Ranger rear end problems.

[Muddy Fenders]

Now I'm not doubting your abilities and knowledge, but is it possible (thru no fault of yours) that the diff was stuck in a locked position? Or would that be noticeable with regular on road driving? I've never a locking diff, only LS.

Only now??

Sponsored

 

[crazyrazor21]

Now I'm not doubting your abilities and knowledge, but is it possible (thru no fault of yours) that the diff was stuck in a locked position? Or would that be noticeable with regular on road driving? I've never a locking diff, only LS.

Oh, you would definitely know if it was locked. You turn even the slightest and you can hear it. It is not happy. So no, it was not engaged.

 

[seanellaz]

So I'm writing this to help anyone else who is hearing some noise from their rear end. Starting last winter I began to hear a faint noise similar to tire noise but a different pitch. It would increase and decrease in volume with slowing and accelerating. After a few months, it became a howl. It was audible from the cabin as well as the outside, and was very very loud at this point. I had become accustomed to it as it had began small, thinking it was the very aggressive tires I have wearing down. Eventually, my buddy was riding with me and asked me about it. I said I had noticed it but the truck was working fine. (Quick basckstory, I sold the truck to myself, I was a salesperson for Ford for almost 2 years. My friend was as well. We are both car people and have built several vehicles. My Ranger is significantly modified aswell) This started my search for the problem. I began stripping off my wheels and spacers, looking at rotors, pads, calipers, U bolts etc as I had thought my tires wer rubbung or that something was rubbing on a moving piece of metal as it would increase with speed. I couldn't find anything. I combed over the entire rear axle several times, and at this point I knew it was something happening inside the pumpkin. This was obviously my worst fear, as my truck isn't stock. I was definetly concerned I was going to be in a fight with Ford's warranty department for months, as I've seen first hand how they can be. (I had a customer with a Raptor who was denied cam phasers by Ford, took him 4 months of back and forth before they fixed it) Thankfully, I knew several people in service from when I worked at the dealership, including the GM. In the end, Ford warrantied it and the entire axle housing was gutted and replaced.


I wanted to make this post mainly because I am lucky I was a former employee. Most people aren't in my situation. I hope I can help someone find the issue before their trucks warranty is out so they don't get stuck with a massive bill. ( Which you will see the final cost)



Cheers.

Unless a customer uses a grenade or sledge hammer to destroy a part, Ford should actually be looking for reasons to make repairs under warranty. This to build confidence in the brand and warranty. I hope it was not just your connections that got them to honor the warranty. Wally's in Greenbush NY gets A+.

 

[crazyrazor21]

Unless a customer uses a grenade or sledge hammer to destroy a part, Ford should actually be looking for reasons to make repairs under warranty. This to build confidence in the brand and warranty. I hope it was not just your connections that got them to honor the warranty. Wally's in Greenbush NY gets A+.

I believe I quoted this earlier, but not really the case. I've had to battle with Ford to replace windows, cam phasers, center consoles etc for customers well within the 3yr 36. Ford even balks at a long block for the terrible 1.6 ecoboost which is know for warping decks and heads. They usually try to send a short block first, which still blows a headgasket and leaks as the head is still warped. I love Ford, I'll continue to buy them but they aren't magically better then other companies when they have to conduct warranty work. I will say however, that if your vehicles work gets approved they will kiss the ground you walk on to make it right.

 

[Muffin1]

Were the tires stock size?

 

[SigOris]

No no, just a google certified diploma here. Working on a masters degree with YouTube as an undergraduate.
I tried making a small windmill/water pump aerator for the fish pond last year. wasn't very efficient because the little gears i was using from an RC car were too tight. I actually spit out gear teeth after awhile.

I’m married to Dr Anne WEBMD ?

 

[FunInTheSun]

Sorry man, yeah I should've explained the main issue. Basically, the gears connecting to each axle are weak. The driveline center gear is actually a harder metal. So, in turn if the tires are not pefectly identical in height the center gear will start to eat away at the other two pinions. The tires on the rear were identical brands, model etc and were both put on at the same time. In fact, all my tires are. What the one tech had said is that Ford skimped out on these parts for cost reasons, thus even if the tires are milimeters apart in height it can cause this issue. The two side pinions are actually made in China as well, and took over 3 months to come in. Ford credit was actually making my payments during this time and extended my factory warranty to 136k miles for all drivetrain components. As for pictures, sadly these are all I have.

So this applies to ALL of them? It's not just that your truck got a bad one?

I say this because I just had a flat tire, and it turns out to be un-repairable. (I put three plugs (yes, I know it is not sensible or safe to run like this, but I was just in OCD mode and seeing if it was possible to make it stop) in the hole, and it was still leaking...)

I have about 5800 miles on the tires, and If I put a single replacement tire, will this cause the destruction of my rear end? Considering switching the tire to the front to mitigate this, but I want to understand how serious this problem is. How much mismatch is tolerated without risk?

Does Ford recognize this as an issue?

