I have seen a lot of posts referring to the rear end slipping, vibrating, and grinding. I veiw my problem more as hesitation but correct me if im wrong. Sometimes when I pull into traffic and floor it, the truck will pause for a moment(with the engine pausing as well), then suddenly grab and go(then the engine RPM follows as well). I feel that my truck is hesitating more than slipping however once the engine gets to around 2800-3000 rpm I feel a noticable speed increase. That little speed increase reseambles more of a rear end slip to me but I think just more HP being outputted around that range.

My question is, is this similiar to the issue some ppl are having with the rearend slip or normal on everybody's truck? I have a FX4 5.8L 3.55 Screw with 2600 miles. It will go in for its oil change and want to know if I should mention this issue and what im experiancing.

 

I am no mechanic, and mine does the exact same thing----but from what I found on here, it is normal---something about an electronic throttle---it is consistent, and also kind of aggravating, but if it is normal, I guess I will live with it-----(The Hesitation, I mean---dont know about the slippage)

 

I thought it was just the electronic throttle but after all these differant threads I guess I have become paranoid. I guess the best thing would be to drive another 2004 and see how it responds.

 

I think it is normal. If I just drive my truck like a normal person, ie not tromping the throttle, then it runs and responds beautifully. But if I just floor it as hard as I can, it delays just a bit. Maybe it is built in by Ford to keep driveline stress down?

 

I have found that if i push the throtle about 1/4 until the truck starts to move and then floor it i don't get the hesitation.This may be a built in tire saver because it is almost impossible to spin the tires.

Mike

 

I have noticed the hesitation the last couple of days. My truck now has 3100 miles. I have driven the same route home each day since owning my FX4. I mention that because it has happened at the same spot both times. I have no problems when starting from a stop light, entering an interstate from side road, or accelerating in traffic. The only time I have noticed this hesitation is after I exit one interstate, do the loop around to the right, and try to merge into traffic on another interstate. I need to give it a good amount of juice at this point due to the short entry lane. When I get on the throttle it almost seems like the fuel supply gets shutoff completely for couple of seconds. If this continues, I will take it to the dealer. I don't want someone exiting the interstate to end up sitting in my bed if I can't get this beast up to speed.

 

mine does the same thing but i notice it when i back up to a close spot the throttle takes a sec to respond.. Not a big deal to me. I LOVE this truck otherwise.

 

Same thing happens to me. I guess it's just a matter of getting used to. I feel better knowing that it happens to everyone else too.

 

Big Blue that is exactly what I do and I have the issue. Im generally rolling at 5-10 mph through a yeild and have to punch it to get into lane of fast moving traffic. There is nothing more annoying to me than to have someone jump out in front of me and not get up to speed. If this is related to the electronic throttle then there must be a software fix that can be written. Just like some of the other posts this might be a way for Ford to minimize drive train stress. Which probably will save them money on potential repairs. However one time towing my boat it did this and I don't see how that can be good on anything.

 

I was caught off guard the first time, and not attentative (sp?) enough the second time. On the way home today I will note the mph, rpm change (if any) and duration of the hesitation. I experience the mild hesitation alot of other people are talking about when taking off from a dead stop or crawl and that's not an issue with me. However, the last two episodes merging into highway traffic seemed to be excessive.

 

The only time I notice hesitation is when going from 0% throttle to 100%. There is about a 1/2 second lag where the engine doesn't appear to be doing anything. It's safe to say this is related to the drive by wire system. Many people have speculated about a software fix for this. You can be sure aftermarket programmers will attempt it. They would sell like hotcakes. I'm not holding my breath for Ford to go after this "problem" if you could call it that. I'm pretty sure they know about how the throttle behaves, and obviously aren't concerned about it. In the mean time, just keep the throttle pinned and you 'll be fine!

 

I finally had the chance to take my truck for its first oil change and addressed this issue. After they finished the change I asked if they had any software updates for the truck. They told me there wasn't any and then the service manager asked if there was a concern. I explained the hesitation I sometimes get when pulling out into traffic and she then said that an employee with the same truck was having the same issue. This employee had some parts replaced that resolved the issue. She went into the garage and asked them some questions and then asked if I had been getting bad gas mileage lately. My last two fill ups have been 11 and 10 mpg dropping from 13.5-14 I was used too. However my latest fill up appears to be back around 14 mpg. Bottom line is she told me to drive it a few more days and if I have the issue again or the gas mileage is still bad to bring it in and they will fix the issue. I didn't have time (my wife just had our first child and had to get back to the hospital) to ask about what parts they replaced but if the issue reoccurs I will take it in and get all the info.

 

I contacted the dealer yesterday because I am still having the same issue and the gas mileage only got a 1mpg higher. She told me that truck that is having the same issue was not resolved with the parts they replaced on it however they are going to replace the PCM because it will not take any software updates they try to put on it. She said the PCM is brain on the truck.(I thought they called it the ECU but pretty sure its the samething) She is due to give me a call on Monday with the results and if it fixed the issue she will have mine replaced along with the clutch pad's in the rear end.

 

Hey, where'd ya get the 5.8l?



Rob

 

I have figured out how to duplicate the problem, which I believe is what you are experiencing or maybe not - I don't know -because many of us seem to notice something that isn't right but describing it on the internet is tough.

I can make my truck do the bad thing under two scenarios:

1) Cold weather. Differential cold. Come _almost_ to a complete stop but at about 5 mph accelerate (not flooring it at all, just like accelerating like you were trying to get to 30).

The best way I can describe it is it feels like the rear wheels are spinning and hopping. Grab, let go, grab, let go all within milliseconds. Like you are driving on bricks.

2) Temp doesn't matter. I park on the 5th floor of the garage at work, and I can get it to do the same thing when I slow down at each turn loop (tight turn) to go to the next floor up.

When the posi clutches are having to work (tight turn) it does the exact same thing.

I know about the revised clutch pack and this baby is going in just as soon as the weather clears because there is no doubt in my mind that something ain't right out back.

Other than this, no complaints.