F150 rear differential issues

First a question: do you have self-locking hubs or do you have to backup and turn the hubs to put it into four-wheel-drive? If you do, then you may have a problem because you may have switched into four-wheel-drive without ensuring the differential and gears were in sync. You can’t know that until you get into the differential and look at things.

If on the other hand, you have an all-electronic transmission, four-wheel-drive setup then I suspect everything is fine.

I have found that when I have driven Ford 4X4s in the past that if you leave your vehicle in four-wheel-drive and attempt to turn the steering wheel beyond 80 degrees or so, the transmission starts to complain a lot with grinding and such.

So, here’s what I would suggest: put the truck into two-wheel-drive and leave it there and then make sure your trailer is hooked up correctly. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the transmission, I suspect it is the four-wheel-drive that you are hearing complain and if you don’t need it, then there should be nothing wrong with you hauling a trailer to your new home.four-wheel-drive

If it’s happening when your F-150 is in two-wheel-drive then I would have the gear selector looked at for starters. It sounds as if it may be slightly out-of-kilter and instead of clearing the 4WD selection (your F-150 is “drive-by-wire” or computer-controlled when it comes to choosing the gearing), your pickup is still in 4WD.

I’d bring it into a good repair facility of a dealership to have it checked out ASAP because of your upcoming move.

It is possible that there is more to the problem than just the selector as it could be in anywhere in the electronics, however, I think if you have a diagnostic run, you will find the return will put the problem somewhere in the front-end of the electronics.

The good news is that the problem is, I think, where it is in the front end of the electronics chain. This means it should be relatively easy to access and fix. The bad news is that it could be in the console area where something is either shorting or open and giving a false indication to the engine control module. If that is the case and the console has to be opened then it could mean you could be without your ride for the day. However, when it’s fixed you should be able to go on your way in two-wheel or four-wheel.