Is this vibration normal?

[RandyH2]

Randy - my vibration is at highway speeds. I feel it in the steering wheel and the floor. Each time they do something, it just changes the vibration a bit. It really feels like a tire out of balance. Maybe I've got a bad one? Good luck with yours!

The service writer at the local dealership said they test drove 2 (or 3) other Exlporers and all had the same vibration as mine. Hmmmmmmmmmmm...........

The vibration is rather subtle but I honestly can't believe it is normal, nor is it something I want in a vehicle I will be driving for 120,000 miles. Little vibrations like that cause premature bushing failure. As I am in the midst of replacing too many bushings on my other car right now, I am a bit sensitive to the issue.

Here is an open request for help from the forum members:
At speeds of 35-80 mph, on smooth pavement, can you feel any vibration that does not seem to be caused by the pavement?

Thanks,
Randy

 

[peterk9]

The service writer at the local dealership said they test drove 2 (or 3) other Exlporers and all had the same vibration as mine. Hmmmmmmmmmmm...........
Here is an open request for help from the forum members:
At speeds of 35-80 mph, on smooth pavement, can you feel any vibration that does not seem to be caused by the pavement?
Thanks,
Randy

Randy, I sometimes have a slight vibration which resembles an out of balance wheel. It is most noticeable in colder weather. It disappears after a few miles and is likely caused by the tires flat spotting. This is a normal occurance with larger tires and is mentioned in the Owner's Guide.
If you have a constant vibration when driving, then there is a problem somewhere.

 

[pterrio]

Guys, I am still experiencing the same problem. My dealer has been excellent and we now have an engineer involved. I have had 3 new tires, new drive shaft, 2 rear axles, and now 2 new front axels installed. Problem still exists. I will keep you in the loop as this drama fest continues! Don't kid yourself, it is not NORMAL!

 

[RandyH2]

Guys, I am still experiencing the same problem. My dealer has been excellent and we now have an engineer involved. I have had 3 new tires, new drive shaft, 2 rear axles, and now 2 new front axels installed. Problem still exists. I will keep you in the loop as this drama fest continues! Don't kid yourself, it is not NORMAL!

Don't you know???!!! It's that 4th tire!

 

[FordService]

The service writer at the local dealership said they test drove 2 (or 3) other Exlporers and all had the same vibration as mine...

Randy,

I set up a follow up call for you and I sent a PM with more info. Please check your inbox for the details.

Guys, I am still experiencing the same problem. My dealer has been excellent and we now have an engineer involved...

pterrio,

I want to help to get this resolved by sending an escalation to the Customer Service Manager in your region. I already have your VIN, so please send a PM with your contact information, approximate mileage, and dealer name/state.

Cory

 

[RandyH2]

Thanks Cory.

I talked to Eric and we are moving on to the next phase of trouble shooting.

 

[houtzb]

The service writer at the local dealership said they test drove 2 (or 3) other Exlporers and all had the same vibration as mine. Hmmmmmmmmmmm...........

This is what my dealership is now telling me after driving one XLT with the 20" rims. The Service Manager refers to it as a 'nibble'. It is most noticable on the highway if you're going around a bend in the road, especially to the left, but is always there. So far they have rotated, road-force balanced all tires and replaced two of them (followed by a road-force balance). It's really tough for them as they have no highways near them.

I talked to Eric and we are moving on to the next phase of trouble shooting.

Randy - have you made any progress? My Service Manager told me that the next step would be to get a Ford Engineer involved.

 

[RandyH2]

That's about what mine does as well though I have not noticed a right vs. left turn difference- if only because I haven't paid enough attention. I think it is always there, and maybe even at the same frequency, but the intensity increases with speed. Take it up to 80+ mph and you definitely know it is there. Today, I think it was a bit different in that it suddenly became more forceful when I hit ~50 mph for the first time, shortly after leaving my house for the first drive of the day. Maybe it was just a road condition thing but I went from not thinking about it to suddenly thinking, "Wow- that was a sudden change."

I did speak to the Ford rep and he said that my dealership has exhausted their efforts (after 3 "attempts" - I don't know if they actually did anything other than drive it and say, "Yep, there is a vibration. Yep, the others do it too." He now wants me to take it to another dealership but that is 30-40 minutes from here and I honestly would rather spend that 30 minutes of that 4 hours (there and back to drop off, return to pick it up) at my desk sending Lemon Law letters... Especially if they don't know how to fix it.

 

[RandyH2]

This is what my dealership is now telling me after driving one XLT with the 20" rims. The Service Manager refers to it as a 'nibble'. It is most noticable on the highway if you're going around a bend in the road, especially to the left, but is always there. So far they have rotated, road-force balanced all tires and replaced two of them (followed by a road-force balance).

