My F350 has situation that in all honesty, haven't spent a lot of time trying to diagnose. The truck has always had a minor 'bounce' or vibration but with new tires, seems even worse. Since the vibration seems to be coming through the seat, and is the worst at 49mph by my GPS suspect that there is a 'problem' somewhere in the rear suspension/tires. Like I said, not much time spent trying to find the problem yet, but first suspicion is u-joint or a drive shaft that might be bent. The truck seldom is off road and seldom even sees 4wd except in the winter so feel a bent shaft is probably not the case - but........ Bent axle shaft??? Bad rear bearing (no noise and out of four F250-F350's I've owned, never been a problem)????

With that said, any hints of other potential problem areas as Wednesday or Thursday will be 'truck day' - lube/oil/filter and maybe those new spark plugs I've had for about a year(nahhh), etc.

 

I had a similar problem with my 2010 F350. I upgraded my wheels/tires from 18"s to 20"s. I had a slight bounce in the rear with a brand new set of tires. Took it back to the tire dealer, and one of the tires wouldn't balance out 100%. The tire manufacture replaced the tire and it corrected the issue. It could also be the balance on the tires. Take it to another tire dealer and let them balance it.

My truck bounces or has a slight vibration since it's a reg cab and no weight in the bed. Loaded it rides Great.

Just my $.02.

 

My '06 f-250 4x4 does the same thing at 48-50 (49 is the worst on my truck too). Luckily it doesnt get in the way too much b/c i rarely drive that speed. But i do know it is not the tires because this is the third set and it still does the same thing. I am very interested to hear some possible solutions.

I think this is different than what David encountered. At least mine feels like it is more from the front of the truck but its not really coming through the steering wheel.

 

Subscribing. I have the exact same problem. All the roads around here are 45mph, so it would be nice to find a solution.

 

Sounds like we possibly have a generic problem. I'll be under my truck looking and will keep this thread open while my search goes on - heck I've spent so little time under this truck since I've been building a street rod (Ford power, of course) I don't even know if it has a one or two piece rear drive shaft.

 

You have a 2 piece shaft.

Many SD's inherently have this problem. My 06 never really had it until i switched tires.
Remember there is a difference between a vibration and a bounce and can be the result of many different issues.
If you load the bed is it eliminated? Fixes my bounce everytime.

Many different scenarios have come about on the subject in the past and has been typically attributed to frame oscillations. These can vary with different hardware like shocks, tires, swaybars, trailer hitches and has been typically reported to be more excessive with the long beds. Not to be confused with the "Death Wobble" which is a front end oscillation. (don't really want to get into that one)

Haven't heard of any real fix for the issue as i don't think there is one.

 

If I'm reading you correctly, I need to 'get over it' and learn to live with the problem. I'm not quite ready to do that yet!!! I've owned various sized Ford pickups since 1977 and never had this kind of problem. I drive the truck unloaded too many miles to have this problem continue as it is really uncomfortable.

The 'death wobble' was reduced to something within reason with Bilsteins and a set of front sway bar links.

My plan so far is to do the following
- make sure the tires are round and in balance. They are almost new with about 2500 miles on them
- check the stationary bearing (yes, I had assumed that I had the 2 piece drive shaft)
- make sure the u-joints are in good condition and might even replace them as being cheap insurance
- check the sway bar bushings/links and replace them JIC now at 69K
- check the shocks as they have ~30K on them and since they are 'lifetime' warranty Bilsteins, if bad, have them replaced.
- have the drive shaft balanced

And yes, the ride does smooth out a lot when I have my 11,000 5th wheel hooked on (~2500# pin weight)

 

Had the same problem with two different sets of tires(old worn conti's E range and new BFG AT's D range)

It is not a terrible bounce, just enough to jiggle the fat a little and remind me i need to start working out again. I had the death wobble in my old jeep when i first lifted it... this is definately not death wobble. Having a load in the bed seems to help, but i have never had more than 700lbs or so in there, so more testing is needed.

 

Irelands child,
Your original post mentions "bounce" but then vibration. There is a big difference although may be difficult to seperate the two in certain circumstances.

If your u-joints were bad they "typically" will be felt at take off as well as several other speeds. The driveshaft "hanger" carrier bearing typically will make noise before vibration (as mine is doing now) and will almost be always be felt on take-off when torque is applied.