 

[txquailguy]

I have been extremely hard on my tuned Ranger's rear-end and was concerned when I changed the diff fluid at 57K or so I would find many metal pieces in the old fluid.....not so.

I was truly amazed at the small amount of filings on the plug magnet and just a tiny bit in the fluid. The more I read on here about issue folks are having I feel very blessed that I have a very trouble free truck!

I am currently at just under 91K and she still runs like the wind.....lol

 

[crazyrazor21]

I have been extremely hard on my tuned Ranger's rear-end and was concerned when I changed the diff fluid at 57K or so I would find many metal pieces in the old fluid.....not so.

I was truly amazed at the small amount of filings on the plug magnet and just a tiny bit in the fluid. The more I read on here about issue folks are having I feel very blessed that I have a very trouble free truck!

I am currently at just under 91K and she still runs like the wind.....lol

Well god damn thats a lot of miles. I'm glad to see that the Rangers are holding up over time.

 

[D Fresh]

Ford even balks at a long block for the terrible 1.6 ecoboost which is know for warping decks and heads. They usually try to send a short block first, which still blows a headgasket and leaks as the head is still warped.

I've heard this sentiment before. But my experience with the 1.6 in my FiST was much different.

My motor personally lived it's life above 5k rpms. And I even hit a money shift from 6 to 2 on the freeway. Motor spun up over 9k ( my guess) before I got out of it.

Never once had an issue. Never saw this issue on the forums either.

Were there different versions of the 1.6? Was it maintenance related? Thus explaining why it happened in grocery getters but not enthusiast vehicles?

So this applies to ALL of them? It's not just that your truck got a bad one?

I say this because I just had a flat tire, and it turns out to be un-repairable. (I put three plugs (yes, I know it is not sensible or safe to run like this, but I was just in OCD mode and seeing if it was possible to make it stop) in the hole, and it was still leaking...)

I have about 5800 miles on the tires, and If I put a single replacement tire, will this cause the destruction of my rear end? Considering switching the tire to the front to mitigate this, but I want to understand how serious this problem is. How much mismatch is tolerated without risk?

Does Ford recognize this as an issue?

You have an open diff front and rear.

Niether Ford, or anybody else who knows how diffs work, recognizes this as real issue.

 

[FunInTheSun]

<snip>
You have an open diff front and rear.
Niether Ford, or anybody else who knows how diffs work, recognizes this as real issue.

Of course, in general, this is correct, as a mismatch of tire size will just result in constant differential rotation of the bevel gear set, which as you imply, is the design function of a differential gear set.

The problem, according to the OP, is that due to some faulty gear material, that this constant "differential" action is somehow causing damage to the gear set. Since bevel gears have angled contact surfaces, they do generate thrust when they are in relative motion. It is plausible, at least in theory, that if the gears are improperly specified, or built, there may be some undesirable effects if they are always in relative rotation. It's as if you never drove straight, but were always in a slight turn, so the bevel gears are always in rotation.

I consider it slightly plausible, but my gut feeling is that with a properly designed and manufactured differential, this should not be a problem, but this world being what it is, sometimes things are released to service with improperly designed or built parts. So I asked my question, as it is of immediate practical interest to me.

I don't know if the allegation of improper material specs is true or false, but according to OP, Ford is recognizing this as a warranty issue. Now, since the guy works in a dealership, he may be getting special treatment, and we can't necessarily draw any inferences from this.

But if Ford is giving warranty, and saying tire diameter mismatch can be a huge problem, I'd like to know. Is this officially recognized as a real issue, or is it just another telephone game on an internet forum?

 

[D Fresh]

Of course, in general, this is correct, as a mismatch of tire size will just result in constant differential rotation of the bevel gear set, which as you imply, is the design function of a differential gear set.

The problem, according to the OP, is that due to some faulty gear material, that this constant "differential" action is somehow causing damage to the gear set. Since bevel gears have angled contact surfaces, they do generate thrust when they are in relative motion. It is plausible, at least in theory, that if the gears are improperly specified, or built, there may be some undesirable effects if they are always in relative rotation. It's as if you never drove straight, but were always in a slight turn, so the bevel gears are always in rotation.

I consider it slightly plausible, but my gut feeling is that with a properly designed and manufactured differential, this should not be a problem, but this world being what it is, sometimes things are released to service with improperly designed or built parts. So I asked my question, as it is of immediate practical interest to me.

I don't know if the allegation of improper material specs is true or false, but according to OP, Ford is recognizing this as a warranty issue. Now, since the guy works in a dealership, he may be getting special treatment, and we can't necessarily draw any inferences from this.

But if Ford is giving warranty, and saying tire diameter mismatch can be a huge problem, I'd like to know. Is this officially recognized as a real issue, or is it just another telephone game on an internet forum?

Long story short it's a telephone game.

It is POSSIBLE that Dana had some issues. Some of their other supplied units have had some questions, I'm looking at you 2 piece driveshaft. But the whole story seems fishy to me.

There have been a few rear-end problems reported here, none similar to this. Every one of them got a whole new rear-end from Dana.

I wouldn't worry about it in the slightest.

Sponsored