Hum/Rumble Noise in high gears - Any Help??

[dgill3213]

2021 KR Powerboost

To make a very long story (somewhat) short - randomly started hearing what sounded like driving over a rumble strip (last for 2-3 seconds) at highway speeds about 2k miles ago. At first I thought it was my tires, as I had just had them rotated/balanced for the first time. The truck finally threw some powertrain faults when I was trying to determine if it occurred in 4a, 4H, etc - as I suspected it was the IWEs that I have read about, so I was trying to rule that out. But I don't believe that to be the issue as it occurs no matter what mode or drive I am in. So I took it to the dealer. After 2 weeks of them claiming they couldn't hear the sound, they finally heard it. Ended up rebuilding the front differential and said it was all good (1 month in the shop). Went and picked it up and as soon as I got on the highway I heard the sound again. Called the service advisor and told him the issue was not fixed. It was decided that I would spend some more time trying to figure out the occasions in which it occurs, see if I can get it to duplicate on demand, if it got worse, etc so it would be easier to pin point since there was no codes to point to (after diff rebuild).

I have discovered that it occurs in 8th, 9th or 10th gear, under slight acceleration. So, on a highway with a little grade and throttle, it occurs. It seems like it would be a transmission or torque converter issue? I'm tempted to take it to a transmission shop to see what they think. I also haven't rec'd any OTA updates in almost a year - would anything in those solve this issue?

Any help would be appreciated! This issue is driving my OCD crazy and it's about to be hunting season here and will be in some remote places in which I do not prefer to be stranded in!

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[Ford Motor Company]

2021 KR Powerboost

To make a very long story (somewhat) short - randomly started hearing what sounded like driving over a rumble strip (last for 2-3 seconds) at highway speeds about 2k miles ago. At first I thought it was my tires, as I had just had them rotated/balanced for the first time. The truck finally threw some powertrain faults when I was trying to determine if it occurred in 4a, 4H, etc - as I suspected it was the IWEs that I have read about, so I was trying to rule that out. But I don't believe that to be the issue as it occurs no matter what mode or drive I am in. So I took it to the dealer. After 2 weeks of them claiming they couldn't hear the sound, they finally heard it. Ended up rebuilding the front differential and said it was all good (1 month in the shop). Went and picked it up and as soon as I got on the highway I heard the sound again. Called the service advisor and told him the issue was not fixed. It was decided that I would spend some more time trying to figure out the occasions in which it occurs, see if I can get it to duplicate on demand, if it got worse, etc so it would be easier to pin point since there was no codes to point to (after diff rebuild).

I have discovered that it occurs in 8th, 9th or 10th gear, under slight acceleration. So, on a highway with a little grade and throttle, it occurs. It seems like it would be a transmission or torque converter issue? I'm tempted to take it to a transmission shop to see what they think. I also haven't rec'd any OTA updates in almost a year - would anything in those solve this issue?

Any help would be appreciated! This issue is driving my OCD crazy and it's about to be hunting season here and will be in some remote places in which I do not prefer to be stranded in!

Hi there, Drew. Go ahead and send us a private message with your VIN and the name and location of your Ford dealer, and I’ll look into this noise concern.

 

[AO8309]

Having the same exact issue with my 2021 PB at 70k miles on the truck. Starts around 40+ mph in 8th-10th gear. At 75 mph it happens about every 3-4 seconds. Sometimes you hear it sometimes you feel it in the pedal. Almost feels like it slightly slows the truck sometimes.

 

[dgill3213]

Yes. Sounds like the same issue. Mine started at 68k miles. Plan on taking it back to the dealer but don’t have a lot of confidence of them figuring it out after the last month long trip. Hopefully I don’t get stranded in west Texas next weekend.

 

[UnhappySoFar_Powerboost]

This sounds like the same problem I’m having, was 8th 9th 10th gears, but seems to be getting more frequent and now into 7th gear…. Taken to 2 different dealerships 3 times and I’m told that it’s “normal” even though out of the other side of their mouth they also say they can’t replicate it. 2021 PB, 92,000 miles.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Having the same exact issue with my 2021 PB at 70k miles on the truck. Starts around 40+ mph in 8th-10th gear. At 75 mph it happens about every 3-4 seconds. Sometimes you hear it sometimes you feel it in the pedal. Almost feels like it slightly slows the truck sometimes.

