Vehicle: 2012 XLT SCREW Ecoboost

I have a weird tick/rattle noise in my truck. When I first heard it I thought maybe the radio antenna was loose and rattling. I checked it and its tight (but this gives you an idea of what kind of noise it is).

Since then, I have realized that it is in the HVAC system. It only makes noise if the blower is on setting 2 or higher. If you put it on the lowest setting or off then there is no noise. (I have tested this many times over the past 2 weeks)

It does not seem to matter which direction the air is going (top vents, bottom vents, etc).

Has anyone else had this issue?

I'm wondering if maybe there is something loose in the ducts by the blower motor and the air flow is making it rattle, in conjunction with road bumps.

I'm planning on pulling out the blower motor and seeing what I find. But I thought I'd ask first.
(and yes, I know its still under warranty... but it will probably be quicker & easier to just check it myself first)

Thanks

 

oh, and I did search first... in this forum and in the HVAC one. The only thing close to what I have is this
https://www.f150online.com/forums/20...-question.html

But that seems like it was a different noise. And there was no resolution.

 

Do you live in a rural area? Any evidence of mice under the hood (droppings) or stuff blowing out vents? If is more of a tick it could be a leaf or needle got in there.

 

nope, live in town. No signs of mice.

I'm hoping when I get around to pulling the blower motor (maybe this weekend) it is something as simple as a piece of paper or leaf that got in by the blower.

 

mk
Did you ever find the tick problem?

 

still haven't found the time to dig into it... all my free time has been going to the usual fall yard cleanup activities.

 

I had the noise on my '08 and it was the blend door actuator which I replaced. Does it sound like someone is tapping lightly with the eraser end of a pencil behind the vents intermittently?

 

ya, that could be it.

So the blend door actuator was broken?
Were there any other symptoms that I could check to confirm this?

I still haven't had a chance to dig into this... but if its likely a broken part maybe I'll save myself some time and just take it to a dealer (under warranty).

Thanks

 

Yes, the actuator on my truck was on its way out, might have lasted a good bit longer but the noise was annoying. The actuator is plastic gears which strip, hence the noise. It wasn't a difficult repair to do and I believe the part was around 30.00. There are some videos posted on how to repair, not sure on the 09 and up, but might be similar. Mine started going at about 15k miles on the odometer. Took less than an hour to replace.