Customer Satisfaction Program 07B49

[Shadowman]

John, thanks for your post up on your bolts. We do appreciate you being a supporting vendor to this Forum and you do make an excellent half-shaft bolt package.

Accufab quote, "In my opinion, there was no reason why Ford couldn't have done the same thing, and in a timely manner. Why they didn't is a mystery to us here at Accufab."

I have to comment on your and Shadowman's ponderances as to why it took so long for our OEM to come up with a permenant bolt fix. Actually this appears as a bit of Monday Morning Quarterbacking. It is easy in hind sight to point the finger and ask why it took so long to engineer the final fix. Ford as the OEM had an obligation to all 4038 owners to provide a corrective design that would actually address the bolt failure mode which was unknown for many months. An obligation which I might add the GT team took VERY seriously.

Accufab as you said "backed into" the fix only by "accident" (and I will qualify that term) and offered an option for anyone willing to buy your bolt kit if they wanted to. Thus there was no direct obligation that your company HAD to fix this problem or identify what specifically was CAUSING the failure. There is a difference.

As I said you product offering was really no accident for your team wisely went to ARP one of the best, most competent high performance bolt people in the country and sourced a replacement bolt for the ford product which was failing due to electro plating issues, not strength. Thus your product likely will never succumb to the failure mode which affected the Riccardo bolts.

Forum members continually (and mistakenly) bring up the issue of strength and that there has never been a reported failure of the Accufab bolts. That's right! because the bolts (any current offered bolts in our halfshafts) are not (and cannot be) subjected to LOADS which are ANYWHERE NEAR the tensile or shear capacity of the M8 bolt. This would predictedly be one of the first failure scenerios the Ford engineers would collect data on. And they did.

The failure mode which Ford was finally able to identify through numerous tests and analysis of returned failed parts from the dealers was hydrogen embrittlement. Again, NOT STRENGTH. And just because you have driven your GT hard for 15K, 30K, 45K miles (pick a mileage) does not mean you are out of the woods as hydrodgen embrittlement is a time related failure. It works away at the bolt over time and may cause the bolt to fail early, late or never. Lockwiring of the bolt set is another red herring and has nothing to do with the bolt failures. This would only be the case if the bolts were losing torque and backing out which does not appear to be the failure mode. Same goes for all the talk about locktite being on or off the OEM threads.

FGT owners who have installed the Accufab bolt kit for peace of mind deserve everything they paid for and they purchased a fastener kit which will likely never have any problems. Others who opt to have Ford install the latest CA washer bolt combination will have an equivalent level of peace of mind. I encourage all owners to update to one of the two bolt options available to us, and the sooner the better. This issue is really over.

And John thanks again for all your GT product offerings.

Well said and thank you for sharing

Now for the record I too have been made aware of the various issues during the defining the culprit and then the fix however I was reluctant to open Pandora's box with a series of he said ...she said so instead extended a most sincere thank you to Ford with specific reference to the team as was headed by Jamal.

I have NEVER been bothered by this issue and it never detracted from my feelings for the gals and my support and appreciation that the gals were brought to term.

Lastly; does my gut tell me that the hardware as presented by Ford at this time will survive the test of time; yes and as such I stated that after a season of activities I will revisit my approach.

The only thing that will not change for me is the bolt head design; I like the 12 pt head design as presented by ARP through AccuFab much more when compared to the Allen head cap design; but in the end this is personal preference and I know this.

Lastly; using wire to secure the bolts from turning IMO was never needed and as for the comment about the LockTite of lack thereof; what I have found is those assemblies that had LockTite on the removed hardware also had the TA-16 sealant on the stub axle splines within the coupler and under the securing washer thus keeping the migrating oil from leaking out as such many gals without this step having been completed developed what appeared to be a seal leak when in fact it was simply a failed or what was felt to be an un-necessary assembly step.

Thank you again for the information

All the best

Shadowman

 

[Hammer]

Well said, both Indy and Shadowman!

