I posted this on the Automotive board and haven't gotten any responses yet. So what does the OB know?


My '16 F150 IWE is trying to engage when at low speed as seems to be a very common issue. As far as I can tell, it's just the drivers side. Since it looks like it will be pretty wet around central Texas this week, I plan on tearing it down and replacing this week. My plan is to go ahead and replace both sides because research says this is a very common issue.

My questions for you folks with experience are:

-Should I replace both or just do the one side for now? (I'm leaning both plus the vacuum on the firewall)
-Should I go with OEM or is there a better designed aftermarket part you've had experience with?
-Should I consider replacing wheel bearings while I'm at it?

What advice or opinion does the all knowing outdoor board have on this?

Edit to add the truck has 116k miles on it.

I just helped a buddy replace his on a 2017 last summer. The truck had 150K on it, so we changed both IWEs, both wheel bearings, and the vacuum line all at the same time. It's pretty easy to change all of this at once, and a few hundred dollars of unnecessary parts was worth it to us to avoid potentially having to get into it again a few months later.

We only changed the vacuum line because it had a chewed in it, but I don't recall that being very expensive.

And the Ford dealer was the only place we could find the IWEs. I was really surprised, but none of the parts places could get them.

But do your own research. That may have changed now.

This is where I am leaning. Mine has 116k miles on it. Thanks for the response!

I just replaced both with these:

SHINEHOME 7L1Z-3C247-A Auto Locking Hub Axle Actuator 4x4 4WD IWE Fits Ford F150 2004-2015 Front Left Right 4-Wheel Hub Lock Actuator for Ford Expedition 2003-2015, Lincoln Navigator 2003-2015 https://a.co/d/31VQJJn

I haven't had any issues with them and they looked comparable in build quality to the OEMs I took off. As easy as they are to replace I'll just do it again if they break.

I did the driver wheel bearing at the same time.

If I would have thought ahead I would have just gone ahead and done the passenger bearing as well. But I have to get all the way back into it to change out the UCAs in the near future so I'll just change then.

As someone who has done this on their 2017,

Yes use geniune Ford parts.

Yes if you are going to pull one of the hubs off anyways to replace the IWE; absolutely go ahead and replace the wheel bearing at least on that side.

If you are ok with the expense all at once, I would definitely go ahead and just do both/all IWEs and wheel bearings at the same time. Makes for a not fun day, but the peace of mind knowing you won't have to dig into it again any time soon is worth it.

drummer0415 said:

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As someone who has done this on their 2017,

Yes use geniune Ford parts.

Yes if you are going to pull one of the hubs off anyways to replace the IWE; absolutely go ahead and replace the wheel bearing at least on that side.

If you are ok with the expense all at once, I would definitely go ahead and just do both/all IWEs and wheel bearings at the same time. Makes for a not fun day, but the peace of mind knowing you won't have to dig into it again any time soon is worth it.

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If I recall correctly you do not have to remove the hub/bearing assembly from the front to remove the IWE from the backside of the knuckle.

Thanks all for the responses. I'm going to look at the wheel bearings and see if I can tell anything about them once I tear everything down. I'm leaning towards not replacing them, unless of course I see something that tells me I need to. Looks like I'll be going to Waco tomorrow to pick up 2 IWE and the vacuum actuator and get started tomorrow evening.

Edit to add:
I will likely go out into the shop at the ford house and find a mechanic that has done the IWE before and ask him for tips and what they think about the wheel bearings. If they have have the wheel bearings in stock I may just get them. I'm not planning on replacing this truck anytime soon so if they have them and I can get all of it, I might as well do that. At least I've got a good shop to work on this project and another truck to drive if it takes longer than expected.

Pro tip/PSA - that oval hole in the outside of the frame will hold your brake caliper. Always makes me cringe when I see YouTube videos of people hanging them with wire.

I finally got around to replacing both IWE's late last week. I'll say it was much easier than I thought it ever would be. I watched several YouTube videos and some guys remove more than others. I decided to go with the minimum because what is the fun in working on something and not cussing about it not quite working until you finally take everything loose you should have to start with.

Turns out it wasn't too bad this time. I only removed the tie rod ends and the nut holding the axle in place. Folding things down and towards the front of the truck, I had enough room to pull the axle out and did not have to remove the brake caliper. Changed both sides out plus the vacuum solenoid on the firewall in about an hour with no issues. Checked to make sure the axles didn't turn after everything was installed and realized I still had a problem. The IWE's were not unlocking.

Next step was to test vacuum lines. I pulled vacuum and realized one line was not holding at all. Got to tracing things and found that where the line crosses over to the passenger side it had separated at a joint. I replaced that joint and everything worked perfectly.

I should tested vacuum before I changed $450 worth of other parts but that's the way it goes sometimes. I hit a deer a year ago and got the truck back from the body shop in June and I'm almost certain that is when this line got pulled apart. My advice is to test vacuum first but if you need to change the IWE's, it's not a difficult job.