TSB 20-2277 2019-2020 Ranger - Shudder/Vibration When Accelerating From A Stop

[kieefer]

I noticed after the TSB that my truck would on occasion shift into 2nd depending on the rpm. Before that I never saw it go into 2nd unless in Sport mode. The TSB greatly improved drivability.

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[ChiefQM]

Just an update, folks. Swapped out the 1 degree shim to a 0.5 degree that I had machined from an extra in the kit. Shudder is still there on occasion and when there its about the same as the 1 degree shim. Still 100% convinced its the out of phase 2 piece shaft. I bought this truck to go to 200k and I just don't think a shudder like this will bear well for the carrier bearing and u-joints over time. I am on the fence on re-indexing the shaft.

I will say, I think I know why dealers are installing this kit wrong. The factory service manual mentions measuring pinion angle by removing the u-joint clip and inserting a device into the cup that is attached to the inclinometer. This is in fact different (even by illustration) to the procedure outlined in the TSB for measuring. The TSB did help. So make sure you go over this specific detail with your service technician.

FSM:

TSB20-2277:

Have you looked to see what the RPMs are when you experience the shudder? I am learning to live with the shudder since Ford is determined to ignore the issue. I have been closely observing speeds and RPMs when I drive and have noted that when I have the transmission in D and am driving in normal traffic, the shudder starts at about 19 mph and abates at about 36 mph. The RPMs, shifting at the intervals dictated by the programming of the transmission, hover around 1500 RPM. But. When I put the transmission in sport mode and keep the RPMs well above shifting from 1st through 4th gears up to 30 mph, no shudder happens. At highway speeds, I bump the gears up to 8th at 45 mph and 10th at 55 mph and above. The only conclusion I can draw, and I am not an engineer, is that 1500 rpms is the sweet spot where the vibration in the driveline occurs. I have also spoken with the owner of a Chevy Colorado with a similar driveline, she said that the transmission had the same issue and that Chevy was able to "reprogram" the transmission and she has had no further issues.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

Have you looked to see what the RPMs are when you experience the shudder? I am learning to live with the shudder since Ford is determined to ignore the issue. I have been closely observing speeds and RPMs when I drive and have noted that when I have the transmission in D and am driving in normal traffic, the shudder starts at about 19 mph and abates at about 36 mph. The RPMs, shifting at the intervals dictated by the programming of the transmission, hover around 1500 RPM. But. When I put the transmission in sport mode and keep the RPMs well above shifting from 1st through 4th gears up to 30 mph, no shudder happens. At highway speeds, I bump the gears up to 8th at 45 mph and 10th at 55 mph and above. The only conclusion I can draw, and I am not an engineer, is that 1500 rpms is the sweet spot where the vibration in the driveline occurs. I have also spoken with the owner of a Chevy Colorado with a similar driveline, she said that the transmission had the same issue and that Chevy was able to "reprogram" the transmission and she has had no further issues.

Hi Bill,

You do not have start up shudder....different problem. Driveline problems will not change with RPM, so most likely transmision related...JMO. Sounds like you need a dealer that has the proper NVH equipment to determine from where the vibration is generated.

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[Texasota]

I noticed after the TSB that my truck would on occasion shift into 2nd depending on the rpm. Before that I never saw it go into 2nd unless in Sport mode. The TSB greatly improved drivability.

Pushing the tow/haul button will also result in the transmission sequentially shifting through the gears (no skipping).

 

[jerardisflossin]

Have you looked to see what the RPMs are when you experience the shudder? I am learning to live with the shudder since Ford is determined to ignore the issue. I have been closely observing speeds and RPMs when I drive and have noted that when I have the transmission in D and am driving in normal traffic, the shudder starts at about 19 mph and abates at about 36 mph. The RPMs, shifting at the intervals dictated by the programming of the transmission, hover around 1500 RPM. But. When I put the transmission in sport mode and keep the RPMs well above shifting from 1st through 4th gears up to 30 mph, no shudder happens. At highway speeds, I bump the gears up to 8th at 45 mph and 10th at 55 mph and above. The only conclusion I can draw, and I am not an engineer, is that 1500 rpms is the sweet spot where the vibration in the driveline occurs. I have also spoken with the owner of a Chevy Colorado with a similar driveline, she said that the transmission had the same issue and that Chevy was able to "reprogram" the transmission and she has had no further issues.