 

[B O N Y]

Here - here Bill K and Bill D.
There is not another word to be said...
Please...
Merry Christmas and THANKS FORD FOR DELIVERING TO US A GREAT CAR WITH ALMOST ZERO ISSUES.

 

[Indy GT]

Agreed Daniel, and thanks for a great Forum with many great participants.

Thanks also to Bill for his insightful and frequent technical comments. I very much enjoy reading and thinking about them.

Seasons best!

 

[06fordgt]

Rec'd my letter from Ford Canada. Interesting to note the letter only refers to 2006 cars not 2005 cars.
Besides some minor layout and format differences from what I've seen posted here the other real difference is the Ford "Customer Relationship Centre" and phone number 1 800 565 3673.
Since I've already had the failutre and used the Accufab fix, I wll now attempt to get the refund for the work done.

 

[B O N Y]

That's the route I am taking.

 

[paul b]

Got my box of bolts today, the dealership made me jump through a few more hoops and then said here's your $70 kit, sounded as though he wanted me to go to the cashier.

 

[Gulf GT]

Rec'd my letter from Ford Canada. Interesting to note the letter only refers to 2006 cars not 2005 cars.

Didn't Ford only deliver 2006 cars to Canada?

 

[css 290]

Axle Bolt Breakage

Mine lost drive on Christmas Eve morning going over a speed table at all of 5 mph. Total mileage was 2,100. The inner bolts were probably broken sometime before but the suspension had not been unloaded to cause the separation. Inner passenger rear half shaft popped out, exposing the shaft splines from the transaxle. Was able to coast into a driveway. Dealer came right over with flat bed and picked it up.

Get em fixed now as a precaution, or you may be in East Jesus when it happens and not anywhere close to a dealer.

 

[MAD IN NC]

GET YOUR NUTS AND BOLT's CHECKED! Program 07B49

Just got back from the dealership where they changed by halfshaft bolts! Thanks for this dealership and the work Coy (service writer) and Grahm (mechanic) just did being at Don Jenkins in Fuquay Varina NC.

SCARY:eek ~15 months ago for peace of mind I had them replaced. At that time the "shiny" original washers were cupped and failure was possible.

Today when I looked at them the washers were they gray type - not cupped but one bolt head on the passenger side broke off just by putting the socket and allen on it!. Two others broke off during de-install and only one came out without the head shearing off. I'M GLAD I WENT TODAY! I was destined to be road kill!

The first picture is the old passenger side. The bottom "washer" is the Loctite between the washer and the halfshaft itself. file = pass

The last picture is the new washers and bolts! file = new

The old "original" washers were 6.05 mm thick. The new 07B49 washers are 13.5MM thick with two insets of ~6.45MM for the bolts. My insurance set of Accufabs are 7.6MM thick (Anybody want to buy a set of new Accufab bolts? - just kidding. I will keep them as I have not heard they have ever failed yet).

So - RUN, don't walk! Get them bolts changed! It's worth the 4 hr's.

Thanks Jamal!

 

[Mark O]

I changed mine for the Accufab ones @ 1,700 miles & the originals looked fine. Just for curiosity, how many miles are on your car?

 

[MAD IN NC]

9,802 today......

 

[css 290]

Mine failed Christmas eve at 2,100 miles---

 

[B O N Y]

Leaving the oe bolts in his like play russian roulette... Why?

 

[Kayvan]

Anyone have this done in NYC or NY Metro area?

 

[nota4re]

Ford's Latest Halfshaft Repair vs Accufab

Well, today was "Ford GT Halfshaft Bolt Upgrade Day" for Ryan and I. George invited us over to perform the Accufab upgrade on both of his fine machines. This was approximately the 19th & 20th upgrade we have done and it was a good workout as we rolled each car back and forth to get access to each of the outer bolts. (We realize how spoiled we are to have the lift back at home!) It took us about 3 hours to get both cars done and on the way home, I got a call from my local dealer informing me that my Ford upgrade had come in.

We drove over and picked up the kit and I took some pictures of the latest Ford Kit compared to an Accufab kit. I believe Forum members may be interested in seeing the differences.... and perhaps even my opinion(s).