Of course i can't say 100% that you can't cure your problem but there are reports of owners going to every extreeme.

See link if you want to read an in-depth post about one.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/6...vibration.html

 

It is a rear end 'bounce' which of course is really a kind of vibration (synonym) Vibration - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia . As far as u-joints and carrier bearings on take off - and through the entire range - that is normally true, but I can't rule out anything yet and until it gets below 90+ degrees in my drive way, the dunlap will continue to jiggle when I exceed 49mph

I'm about to read your attachment - maybe there's a clue. Too bad it didn't happen during the warranty - but of course Ford would say that it's normal, just needs a load to tighten up the sloppy design/tolerances


Addendum:

I just read the attachment - what a bag of worms!!! Nine pages of posts and not one that really 'cures' the inherent Ford design problem. Some have cured a particular problem on their truck, but none really have fixed the real one. I'm guessing that my B&W gooseneck cross frame plate with their 5th wheel Companion hitch just adds one more cross member and ended up making it worse. Now as far as dragging calipers - they along with the rotors are fairly new - and the bounce happened before replacement as well as after.

 

Well,
As many, as well as myself have come to the conclusion that it may very well be a design flaw in some respect i believe it to be a harmonic vibration that can happen with any structural component. Because of so many variations in these trucks (options, tires, wheels, wheel base, trailer hitches, rear stabilizers etc.. etc.. etc...) that every or many situations are different and some can be minimized, eliminated, put up with etc..

Many people put themselves in a SD or large platform/heavy truck and expect it to perform like their luxury commuter car. It is up to us enthusiasts to try and come to conclusions and fixes for everyday ailments that effect our prized possesions but sometimes it's at a cost. Thats were your learned expertese comes into play.

If you read the posts i linked, i believe the OP wound up selling his truck and giving up. I can say i haven't heard hide nor hair of him since.

 

Well since this is not my first SD Ford, I guess I had come to expect more in the way of ride and comfort. My second one was a '79SC long bed F350 Lariat Camper Special that rode and handled as well or better then almost any car I've owned. The next was a '92 F250HD POS that cost me a lot of time and the dealer a lot of dollars beyond warranty money to the point of him offering to do a buy back (NY Lemon Law). It ended up being fixed but with the entire brake system and suspension being replaced. This one is my fourth HD plus some F150s (and a Toy). But I digress.

I have no intention of getting rid of this truck before its time - I'll work on it until it at least rides respectably and post my findings as I make a change and to what effect. If there ends up a class action lawsuit, well then I'll try to recover at least my costs - but I'm not litigious nor optimistic on any account. Thanks for the link and to show that others share my pain

 

I have the very same bounce. It is a bounce, not a vibration...how do I know? Because I cured my vibration with new driveshaft u-joints and carrier bearing.

This thing bounces like mad between 45-50 mph. It drives me nuts. If I have a cup of water sitting in the cup holders it will slosh the water out.

My truck is lifted. It has been for nearly 100k miles. This problem has developed in the last 20-30k miles. I've swapped factory wheels back on with 285 BFG tires (I didn't have the problem with these tires before) and the problem is still there. I don't think it is in the tires/wheels. I'm about to start replacing front end components and see what makes a difference. It's got over 200k on it anyway and a lot of things need to be "updated". I'll let you know what I find.

 

The first thing I'm going to do is the Hunter Road Force tire balance if someone locally has that tool. It got worse with the new tires. Then, if no real change, as you noted, a wholesale replacement of wear parts (shotgun approach) starting with u-joints, carrier bearing, rear axle bearings, sway bar links and/or rubbers, spring eye bushings, then a front end overhaul. While it isn't getting much worse, I just don't like the constant beating on my skinny butt.

One thing I did notice - when I have my 35' 5er hooked up, not much, if any bounce. Springs maybe need to be loaded to remove harmonics - but today, no load but the 200# hitch 3-4" behind the axle CL , very little bounce but it's also 95* - hmmmmm

(I wonder what kind of problems Chebbie /GMC have??? Dodge??)

 

Same here. When I have the 32' 5th wheel hooked up I don't notice any bounce. Unloaded and swear that thing could bounce me over the moon.