech told me you can almost completely make the clunk go away if you do a very slight acceleration when you switch into 4hi....he is right, I was able to replicate this scenario....still more whine than I would like to hear but if thats the way its designed then I guess I have to be ok with it. I drove two other like trucks today and they both did the exact same thing that my truck does. I had also complained about the rear bouncing alot when ELD is locked and the rear tires are spinning due to no traction (with the advance trac completely off). They told me there was a tsb for the rearend carrier assy and would be replacing it..awaiting parts. They also performed the latest update that improved the shifting quality before it reached operating temp....seems to feel much better so far although I did get a bit of a hick up on the test drive out...I'm sure it will not happen again once the learn strategy is completed.

Marauder.....I feel the same as you do about the 4wd system...it does not "feel" as sure footed as my 06 did (I've got the 18" contis though) and yes once you hit the cutout speed the diff changes back to a limited slip diff. With the autolock front hubs its vacuum operated...sometimes may take longer than others if the vacuum pump is doing other things at the same time. Seems as with this newer truck its more about time than distance....I have had it engage the front hubs in 3 feet while idling forward and I have it engage the hubs in 200 feet driving at 50

 

I got rid of my continental after the first snow fall. They are junk. I went with Goodyears (that's what I had on my last truck), and they are 10x better.

We have snow here from November till March
--
Gordon

 

Blue - when you find out the TSB number for the ELD, would you let us know? I am wondering if the weirdness of what I am seeing with the ELD is related.