2011/F150/Supercrew/6.5' box/157" whlbase

Ford's attempt to resolve

1st attempt: Replaced all the "Leaf Springs" to no avail.
2nd attempt: Kept the truck for 1&1/2 days putting in various shims to enhance the drive shaft angles. Ford/Detroit believes the issue revolves around "Suspension"! The shimming process only made the condition worse according to the dealership. Therefore, they returned the trk in the original condition it has been since purchase, back in April. Detroit's attempts @ repair were delivered to the dealership in "Kit" packages. As of this date (01/14/2012) there are no further attempts to resolve in the future.

Cedar Rapids, Ia. got its 1st significant snow fall this past week, & caused me to use the "4 Wheel" option several times for additional traction. Now that we have dry pavement again, I'm not experiencing the "Shudder, Wobble or Vibration" when the truck is in "4 Whl Dr"/when empty. I don't know what the situation would be if towing my boat @ this time, but the above situation wants to tell me that the rear drive shaft needs additional support because of its length. My thoughts are that the frt whl dr. has relieved some of the starting torque from the rear dr. shaft. I'm going to try & pass this onto Ford, because @ $48,000+ for a vehicle, I'm not willing to let them "Blow Me Off"!!

I'll keep you informed of their position as time marches on. But, again, have any of you F-150 owners of my 157" wheel base experienced the condition? If Ford is sending out a factory kit as a solution, I can't help but believe they are having others complaining.

I believe Ford has resolved my:"Shudder/Wobble/Vibration

3 weeks ago my dealership(Junge Ford of Center Point, Iowa) began another search for a resolve to my Drive Train problem of 8400 miles.
After multiple efforts communicated from Detroit to the dealership regarding attempts to solve, the dealership was able to have a Ford/Detroit field tech come to Cedar Rapids/Center Point & work first hand on the issue. The "Correction" to the issue seems to have been the replacing of the existing "Transmission" mounts! I'm not privy to all the details, but I'm getting the information that maybe they had to try 2 different mounts to have gotten the problem resolved to its existing condition. For the record, I have given a passing grade for the trucks response to what I consider to be the "Empty" condition. My point is, that until I pull a load later this month when I get the boat out, it think that they have found a correction, but towing the boat will become the final test. To this point, I whole heartily compliment the efforts of the dealership & Detroit for the way the have worked with the situation! They have treated me very fairly! Particularly the dealership!
This major issue to the struggle of finding a solution revolves around the fact, that other units reporting the same condition have multiple solutions, and to this point there really hasn't been a single cause. The next time you hear from me will be the towing of my 3600# boat & how the solution holds up to that condition.

Towed the boat yesterday

As previously reported, my 2011 F-150 has had drive train problems.
As of earlier this month, my dealer along with the consultation of a Ford Field Tech, had the truck for over 2 weeks & ultimately remounted the transmission with "Raptor/Off Road" transmission mounts. This appeared to resolve the "Vibration" when the truck was empty! I gave a passing grade to the empty condition, but reserved final blessings until I had the chance to tow my 3500 to 3600# boat with a tongue load of 300 to 350#.
Well, I spent the better part of the other days afternoon test pulling the boat & much to my disappointment, I felt that the issue was still there! At best, the new mounts resolved maybe 40 to 50% of the problem. So, yesterday I took the trk & the boat to the dealer for their opinion. The Sr. mechanic came away with the same conclusion as mine! So, next week they are going to put in another
set of "Leaf Springs" that were sent by Ford.
Time will tell!!! That's my story & I'm sticking to it! Will let you know the outcome! CRJohn

