Rdgallo

My dealer replaced the front hubs and actuators and so far the grinding is gone, but it is now spring here. We will see what happens this upcoming winter.

kwright73

I had this issue on my old 2010. Turned out after a ton of searching it was bad check valve in vacuum lines near brake booster. Was letting vacuum bleed out on light acceleration and it would start dragging the hubs. Made a grinding noise that almost sounded like a valve lash. Replaced check valve and it was all good. Mine started doing it in extreme cold weather and gradually got worse.

Duro

So I am on my second winter now and nothing has changed.

First winter IWE changed twice by dealer for grinding noise.

Second winter (this one), IWE replaced, hubs replaced and all lines tested and cleaned.

Yesterday was -10C and I can still feel the hubs engaging half way.

Dealer does not want me dropping the truck anymore because they cant reproduce the issue once temps rise. Although I bring a video proof of the noise disappearing every time I engage 4x4...

Since Ford cant fix the issue, once my warranty expires there is no way I am paying for IWE every winter, so off to another brand I go.

bjohns7778

For what it is worth, I had similar problems in my 2010 with IWEs and hubs needing to be replaced multiple times as well as rear end clutch packs wearing out about every 5,000 miles. I traded the 2010 in on a 2013 and at nearly 60,000 miles the only problem I have had is with the driver's power window.

Bontz

Newbie here ... and bringing this topic back from the dead (sorry!). I'm the owner of a 2015 F150 Lariat (3.5 Eco), and this grinding noise has been plaguing me since January. I thought it was cold weather specific, but I don't know if 45F is considered cold? I've had it into the dealer with no luck, but they confirmed two other F150 owners have reported the same thing .... one of them being a good friend of mine. This dealership is in a town of 5K people, and has had 3 reports of the issue but nothing is logged by Ford apparently. They mentioned the vacuum lines, but ruled them out the last time I was in for service.

I'm taking it in again this week, as the grinding noise only seems to be getting worse. And I'm tired of driving a $50K truck that seems to have some mysterious drive train issue. If anyone can help, please let me know as I'd be happy to try and point the service department in the right direction.

Thanks in advance!

Duro

Mine was occuring only during cold days at the beginning. And eventually and it got worst and would grind every time I used 4x4 and then disengaged it.

I had figured out that after using 4x4, switch back to 2x4, if I reversed for a bit it would not grind. Basically, backing up would allow the IWE to completely disengage.

After 6 IWE replacement, TSB to replace all the solenoid, vaccum lines and filters; they ended up replacing the entire Transfer Case. They found a worn collar inside and the truck seems ok since.

Thank God it was till under warranty.

Steelhead 6.2

Same with mine! Last may got a 4" lift on the truck. Installers forgot to reconnect the vacuum lines. I only found this out the following winter after soaking the front wheels in giant off road puddles.Still grinding noise! Then I got stuck this winter cause the 4x4 would not engage.wtf! So, got the iwe vacuum lines cleared, put a new solenoid in. Bamm! 4x4 is now working but the grinding noise is still there. So, frustrating!. Next hubs, and new vacuum lines and actuator! hopefully solves the problem.

Bjodowd

[QUOTE=bjohns7778;2313001]Dealership seems to be throwing darts... I suspect some of you guys are better dart throwers than they are so I thought I'd hit you up for help.

2010 SuperCab XLT 4x4

When I first start driving in cold weather I sometimes get a grinding, humming noise that I can feel in the floor and usually comes and goes somewhat. After a couple of miles it mostly goes away. Engage 4hi and it completely goes away. When it is making noise it feels like there is a bit of drag being created also. Jiggling the wheel from left to right or driving over bumps makes it go away momentarily.

I think it sounds/feels like it is coming from the front but dealership now says they think it sounds more like it is from the rear.

So far dealership has changed the front passenger side wheel bearing, replaced the hub/IWE on the same wheel, and machined the rear brakes. They seem to be clueless but are supposed to put it on the rack and use stethescopes to try to track down the noise today.

I am thinking based on the symptoms it would be in the front end. Field service engineer rode along with me last week and the vehicle was already warm so I couldn't recreate the noise. I did question him about a pulsing humming noise at highway speed that started around the same time and I originally mistook for tire noise until I noticed that it also goes away when 4hi is engaged. He claims it is normal pinion gear noise that may be made worse by replacing the pinion gear.

Anybody care to take a guess?

Thanks guys and gals.[/QUOTE

I have the same problem with my 2013 f150 lariat.
After driving for a while the sound goes away. But when the temperature gets down to the teens the problem returns. This happens on cold days even after the truck warms up and I have been driving for a while. Put it into 4 wheel drive and the problem goes away. My guess is the rubber vacuum hoses get hardened in the cold and loose their ability to hold vacuum. This engages the hubs resulting in the front differential moving without the transfer case engaging. This causes the drag or humming noise. Once the 4 wheel drive switch is turned on, now the transfer case is engaged.

I am planning on putting zip ties on all connection points. I have replaced the 4×4 Actuator and check valve.

bjohns7778

BJ-

This truck has long been history for me. It was nothing but problems. It was under warranty while I owned it and I believe that it was always an IWE problem and all of the crap that the original dealership did to it caused other problems. When I had lost all faith in the original dealership and took it to another dealership they sent a senior tech to ride with me and right away he heard the noise and said "you've got a bad wheel end". They fixed it and I no longer had that problem. Unfortunately the rear end started eating clutch packs every 5,000 miles and I traded the truck in when I hit the end of the 60,000 mile powertrain warranty. I'm pretty confident that rear end problems were created by the original dealership poking around back there trying to prove the noise wasn't from another failed wheel end. Good luck!

Fleet mechanic PWC

I have a 2014 F150 Platinum series. It just started roaring in cold temps when decelerating to almost a complete stop. I have 86,000 miles on it. I checked the solenoid and it is working, engages both 2 wheel and 4 wheel drive. I checked the vacuum lines for leaks and none was found. I am going to replace the check valve and see what happens.