I got a 2012 Ford f-150 eco boost v6. I was driving down the highway when I heard a pop under my car. I wasn’t able to give it power to drive I more and had to pull over to the side of the road. I looked under the car and everything looked fine. I thought maybe to turn it off and turn it back on, put it in 4x4 and nothing. Then I put it into reverse I heard the driveshaft snap and hit the ground. My question is, was the driveshaft the issue or is my rear differential the issue? Please help thank you.

 

The driveshaft connects the engine (via the transmission) to the rear axle and if it breaks you will lose the ability to drive in normal, 2-wheel drive mode. 4-wheel would still be available allowing power to be transmitted to the front axle and if you disconnect and remove the broken driveshaft, you can drive it.

If the rear differential has failed and “locked up” the truck will not move since the rear wheels will also be “locked up” and by now, assuming it has been towed, you know if that is the case or not.

Assuming rear end is ok, if you remove the broken driveshaft and drive in 4-wheel truck will have a very different feel since it is being pulled by the front wheels vs the normal pushed by the rear wheels. I have done it and it feels weird.

 

Watching. AI? Yes, I could be wrong.

 

U-Joint??

 

I would say the drive shaft did not snap but the u joint went bad and finally let go.. These are things that should be checked at every oil change as they just do not fail they show signs of wear long before they fail to that point

 

Throwing a U joint on the highway and not tearing your truck in half or going for a ride of a life time is very lucky....