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

[Ogden Dan]

Bridgestone tires?

Hankook Dynapro ATM

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[ChiefQM]

Hankook Dynapro ATM

I have those tires and have a good bit of road noise. When I was an investigator for a law firm in a previous life, I learned more about tires than I ever wanted to know. Road noise CAN be - but is not always - a predecessor to tread separation. We represented several Explorer owners back in the day, and in most instances, the tires involved ('Stones) were underinflated to improve the ride. I believe this is what the Ranger manual advises - 30 psi. We also had suits against Continental/General Tire in which we were successful.

 

[CompDude]

Well my new ranger has this but very light. I drove several Rangers one was pretty bad. Did not notice it on mine until the drive home. Noticeable maybe 25% of the time?

 

[zanger09]

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

I am having the high speed vibration as well. Just out of curiosity, is yours consistent or does it come and go. Mine is happening between 70-80mph but not all the time.

 

[Ogden Dan]

I am having the high speed vibration as well. Just out of curiosity, is yours consistent or does it come and go. Mine is happening between 70-80mph but not all the time.

Mine was very consistent.

I'm still waiting for a replacement drive shaft since mid Dec. I elevated through customer support to see if they can help expedite.
The wheel and tire that was replaced took care of the majority of the vibration.

Dan

 

[zanger09]

Well to my shock and amazement the TSB was applied and it actually worked. I drove the truck all day long today and it was super silky smooth and really enjoyable to drive. I'm really loving this truck now. Bring on the damper!

That being said I can confirm that the TSB has at least fixed my vehicle. I feel bad for the people that the TSB did not fix their vehicle because I felt the shudder and I can only imagine how frustrating that would be. I sincerely hope Ford comes up with the solution for you but just don't give up on those dealerships because they are obligated to come up with a fix.

Did your truck have the shudder at highway speeds as well? I’m taking mine in to get looked at for this and was wondering if this TSB could be the fix.

 

[Tann3rth3hamm3r]

Did your truck have the shudder at highway speeds as well? I’m taking mine in to get looked at for this and was wondering if this TSB could be the fix.

No, that is a separate issue.

 

[CompDude]

Well took mine to the dealer and did not say anything about the TSB.. They just called and are ordering the shim kit for install next week..

 

[ChiefQM]

Well took mine to the dealer and did not say anything about the TSB.. They just called and are ordering the shim kit for install next week..

You have a righteous dealer. Hope it fixes the issue.

 

[Jrel209]

Are most ppl seeing this issue after a lift/level kit? I found this by accident while doing some research on a leveling kit haha. Atm i have an xlt fx4 with stock height with no shudder. Id have to redo my gameplan if this shudder is happening only to ppl with lift/level kits.

 

[CompDude]

Well took mine to the dealer and did not say anything about the TSB.. They just called and are ordering the shim kit for install next week..

Took the truck back in today the shims are in and they are hoping to have it back to me by Friday afternoon

 

[tfisher15]

Are most ppl seeing this issue after a lift/level kit? I found this by accident while doing some research on a leveling kit haha. Atm i have an xlt fx4 with stock height with no shudder. Id have to redo my gameplan if this shudder is happening only to ppl with lift/level kits.

I have the eibach front strut coilover lift - no shudder before and none after. I have the XLT 4X4 but not fx4.

 

[Ogden Dan]

Are most ppl seeing this issue after a lift/level kit? I found this by accident while doing some research on a leveling kit haha. Atm i have an xlt fx4 with stock height with no shudder. Id have to redo my gameplan if this shudder is happening only to ppl with lift/level kits.

No, most are seeing this at stock ride height.

Dan

 

[Jrel209]

No, most are seeing this at stock ride height.

Dan

Interesting, i saw some say they noticed it from start, have others noticed after x amount of miles?

 

[Ogden Dan]

Interesting, i saw some say they noticed it from start, have others noticed after x amount of miles?

I think for some, the problem may exist from the start, but until you consistently drive at the conditions where the shudder appears, it may not be noticed initially. Also, the faster the acceleration, the more pronounced the shudder appears. Do those that accelererate very modestly made not notice the shuddering initially. As is most problems of this nature, once you feel it, you tend to become especially sensitized to it.

Dan

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