[Stephen in Colo]

Searched the forums with no luck. Want to change out the front damper hoping to get rid of some of the shimmy/jumping this rig does when going over bumps at speeds around 45 and up. Can be quite scary to have the truck feel like the front end is coming apart underneath you. Anyone have experience with or suggestion for a replacement. Only 21K on the beast so I know its not in need of a rebuild.

 

[HeavyAssault]

I'd have to double check the application but there might be a solution to fit you needs. Do you have the OEM damper ??

 

[Stephen in Colo]

Thanks, yes. Everything is original. Except the rear pumpkin juice, which Ford forgot to include either from the factory or its times in their "Fast Lube". Master Ford mech with his own shop found that during the last oil change. Luckily no apparent damage or failure.

 

[jimmy]

Does the truck have active steering?

 

[Stephen in Colo]

If you mean Adaptive steering, yes.

 

[HeavyAssault]

Looking into the other info before I get back to you.

 

[sbrennan007]

Is it still under warranty? If so, I'd see if you can have Ford replace the steering damper. 20K miles it shouldn't be doing that...

 

[HeavyAssault]

OneUpOffroad supports the F350 DRW trucks, they do not support the F450 DRW trucks.

 

[msell]

It could just be a crap steering damper. My 18 got a terrible oscillation so I took it back to Ford. They replaced the damper and after just a few miles it was crap again. I bought the same stock part from Rock Auto and the steering has been fine since. Currently < 20K miles. I think there are some bad dampers out there.

 

[Jesus_man]

I think I'd look into Bilstein if I were going to replace the damper.

 

[ford_doctor]

Late model F350 CC trucks are strange when it comes to steering stability and quality. I don't like them especially with a gas engine and I have had a number of customers with complaints that I cannot seem to fully resolve. I have deemed the bump nibble 40+ MPH to be annoyingly normal and there seems to be no remedy available for a Ford tech bound to use stock parts and specifications.

With regard to the stock dampers being crap, regarding the build date of the replacement part HC3Z-3E651-F made before 01-May-2018 are not to be used. Word to the wise.

 

[ACD2]

I replaced the new OEM Motorcraft damper on mine with one from Bilstien and it made a world of difference. Mine is a 12 though, so don't know if Bilstein makes one for the 19, but if they do, it really helped stiffen up my steering.

 

[CRAAB]

I hate to support Carli due to them not standing behind the Fox shocks they sold me and I’m sure there are other options. I have this set up on my ‘15 and has been flawless. Made for leveled off lifted trucks so may not work for you?

High Mount Steering Stabilizer

2005-07 Super Duty: No High mount is available thanks to the factory stem-top shock mounting style. We recommend the Fox 985-24-035. It's a good-quality stabilizer but the frame bracket requires substantial clearance to fit the stem-top Fox shock. Low Mount Steering Stabilizer: Carli...

carlisuspension.com

 

[msell]

Right after my response 2 months ago, the factory replacement crapped out too. I have since replaced the steering damper once again, this time with a stock replacement by Monroe #SC2967 . So far it's ok. I did notice right off the bat that this one was a bit stiffer than the Motorcraft parts.
I looked at the piece from Carli and it states it's only for leveled or lifted trucks. My truck is dead stock.

 

[msell]

Right after my response 2 months ago, the factory replacement crapped out too. I have since replaced the steering damper once again, this time with a stock replacement by Monroe #SC2967 . So far it's ok. I did notice right off the bat that this one was a bit stiffer than the Motorcraft parts.
I looked at the piece from Carli and it states it's only for leveled or lifted trucks. My truck is dead stock.

Updating this one more time. The Monroe piece crapped out too. Took it back to Ford and they said they would replace with the newest replacement FORD has come out with (all under warranty). A couple weeks later I had them mount a set of new Cooper ST Maxx tires I bought elsewhere and on the drive home noticed it now had a very noticeable pull to the right. Took it back in and they checked everything in the front. All the steering, suspension parts and alignment were good. After talking to the mechanic, it was decided to remove the steering gearbox and check the internals. Sure enough, it was out of whack. They replaced it under warranty and the truck now drives straight!

It could be possible that the worn box was putting undue stress on the damper, wearing them out ridiculously fast. I guess time will tell.

 

[ford_doctor]

I doubt the steering box had anything to do with your damper failing and technically the steering gear will not cause a pull. Excessive play caused by an incorrectly set steering gear meshload can give the feeling that the truck is pulling especially if the truck is sensitive to the road crown. If set too tight the steering will require constant correction when driving straight. Adjusting the meshoad is fairly simple. If the pull appeared after replacing the tires the tires are suspect and likely caused the pull - simply swapping the front tires side to side would determine that and sometimes correct the condition and possibly compensate for the effect of the road crown. Regardless, I am happy to hear that you got your truck straightened out! (pun intended)

 

[Matt0987]

I had a bad shimmy in my 2019 F350 at about 16,000 miles. Called the service department. They installed a new damper. According to the service writer, Ford has up graded the specs on the damper. I have driven a couple of 1000 miles since and no shimmy, vibration, or shake. The upgraded damper seems to have done the trick.

 

[Jesus_man]

Bad part is, something is causing that shimmy, so IMO a stiffer damper is a bandaid fix and when that damper wears out, the shimmy will return.

 

[griffy71]

I had that problem too. Violent as all hell, but ford fixed it under warranty.

 

[ACD2]

I had a bad shimmy in my 2019 F350 at about 16,000 miles. Called the service department. They installed a new damper. According to the service writer, Ford has up graded the specs on the damper. I have driven a couple of 1000 miles since and no shimmy, vibration, or shake. The upgraded damper seems to have done the trick.

Wait, it will return. The steering damper is a patch, not a fix. Since it is dampening the shimmies, you don't feel them, but the shimmies are still there being absorbed by the shock. Eventually it wears the seals and stops functioning. When that happens, skip taking it to the dealer and find a good alignment shop and have them add castor shims to increase castor to ~4* positive. Problem solved. Only thing Ford is doing is a Bandaid approach to keep from doing warranty work.

I suspect the reason Ford doesn't increase castor at the factory to stop the wobbles is because it makes the steering heavier, and return to straight ahead faster, which is what increasing Castor does. Take a shopping cart with wobblinig wheels and bend the stud so the wheel top is tilted forward and it stops wobbling. When I got my 2012 the entire steering system from the pitman to the wheels was brand new, including the damper, yet the truck still had the Wobbles. Nothing in there was loose or worn. I replaced the Motorcraft damper with a Bilstien and the wobbles were gone, but over hard bumps at speed I can still feel them, just the damper has absorbed it all, at least until it becomes worn at which point I will go ahead and have some shims installed.