My shudder is constantly between 10 and 15 mph regardless of what gear the transmission is in or what rpm the motor is at. Ironically it is non existent cold when the transmission shifts the worst. Cant ever seem to win lol.

 

[rdgallo]

I am now of the opinion that it isn't the driveshaft, but the lockup torque converter. Either the programming is off or Ford got a bad batch of converters. I am 99% sure this is what is causing it. The lockup is supposedly programmed to engage above 2 gear, and when in Drive, trans will skip shift from 1st to 3rd. That is the speed and mph range that members are reporting the vibration or shudder. I had (have)the vibration shudder in the 10-20 mph range. Took the truck in to the dealer to have the cold start tbs done, and told them about the vibration. After the tbs the truck ran great and alot of the vibration was gone....

Ford is focused on the driveshaft angles. I have had the TSB done twice on mine (once while I watched) and the shudder is the same as before the TSB. What makes me think the problem "might" be something other than the driveshaft angle is how it is somewhat worse at times and at other times somewhat better (but never good). I think if it was the driveshaft angle, the shudder would be consistent. Either Ford has not found the root cause of the problem or it costs too much to issue a program to fix all the vehicles exhibiting the problem.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

Ford is focused on the driveshaft angles. I have had the TSB done twice on mine (once while I watched) and the shudder is the same as before the TSB. What makes me think the problem "might" be something other than the driveshaft angle is how it is somewhat worse at times and at other times somewhat better (but never good). I think if it was the driveshaft angle, the shudder would be consistent. Either Ford has not found the root cause of the problem or it costs too much to issue a program to fix all the vehicles exhibiting the problem.

Hi Ron,

No fix is 100% unfortunately and the TSB done correctly has resulted in several fixes, but not all. Is your Ranger shudder on launch from a stop? This when startup shudder occurs and it is brief. If continuous, it is something else. I have noticed a trend to introduce a vibration with exhaust change where the flex coupling is eliminated... This creates a large tuning fork out of the exhaust and can transmit vibrations into the cab that can be confused with driveline issues. Dealer with the current NVH equipment and a good tech can diagnose many vibration issues. NVH issues are challenging and not always easily solved.

Sorry to hear that the TSB was ineffective in your case.

best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[rdgallo]

Hi Ron,

No fix is 100% unfortunately and the TSB done correctly has resulted in several fixes, but not all. Is your Ranger shudder on launch from a stop? This when startup shudder occurs and it is brief. If continuous, it is something else. I have noticed a trend to introduce a vibration with exhaust change where the flex coupling is eliminated... This creates a large tuning fork out of the exhaust and can transmit vibrations into the cab that can be confused with driveline issues. Dealer with the current NVH equipment and a good tech can diagnose many vibration issues. NVH issues are challenging and not always easily solved.

Sorry to hear that the TSB was ineffective in your case.

best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

Hi, Phil, my shudder is on takeoff. It happens not too long after I start moving. If I take off very slowly, I can barely feel it. When taking off normally is when I feel it, and it is just there for a second or two.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

Hi, Phil, my shudder is on takeoff. It happens not too long after I start moving. If I take off very slowly, I can barely feel it. When taking off normally is when I feel it, and it is just there for a second or two.

Hi Ron,

Yep...Start up shudder... Sad the TSB did not fix the problem. Did the dealer give you the extra shims in the TSB fix kit of parts?

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[rdgallo]

Hi Ron,

Yep...Start up shudder... Sad the TSB did not fix the problem. Did the dealer give you the extra shims in the TSB fix kit of parts?

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

No, I was not given the shims. I am good friends with the Service Manager and he told me to come back anytime if I wanted to try anything else to get the shudder out. I may do that, but before I do, I want to measure the angle again myself. It will be awhile as I am recovering from wrist fusion surgery and have one arm/hand in a cast. Thanks for your input, Phil.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

No, I was not given the shims. I am good friends with the Service Manager and he told me to come back anytime if I wanted to try anything else to get the shudder out. I may do that, but before I do, I want to measure the angle again myself. It will be awhile as I am recovering from wrist fusion surgery and have one arm/hand in a cast. Thanks for your input, Phil.

Hi Ron,

Mend well! You may want to try a shim either side of the one installed to see what it does. We call this a sensitivity study and it may be this gentile nudge will help the situation. It is certainly a finicky system. If the Service Engineers did such a study they might have had a better idea of the range of shims that would work...can be a lot of work, but in my NVH expert days (Ex is a has been, Spert is a drip under pressure) we embarked on sensitivity studies quite a bit of the time to understand the system and over several different vehicles. Problem is you do not know to go with more pinion angle or a bit less than now...so have to try on both sides of the current shim angle...Sheesh!

