Originally Posted by QwkTrip

Oh, that video helps a lot. I didn't see it before my last post. The second crank definitely sounds like the starter is dropping out during crank and then trying to re-engage into a moving engine. This will just chip the hell out of the gear teeth. Then you have more frequent problems with the starter engaging at all. Usually issues like this are because the voltage at the starter solenoid switch terminal (controls starter actuation) goes off and on, or drops low enough that the solenoid pull-in force is too weak to hold the solenoid against the return spring.

I don't know how the solenoid switch circuit is designed on your truck. If it is hard wired to the key switch then it could be that the key switch has intermittent connection, or your hand just isn't firm enough to hold tightly in the crank position. It could be a loose terminal connection somewhere in the wiring. Personally, I think you have low voltage at the starter solenoid. The reason the problem is more frequent in cold is because battery voltage is related to starter current draw, and starter current draw goes up when the engine oil is cold because it takes more torque to crank the engine. Warm restarts are easy and doesn't draw much current. Here is the sequence:Low voltage can be caused by undersized wire, loose connections, corrosion at terminal connections, or poor ground circuit back to battery. Even weak batteries as mentioned above. Although with weak batteries I would also expect slow cranking. If you have a really piece of crap starter it could just be a poor design that is susceptible to solenoid chatter with lower voltage. In that case the solution is to buy a good name brand starter, like Denso or an OE starter from Ford.

If the starter solenoid is controlled by an ECM driver, then you have a more complex problem. The ECM driver is being told what to do by software logic. There is either something wrong in the logic, or the software is getting a signal that is should be pulling out the starter, and then getting a signal that it should try again to crank. I really doubt that Ford was so stupid as to let the starter go back into a moving engine. I would think that once the starter is commanded to disengage that they would completely lock out the ability to use the starter again until the key switch was moved out of the crank position. This makes me think your problem is more related to hardware and is the low voltage issue.

Sorry for the glut of information. Like I said, I don't know the specifics of the Ford truck. I just know the possibilities depending on designs.