# Ford HELP please!!!!



## G.McNeill&Son (Nov 19, 2009)

Good morning. I have 2 Ford trucks with the same problem. One is a F250 2004 gas & the other is a F350 2005 diesel dump. Both trucks are having the same front end problem. When stopping the front end shakes and the brakes pulse pretty bad. I did the brakes last year and it stopped for a while but then started again. I checked the pads on both and they are fine. The routers were spun on one when I did the brakes. I have no idea why this keeps happening. Any info will be greatly appreciated.


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## FordFisherman (Dec 5, 2007)

Have you done ball joints recently? Front axle seals may not be seated correctly. You may also have warped rotors.


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## Tony350 (Feb 6, 2010)

Could possible be tie rod ends if they have play in them?


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## TJS (Oct 22, 2003)

I am with FordFisherman. I had the same problem with my 02 and did the ball joints, axle u-joints and the swaybar end link bushings.
T.J.


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## linckeil (Sep 18, 2007)

do the trucks have front ABS? a pulsing pedal may be caused by a bad sensor incorrectly sensing wheel lock up.


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## drp (Oct 12, 2009)

caliper slides could be stuck. It is very common.


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## fireboy6413 (Sep 28, 2008)

I would have your rotors checked first, see if they are warped, check your pads see if the are worn evenly or not, then check and see if you have a caliper freezing up on you, go with this before replacing the most expensive parts. Ive had alot of problems with my callipers, theirs 2 bolts that hold the calliper to the truck, well theirs also 2 sliders in their and they seize up, they have caused my vibrations, heat them up sand them dopwn and throw some anti sieze and your good


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## Bigfoot Brent (Mar 19, 2008)

If you machine warped rotors, you have now made them thinner and lighter, so they will now get hotter and heat up more quickly causing even worse warpage. This is what causes the brake pedal to pulsate during braking. Warped rotors are to be replaced NOT machined.


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## gtstang462002 (Dec 23, 2009)

Sounds like warped rotors, buy new ones from ford, they will last longer and hold up better to brake happy drivers better than aftermarket.


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## Carriage House (Aug 21, 2004)

Another common ford problem is the wheel bearings. They are a sealed bearing and have to be replaced as a unit. They are known to go quickly but relatively easy to swap yourself with a little patience and a lot of swearing. Buy the tapered bearing if at all possible there a bunch of different combinations too... ABS vs. non, course threads vs. fine etc...

These are heavy trucks and the front end usually needs attention. Any symptoms can be a variety of things and can feel very strange behind the wheel.


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## cold_and_tired (Dec 18, 2008)

Warping rotors are VERY rare. What we think of as warped rotors is typically a build-up of pad material that is deposited by leaving your foot on the brakes after a hard stop. But this kind of beside the point though.

Ford trucks are notorious for brake problems. Especially trucks that are used hard. Based off of my research on other Ford forums, Powerslot rotors and Hawk pads seem to be the most reliable for stopping these trucks without the typical "warping" problems.


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## gtstang462002 (Dec 23, 2009)

cold_and_tired;1102510 said:


> Warping rotors are VERY rare. What we think of as warped rotors is typically a build-up of pad material that is deposited by leaving your foot on the brakes after a hard stop. But this kind of beside the point though.
> 
> Ford trucks are notorious for brake problems. Especially trucks that are used hard. Based off of my research on other Ford forums, Powerslot rotors and Hawk pads seem to be the most reliable for stopping these trucks without the typical "warping" problems.


Ford trucks are not notorious for brake problems, warped rotors typically come from people who drive with 2 feet. One on the gas and one on the brake(my wife is a good example of that). I have yet to see this build up of "pad material" being deposited on rotors, unless there was another issue such as soaked brake linings. Rotors will warp if they are machined too thin. I have also had brand new aftermarket rotors that were not true from the store(most likely due to improper storage).


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## G.McNeill&Son (Nov 19, 2009)

Im thinking it is a combination of wrapped rotors and calibers sticking from all the info ive read. Ive had the caliber's stick before and it is a cheap fix. I checked ball & cv joints and everything seems tight. The truck only has 25,000 miles but they are hard miles will sanding,plowing,hauling machines and construction material. Thanks for the import,Ill keep you posted


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## gtstang462002 (Dec 23, 2009)

G.McNeill&Son;1102881 said:


> Im thinking it is a combination of wrapped rotors and calibers sticking from all the info ive read. Ive had the caliber's stick before and it is a cheap fix. I checked ball & cv joints and everything seems tight. The truck only has 25,000 miles but they are hard miles will sanding,plowing,*hauling machines* and construction material. Thanks for the import,Ill keep you posted


*That is probably what did you in right there,* especially if the trailer brakes were not functioning 100%.


