04 fx4. this morning, i noticed a noise very much like metal on metal scraping coming from under the front side of my truck while accelerating. once im at speed, it stops, but any time i gas it it comes back. it almost sounds like a caliper on rotor sound, but its not coming from my brakes. i took it by a dealership and let them drive it. they said it sounds like my 4 wheel drive is trying to engage due to a bad solenoid or a vacuum leak. has anyone had thise problem before? they said if it gets worse, just to drive it in 4 high and the noise would go away, but i am wary of that advice. help?

 

Well ???? Does it go away in 4hi or what ? Did you check ?

 

turns out it was the 4x4 solenoid and the hubs. the dealership had the hubs under the powertrain warranty, but the solenoid was not. so total cost, 275, right? wrong!!! they called me and said that they would have to charge an additional 225 because the 4 inch lift kit made it difficult to replace the hubs, yadda yadda yadda. but the kicker is that there is no 4 inch lift kit on the truck, just a 2 inch level kit. i employ 1/2 the general managers nephews and nieces, so i think he is going to help me out on the additional charge. i wish they would have found a 4 inch kit on there, that would just mean i could clear bigger tires!

 

That's one expensive vacuum solenoid ! - Mine was $37 .. - Takes less that 5 minutes to change - Mine does anyway - It's on the firewall by the battery.

Yours must be different - it is in price

Good Luck

 

the solenoid wasnt the expensive part. the hubs had to be replaced. thats what killed me. but, i am like you about the price. i called the dealership to ask the part price and it was 49 bucks. so they charged roughly 125 to install it. i would have done it myself if it werent for the hubs having to be replaced. now what scares me is how much theyre gonna charge to replace the fuel sending unit.

 

Fuel sender ? Oh , your fuel gauge isn't working? Your not speaking of the pump are you? I had them replace my pump when I was to busy to do it, I remember it wasn't bad. So I had them do the front end while it was in there. The Ford dealership that I went to diid a great job on the front end - felt like a new truck when they were finished.

 

yeah, the pump and the sending unit are together. it hasnt effected drivability, but my fuel gauge isnt accurate, and it causes the CEL to go on and stay on for a month at a time. plus, when i am idling, its not uncommon for the fuel gauge to drop to E, and the low fuel warning to go off. its more of a pain than anything, and will run around 700 bucks due to them having to drop the tank.

 

Yea , that's allot - user built54 got the best time dropping the tank, he gotter down in 5 minutes flat, but that was his third time doing it - in one day - He was trouble shooting his pump.

What I'm trying to say is - That quote is way high!!