Hey supercrew04, you mentioned that there is a solution for the axle howl. Can you give us more details on this? I too have the axle howl even after my dealer replaced the axle internals.

Thanks

 

At 6000 miles the dealer replaced the ring and pinion which took care of the noise. 7000 miles later, which was last week they replaced the whole rear end, housing and all. It is quieter, but at 45 I can still hear it. It is my guess when I get 5000 miles on this rear end it will sound just as bad as the last one. I would guess Ford's fix is replace bad with bad. I think a design change is in order!

 

Mine whines just a bit when rolling back onto the throttle at 55+ mph, and it gets louder at higher speeds. It's not real noticeable, but it's there. I'll get it looked at sooner or later.

17931 2004 F-150 - REAR AXLE WHINE
SOME 2004 F-150 VEHICLES MAY EXHIBIT A REAR AXLE WHINE. ENGINEERING IS CURRENTLY INVESTIGATING THIS CONDITION. UNTIL A NEW SERVICE PROCEDURE AND/OR PARTS ARE RELEASED, PROCEED WITH NORMAL WORKSHOP MANUAL DIAGNOSTIC AND REPAIR PROCEDURES.
EFFECTIVE DATE: 07/22/2004

And for whoever asked whether or not you need friction modifier with 75W140:

17905 2002-2004 MULTIPLE VEHICLES USING FEHP REAR AXLE FLUID - FLUID USAGE CHANGE
WHEN SERVICING THE REAR AXLE ON ANY 2002-2004 F-150, EXPEDITION, NAVIGATOR, EXPLORER, MOUNTAINEER, OR E-SERIES VEHICLE BUILT BEFORE 3/30/2004, IF FLUID REPLACEMENT IS REQUIRED, REPLACE THE ORIGINAL FEHP REAR AXLE LUBRICANT WITH 75W140 REAR AXLE LUBRICANT. WHEN THE FLUID TYPE IS CHANGED, REPLACE THE CURRENT 'FEHP' METAL TAG WITH A NEW '75W140' TAG (F3TZ-4121-AA). IN ADDITION, REMOVE (OR BLOCK-OUT) THE FEHP REFERENCE ON THE MULTI-COLORED LABEL LOCATED ON THE RIGHT SIDE AXLE TUBE. IF THE AXLE IS A LIMITED-SLIP MODEL, USE XL3 FRICTION MODIFIER IN THE QUANTITY RECOMMENDED BY THE WORKSHOP MANUAL.
EFFECTIVE DATE: 07/01/2004

 

I see that everyone complaining of a rear end howl has an '04....has anyone had problems like this with their '05?

 

Well, at just over 20,000 miles on my truck, the howl is getting worse. I have to crank up the radio to drown it out because it's so bad. I'm taking it in this afternoon to have it looked at and worked on. When I called the dealership ahead of time, I told them I was calling them ahead of time in case they had to order parts. The guy said don't worry about that, we have parts on hand because we've been working on a lot of these. Kinda makes you wonder. In any case, I'll write up another post in this thread after I get my truck back from them.

 

Well, I finally got my truck back yesterday afternoon after more than a week in the shop. Apparently, there was some problems with them getting the parts into stock.

They replaced the ring and pinion, and while they were "in there" replaced the 3.55 LS clutch packs, too. The good news is that the howl is now gone. Bad news is that the shudder on take off from a dead stop, especially while turning a corner, is still there. I'm going to drive it for a while to see if it stays or goes away with use.

 

I had the rear end in my truck rebuilt for this reason about 3 weeks ago. They found that the ring gear had excessive run out. They checked the new ring gear and also found excessive run out. The also found that the new pinion gear was bad. They repllaced both along with all the bearings and clutches, and after almost 1000 miles, all is well. I really like my 2004 FX4 Screw.

 

i have had rear end problems that started at about 800 miles it has had 4 trips to the dealer for a fix. 3 rear ends complete tire rotation. i have a severe miss at times like it on 7 cylinders or something it has has all new electronic wiring put in it. new fuel air regulator, engine wiring harness. ... i had it back from the third tripp to the dealer a week and the same problems arose.... i've had it with this truck

 

Took my truck in for the rear axle whine and they replaced the entire differential (6000 miles on the vehicle). Now the dealer says it has a vibration problem (none existed before). They have order a new driveshaft, but I'm skeptical that will fix it. Anyone else had this experience?

 

Engineering is set to release an updated ring and pinion set that includes all bearings and races to service gear whine issues with the 8.8 and 9.75 inch rear axles in Navigators, Expeditions, Aviator/Exploder/Mountaineers and F150s. They should be available at the dealer level in another month or two.

 

I'd be very interested to know the part no's/TSB details on this as my whine is back, had the ring and pinion done about 8mnths ago, if new internals are out that would be great to get it fixed finally.

Do the TSB/part details make it to the Motorcraft subscription website eventually ?

Cheers.

Ricky.

 

There's no TSB detailing service procedures or part numbers just yet. Until the updated gear set kit is available, dealers are to service axles using parts obtained through normal ordering channels.

 

Hey Gtullous, did you ever get your vibration corrected? Seems we have had similar experiences with replacing the differential for a whine and then have a vibration.

 

Took in my 04 Screw for rearend howl about three months ago and they said there was no fix. I have 3.55 gears with limitedslip.

The howl started at 1000 m. I now have 11000 m. I also have shutter now and then but I can live with it

Well I complain again that I was getting a howl between 70-80 mph. They said they disassembled axle housing and found damage to ring and pinion metal throwout axle bearing.

They replaced the entire rearend assembly. So I got new brakes, rotors, housing, axles, gears, bearings, ect.

I took it out for a test run, as soon as I hit 70 mph the howl is back. It howls when I accelerate and goes way when I backoff.. After 80 mph, there's no howl.
I called service agent and he told me they would replace it with another rearend assembly if I want.

He suggested that a Tech ride with me for a test so I can point out the noise.
Maybe it's something else. who knows.

What they repaired might be a fix for the rearend shutter banging.


BTW my dealer is San Leandro Ford Store. My experience with them has been exceptional. They have gone out of their way to make me a happy customer.

 

Got my truck back last night. With the new differential and the new driveshaft, all appears well for now. Time and mileage will tell if this was the cure.