Both the accufab and Ford kit now provide the (6) outer flange bolts. why ford did not include these in their first kit remains a mystery to me, but kudos to Ford for doing it right this time around. The Ford kit includes a new set of the exact same, T-50 TORX outer bolts that you will remove per side. The Accufab kit includes some very pretty ARP 12-pt bolts that are also drilled for thse that would prefer to wire them. (Unnecessary, in my opinion.) The outer bolts have never been an issue so I didn't bother with any pictures.

This first picture is the Accufab Kit inner washer and bolts (on the left) and the Ford inner washer and bolts (on the right).

There's a big difference in the thickness of the washer as depicted in the following pictures. The new Ford washer is much thicker and has been recessed to allow the inner bolts to drop in. The recess is necessary because the top of the bolts even in the original set-up almost come into contact with the dust cap of the CV joint at the end of the halfshaft.

What was REALLY interesting for me is that the new Ford washers are the exact diameter as the Accufab's - which are significantly larger than both of Ford's previous washers. In a one-on-one conversation with a rep from Ford, I know that they were originally "concerned" about the diameter of the Accufab washers, so I'm glad to see that there must now be agreement!

Here's a comparison of the inner bolts. The ARP bolts in the Accufab kit are still the best, IMO.

The Ford kit looks real good and I assume it will resolve the problems we have been having. I still prefer the Accufab kit because I believe the bolts are still superior. I have not and still do not believe that the embrittlement theory is the full explanation and there are very complex forces acting on the bolts. The stronger bolts supplied in both kits may be enough to withstand these forces, but I'm going to opt for the best bolt manufacturer in the world - which is ARP.

 

[Fyr-FtrGT]

Kendall,

Thanks for this post. My car is going in Thursday for the Ford fix. It is nice to see this before I let the mechanic into my car. I will be bird dogging him through the entire process. He has only done two cars and didn't know he should be cleaning out the threads if they contain Loctite.

Gary Tryhorn

 

[Kingman]

...as always, THANKS Kendall!

 

[AlohaGT]

Kendall, you're The Man! Most informative post. I'll keep the Accufab kit you installed for me and pick up the Ford upgrade for a spare that I hopefully will never take out of the package.

 

[Indy GT]

Great Pictures!

Kendall-
Great post and thanks for the comparative hardware pictures of both kits! Your attention to detail and observations are what make this Forum a great clearing house of information.
I agree with you both kits will solve the previous bolt breaking problem and that ARP is in my opinion (also) the best source of premium fasteners. Whichever route an owner opts for, the issue will go away.

I do have to comment on your statement, "I have not and still do not believe that the embrittlement theory is the full explanation and there are very complex forces acting on the bolts. The stronger bolts supplied in both kits may be enough to withstand these forces, but I'm going to opt for the best bolt manufacturer in the world - which is ARP." Ok, what do YOU think is the failure mode of the bolt?

I am told by reliable internal sources, many of the warrantied failed bolts which were returned to Ford engineering were carefully metallurgically examined. It is pretty easy to see the "beach marks" on the fractrue surface indicating a fatigue failure but what neucleates the crack origin? Because of the failure publicity (and the first fix not correcting the problem) the team inspected every aspect of what failure mode was breaking the bolt. A lengthy and time consuming process but one, given the gravity of the situation, was necessary. Obviously this entailed insitu strain gauge testing of the bolts during an agressive driving cycle. Thus the "complex forces acting on the bolts" was fully characterized and I'm told the maximum loading was nowhere (let me repeat, NOWHERE) close to the bolt tensile strength of an M8 bolt. Thus this is not a bolt STRENGTH issue.

I realize this is the "easiest" explaination for laypeople to grasp because most all of us have an idea of how things break when they are overloaded. Higher order failures like fatigue, metallurigical defects, hydrogen embrittlement, residual machining surface stress, hard alpha inclusions, etc. are difficult to understand and best left to the engineers to sort out.

Again, Kendall, I appreciate your comments! I am just glad all owners have two good options to fix our cars and remove the fear of an on-the-road half shaft bolt failue.