How To Replace Front Hub Actuator 2005-13 Ford F-150

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In this video, we're going to be working on our 2004 Ford F150. We're going to show you how to change out your locking hub actuator at the end of the axle shaft, going on to the hub at the back of the bearing. This is a very important part of your four wheel drive system, and very common to go wrong on these trucks.

If you like this video, please click 'subscribe.' We have a ton more information on this truck, as well as many other makes and models. If you want this part for your vehicle, follow the link in the description over to 1AAuto.com.

Here are the items you'll need for this repair: 8mm to 30mm sockets, wrenches, ratchet, and socket extension, 12 point 12mm socket, pliers, pry bar and breaker bar, torque wrench, flat blade screwdriver, rust penetrant, jack and jack stands, and an assistant.

Using a pair of pliers, wiggle the cap out of the center of the hub. Remove this 13 millimeter nut at the end of the axle. Break the lug nuts loose with the 19 millimeter socket and a breaker bar. You only want to crack them loose about one turn. We're going to do this on a lift to make it easier to show you, but this job can be done at home on a jack and jack stance. Once we've loosened the wheel and the axle nut, we'll raise and support our vehicle. Finish removing the lug nuts, and remove the wheel and tire from the truck.

We'll remove these six 12-point, 12 millimeter bolts with a 12 point socket and ratchet so we can disconnect the axle flange from the differential. You'll need a friend to get inside the vehicle and hold the brakes as you break the bolts loose. We'll rotate it and remove each one as they get on and off the breaks. We've soaked all of our hardware in penetrating oil before starting here, because these flanges tend to get pretty rusty. This is not somewhere you want to break off a bolt. Have your assistant release the brake pedal, rotate the axle around 180 degrees and have them re-engage the pedal, so we can finish removing our hardware. Using a 30 millimeter socket, remove this nut at the bottom strut bolt. You may have to support the bolt side with a 27 millimeter wrench. Remove the nut and bolt.

We've cut the wheel all the way to the left to allow more room. Now, we can pry out from under our strut. Pull it out to the side, and easily remove our axle from the truck. This will take a little bit of work. You're going to have to move it a little, fight it. You may need a pry bar or a hammer to work it out. Sometimes they do just come out easily.

We popped the strut back into place to make it easier to show you the back of the hub here. We're going to remove these three 8 millimeter bolts. I know you can't really see that one, but it's directly opposite the one in the fore-frame here. We'll pop off the vacuum line, and take those bolts out with an 8 millimeter socket and ratchet. Now we use a flat blade screwdriver to pry the actuator out of the hub.

Here we have our old part that we removed from our vehicle and our new part from 1AAuto.com. As you can see, these parts are exactly the same. We have the same vacuum fittings at the top, the same three bolt mounting locations, the same gear and diaphragm on the back side.

Now, our old part really isn't too bad. It's still moving freely, just like our new part. What can happen with these is they can bind in either the unlocked position, which will stop the wheel on that side from engaging. If this happens, you won't have four-wheel drive, as most trucks have what's called an open differential, which sends power to the side with the least traction. If the axle isn't connected on one side, it sees that as a no traction condition and sends all the power to the wheel that won't turn. Or, it can bind in the engaged position, which will cause stress and noise on the front drive line of your vehicle, because one wheel is always locked in, spinning all the four wheel drive components that aren't supposed to move when the vehicle is in two-wheel drive. If you have any of these problems with your truck, this new part from 1AAuto is going to go in, direct fit, just like your original equipment and fix you up right.

Reinstall your locking hub actuator into the spindle. You'll have to rotate it a little to get everything to line up and reinstall your three 8 millimeter bolts. Tighten these down with an 8 millimeter socket and ratchet. Reconnect the vacuum line. We had to move our strut back out of the way because we moved it back into its slot to show you how the locking hub works.

Reinstall the CV axle, being careful not to dislocate either of the joints, or tear the boot. Put the strut back into place. To reinstall the bottom strut bolt, we're actually just a little bit out of line here, so we're going to take a pry bar, put it through this notch in the bottom of the control arm, and push up just a little so our bolt slides in easily. We'll straighten out our wheel, spin the nut back on by hand, finish tightening it down with a 30 millimeter socket and ratchet, and a 27 millimeter wrench to hold the bolt on the other side.

Line up the flange at the rear of the CV axle. Reinstall your 12-point 12 millimeter bolts. Get these in as far as you can by hand, and then you'll need your assistant again to work the brakes while you tighten them down with a socket and ratchet.

Reinstall the wheel and tire, and start your six lug nuts by hand. We'll reinstall that 13 millimeter nut onto our axle as far as we can, and then put our vehicle back on the ground. Tighten down the axle nut with a 13 millimeter socket and ratchet. Reinstall the dust cap over the axle nut, and tap it back into place. You can use a rubber mallet or a piece of wood on a hammer. I'm just using the end of the ratchet here because it's handy. Torque the lug nuts to 150 foot pounds. It's very important when torquing six lug wheels. The cross pattern is different from your standard five lug wheel. You want to make to make little triangles. We'll skip one lug and tighten the first three, and then we'll go across, skip one, skip one again. We'll be tightening the wheels in two small triangles.

Thanks for tuning in. We hope this video helped you out. Next time you need parts for your car, please visit 1AAuto.com. Also check out our other helpful how-to and diagnosis videos.

How To Replace Front Hub Actuator 2005-13 Ford F-150

step 1 :Removing the Wheel

step 2 :Removing the CV Axle

step 3 :Removing the Hub Actuator

step 4 :Installing the Hub Actuator

step 5 :Installing the CV Axle

step 6 :Reinstalling the Wheel

Tools needed

How to Replace 4WD Vacuum Switch 1994-2002 Dodge RAM 1500

How To Replace Front Hub Actuator 2005-13 Ford F-150

step 1 :Removing the Wheel 0:52

step 2 :Removing the CV Axle 1:34

step 3 :Removing the Hub Actuator 3:20

step 4 :Installing the Hub Actuator 5:11

step 5 :Installing the CV Axle 5:45

step 6 :Reinstalling the Wheel 7:29

Tools needed

How to Replace 4WD Vacuum Switch 1994-2002 Dodge RAM 1500

step 1 :Removing the Wheel

step 2 :Removing the CV Axle

step 3 :Removing the Hub Actuator

step 4 :Installing the Hub Actuator

step 5 :Installing the CV Axle

step 6 :Reinstalling the Wheel