7,100 miles on new FX4 and rear axle is done.

[Megawatt]

Recently I started to feel a vibration from the rear axle. I took the four month old FX4 into service. It took 7 days for the service department to get to it ?for diagnosis. Today, they said the driver rear axle is defective. No eta just yet on replacement parts but here is a loaner vehicle for 10 days on us. In fairness the service writer is doing a good job for me where he can and keeps me informed.

They are searching for an axle at other dealerships and from the factory. Only the driver rear is bad and not right side. I just hope it’s not going to be a forever repair.

No idea on the cause, this was not damage from impact. All highway miles, no heavy loads, etc. Truck rode smooth as glass on the highway until recently so It was easy to notice the vibration issue growing. I found a leaky seal and the inside of the wheel was getting sprayed with diff fluid. Nothing ever leaked to the ground, it was a leak that was starting.

27 July (day 1) - Drop off Ranger at Ford dealer

3 Aug - (day 7) at dealer. Ford provided rental car at no charge to me.

9 Aug - ETA update (day 13) …. No word from Ford on parts ETA, service advisor created a case with Ford to hopefully speed up parts delivery.

10 Sept (day 45) - Ford email from shipping Dept to dealer saying ETA of 20 Sept for parts delivery.

20 Sept (day 55) - no shipping done, no new info.

22 Sept (day 57) - Dealer open a COPIS case with Ford

29 Sept (day 64) - dealer got new shipping update of 20 Oct for parts

4 Oct (day 69) - CCF customer complaint form filed with BBBnp.org the arbitrator Ford agrees to deal with. Located in warranty guide page 7. BBBNP said approx 50 day process once CCF approved.

14 OCT (day 79) - Got the call today. Truck is fixed and ready to pick up. Will go tomorrow to return the loner car and drive my baby home. Fingers crossed.

26 OCT 2021. - Got a call from BBB auto line office. Ford will be buying back my ride. Said should take approx 5 days.

10 November 2021 - Received email from Repurchase Coordinator for Ford asking for copies of supporting documents for finalize buyback. And to know what dealer I want to bring Ranger to.

8 Dec 2021 - Finally got the email reply with the calculation of repayment. Truck, sales tax, registeration, doc fees, etc. $40k

21 Dec 2021 - Exchanged truck for check today. Very smooth process.

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[Matsterious]

Leaking like in this thread? Leaking Diff Fluid

 

[Megawatt]

Leaking like in this thread? Leaking Diff Fluid

That sucks, exactly the same issue as that thread.

 

[Matsterious]

That sucks, exactly the same issue as that thread.

At least they are familiar with it and the fix. What year is your truck?

 

[Porpoise Hork]

So is it an axle shaft, ring/pinion gears, or bearing(s) that failed? It's practically unheard of for an axle shaft to just go bad. It takes some serious punishment to damage one.

 

[Megawatt]

At least they are familiar with it and the fix. What year is your truck?

2021

So is it an axle shaft, ring/pinion gears, or bearing(s) that failed? It's practically unheard of for an axle shaft to just go bad. It takes some serious punishment to damage one.

Not unheard of if it is a manufacturer defect. The thread posted my Masterious reveals it is a common problem for Ranger axles from Dana, (not a Ford manufactured part). All I have been told is axle, none of the other parts you asked about. I will have to wait for repair sheet to see the details, whenever that happens.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Interesting. I was under the impression that Dana had resolved the issue with the axels. Hopefully they get it sorted out quickly.

 

[Dahveed]

Our axles are basically hub assemblies with a long axle shaft attached. The seal and bearing are integral. So if one bit goes bad it’s all trash. And yeah, Ford Parts shows them all on backorder.

 

[awd.nv]

Yikes, so I wonder if the loose flange is the cause between the two. I was going to say it sounded like a bad axle bearing but if the flange was loose, that can do it.

What Vegas dealer did you take it to? I am in Vegas area as well. Our Fords have thankfully only needed oil changes in the last 2yrs but the Ranger puts in some towing miles and some trail use.

 

[canyonslicker]

Interesting, way back when they started putting rubber motor mounts one of the big 3 companies started getting a rash of premature rear wheel bearing failures. It end up being the chassis not grounded directly to the drive train via a dedicated ground strap. The chassis ground was thru the bearings causing them to overheat.

this probably doesn’t help. It’s just an old memory.

I hope it gets sorted out soon…

 

[Megawatt]

Yikes, so I wonder if the loose flange is the cause between the two. I was going to say it sounded like a bad axle bearing but if the flange was loose, that can do it.

What Vegas dealer did you take it to? I am in Vegas area as well. Our Fords have thankfully only needed oil changes in the last 2yrs but the Ranger puts in some towing miles and some trail use.

I took it to Gaudin. They are only a couple miles away from my house. No experience with them, this is my first visit. Country ford is farther and I know a couple people there but am trying Gaudin.

 

[awd.nv]

I took it to Gaudin. They are only a couple miles away from my house. No experience with them, this is my first visit. Country ford is farther and I know a couple people there but am trying Gaudin.

Cool, yeah I purchased at Gaudin but just serviced today at Ford Country. I might service at Gaudin the next time to have a paperwork relationship with the dealer should I need to pull the "I purchased it here" card if I need a goodwill repair someday.

Man, while at Ford Country today, they had ALL of their Rangers marked up $2500 and F150 $5000. Their Rangers were mostly STX models with the highest end being STX FX4.

Glad I purchased in April sheesh.

 

[Scooter]

I read the other post on Leaking Diff Fluid. The mechanics diagnosis was that the Axle Seal was rolled. They ordered a shaft assembly. It sounds like the seal is part of the axle shaft assemble.
I wonder what is causing the vibration. Could be a heat treat issue, axles too soft and warping. A Machining issue. Poor Quality machining of some batches of axles. A housing issue. Something we will never get the answer too unless the mechanic analysis the axle in depth. They seem to just measure the rotor run out. If they did find out what the problem is, they probably would not tell you.

 

[Megawatt]

7 days later, only change is case created with Ford by dealership. Case may have been opened days ago, but today’s update was that it was created. Will just update original post timeline.


Really missing driving my FX4.

 

[alcohenusa]

7 days later, only change is case created with Ford by dealership. Case may have been opened days ago, but today’s update was that it was created. Will just update original post timeline.


Really missing driving my FX4.

If you have the case number, it couldn’t hurt to contact Ford directly about it and ask them to escalate the priority. Mine started leaking excessively after only 64 miles (4 days).

My escalation netted me a free Ford Protect warranty. Of course I probably got that because the truck was brand new and not drivable. Also, after waiting a week and still no parts, my head exploded and I told the dealer to take back the truck and make it look like the deal never happened. Miraculously, parts were found and it was fixed the next day.

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