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## quisman (Nov 1, 2010)

I thought chevy was FAMOUS for their braking troubles, esp rear brakes??...but besides the point...
head down the road really slow and apply light light pressure to brake pedal. If you feel the brake giving you feedback and pushing your foot back up then in, back up, etc, I would damn near call that warped rotors. svt contour does it exactly as you describe and it has new balls, new rod ends, but pads/rotors "looked" good when I bought it. MY FAIL. Granted it's a car, but many things are the same, the just last longer w/ less weight....Sometimes.
Let us know what you find !

Maybe jack her up and listen to see if you have pad contact then none.....


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## MickiRig1 (Dec 5, 2003)

I would make sure they were greased in the right places. With my old Wagner system Ford. I would clean and grease the front brakes spring and Fall. The rotors should not warp. Trucks have a lot of meat built in on rotors so they can be turned.If you keep having trouble I would invest in a dial indicator.So you can check your own rotors and replace the ones with too much run out. A lot of shop's will replace all the parts so you don't come back.


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## gtstang462002 (Dec 23, 2009)

MickiRig1;1103236 said:


> I would make sure they were greased in the right places. With my old Wagner system Ford. I would clean and grease the front brakes spring and Fall. The rotors should not warp. Trucks have a lot of meat built in on rotors so they can be turned.If you keep having trouble I would invest in a dial indicator.So you can check your own rotors and replace the ones with too much run out. A lot of shop's will replace all the parts so you don't come back.


They also have a minimum specification stamped right into the rotor. When that is reached you need to throw them away. This is why it is called a discard number.


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## marylandbigb (Sep 23, 2009)

do you tow the same trailer with both trucks???? if so i would be checking the electric brakes on the trailer


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## suzuki0702 (Apr 6, 2008)

do yourself a favor and throw the stock rotors into the scrap pile..ive had good luck with the duralast rotors. cheap and 2yr warranty


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## gtstang462002 (Dec 23, 2009)

suzuki0702;1137237 said:


> do yourself a favor and throw the stock rotors into the scrap pile..ive had good luck with the duralast rotors. cheap and 2yr warranty


I have had duralast rotors warped right out of the box.


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## MickiRig1 (Dec 5, 2003)

Check prices at the mom and pop auto part places. I found that just because they are small does not mean they have high prices. My favorite machine shop / parts dealer had rotors $10 cheaper then Advance auto parts. To do the brakes right you need to turn ALL the rotors or drums. If close to the discard thickness when turned replace them. A working truck is going through much more then Mom's daily driver pickup. It just take one warped rotor to pump the brakes.


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## geer hed (Nov 22, 2010)

*Ford help please*

OK it's time to do some simple checks.

First and foremost you will need a coupl jack stands or blocks, don't shortcut on your safety.

I am assuming these are both 4 wheel drive.

1: jack up one front wheel leaving the other on the ground. Turn the wheels all the way to one side (preferably left for the left wheel and right for the right wheel). Now spin the wheel, it should spin fairly easily, if not your caliper is hung up. Then lock in the hub of the wheel, and spin it again. if it binds then loosens then binds then loosens as it makes each rotation you have a bad u-joint in the front drive axle that is binding on that side. Next have someone else take and rotate the wheel front to back in short quick movements, while you look at the u-joint for play in case the needle bearings are going bad in the u-joint. Then unlock the hub again straighten the wheels, have your helper stick a prybar under the wheel and lift up and down. As they do that you look at the upper and lower ball joint for move ment, if there is play they are bad, if you see the wheel move but not the knucle your wheel bearings are bad. Now have your partner get in and step on the brake you should not be able to spin the wheel. then tell him/her to releese the pedal, you should be able to spin the tire again within 1 or 2 seconds, if not your caliper MAY be hanging up, or you could have a bad brake line.

Now you get to let the first side down and do all over again to the other side.

Now since you said it did this before, if you replace the caiper also replace the rubber brake lines from the frame the the wheels. When they go bad they can stretch and hold pressure on the caliper. It does the same thing to the rotor as driving with your foot on the brake. When you go to squeez the piston into the caliper, even a little to loosen it so you can get it off, crack the bleeder. pushing the fluid back into the master cylinder can mess up the equilization valve. and make sure you use antisieze on the slidders ONLY when you put it back together.

In case both trucks are not 4WD, just skip the part about locking the hubs, everything else will be the same.


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## G.McNeill&Son (Nov 19, 2009)

*rotors*

Thanks for all the info. I did the rotors and it seems to solve the problem for now. Ill let you know after the winter


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