I know this is going to sounds lame, my wife can't turn them, they have cover over it that has to be unscrewed to get at 'em. It would be nice to shift in and out "on the fly" as weather condition change.
Is it a difficult change?
As my truck stands it has OEM automatic locking hubs with a selector for auto or lock. So, why would some one buy manual locking hubs and cap off the ESOF vacuum line when the OEM ones perform the same function by being auto or locked?
I hope this makes sense because if I felt I wanted to go to manual style locking hubs, I think I could simply cap off the vacuum line and then switch the hub to lock if I wanted 4x4 because the electric switch inside the truck is actually what engages the transfer case and puts the truck into 4x4.
Is this thinking/theory correct or am I missing something here?
I got new auto-locking hubs. The updated ones. As I proceeded to replace them, I pulled out old ones and when driver side came out, there was like 1/2 ounce of water that flowed out from where the auto-locking hub would sit. Strange. I had changed out lines, vacuum pump, vacuum solenoid and reservoir. All new and dry. I blasted both sides down with brake cleaner to clean off old grease, let dry and installed new auto hubs. So far so good. Will test the ESOF feature another time. I was wondering where this water would come from? Other side of wheel hubs are dry.
View 2 RepliesJust notice this in the manual page 302 The vehicle should not be driven in 4x4 high or low with the lock hubs set to auto as this condition may damage driveline system components.
Page 303 It then goes on to say !!
Automatic operation of the hub locks is recommended and will increase fuel economy.
when using 4x4 once in awhile LOCK or AUTO
On my new to me '03 Excursion (I've owned it for 1.5 weeks now), I'm starting to get through the 1st level of issues (Wandering - fixed, Speedo/ABS issue - still working on that, changing the rear diff fluid this week, hopefully).
Now, I want to look into why the manually locking hubs won't turn. When I brought it up to the Previous Owner, who was about as mechanically inclined as my Golden Retreiver, he said "these are auto locking hubs. I never turned those things before".
They are frozen in the non-locked position, so I have to pray that I never need to actually manually lock them.
Any lucky experience at un-freezing stuck hubs? I've started the liberal application of PB Blaster process.
I just ordered '00 F250 SC 4x4 SWB XLT with the factory standard manual hubs. The hubs show up on the vehicle order confirmation as code "21M MAN LOCKING HUB". I can't find this code in the ordering guides anywhere but kbb.com shows this code as "Manual hubs delete. Required with 213 shift-on-the-fly". I want the manual hubs. I think ##### is incorrect. For my piece of mind, could someone who has also ordered the factory standard manual hubs verify that the code is indeed 21M. And for those who ordered shift-on-the-fly, could you verify that 21M does NOT show up on your order confirmation...
View 8 RepliesI've noticed my front axles are rotating all the time even when the hubs are in auto and supposed to be unlocked when in 2wd. Is there a rebuild kit for these so they will unlock the axles or do I need to buy new locking hubs?
View 14 RepliesMy hubs will not lock when put into 4x4. I disconnected all lines from the solenoid to both hubs and tested them for leaks... All good there. I put a gauge on the lines at both hubs one at a time while the other is still connected and get no reading when switched into 4x4. I checked for vacuum right out of the solenoid, and I get 2inHg when switched into 4x.
The vacuum pump kicks on every time I start the truck, even if I just shut it off and re-start right away. There is no delay when switching my ac/heater controls to different settings or vent locations. So I know there is vacuum. How much vacuum I should be getting out of the solenoid to the hubs?
2004 F350 6.0L....
I took apart, cleaned and lubed my hubs. My question is: how does the vacuum make the gears work?
Does the vacuum force (suck) the nylon assembly to push the outer gear towards the center of the truck, sliding on the inner gear thus engaging the teeth so that the axle shaft turns the hub?
When the vacuum is gone, does spring pressure pushes the outer gear away from the center of the truck thus disengaging the teeth from the inner gear and allowing the hub to free wheel?
Is this vacuum source constant during 4wd and not present during 2wd or do I not understand how the system works? I have read about a “vacuum pulse” that locks the hubs and another pulse that unlocks the hubs and this confuses me.
BTW, I like the way the Auto lock works. I had a set of Warn Auto Lock hubs on my 78 CJ. They worked on the principle of a set of roller bearings that would lock (pinch) when there was torque coming from the drive shaft. There was no vacuum involved at all. The down side was that when you coasted, the front hubs would be in two wheel drive and so you would not get the engine braking on all 4 wheels. These ESOF seem to have solved this problem.
Oh, I should probably tell you that I just purchased my 04 F250 SuperDuty 4x4 with the 6.0 diesel, just had it a week. It has been 18 years since I owned a 4x4. Before this I owned an 87 F250 2wd with the 6.9 diesel.
