I own a 1999 Ford F-150. Twice since I bought it, there have been problems with the rear axle. One axle and bearings have been replaced. The other side is now doing the same thing. Other owners have told me they have had similar problems, sometimes both bearings going together or separately. It may appear that this is a factory defect in the axle or bearings. Vehicle has less than 80,000 miles.

- Waynesboro, PA, USA

A high pitch noise coming from rear axle assembly and subsequent failure of the entire rear axle assembly. Dealer mechanics have found foreign components inside the rear differential assembly (a silicon sealer squeezed and wedged between the ring pinion gears and the input shaft) that may have caused the problem. They found the rear axle lubricant to be burnt and metal debris was also found inside the casing of the differential assembly. Vehicle failed at around 55,000 miles and 6 years of service. Rear axle have not been previously serviced by me or any other service facility before the above mentioned failure. The vehicle was purchased new and it has been in my possession ever since. To solve this issue and make the vehicle drivable again, a $2,500 worth of repair (dealer recommended rebuild of the assembly) had to be performed. Ford is denying any claims that I have made in order to receive assistance. Old parts and the foreign component have been saved and are in my possession. I believe (with the support of the service rep. And the mechanic) that the poor assembly procedure at the factory and the foreign part found in the failed component to be cause of this problem.

- Holly, MI, USA

We purchased this truck in Oct 1999 new, we have had it in the shop 4 times for the brake problem. It first started out with the brakes locking up when it was damp out, they could not find a problem at that time.the next time they said it was the axel seal leaking. On July 11, 02 they said it was the brake shoes, which with only 35838 miles on the truck how could that be.the brake shoes was replaced at that time. Now today I was going down the road and the back rear brake started growling, so I stopped to see what the problem was, I removed the back tire and removed back hub and found pin to wheel cylinder laying in the hub. I called a wrecker to come and get me and my truck, went to dealer where I purchased it and stayed there just about all day.thank you very much for hearing my complaint.

- New Caney, TX, USA