My 2000 4x4 auto 291k mi had a shudder today in reverse after picking up a load of hay while riding the brake. No shudder felt off the brake. Anyone have this before?

 

Ive had something similar. When I bought my truck the 4 wheel was broken, selector motor gone. And however it went out screwed something up cuz the TC was left ENGAGED. I had a leak on my front diff that I didnt think anything of because I hadnt set up my truck for 4 wheel yet, so it went pretty much dry and shredded the front end because the TC got left ON. So you may wanna see where your 4x4 is at, cuz it felt like I was backing over an animal every time i went for reverse.

 

That's what it feels like. My hubs are brand new. 4x4 ESOF works as it should. I was in 2wd when I backed up. I do have my suspicions on the TC. On the highway when I hit the brake to slow down and come out of the brake, the trans feels like it bucks but stays in 4th. Does this point to the TC?

 

You may have had preexisting damage to the TC or front axle and its just now crapping out.

Im not sure if what your describing points to the TC or not.

Is your selector working? you can feel it locking and unlocking? Cuz if it broke like mine did you could have your 4wd on but without your hubs locked. You could jack it up and see what wheels are spinning, or pull the front driveshaft off and drive and see if it goes away.

you can shift thru all the gears OK?

Im not the person you wanna look to for trans/tc diagnosing lol.

 

The trans was rebuilt at 239k but it does shift kind of hard sometimes.

ESOF switch locks the axle - can't spin it by hand. It does spin freely when disengaged.

I appreciate you trying and spitting out some things to at least consider.

 

hmmmmm

Im not sure what else you can try without pulling the magnets on your diffs and tranny. How long has it been since a fluid change? You can either just go for a change or you can get a clean 5 gal bucket, drain it and if there are no shavings you can dump it back in.

not sure if the TC has a magnet but thats only like a quart and a half of fluid if you wanted to check/change that.

 

A couple of unlikely ideas:

A brake related problem, like sticking calipers from swollen brake hoses or dry caliper pins, parking brake shoes grabbing from rusty, dirty parts or broken shoes--sometimes parking brake shoes can be grabby one direction, but not the other when damaged.

Wheel bearing or differential clutch problems. Is there any shuddering when cornering going forward? If so, previous owner may have not put in the correct friction modifier in the differential.

Transfer case fluid indicate any problems as mentioned above? If there is some damage in the transfer case, it may not show up going forward.

And the most expensive possible problem-a transmission problem. Mark can possible weigh in on the different possibile causes-I may be off base here.

Does your torgue convertor clutch seem to lock/unlock correctly?

And finally, if there is a spring shackle, locating pin, bushing that allows the differential to rotate when in reverse, the u-joints could be put into a bind in reverse.

So my advice is to do a careful visual inspection of the driveline, lube oils, brakes, etc.
Larry

 

Turned out to be a hung right-rear caliper and warped rotor for me. I have a 2001 F350 4x4 Dually 7.3L that I tow a three-car hauler with. I had just picked up my new trailer and the 'shudder' started shortly thereafter. I originally thought that the trailer brakes were sticking but after spending the day troubleshooting both trailer and truck with my trailer mechanic, ruled out the trailer brakes. Found out that, get this...3 out of 4 POWERSTOP (aka POWERJUNK ) slotted/drilled rotors were warped and that a right-rear caliper piston was frozen...with ONLY 10000 miles! Others may swear by POWERJUNK, but they were a complete waste of time and money for me! I now run Autozone Gold everything and the shudder is gone and my brakes WORK! Hope this helps...

 

Check the trans fluid level too. These things can overheat the trans real fast in reverse with a load. The front seal will burp fluid when hot and seal fine again when cold. RV towers see this spilled fluid on the road but if you're on turf you may not notice.

Another thought is the splines on the front of the driveshaft. Usually the complaint is slight shudder on forward acceleration. Fix is more of the right kind of grease, or smooshing around the current grease to places it needs to be.