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Weird noise going over uneven road or turning through bumps/drainage swaths

Ford Motor Company

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I have the same clunk from the rear passenger area. haven't been able to pin it down.
Hi there! I can look into your Lightning's noise concern on my end. To get started, could you please send a private message over with the name/location of your local Ford dealer and your Lightning's VIN?
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bellyer

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I am also having this issue. It is definitely a clunking noise that sounds almost like a bolt came loose inside the header above the rear passenger seat. It happens most often when going over uneven terrain, but I also notice it when making some turns. It does stop sometimes and I find that I cannot reproduce it on-demand to try to pinpoint it, but it happens a lot and is super annoying.
 
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dothedew

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I am also having this issue. It is definitely a clunking noise that sounds almost like a bolt came loose inside the header above the rear passenger seat. It happens most often when going over uneven terrain, but I also notice it when making some turns. It does stop sometimes and I find that I cannot reproduce it on-demand to try to pinpoint it, but it happens a lot and is super annoying.
This is exactly right. It might be the weather (relative heat/coolness of the cab or sorrounding pillars)? It's definitely not the seatbelt in mine as I've noticed its happening even when the seatbelt is plugged in
 

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I am also having this issue. It is definitely a clunking noise that sounds almost like a bolt came loose inside the header above the rear passenger seat. It happens most often when going over uneven terrain, but I also notice it when making some turns. It does stop sometimes and I find that I cannot reproduce it on-demand to try to pinpoint it, but it happens a lot and is super annoying.
Good morning- I can look into this for you. Feel free to send over a private message with your VIN and dealership information at your earliest convenience.
 

Knightro2

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Was the cause ever discovered? I purchased a '23 Lightning Lariat last December and have had this exact same noise issue. I can't figure out what it is.
 

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kstype

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FYI the morning I was scheduled to go to the dealer on this... the noise was gone. I spent an hour driving around that morning over all sorts of bumps to try and trigger it.

I THINK I nailed it down to rear passenger seat belt rattling against the frame. I have been trying to reproduce it as much as possible but its very intermittent. I will circle back if I have any more success. Finally I found a useful way to apply the scientific method we all learned in grade school.
It’s funny you say that - I really do not have rattles from things like body panels - but how the front/rear seatbelts orient themselves after passengers exit can cause them to bump up against the B pillar and make noise. I find they do this when they are angled between the seat and the B pillar and find myself stretching over to push them so they lay flat between the seat and the pillar. It may help if Ford padded the B pillar up to the hang point for the buckle with fabric instead of hard plastic.

The only other noise issue I had was a clunk when speeding up or turning. It sounded like a loose ball joint or similar - but it ended up being the Frunk lower tray that covers the “ice box” section. There is about a 1/4” to 1/8”gap surrounding it…the dealer I go to isolated the issue and added some small foam bumpers to prevent the sliding and some velveted tape in the ledge where the tray sits in and this resolved the clunk issues:

Ford F-150 Lightning Weird noise going over uneven road or turning through bumps/drainage swaths IMG_0913
Ford F-150 Lightning Weird noise going over uneven road or turning through bumps/drainage swaths IMG_0912
Ford F-150 Lightning Weird noise going over uneven road or turning through bumps/drainage swaths IMG_0914
Ford F-150 Lightning Weird noise going over uneven road or turning through bumps/drainage swaths IMG_0915
 

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It’s funny you say that - I really do not have rattles from things like body panels - but how the front/rear seatbelts orient themselves after passengers exit can cause them to bump up against the B pillar and make noise. I find they do this when they are angled between the seat and the B pillar and find myself stretching over to push them so they lay flat between the seat and the pillar. It may help if Ford padded the B pillar up to the hang point for the buckle with fabric instead of hard plastic.

The only other noise issue I had was a clunk when speeding up or turning. It sounded like a loose ball joint or similar - but it ended up being the Frunk lower tray that covers the “ice box” section. There is about a 1/4” to 1/8”gap surrounding it…the dealer I go to isolated the issue and added some small foam bumpers to prevent the sliding and some velveted tape in the ledge where the tray sits in and this resolved the clunk issues:
It's crazy I found this thread, I just noticed a clunking sound when I would accelerate recently and I'm betting it's this! I used to have a trash bag full of recycled golf balls in the frunk and assumed it was them, but they're out now, so it had to be something else and it sure matches up.
 

lightspeed

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I have the same clunk that seems to come from the back and mainly happens on bumps that twist the cab a bit. I can check the frunk cover plastic from the above post, but it really sounds like it comes from the rear.

I'm starting to think it's the rear sliding window.

I haven't been that worried about it, but it would be nice to fix it. To describe it again, it sounds kind of like a small item hitting the body in the back of a trunk of a normal car. It's not a rattle. It's not high pitched. It's a medium CLUNK type sound.
 

kstype

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It's crazy I found this thread, I just noticed a clunking sound when I would accelerate recently and I'm betting it's this! I used to have a trash bag full of recycled golf balls in the frunk and assumed it was them, but they're out now, so it had to be something else and it sure matches up.
Well I certainly hope this resolves it for you - I know it was driving me crazy…so fingers crossed!
 

kstype

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I was also thinking the soft fuzzy side of Velcro tape would also be a good match thinkness wise and would blend in well.

@Ford Motor Company Company - you may want to cut this issue off at the pass and add these in assembly in the future.
 

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Knightro2

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My clunk is definitely coming from the rear passenger area. I had my 7 year old back there trying to track the sound down. He narrowed it down to that area. I don't think it is seatbelt related since I get the sound with and without someone back there. My next step is to get someone else to drive my truck around while I'm back there.
 

Knightro2

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Ok, not where I thought it was coming from but it is my sunroof. On a whim I tilted it (didn't open it fully to keep road noise down) and the clunk went away. I closed it and the clunk has been gone now for a bit.
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