Best,
Phil Schilke
Ranger Vehicle Engineering
Ford Motor Co. Retired

 

[Ogden Dan]

My truck has been plagued with both the start-up shudder as well as a high speed vibration. For those that have been following my previous posts, I have an update.

Previously, I had been to the dealer 4 times in an attempt to eliminate the shudder and high speed vibration. It got to the point that I told them the high speed vib is a priority as that occurs all the time when I am at a specific speed (usually 50-55 and 70-75) which happens to be the speed normally driven.

I had the TSB performed (they attempted multiple angle settings after the recommended angle yielded no improvement) and it did nothing to improve the start-up shudder. The high speed vibration always remained and never really improved.

The dealer seemed clueless regarding both the shudder AND high speed vibration issue, so I again contacted customer service. Their only solution was to "bring it to another dealer".

I reluctantly did so as I was running out of options. The 2nd dealer attempted the TSB fix as well and, just as the first, it resulted in no improvement in start-up shudder. HOWEVER, they decided to then focus on the high speed vibration. They did found a couple of things: 1) The right rear tire was found to require excessive weight while performing a road force balance (this was despite the fact I had the wheels road force balanced 2 times at an independent tire dealer and 2 additional times at the previous Ford dealer). They replaced the tire and then found the rim to be bad. They ended up replacing both the tire and wheel. 2) The driveshaft was found to exhibit excessive runout at the carrier bearing (they said the spec is 1mm and mine has 3mm). The driveshaft has been on backorder now for over three weeks.

I decided to pick up the truck and will wait out the driveshaft replacement. The new wheel/tire alone eliminated most of the vibration. We will see how well the driveshaft replacement ends up correcting the remainder of the vibration (which is now slight). Perhaps this will improve the start-up shudder as well as the 2 previous attempts performing the TSB did not help. I'm wondering if there is an issue with the driveshafts as this back order seems quite lengthy for a fairly common item.

Dan

 

[kieefer]

My truck has been plagued with both the start-up shudder as well as a high speed vibration. For those that have been following my previous posts, I have an update.

Previously, I had been to the dealer 4 times in an attempt to eliminate the shudder and high speed vibration. It got to the point that I told them the high speed vib is a priority as that occurs all the time when I am at a specific speed (usually 50-55 and 70-75) which happens to be the speed normally driven.

I had the TSB performed (they attempted multiple angle settings after the recommended angle yielded no improvement) and it did nothing to improve the start-up shudder. The high speed vibration always remained and never really improved.

The dealer seemed clueless regarding both the shudder AND high speed vibration issue, so I again contacted customer service. Their only solution was to "bring it to another dealer".

I reluctantly did so as I was running out of options. The 2nd dealer attempted the TSB fix as well and, just as the first, it resulted in no improvement in start-up shudder. HOWEVER, they decided to then focus on the high speed vibration. They did found a couple of things: 1) The right rear tire was found to require excessive weight while performing a road force balance (this was despite the fact I had the wheels road force balanced 2 times at an independent tire dealer and 2 additional times at the previous Ford dealer). They replaced the tire and then found the rim to be bad. They ended up replacing both the tire and wheel. 2) The driveshaft was found to exhibit excessive runout at the carrier bearing (they said the spec is 1mm and mine has 3mm). The driveshaft has been on backorder now for over three weeks.

I decided to pick up the truck and will wait out the driveshaft replacement. The new wheel/tire alone eliminated most of the vibration. We will see how well the driveshaft replacement ends up correcting the remainder of the vibration (which is now slight). Perhaps this will improve the start-up shudder as well as the 2 previous attempts performing the TSB did not help. I'm wondering if there is an issue with the driveshafts as this back order seems quite lengthy for a fairly common item.

Dan

Which wheels and tires are on your truck?

“Road force” balance I assume is balanced on the truck??

 

[Ogden Dan]

Which wheels and tires are on your truck?

“Road force” balance I assume is balanced on the truck??

I've got the stock 18" wheels that are part of the Lariat w/sport package.
Road force balancing is where pressure is applied with a roller to simulate the truck weight on the tire. This more accurately reflects the balance under actual use conditions and can be affected by small changes in the radial run-out of the tire.

 

[kieefer]

Bridgestone tires?

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