boomer43

Eric, Good news it's a simple fix. I installed an UltraGauge readout and had the same issue. Woody, A forum member posted a fix: "IF YOU LOOK AT THE OBDII CONNECTOR, IT IT HELD ON WITH TWO TORX SCREWS. TAKE THEM OUT AND CAREFULLY REMOVE THE OBDII CONNECTOR. IT HAS A 90 DEGREE BRACKET WITH ADDITIONAL HOLES. PULL THE PAL CLIPS OFF THE MOUNTING AND PUT THEM ON THE OBDII CONNNECTOR AND REMOUNT THE OBDII FACING DOWN. YOU WILL BE ABLE TO PLUG IN YOUR WIRE AND BE ABLE TO PUT THE FUSE BOX COVER ON. ON THE SIDE OF THE DASH BY THE DOOR, THERE IS AN ADDITION ACCESS PANEL WHERE YOU CAN THREAD YOUR WIRE AND GET IT UP TO THE DASH OR GO UNDERNEATH THE DASH TO THE CENTER. WOODY" You can also do a search for UltraGauge to find the original postings Roland (boomer43)

I've had my TC for a year now and have only 7500 miles on it. I'm retired, and the TC is my daily drive. No long trips so far, just back and forth to the club (model railroading) and the normal grocery shopping, etc.

Winter handling, due to the front wheel drive is very good. I live in northern part of Rhode Island, on a street that's half way up or half way down a hill, take your pick. The grade is fairly steep either way. My last vehicle was a Subaru Outback, so the hill didn't pose a problem. I purchased the Transit Connect in mid winter, early this year and while it's not in the same class as an Outback in the snow, the hill did not even phase it. Up or down, not a problem. As long as your not breaking trail in deep snow you shouldn't have a problem. Roland(boomer43) PS I did replace the stock wheels and tires with cast aluminum and the next size up tires from Tire Rack, but that was strictly for looks.

Done! Per JWWOODY's suggestion (see above posting) I reconfigured the OBDII mounting bracket and the door can now be closed. Nice and neat. The gauge sits on the top of the dash, far left side with only about six inches of cable showing. I can post a picture or two if someone wants. Roland(boomer43)

Posted by ncranchero - 23 August 2010 "Have you checked these out in comparison to the ScanGauge? http://www.ultra-gau…gauge/index.htm" First, thanks to both PBXgeek and ncranchero for mentioning something that I've wanted all along but didn't even know existed! That is the ScanGauge and Ultra-Gauge instruments that plug into the ODBII port of the Transit Connect, and also a whole bunch of other vehicles. I went with the Ultra-Gauge for three reasons. Cheaper, more compact, and more readouts. Cost was $70.00 plus shipping. There's also a $9.00 rebate, but from reading the Ultra-Gauge forum comments, they really make you jump through the hoops to get it. I may give it a try later. . . (For the record, I'm not associated with either company, just a customer of the Ultra-Gauge folks.) First the the good news. It's plug and play with what appears to be a minimum of set up. Initially it scanned the TC's computer and reported, I think 18 possible readouts. I say I think, because they do not provide a paper manual so I was busy trying not to drop my laptop while reading the instructions. Anyway, when I looked up, ta-dah!, it was asking how much fuel the tank held and what was the displacement of the engine. Installation was a breeze, really. Once I got the fuse panel access door open. As stated in a prior post, there is no easy way to open it that I could see. It's pretty much brute force. The cover is semi flexible and I managed to pry it open a crack at the top to see if I could peek inside an see a latch mechanism. No joy there. It's secured by two "plug in" connectors that have to be pulled free of their receptacles. They fit really tight. It takes a good steady pull to free them. A suggestion. Pull them free, one at a time. That is favor, for example the left side of the door, it hinges on the bottom, and pry the left side free, then do the same thing on the right. That's all there is too it. As for routing the cable, I mounted the Ultra-Gauge on the left, near the A-pillar. There is an opening just under the dash that you can route the cable through and feed it down to the OBDII connector. Actually the connector pretty much 'fell' to the bottom of the dash area. I wrapped the extra cable using the wire tie provided and plugged it in. That's it! The Ultra-Gauge was up and running. Note that there is a calibration step, but I haven't done that yet. I then took it for a ride to see how it performs. The display, on a bright sunny day is easy to read, the characters easy to see. The bad news. . . The door cannot be replaced with the OBDII connector plugged in. I'm considering cutting a window in the fuse access door to accommodate the OBDII plug. No rush on that for now. Roland(boomer43)