My F350 4x4 won't go into 4 wheel drive unless I get out and take them out of auto and put them in locked position and when I have it in lock mode it seams to work like it's in auto mode, when I put the switch on the dash in 2wd, it seams like it's only driving the back wheels....
View 14 RepliesMy 2010 F350 shudders when turning right. From what I read it could be the auto locking hubs not dis-engaging or sticking in the locked position. Tutorials show it's pretty easy to pull the auto locking Hub out taking out the three screws holding it in place. My questions is what type of grease do I need to apply to the auto locking hub once I have them out and determine that is what the issue is?
View 13 RepliesI have a 2013 F250 which has both the Manual and auto locking hub feature. I tried to plow my driveway this morning and after making one pass I put the truck in reverse and could not back up my steep driveway. The truck is showing locked in 4x4 on the dash, the 4x4 control is in high lock but the front wheels will not turn. It has been very cold here lately (-30) and I'm wondering if the vacuum lines for the auto locking hubs have frozen. I have switched the control out of 4x4 and back in several times, and it does lock in again, but as soon as I put the truck into reverse, they unlock again. The hubs are covered with ice and snow right now so I have not yet tried to manually lock them.
View 14 RepliesAnd the vacuum pump was replaced.
View 7 RepliesI just recently purchased a 2000 Excursion and had some questions up in another thread. After doing some diagnosing....I have a couple of questions about the auto locking hubs. The problem I have is that even with the vacuum line disconnected from the knuckle and no vacuum...the hubs won't unlock in auto/2wd. I confirmed that the knuckle and the hubs will hold vacuum when I hooked my vacuum pump up to it and it held vacuum (the fitting should be clear as I heard the hub making some sounds). I'm getting ready to pull the hubs to clean and re-grease them. My question is that being they are still locked....will it be any harder to pull them off the spindle and after disassembling them/cleaning them.....when I re-install them....will they be unlocked by default after putting them back on the spline as they have been pulled apart and reassembled?
View 14 RepliesHave a 1995 F150 with 83k with manual locking hubs. Haven't used them in almost a year. Today turned them to LOCK, normally very stiff, but this time easily turned with two fingers. Front wheels would not engage. Local mechanic put it on a lift, manually switched each hub from LOCK to FREE several times and they work fine now.
View 2 RepliesWhen I park over night while in 4x4, the next morning my hubs are disengaged and I have to manually lock them. There is an apparent slow/slight leak in the vacuum system. What would be the usual suspect, so I can start at that point?
View 3 RepliesNew to the 4x4 6.0 just bought an 06' King Ranch 130K miles. My other truck is a 95' 7.3 non 4x4 now for sale. So the new to me 06' will not lock the hubs in Auto mode but will in Manual. I have good vacuum down to each wheel hub which is where my question is.
The vac port at either wheel I get 20-30hg however I believe this is only because something is plugged. If I pump up my vac tester to ~25hg right at the wheel port the needle doesn't move, holds vacuum, but does not Auto lock the hub. So I pulled out the Manual/Auto hub by removing the 3 torque screws thinking my vacuum should then go to 0 but it doesn't it stays right at ~25hg.
Before I bought the truck there was some work done to the front end. New ball-joints, Rt tie-rod and perhaps a few other things I haven't ID yet. Could my problem above be an axle seal or something else perhaps installed incorrectly causing the small vac hole going down inside the hub to be covered up or maybe plugged somehow? I believe to replace the ball joints the axle, hub and other parts have to be removed, correct?
Warn Premiums, installed them and now the 4x4 is engaging, but still have a grinding issue. When the hubs are locked and the switch is in 2 wheel drive, the frond end is grinding, if I switch it to 4 hi, the grinding goes away.
View 3 RepliesI have my vacuum system back up and working and using my vacuum pump I determined my lines are all good. They hold a vacuum fine, but my ESOF isn't engaging my hubs. I guess that leaves either the selector on the dash or the seal at the hubs.
If it is the selector, I should just be able to just disconnect the vacuum line at the selector and use my pump to engage my hubs. How much it is supposed to take to activate the hubs?
To those of you that have replaced your unit bearing hubs on your 4 x 4's; are they giving comparable service to the OEM units? I'm replacing ball-joints right now and it would sure be easy to slap on some new hubs. The only issue is I have 130k on the originals and have been lubing them through the ABS port for the last 20k miles - the hubs seem to be in good condition. I've noticed some posters stating that since lubing an already good hub, that they are now getting a lot more than the standard 150k out of them. I also worry about replacing perfectly good US bearing hubs with most likely a Chinese bearing hub (Timken or not!).
View 10 RepliesI am thinking on installing a shutoff in the vacuum line that supplies the hubs so I can use 4LO for backing uphill with a trailer without having the hubs engage. Its either that or a switch to disable the PVH solenoid.
View 12 Replies