I re-read your post and thought I would add another thought of mine, just in case it helps point someone in the direction of a solution. To me, it almost feels like there is some coarseness in some gear drive or linkage. Sometimes I think the entire suspension has a rough/coarse rebound period that lasts for ~10 decreasing amplitude cycles after a bump- I feel the crack in the pavement and then vibrations afterwards rather than just the one jolt from the initial impact. I'm not an engineer so take it for free.

 

[FordService]

...Randy - have you made any progress? My Service Manager told me that the next step would be to get a Ford Engineer involved.

... I feel the crack in the pavement and then vibrations afterwards rather than just the one jolt from the initial impact...

houtzb & RandyH2,

I want to see this resolved once and for all. I have your contact information, so please drop a line when you’d like me to arrange a call from the Customer Service Manager in your area.

Cory

 

[RandyH2]

Randy - have you made any progress? My Service Manager told me that the next step would be to get a Ford Engineer involved.

I have lost the will to keep pushing it, so nothing has happened lately. That said, I did notice yesterday that the vibration has changed a bit and now becomes significantly more noticeable when I lift off of the throttle. Yet another bit of diagnostic info.

Time to call my Rep- the problem is that he wants it to go to another dealership that is about 45 minutes from here and I don't have the time right now to make that trip multiple times. I'll update as things progress, assuming they do.

How has yours gone?

 

[RandyH2]

Also, I have noticed that my vibration does seem to be worse with a slight turn of the wheel. A curve in the Interstate is enough of a turn to exacerbate the vibration.

 

[houtzb]

I have lost the will to keep pushing it, so nothing has happened lately. That said, I did notice yesterday that the vibration has changed a bit and now becomes significantly more noticeable when I lift off of the throttle. Yet another bit of diagnostic info.

Time to call my Rep- the problem is that he wants it to go to another dealership that is about 45 minutes from here and I don't have the time right now to make that trip multiple times. I'll update as things progress, assuming they do.

How has yours gone?

The Service Manager at my dealership tells me he has been doing some research. I have an appt Nov 1 for a Ford Tech to check it out. I'll keep you posted.

I have also noticed that mine is worse when I leave off the throttle too but not always. It sounds like we have the same issue.

 

[RandyH2]

Mine goes in on the 2nd for a test drive with the service manager. I'll keep you posted on that as well.

I had a frustrating customer service experience with Ford last week. Background: On the first visit for the vibration, they dealership blamed it on the tires flat-spotting. On second visit for the same problem, a tech said he felt it but failed to reproduce it for the service manager(?) so nothing was done. At the third visit they fixed (some) other problems and merely noted that they test drove two other Explorers both of which had a similar vibration so no repair work attempted.

To me, that is clearly three visits related to the same problem and therefore I am one visit out from the Michigan Lemon Law 4 attempts to fix the problem. When I spoke to the Service Rep (not Cory or anyone else from this forum) he said that they have not found any problem with the vehicle! Because they have not found the problem they can not take it to the Board, etc. What a load of hooey! I was going to be nice and give them the chance to do the right thing about all of this but now I'm seriously thinking I'll have to hire an attorney (and I'll take them to court for the attorney's fees, too, for being so lame).

What a disgrace. The Explorer is my first new domestic car. What a shame both because the car has been a disappointment and because I am outspoken and will now have a batch of negative stories to tell about my Ford experience. If Ford is looking to improve their reputation, this is certainly not the way to go about doing it.

 

[houtzb]

Mine goes in on the 2nd for a test drive with the service manager. I'll keep you posted on that as well.

I had a frustrating customer service experience with Ford last week. Background: On the first visit for the vibration, they dealership blamed it on the tires flat-spotting. On second visit for the same problem, a tech said he felt it but failed to reproduce it for the service manager(?) so nothing was done. At the third visit they fixed (some) other problems and merely noted that they test drove two other Explorers both of which had a similar vibration so no repair work attempted.

To me, that is clearly three visits related to the same problem and therefore I am one visit out from the Michigan Lemon Law 4 attempts to fix the problem. When I spoke to the Service Rep (not Cory or anyone else from this forum) he said that they have not found any problem with the vehicle! Because they have not found the problem they can not take it to the Board, etc. What a load of hooey! I was going to be nice and give them the chance to do the right thing about all of this but now I'm seriously thinking I'll have to hire an attorney (and I'll take them to court for the attorney's fees, too, for being so lame).

What a disgrace. The Explorer is my first new domestic car. What a shame both because the car has been a disappointment and because I am outspoken and will now have a batch of negative stories to tell about my Ford experience. If Ford is looking to improve their reputation, this is certainly not the way to go about doing it.

+1

If I were to have the opportunity to get another vehicle due to the problems I'm experiencing, I can honestly say that it probably would NOT be a Ford!

