(SOLVED) Subtle “thud” when coming to a stop, then accelerating.

Can confirm. Kept having a "thunk" that I could feel in the floorboard and it was a loose bolt on my skidplate (also happened to be RCI).

Unrelated, I now have a thunk when stopping / starting because the alignment tabs on the front have bent outwards a bit and the hardware can shift a teeny bit every stop and start cycle.

 

I was thinking the same.

 

Thanks for all the insight.

So, for context, I do have a 2.5” lift and had it well before this occurred. While I’m not saying it can’t be axel related, I guess I’d expect it to have happened well before?

Another way I can describe it is kinda silly. It’s almost like the four wheels stay planted, but the body moves forward / backwards. Subtle thud indeed, with no known sounds occurring outside.

The only time I can say I heard a thud is occasionally when putting it in reverse and turning the wheel. Almost sounds like metal on metal, actually. However, I had the shop take a look after that and again they sound they found nothing.

As far as the yoke, and greasing things, that’s all pretty DIY, yeah? I’ve never personally done it, but I’d imagine it’s pretty straight forward?

 

Nope. Literally don’t hear anything, just feel it.

 

You know.. funny you mention… I am literally missing a bold for my front skid…. How in tarnation. If I drop the skid, and it remains, I guess I can rule that out. I’m under it now.

 

Sounds like you got a lot of things you can check to see if they’re the culprit.

However, when I owned the last Ranger, I owned, I had the same exact issue, and it was actually the bushings for the bed mounts that that split and so the bed was moving just a little bit. Same exact thing that you’ve mentioned, when I would takeoff from a dead stop, I would hear and feel the thud, when I would hit the brakes I wouldn’t feel or hear it until I was getting to the dead, stopped moment.

Of course, Ford spent a lot of time telling me there was nothing to fix, when one of them finally fixed it, telling me, there was an issue that was related to it, and it should’ve been caught months before.

I hope you find the gremlin.

 

The bolt I had loose had backed about halfway out so I could believe it.

 

I’m curious if a bad mount could be the source of the slight ride quality issues as well? Interesting!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvKwgjpsbdg&t=68s


I found this vid from another thread.

 

Everything seems in order. There are a few things I cannot check myself, I can’t get the truck off the ground until Monday when I get it to a buddies lift.

Anyway, I guess I only have two zerks on my 2018, TRD OR. Will be greasing them later today.

Also, while searching for the zerks, I noticed this sound. Should there be a clunk sound when turning this bad boy?

thanks for any insight.

https://youtu.be/i8uoY7o5wYM

 

This happened to me and it was the front sway bar that had come loose from the clamp on one side. It would clunk in reverse and occasionally with a weird bump

 

it was pretty straight forward until they removed the grease zerks...

 

yea, that's normal

 

Update

- Greased the two zerks, as well as the slip yoke, and life is back to normal.

Also inspected (with an actual mechanic, not just me lol) the unjoints, everything is in good shape.

Another mystery solved I suppose.

 

Do you have anything stored in the storage compartments under the rear seats?

I put my trailer hitch with ball in the driver side rear compartment under the back seat and it was sliding front to back and side to side. It took me a few days to figure out what the cause was. I wrapped it in a reusable grocery bag and put a piece of tape around it. The noise went away.

 

I feel the same thing on my 2021 Manual OR. Felt it since new, and when backing uphill in low range (could be in fwd as well, but I always back up the hill into my yard to unload crap), I can feel a very light thump....... thump....... thump. No noise associated with it though.

 

damn, wish i had some zerks. guess i'm just going to have to live with the thud.

 

To be determined, as I have not done it since the fix, but I have the EXACT situation when backing up. It’s almost like.. running over a speed bump feel? Or just a thump.

May have been related. That slip yoke was the big ticket issue in my experience with the stop and go thump.

 

Well, on the 18-21 (if I’m reading this correct) they still have two zerks on TV e ujoints at the front of the shaft. That was true in my case. In the 2016-17, they had 4 along the entire shaft.

That slip yoke, if you are experiencing the same thump when coming to a harder stop then and again at takeoff, is exactly what you need to focus on. Drop the shaft, grease the propeller, you’re in business

 

sounds easy, but i've never dropped a prop shaft before. also, i don't think mine have any zerks last time i looked. getting my truck back from the collision shop today, so i will take another look.