March 27th report on Dr. Train

On Tuesday, March 27th, 2012 my dealership made their last attempt to help resolve the year long "Towing/wobble, vibration or shudder" of my 157" wheelbase 2011/Super cab/6.5' box/F-150 drive train. To this date there has been 3 sincere attempts to correct the issue.
#1. In Nov. 2011, they replaced the leaf springs & also tried various
degrees of shimming the leaf springs to no avail.
#2. During the month of Feb. & March of 2012, Detroit sent a field
tech to witness the issue & assist in the trouble shooting. After
over 2 weeks of having the vehicle, the partial solution was the
installation of the Ford "Raptor" transmission mounts. This
attempt reduced the situation approx. 90 to 95% when the truck
was empty.
#3. Yesterday the dealership installed what I understand to be a
Heavy-Duty set of leaf springs, because when towing the boat,
it was agreed that the condition still existed to maybe a 50%
reduction of its original towing condition. So, the reason for the
heavier springs provided by Ford. The new springs did not totally
resolve the situation when towing the boat. Maybe another 10%
reduction was realized.
So, in conclusion: It still has not been totally resolved! At the present time, the Transmission Mount & Heavy Duty Leaf Springs have provided approx. 50 to 60% resolve. I'm left with what I have for the time being. That is all for now!!! CRJohn

Same problem

I have a 2012 F150 Screw 157" WB, 6.5' box with 3.5L Ecoboost engine. I experience what sounds to be the same shudder as crjohn1. Shudder occurs when accelerating away from a stop, lasts for about 1 second until rpm has increased. I currently have less than 3k miles on the truck and the shudder is very suttle, which some people might not even notice (I'm the type of guy that is tuned in to whistles and rattles). In my case the shudder can only be felt when towing my 7,000 lb trailer, nothing felt when not towing. I have seen other posts on forums that claim the shudder is due to a 2-piece driveshaft on the Screw 6.5' box, and not an issue with a 1-piece driveshaft on the Screw 5' box. (Just repeating what I've read, which does not come from any official Ford sources.)

I'll bring it up with Ford at my 1st oil change to see what they have to say.

Ford's July 2012 correction attempt

My local Ford dealership (Junge Ford/Center Point, Ia.) gave me a call just before Xmas ('12) that Ford/Detroit had issued another attempt to correct the 157" wheelbase "Wobble/Vibration or Shudder" while towing from a dead stop to approx 5-10mph that has plagued my 2011/Supercab F-150 from day 1. They had the truck for approx. 2 hours to execute Ford's latest "TSB/12-7-13" of July 31, 2012 for "some 2009-2012 F-150 trucks". This procedure revolved around qoute: "Some 2009-2012 F-150 Vehicles equipped with a 2-piece drive shaft only built on or before 7/30/2012 may exhibit a rear drive shaft slip/bump concern on light to moderate acceleration from a stop or when coming to a stop with light braking." This bulletin basically had the dealership remove the existing grease & replace with kit grease to the internal splines of the slip yoke of the drive shaft. A new boot was installed.

Part Number Part Name
9L3Z-4W602-A Slip Joint Repair Kit
TA-25 Threadlock And Sealer

Since we are in the middle of an Iowa winter, I'll hold my acceptance to this procedure until this coming Spring when I will be able to attempt towing my 3600# boat from storage. Even though my truck is 1&1/2 years old, my dealership has not forgotten me & my concern regarding the drive shaft "Wobble". They need to be commended on their service! CRJohn1

Final response to the 2011/Towing issue

It is now Sept., 2013 & my final evaluation of Fords attempt to eliminate the drive trains "Wobble/Vibration or Shudder" that I have written about for the past 2 yrs, is this:
#1. Last Dec. '12 my dealership made another attempt to resolve the issue with replacing the Grease & Boot of the 2 piece dr. shaft.
#2. Having towed my 3500# boat for this entire season here on Lake of the Woods, Mn. & pulling it from Cedar Rapids, Ia. I am satisfied with these opinions: A. When the truck is not pulling a load, the condition is 98% undetectable. B. While pulling my boat, the condition has been corrected to possibly 90% to 95% acceptable. Because I have become so sensitive to the situation, I feel I can detect a very slight vibration from the "Dead Stop" situation to about the 3-5 mph speed. Even though it is not perfect in my eyes(for a $50,000+ price tag), I'm willing to accept the final attempt as the best it's going to get!
Thanks for following my adventure. When all is said and done, I still
believe they make a good truck & have tried to stand behind the product with me. John Hecklsmiller/Cedar Rapids, Ia.