Hi there, Alex. Go ahead and send us a private message with your VIN and the name and location of your Ford dealer, and I’ll look into this noise concern.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

This sounds like the same problem I’m having, was 8th 9th 10th gears, but seems to be getting more frequent and now into 7th gear…. Taken to 2 different dealerships 3 times and I’m told that it’s “normal” even though out of the other side of their mouth they also say they can’t replicate it. 2021 PB, 92,000 miles.

Good afternoon. This isn't something we want you to experience. Would you please send over a private message with your VIN and dealer info so I can look into this concern with your F-150 on my end?

 

[AO8309]

This sounds like the same problem I’m having, was 8th 9th 10th gears, but seems to be getting more frequent and now into 7th gear…. Taken to 2 different dealerships 3 times and I’m told that it’s “normal” even though out of the other side of their mouth they also say they can’t replicate it. 2021 PB, 92,000 miles.

It’s definitely not normal mine has also started doing it in lower gears this week 6-7th. Along with hard shifts from 4th to 7th gear. I’ve bought a new F150 5.0 or EB every 3-4 years since 2012. Never had one do this until the powerboost. Maybe a GMC or ram next. ??‍

 

[dgill3213]

It’s definitely not normal mine has also started doing it in lower gears this week 6-7th. Along with hard shifts from 4th to 7th gear. I’ve bought a new F150 5.0 or EB every 3-4 years since 2012. Never had one do this until the powerboost. Maybe a GMC or ram next. ??‍

I had a 2011 3.5 and never had an issue with it. Got rid of it just shy of 200,000 miles to get most I could out of it 2 years ago for this one.

I ended up taking it to a transmission shop and they said that’s definitely where the noise is coming from and suspect torque converter, but obviously haven’t dug into it yet. They’re calling my extended warranty company in the morning to see how they want them to proceed. I’ll provide updates since it seems others are having this same or very similar problem.

 

[Mac83]

I’ve got a 23 3.5EB and I’m experiencing the same issue. It’s driving me nuts because I really like the truck but it worries me every time I drive the truck. Sometimes mine seems to go away which makes this a nightmare. I experience this feeling the pedal every morning on the way to work. I can’t seem to figure it out for the life of me.

 

[Im_OaFF]

Same exact issue here. 2022 RCSB, 5.0, 4x4..etc 78-84 is the worst speeds it’s replicated. It’s spent 4 months at the ford dealership this year alone. Still no answers.

 

[dgill3213]

I had a 2011 3.5 and never had an issue with it. Got rid of it just shy of 200,000 miles to get most I could out of it 2 years ago for this one.

I ended up taking it to a transmission shop and they said that’s definitely where the noise is coming from and suspect torque converter, but obviously haven’t dug into it yet. They’re calling my extended warranty company in the morning to see how they want them to proceed. I’ll provide updates since it seems others are having this same or very similar problem.

Update
Warranty company sent inspector out since they just paid Ford for the front differential work. They acknowledged that they can hear and feel the noise but a noise doesn’t necessarily justify a repair, since there are no codes or warnings. I had the option of paying for a tear down and hoping they found something so it would be covered or be stuck with the price of the tear down and still no smoking gun or repair. I opted to just keep driving it and hope a smoking gun appears before my extended warranty is up. It has gotten worse and happens in other gears now and at lower speeds. I notice my RPMs jump .1 when it occurs. So infuriating but the truck is paid for so I’ll either tough it out or figure it out!

 

[BarryT82]

My new 2024 powerboost is doing the same thing.

 

[UnhappySoFar_Powerboost]

Seems like Ford needs to recall defective parts, it’s clearly a large problem

 

[dgill3213]

This is disappointing to hear that it’s still an issue in the 23 and 24s. I was wondering if it was specific to the Powerboost, but we had a 5.0er chime in experiencing it as well. I went on a 1,000 mile road trip a few weeks ago and was kind of hoping to get stranded and make Ford pay to tow it back to DFW as a “ha, told you it wasn’t normal and there is a problem!”

Further update I didn’t mention- after I took possession back from the transmission shop, I took it in to Ford to get oil change and perform TSB 22-2224. They claimed there were no powertrain updates available and I was up to date. Yet I haven’t rec’d an OTA in over a year. So that’s confusing.

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