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Vibration-Huming noise

221K views 381 replies 82 participants last post by  OLV1071571 
#1 ·
Hello all, I have a 3.5 EB, HR - my van has a vibration and humming noise that we can not seem to locate. The vibration seems constant and can be felt even at idle when in gear, the noise appears most evident at speeds of 65-95 km, and frequency changes with speed We have balanced tires, tried a new set of tires, nothing changed. I drove another Transit on dealers lot it actually did the same thing. Does anyone else have this issue? The noise is more annoying then the vibration it really sounds like a bad belt in tire but it is not as we tested for that. Any feedback would be appreciated.
 
#190 ·
Update: Dropped the van off at the dealer yesterday. Before leaving I took their two top techs for a test drive to make it perfectly clear what the issue is. Interestingly on the first drive we switched places and the mechanic drove back to the shop. On the way I took the opportunity to crawl around the vehicle while in motion and try to locate where exactly the location of whatever is causing the sound. Interestingly it's really loud up front and at the extreme rear but if you stand in the middle of the cargo area, it's much quieter.

No idea what that means if anything.

On the upside, they both acknowledge that there is an issue after demonstrating it by putting the van into the speed range that the issue presents itself the most and then setting cruise control. Just cruising and hearing/feeling the drone for a few seconds makes it pretty clear. And being in cruise frees you up to show how certain shifting actions affect the sound without having to actively try to maintain the optimal speed yourself.

No idea when I will get the van back. They have supplied me with a low roof version to hold me over in the meantime. Not ideal but I can still haul stuff. They have a couple theories and are talking about bringing in a Ford engineer. I'm hoping to get this resolved sooner than later. I've had the van over a month and haven't been able to use it for what I need to.

Side note. The loaner has the Ecoboost engine. As nice as the extra giddy up is, I can honestly say that for my needs the stock 3.7 is just fine.
 
#191 ·
Update: The dealership has requested that I return the loaner vehicle and take possession of my affected Transit until the permanent drivetrain fix parts become available. The woman at the dealer wasn't able to give me a concise description of what the assessment is but as far as I can tell they feel that it is a driveline angle and dampener issue and that the new driveline components may resolve the problem.

So now I'm back to driving a new van that isn't right and waiting until new parts become available. If someone could actually nail down exactly the issue, and assure me that driving it in its current state isn't going to damage anything or be a safety hazard, I would feel a lot better about this development. As it is right now I'm losing patience while I lose potential work and advertising exposure which was the intended use of this Transit.
 
#192 ·
I understand exactly how you feel. I had to deal with the same frustrations over several months chasing down several consecutive nagging issues on my brand new custom order Transit.

If it's any help to you, at one point I decided I was going to keep the van no matter what, for better or worse. It was, after all, making me happy in its intended role as a touring adventurer. I had also bonded with it after spending so much time and effort converting it to my needs.

This attitude change turned out to be good for my health! It became far easier for me to deal with the service annoyances - and there have been and will be more - as long as the van pays back in terms of fun or function. Starting over with another is no guarantee of bliss.

It's probably kinda like why my wife hasn't traded me in yet despite my constant droning noises.?

Sent from my ASUS_Z00TD using Tapatalk
 
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#194 ·
Well, the dealer is now telling me to call Ford directly.

Interestingly I ran into another 2016 Transit owner at an event we sponsored this weekend. Same make and model as ours. He has no issues with the drone.

He allowed me to crawl around underneath and take a look at what he had driveline wise. See the attached pics. The third image is interesting. Looks a bit like a dampener to me.
 

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#195 ·
it sort of looks like the new driveshaft fix is the original preproduction driveshaft since that damper mounting flange on the differential is already molded in to my 2016 differential. for some reason they decided we would be better served with a guibo...
 
#200 · (Edited)
My Jan 2015 build 350 wagon has the flange but nothing on it either. I can't envision what it could be a bumper for, it appears that the differential would contact the frame long before it would. LWB 3.7 engine/3.73 ratio, 9000#GVWR
 
#201 ·
I can't envision what it could be a bumper for, it appears that the differential would contact the frame long before it would.
My friend's old Land Rover Discovery has something that looks similar mounted next to the transfer case. Except it's a steel wheel and mounted the other way, pointing down at the ground so if you're driving over a large rock it'll keep your case from getting high sided on the rock.
 
#205 ·
put that info in your forum signature so it shows in every post you make.

in the upper right corner of all forum pages, next to the log in/log out tab, is a tab that says "user CP" click on that tab, then click on the tab that says "edit signature" on the left side of the page, then type in your van info.

i did a search of the forum for info about signatures, but this is all i found, it is not much but at least it should give you a better idea of what a signature is.

http://www.fordtransitusaforum.com/...lp/49922-why-does-my-signature-disappear.html
 
#211 ·
My question is why wouldn't it be on all models and configurations? Ford certainly didn't put one on my van because it looks good
Great question. I'd love to get one in my hands to see if it makes a difference on the thrum or not.
Has anyone identified a part number for it?
 
#218 ·
I'll order one and try it - K4Z-5A669-A Pinion Nose Damper Kit
According to Ford, "New pinion nose damper may appear similar to the
original (if equipped), but the dampening characteristics have been changed."

This comes from the last page of an interesting read:
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2017/RCRIT-17V446-6431.pdf
 

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#219 ·
I have the infamous THRUM and I dont have that damper either. I might try to add it to mine too, maybe it will do something. That part # JK4Z-5A669-A I think is for the kit(Damper and bolts) if you want just the damper CK4Z-4A263 -C for single real wheel -D for dual rear wheels, it seems to be a lot cheaper. Only ford would charge $30 for three bolts.