 

[RandyH2]

My Explorer was driven by the service manager this morning and he did feel the vibration at one point while accelerating onto the highway. Later on, when I could definitely feel it, he said he could not tell if it was road noise or not. Finally, when we got back to the dealership, he parked the Ex, left the transmission in D and applied the brakes manually. When he gave it gas (while holding the vehicle stationary), the vehicle began to vibrate noticeably and the vibrations became very pronounced as the RPM's increased. The vehicle apparently has a 2000 RPM limit when the wheels are not moving as the RPM's would go no higher. It's hard to say if the vibration was the same or not as were unable to go beyond 2000 RPM but is sure felt similar.

After that, the service manager said that while he felt the vibration he really couldn't offer to do anything about it as he had no idea what it could be- engine, drivetrain, suspension, etc. or some combination of things. Note that they have done absolutely nothing to it so far- that may be because there is nothing he thinks can be done.

This afternoon I had a call from our regional Ford Rep (not Cory) who told me that he had spoken to the Service Manager and had been told that there was nothing wrong with my vehicle. UGH! The SM had warned me that dealing with the Dispute Resolution Board would be one of the most frustrating things I'd ever do but I failed to realize that the frustration would start so soon.

My options now appear to be 1) Live with it 2) Sell the Ex and eat the loss 3) Hire an attorney and pursue Lemon Law. I'll run through those options:
1) Live with it- I tend to keep my cars for 5-10 years. Nope, not going to live with this for that long.
2) Sell it. I'll lose what, $5,000+ of instant depreciation?
3) Lawyer. I hate to go down this path for so many reasons.

Ugh. I'm bummed.

 

[houtzb]

My Explorer was driven by the service manager this morning and he did feel the vibration at one point while accelerating onto the highway. Later on, when I could definitely feel it, he said he could not tell if it was road noise or not. Finally, when we got back to the dealership, he parked the Ex, left the transmission in D and applied the brakes manually. When he gave it gas (while holding the vehicle stationary), the vehicle began to vibrate noticeably and the vibrations became very pronounced as the RPM's increased. The vehicle apparently has a 2000 RPM limit when the wheels are not moving as the RPM's would go no higher. It's hard to say if the vibration was the same or not as were unable to go beyond 2000 RPM but is sure felt similar.

After that, the service manager said that while he felt the vibration he really couldn't offer to do anything about it as he had no idea what it could be- engine, drivetrain, suspension, etc. or some combination of things. Note that they have done absolutely nothing to it so far- that may be because there is nothing he thinks can be done.

This afternoon I had a call from our regional Ford Rep (not Cory) who told me that he had spoken to the Service Manager and had been told that there was nothing wrong with my vehicle. UGH! The SM had warned me that dealing with the Dispute Resolution Board would be one of the most frustrating things I'd ever do but I failed to realize that the frustration would start so soon.

My options now appear to be 1) Live with it 2) Sell the Ex and eat the loss 3) Hire an attorney and pursue Lemon Law. I'll run through those options:
1) Live with it- I tend to keep my cars for 5-10 years. Nope, not going to live with this for that long.
2) Sell it. I'll lose what, $5,000+ of instant depreciation?
3) Lawyer. I hate to go down this path for so many reasons.

Ugh. I'm bummed.

I'm bummed for you too! For a vehicle with this price tag - UNACCEPTABLE!!! (or any vehicle IMO) My appointment was moved to this Friday due to the snowstorm we had over the weekend. I assume that your vehicle was warmed up when you ran that test. I'm going to try it with my vehicle cold when I leave work in a few minutes and then again in my driveway when I get home.

 

[RandyH2]

Good point- yes it was at operating temperature before the test. I tried the test at home and cycled through all of the terrain modes, plus tow mode, to see if it would exceed the 2000 RPM limit- no change.
I'm going to pay more attention to RPM's on the road now and see how if there is any correlation.

 

[houtzb]

Ok, just got home. I could feel the vibration both times but that is not the vibration I feel on the highway. I bet any vehicle would do that. Mine held at the 2k mark as well. I did note that 70-73 is the magical speed range to hit for reproduction. I'll be sure to mention that when I drop it off tomorrow evening

 

[FordService]

Good point- yes it was at operating temperature before the test. I tried the test at home and cycled through all of the terrain modes, plus tow mode, to see if it would exceed the 2000 RPM limit- no change...

RandyH2,

I see that you spoke with Brian today about this. Please let me know via PM if you’d like me to forward any more details.

Ok, just got home. I could feel the vibration both times but that is not the vibration I feel on the highway. I bet any vehicle would do that. Mine held at the 2k mark as well. I did note that 70-73 is the magical speed range to hit for reproduction. I'll be sure to mention that when I drop it off tomorrow evening

houtzb,

I can set a follow-up call with the Customer Service Manager in your region. Drop me a line in my inbox and I’ll be glad to do that.

Cory