Doug Morford

Sorry to bring this back, but this is a significant problem with my '17 f150. One of the main benefits of 4lo is the ability to creep down a steep hill using the engine to slow the vehicle. When I put my truck in 1st gear in 4lo, the computer literally steps on the gas while coasting downhill. There is zero engine braking. The truck just flys down the hill approaching redline rpms. In second gear, it does allow some braking, but it's sporadic, and after about 5 seconds of coasting it does the same thing that it does in 1st gear: It seems to timeout and just steps on the gas. You can even watch the MPG gauge go from 99 to 5 when the computer shuts off the engine braking. I called the dealership about this, and they said it's a "feature" that makes the truck driver smoother in 4low, and that without that feature the truck would be lurchy in low range, ie, it would drive like a truck. They said that this "feature" can't be turned off. One guy I spoke to admitted that they basically don't make these trucks for offroad use, and that they are built more as a commuter vehicle. I would agree with that statement.

BTW, my use of this truck involves driving on logging jobs and behind the gate forest roads on a daily basis. Our agency has a large fleet of F150s. Anyone who says that engine braking in 4lo is pointless simply doesn't know what they are talking about. If you are navigating down a 10% grade with a cross ditch in the road every 100 feet, you're going to want some major engine braking.

Having driven this truck off road a lot, I know I would never buy one for myself due to many shortcomings while driving offroad. The main shortcoming is no standard transmission option, which means garbage engine braking even before you get the computer involved stepping on the gas.

marshallr

The RPM's are up because your engine IS braking and IS slowing you down, your truck is NOT accelerating if you're in 1st gear It is perfectly normal for the rpm's to be that high and you're not using any more gas. I drive in steep mountains all the time and have no issues with the engine holding me back. I just returned from a 4100 mile road trip involving hundreds of miles and almost a dozen high mountain pass crossings in Colorado. I used the gearing to hold me back on the downgrades and rarely touched my brakes. I made a similar trip to Colorado in November and drove hundreds of miles on steep forest service roads with a foot of snow and no guardrails. I used 4lo to come down all of those mountains at 1-2 mph without touching the brakes.

But modern trucks don't do it as well as older trucks for multiple reasons. Trucks today have higher gear ratios. Manual transmissions are geared MUCH lower in 1st gear than automatics. And the 2.7 and 3.5EB due to the lack of mass in the engine isn't as good as the V8's. All of those factors combine

Lee308

More detail please, does this work on 2 wheel drives?

Or point to section of owners manual that describes this.

Doug Morford

This is not normal, I'm sorry. I'm not talking about highway driving on mountain passes, and I'm not talking about rocked forest roads. The truck engine brakes as expected in these normal conditions. Even in 1st gear high range 2wd or 4wd, it doesn't do this. I'm talking about creeping along on forest spur roads that haven't been driven on in 10 years (think atv trail), and have water bars every 100 feet that will highcenter you if you're not paying close attention. I have a lot of experience driving pickups of all types, brands, and vintage in extreme conditions, and these trucks are definitely giving the engine gas in this situation (1st gear low range). In fact, in first gear when this is happening and it hits about 4.5k rpm, the computer finally says enough is enough and turns off whatever bs the factory has programmed into it to keep it from braking. It's like hitting a brick wall when this happens, as expected when you let the engine slow the vehicle down in such a low ratio. And at this exact moment that the computer allows the engine to slow the truck, the mpg gauge goes from 5 to pegged out at 99. Once the engine slows the truck down a little, it turns back on and the truck starts barreling down the hill again. Explain to me why when the truck is pointed downhill on a 10% grade with my foot off the gas, that the mpg gauge should ever read anything but 99? It definitely shouldn't read 5 mpg. But it is, because it's accelerating down the %$#@ hill without my permission! A normal/traditional pickup will just creep along at a slow speed in this condition; even one with an auto transmission. This isn't in the manual, it's just one of those annoying features that somebody thought we needed, and I felt the need to complain about it because it pisses me off. Every dirt foot desk jockey thinks he needs a pickup truck, so now the big 3 just cater to them and we now have a pos pavement queen pickup.

Static2606

What is with all these people making accounts to just **** and moan about their f150. Is it the same person making multiple accounts trying to troll or are there really that many miserable people out there with f150's?

Doug Morford

It's more likely that there are that many people out there who are sickened by the fact that you can't just go out and buy an adulterated truck. Not domestically anyway. And I'm complaining more about our society's desire for what they've done to the f150. The fact that Ford thought discontinuing the ranger was a good idea is a good smell test for how disconnected ford is from the people who actually need trucks. It used to be that an f150 was a truck you could use on a farm. Now it's just out of place in that type of environment, as I have been forced to find out the hard way.

Static2606

At the risk of feeding a troll, I will say I just drove my 13' to Moab UT from Ohio, screaming through the rockies, hit a bunch of trails with VERY steep grades, drove it back again screaming through the rockies. The only problem I had was that I discovered my tcase's lo range is f%$#ed. And even with that handicap did very well offroad. Also took it to michigan last week for some offroad mudding. Ended up pulling a friends jeep out of a mud hole he feel into, again without 4lo. Also while going through the rockies I had the cruise set most of the time. The only thing I had to do was lock out the upper gears a few times to prevent it from being stupid with upshifting at the wrong time while going up steep grades.

Also It's interesting that another new account that is complaining about their truck hails from a farm...

PerryB

Both the 6R and 10R transmissions have 1st gear ratios below 4:1, so that statement isn't true.

Spiky

Doesn't a 2017 have hill descent mode?

Doug Morford

I think my 17 is a very basic model, and doesn't have hill descent mode. I think that just manipulates the brakes anyway (though I'm not sure).

Static: I will admit that it is not a bad truck; very well built, just different from what I look for in a truck. I would personally either buy something like a ranger or tacoma, or go full truck and buy a 3/4 ton or larger. Also, i didn't say I work on a farm, just that this truck would be out of place on one. I said I work in forestry. Not sure why you would harbor a negative opinion of farmers though.

I'll stop my bashing on the truck... Sorry for that. But is there really nobody else who's noticed this issue? I would really appreciate it if someone else could confirm that their truck doesn't do this. It would be helpful if someone else who has experienced it explained how they dealt with the issue.

And in the future, when someone like Marshallr tells me I'm imagining things and that I'm wrong, even though I know I'm correct and that there are numerous redflags in that person's post telling me they have no clue what they are talking about, I promise to tell them to !@#$ off more politely.