I have a 2021 F250 but I think it's the same on all newer Ford trucks. Our trucks have two options. Manually lock the front hubs or leave them in Auto. In Auto when you shift the **** in the cab to 4H or 4L the front hubs Automatically lock.. Right? Why or when would you ever use the manual Lock?

 

You are correct. In auto and switch in the cab they lock using vacuum automatically. If there is an issue with them auto locking you still have the option of manually locking them.

 

Just as a backup? Is the manually locking somehow stronger? Does the vacuum hold just long enough for the hub to spin and lock or does it stay vacuumed the entire time?

 

also I lock the hubs in November and leave them locked all winter. It goes into 4wd a little quicker when I am plowing. Then in late March I put them back into auto. Not hurting anything either way.

 

I have warn premium hubs on all my work trucks with stock wheels and was going to put a set on my 2020 but the wheels I'm putting on won't have access to the hubs due to the center caps. The stock hubs have been fine on all 3 of superdutys at work until the 4 year mark. The stock hubs are a real pain to turn into lock once you realize the auto locking is failing. Nice part of the whole process is that its only a 15 minute job per side to swap it out if it does fail.

 

yep mostly for backup purposes, but as you imagine many use the manual mode for other reasons. The system maintains in lock by pulsing the vacuum, essentially keeping the system under vacuum the entire time the switch in the cab is changed to 4x4.

 

What would be some other reasons to use manual?

 

Definitely not a common problem. I don't know anyone personally that's had issues with their OEM hubs and I know a lot of Super Duty owners. Most have several hundred thousand miles. I'm not saying you didn't have an issue but it's not common.

 

I'm assuming because they're municipal use truck that to be totally honest have a different driver everyday. Unfortunately we don't get to do any real preventative maintenance on the trucks besides brakes and fluids. Trucks all average between 10-14k miles a year and it's all stop light to stop light city driving which I don't know if that's a contributing factor or not. One truck is a 2008 250 4x4 5.4 floor shift transfer case, others are 2014 and 2016 250 4x4 6.2 electronic shift transfer case. All 3 are xl models

 

Had to switch mine to manual to back a trailer up in dirt then again in snow. Front tires were slipping. Changed the know to 4h, 4l everything seemed ok but wasn’t happening.
switched the hubs to manual and truck was a beast.

Was going to have the dealer look at it next time it goes in but randomly found out why I wasn’t getting traction. Fixed with $2 worth of hose vs days of downtime at the dealer. 2019 F250 with 23,000.
the vacuum hubs are known for issues and at least the manual hubs solve them. I threw an Allen wrench in my glove box to get my front hub caps (Moto medal wheels) to access.

 

Perhaps the truck is on a job site stuck in mud with a tire spinning and there is not enough runway for the truck to roll forward and fully engage the hubs automagically. Manual lock comes in handy. This could happen to any oil field or construction worker.

I can think of other situations off road on 4x4 trails and national forests but you probably get the picture now.

 

Manual is certainly a nice option to have.

I actually got stuck once in blizzard like conditions when my trucks auto 4wd failed.....while the wife was 9 months pregnant.
It was a rural area and luckily I had a shovel in the truck.

Had I had manual locking hubs, I would have been on my merry way without issue, good job Ford.

 

I was wondering what and why the truck had these type front hubs! Thank you for explaining.

 

Stupid question......so that is a torn vacuum hose for the auto engage?

 

Yup, its hard to maintain vacuum with that hole.

As others have said, if/when the vacuum system fails, you can get out and lock them manually.