15' 250 cargo, medium, medium, eco boost, 3.73 limited slip
 
#223 ·
Only ford would charge $30 for three bolts.
It's actually $1.50 ea. for the bolts. The bag is $2, the label is $1.75 and it costs $9 to catalog and shelve it. They gotta make a penny somewhere.

I once bought a carburetor diaphragm for my Pinto back in 1978. It was about the size of a quarter and it cost $5. That's like $25 today. I was astounded that this little friggin' piece of rubber cost $5. :eek:
 
#222 · (Edited)
i have repaired new industrial machinery for many years, the company i worked for often bought the first of these new machines ever built, there are always problems, both great and small with any new machine.

the transit it is a unibody, the first one many people have ever owned, people are often suspicious of new ideas, new technology. so there will be many complaints, both real and imagined, the manufacturer just needs time to sort it all out.

(also if ford does uses this forum to research problems with the transit, this forum is worthless because most people do not include basic vehicle info (signature info) with the complaints they make, often problems are specific to one wheelbase or one weight class.)
 
#228 ·
Quick update on my situation.

Dropped the van off at the dealer on Wednesday. Was told they would have a Ford engineer on site for 3 days and needed to have the vehicle on hand without any specific time/date so the vehicle had to be available.

They gave me another loaner. Another 2016 250 but diesel. Drove it home and have been making calls with it and it does not appear to have the "droning" issues my 250 does. Took a look below and all the refits described in the documentation listed earlier in this thread have been done. New U-joint/drive shaft. The mid-drive brackets and also the damper on the diff. There were hint's of the drone at around 66mph but nothing like I have on my vehicle and nothing that I would likely notice if I wasn't so tuned into listening to it at this point.

No word from the dealer since I dropped mine off. Fingers crossed my Transit issues are resolved soon.
 
#229 · (Edited)
So I sent an email to the dealer requesting and update on my rig. This is the response copied and pasted...

"THE ENGINEER STATED THAT WE HAVE TO LOOK INTO THE GEARS IN THE REAR END AND THATS OUR START POINT AND DO MEASUREMENTS AND LOOK AT RATIOS AND SUCH THAT IS WHAT EWE ARE DOING

PLEASE ANY QUESTIONS CONTACT ME "

Not confidence inspiring.
 
#231 ·
Not crying, just an update in regards to troubleshooting the issue and a comment on the somewhat vague update from the dealer.

Sorry to hear that some have been dealing with "this" ("this" which as far as I've seen, has yet to be completely defined) for over a year. Having a documented timeline especially if a resolution can be found, can be valuable to others who may run into this issue.

In regards to "waiting in line like the rest of us", unlike you, I bought this vehicle brand new for work, not recreation like you and many others have. It's been unusable since I purchased it and has severely impacted my ability to do my work. It is also my best advertising medium which I have not been able to take advantage of since I purchased it. So 2.5 month of exposure missed.

Unlike those who purchased a Transit for fun, I don't have the luxury to wait over a year for resolution. I'm already well within my rights to return the vehicle under NH Lemon law but the vehicle is exactly what I need. So I'm trying to be patient and see it through. And maybe others can benefit from my updates on the situation.
 
#232 ·
I have a cargo van with upgrades and no F....ing hum/noise will stop me from using it to make me income.

I use it almost everyday regardless of the secondary issues we are discussing here.

It is still the best work van I have had and continues to generate well over $15,000 gross income per month with this drone/hum/noise issue.
 
#233 · (Edited)
so far it is unclear as to whether this recall will make things better or worse, you have to wonder how ford came up with this "fix" so quick without spending any time researching it? this tells me this "fix" was fords original preproduction idea that had already been researched and was decided to be a poor choice, hence the giubo.
this recall appears to have only came about, after reading more then this one forum, because a small handful of high mileage commercial users had dropped driveshafts, plus the mystery droning noise some of the current transit owners have reported hearing, others report to have no noise at all. a few current transit owners have reported differential and oil seal problems but this may be specific to the differential itself and unrelated to the giubo use. others have reported transmission problems but they all seem the be electrical control system related. (water in plugs and connectors mostly)

it makes perfect sense that ford is doing the "fix" on current production and dealer stock first because this give ford a whole new crop of unbiased transit owners to test this " fix" out on first.
if this fix does not work and they have reason to believe it might not work since they chose the giubo for a reason, the original pre recall owners will not be twice as pissed after having a bad fix installed on their transits.
it is the lesser of two evils: having new owners being guinea pigs and only being pissed once with a bad recall choice, instead of having original owners pissed off twice with a possible bad recall choice.

so wait your turn in this line and in the long run you may come out better.
 
#235 ·
I see your point. But I think in practice, you are going to have a hard time using new buyer's as test fodder if disgruntled current owners are voicing their opinions and killing potential sales. As we know, a person having a good experience will tell one or two people about it. While a person who feels they got burned, will tell everyone they can.

And again, you're assuming that the fix for my vehicle is the drivetrain update. Given they have yet to determine the issue with my vehicle, the recall may have nothing to do with what I'm experiencing.

We may be in separate "lines" for all we know.
 
#239 ·
Eastsidebike,
The issues you raise are valid and respectfully presented. I appreciate your input on this important and widespread topic. Please continue to keep us updated as your situation evolves. ?

Sent from my ASUS_Z00TD using Tapatalk
 
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#240 ·
I agree...
 
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