While poking around on the web I found this. If your planning to convert your TC for family camping it's worth a look-see for ideas, if nothing else. The company's name is Kevin Hornby Designs URL: http://kevinhornbydesigns.com/specialty_vehicles/transit-connect-conversion/ Just passing on an interesting web find, I've no connection with Kevin Hornby Designs. Roland(boomer43)

Bob, Very clever ! As 'they' say, necessity is the mother of invention. Roland(boomer43)

I have 3000 miles on my Transit Connect. I'm retired and it's my daily driver. I'm averaging 22.5 mpg, with a 50/50 mix of city and highway driving Roland(boomer43)

<br /><br /><br />John, I also purchased a set, but for now at least I've been a bit reluctant to cut into my new Transit Connect. I will be watching your progress with great interest while I try to work up the courage to install my own lamps. For some reason it didn't seem as scary when I added a drivers side, slider window and roof hatch to my brand new '77 Dodge van. Roland(boomer43)

I've not yet put enough miles on my TC Wagon to change the oil, but plan to continue my usual 3,000 miles oil change. I plan on having the dealer perform the oil changes using what Ford recommends. Roland M(boomer43)

"I am getting a Transit Connect as a company vehicle (can't wait) and I have a couple of questions: Does the base CD player play MP3s recorded on CDR? Also, is there somewhere to download the owner's manual? David Edgar" Don't think the CD player does MP3s, but there is an input for MP3 players. My iPod sounds just fine playing through the OEM radio/CD unit. For an owner's manual, try here. . . "https://www.flmowner.com/" Roland M(boomer43)

JK, Thanks for the informative reply, as I don't listen to AM it never occurred to me to check the AM band. The data I posted is for the FM band. Most of my music and a few podcasts are provided by my iPod, with a radio upgrade planned for sometime in the future. The stub antenna is a compromise as I wanted to be able to garage the TC. Roland M(boomer430

" Thanks, Roland! Would you mind checking to see if the stubby antenna works better than NO antenna? If it improves the signal at all, I'm sold! Phil " H-h-m-mm ! I should of thought of that. A quick trip out to the TC shows that without any antenna, I'm down to only five stations. With the OEM antenna = 28 stations. With the stub antenna = 6 stations. Without any antenna = 5 stations. Roland M(boomer43)

Good News, Bad News and a Question. >First the question for 'tone007': Have you actually tried this? Having examined the OEM antenna, it doesn't appear to be a simple length of wire. Mine appears to have an added wire wrapped around the main body. >The good news: The stub antenna I ordered came in and I installed it on the Transit Connect. I ordered it from Carccessory.com . It was the first stub antenna I found using Google that showed a mounting means. There are other vendors and styles available. The product is imported and the package reads as follows; "Niken Racing Force, Aluminum Antenna" The antenna is 2.55 inches in length. It appears to be all anodized (black) aluminum. Price was $10.00. I posted a few pictures in the Gallery of my TC and the stub antenna. Installation was straight forward. I did disassemble the antenna to add some thread lock fluid. I did not add thread lock to the actual mounting portion of the antenna assembly as I wanted to be able to removed it later. NOTE: By my eyeball measurement, this looks to be the maximum length if you want the tip of the antenna to remain below roof height. >The bad news: Size matters as they say. . . The radio still receives signals but at a much reduced signal sensitivity. I ran a quick and simple test using the automatic seek function. Before dismounting the OEM antenna I scanned for number of available stations: 28 stations. Removed the OEM antenna and replaced it with the stub antenna. Resulting scan produced only 6 stations ! That's only 20 percent of the original available stations. (of course my favorite station was not one of the remaining available. . .) 8( As my main source of entertainment in the TC, other than driving it, is my iPod, and the reason for the stub antenna is so I can garage it, I can live with the reduced station availability. I will keep the OEM antenna aboard for use on long trips, etc., when radio reception may be more important. Keep on Trucking, Roland M(boomer43)