Ford Auto Locking Hubs
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Ford Auto Locking Hubs
I have a Ford F-250 4x4 with 7.3 diesel. I had it in the shop for replacement of bad ball joints when we discovered that the hubs locked fine, but were very very slow to unlock. In fact they sometimes would not unlock. It is in the hubs not the vaccum to them. What do I clean and lub them with ? One mechanic said they cannot be taken apart and cleaned as Ford sells them as a unit with no parts support for their internal parts. Can anyone help?
Thanks
Thanks
Lead Driver
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 8,298
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From: Damon (South East Texas)
I have disassembled and lubed the locking hubs on my friend's 2000 F350. Was not all that difficult. We cleaned them with brake cleaner and reassembled with hi-temp bearing grease. I am planning to lube my hubs soon on my '01 F250. The hub is turning around the "gear" on the axle shaft and needs to be lubed regularly to prevent wear. I feel that your locking hubs should be a part of your regular maintenance program. With the Super Duty trucks having sealed axle hub assemblies, the locking hubs seem to be neglected. I used to lube my locking hubs any time I repacked the front wheel bearings.
Mountain Pass
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 170
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From: Loudoun, Va
Auto locking hubs should be lubed with ATF if you ever take them apart. Make sure they are good and clean before reassembly. Bearing grease is fine for manual hubs but is too thick for auto hubs and will cause them to be slow to release or get stuck. Also if grease is getting into the hubs from a bad grease seal that will cause them to become unusually slow and difficult to unlock. Good luck
Lead Driver
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 8,298
Likes: 25
From: Damon (South East Texas)
The grease, I use, is not very thick. It has the consistency of a paste. I use it sparingly, not "packing" the hub with it, only coating the parts. I have not had any problems with this method in my 25 years as a mechanic.
Last edited by mueckster; Dec 14, 2004 at 08:31 PM.
Mountain Pass
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 170
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From: Loudoun, Va
I wasnt saying what you did was wrong by any means, just relaying what I have read and been told. My chiltons manual reccomends using atf on auto hubs for my explorer, so I'd just a soon recommend it on the bigger hubs too, everybody has their own little tricks.
Freshman User
Joined: Sep 2004
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Older auto lockers like I had on my '96 should probably be replaced with manuals (it's not a dificult job,) the older style auto had the anoying habit of leaving one side locked, and because the way the diff works would try to engage the other hub in reverse as you drove forward down the road(wrecking the hub) then you wouldn't have FWD when you needed it the Warn replacements were about half the cost of replacement ford autos.
This style hub was probably available til '98
This style hub was probably available til '98
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