windguy

I've often seen poster GBL provide a link to Rockauto.com so I'm assuming this is a good source for parts. Got a coupon code in the mail yesterday from those Money Mailers that I want to share. Only 5% off but it will help offset the tax so it's something. Good luck! Expires 08/31/19 DISCOUNT CODE IS MMJUL29 Enter in the "How did you hear about us?" box for an additional 5% savings.

Thanks for all the great ideas. Lots of choices to consider. I would have never considered using my smart phone to drive a BT speaker. That's how far behind the times I am. I do stash my phone away when I get to the beach because of smash and grab break-ins but I can figure something out if I go this route. Thanks again!

@tlmason - thanks for sharing your build pics. Very nice work. You put a lot of thought into your design. For those rear windows, what holds the reflectix in place? I might want to do something like that for extra shade protection and to keep people from seeing my gear back there. Looking forward to seeing what else you add. Keep up the good work!

Thanks guys. A portable radio is definitely an option that could have expanded uses outside the van, around the yard, so that would maximize its use for sure. I'll keep that in mind if mounting a radio doesn't work out. @doublenickles - good idea for mounting but I have to keep that area clear due to the hanging shelf I use for gear storage. See pic below. What would be optimal is to have a remote control that turns a radio on that is tucked away behind a panel out of sight. Cool if the radio doesn't draw any power when it's off or I guess I could add a rocker switch to control power to it if it does draw power. The remote would make it easy to operate. That would be an ideal setup.

I spend a fair amount of time in the back of my cargo van while at the beach with the barn doors open. The thought crossed my feeble mind yesterday when I was putting gear away after a sailing session that it would be nice to have some music. I'm pretty green when it comes to anything high tech and audio systems. I wouldn't need anything fancy or high end. I'm not looking to draw any attention to my van. Just basic radio station music or perhaps off of a thumb drive if reception is poor and adding an antenna would be too difficult. Obviously a portable radio would probably work okay but I'm adverse to using batteries and having something floating around and not mounted. My thought was to mount some type of radio in the back (not sure where) and add a pair of speakers either on the upper grey side panels above the wire baskets (see pic below) or in the rear door inserts if it's easy to put speaker wires through the door conduit. The only hitch with mounting on the rear doors is that the speaker could get wet because I shower off in this area and the wind often sprays the water towards the van doors. I've got 12VDC power in the back that I can tap off of. The doors and side panels already have sound proofing (two layers) so that should reduce any vibration or tinny sound from the speakers. Has anyone else thought about doing this or added one themselves? If I put a radio in, I'm assuming I would need some type of antenna? Appreciate any thoughts or advice from the audio gurus. Thanks!

@rileuy - thanks for the update. Great news. I think you've got the dealership in your hip pocket now. Time for you to go and enjoy the van and write-off your first week's experience.

@tlmason - All sounds good except for the kids part. I have very little patience for noisy kids. Mozzie? That's a new term. Had to look it up mate. Looking forward to seeing more pics. Enjoy!

Check out this thread below for a thorough discussion. Since you have a 2018, the dealer "should" be able to disable the approach lights. Or you can do it yourself using Forscan with the right ODBI reader. In the meantime, if your driver's window is down, you can use the high beam lever to turn off. Push forward then back. Better to have that featured disabled permanently. Good luck! PS - If you don't have one, as poster MRTN mentioned, good to have a jump start battery pack handy. I now have one for both our vehicles. There's a thread about this subject as well.

@jackgrimshaw - Great update on your van. Nice job! Now your van looks just like mine.

@Rileuy - Sorry to hear about your woes. Understandable why you're upset. I wouldn't give up on the TC so quickly. You obviously selected this van for reasons that are still valid. You're just going to need to fight a little bit to get things sorted out. It shouldn't have to be that way but sometimes things don't always go as planned. The seat strap issues seems minor to me. Same for the audio problem. Those aren't show stoppers. Keep in mind the 2019 has some new features that Ford mechanics might not be up on how to service them. Your van might be the first time they experience a few of those problems. The smoke coming out the tailpipe sounds like more of a serious issue to me and needs to be diagnosed ASAP. If it's constantly doing that, then that would be cause for concern on a new engine. If you're not getting adequate responses from certain low level people at the dealership then you need to go up the ladder to get some traction. Don't be afraid to seek out the general manager of the dealership and raise a little rockus if you think you're not getting the service you deserve. Best of luck - please keep us posted on what happens.

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new van. Did you just get the van? I like your shade setup. I take it you're sleeping in the back of the van. Please share more pics. Looks like a nice quiet campsite but with all that greenery I take it the skeeters are the size of your wheel covers. Enjoy your travels!

@dinocarsfast - Not to worry. Plenty more out there. Check out the inventory at LKQ as I showed above.

I upgrade my IPC recently and want to add some notes to the ones above from Beta Don and Don R. Both Don's were very helpful in guiding me through the process and Don R gets all the credit for pioneering this mod. Big Mahalos! I really like having the oversized MPH display and for that reason alone I would recommend making this upgrade. FINDING A DONOR IPC I think the best place to find one is searching LKQ's database of salvaged parts. I got mine this way after Don R giving me some search tips. I received exactly what I ordered and shipping was included in the price. Kind of interesting to see all the bashed in TCs. Some look perfect so I assume they got flooded out. https://www.lkqonline.com/ My van is a 2015 so I searched under 2014 and 2015 to open up the selection. See the screen shots below. My donor IPC was listed under 2014, P/N: DT1T-10849-UCC As mentioned in other posts, you need to find a cluster that ends with a -UXX. Prefix is DT1T for 2014 and 2015, FT1T for 2016 and newer. Your safest bet is to find a van that is a Titanium. Verify by seeing the upper reflector in the rear taillights. Under the "Source Vehicle" tab, some descriptions will say Titanium, others might not. If you can see a pic of the IPC, then it's a sure thing you've got the right one. You can also run the VIN in Ford ETIS to see if it's a Titanium. Not all salvaged vans will show a specific pic of the IPC. Mine did and it was turned on so I knew it was the upgraded version. My cost was $68 with shipping plus tax. INSTALL NOTES All tips provided by the Dons are spot on. That top panel was hard to get to budge. I was getting frustrated but eventually it broke loose. I used jar opener grippies to help pull it when levering it with the same plastic tool Don R is showing. Before removing the lower trim piece, lower the steering wheel as much as possible. The lower trim pops out pretty easily with a light tug and it's attached to the steering column with some flexible vinyl gasket. I wouldn't remove this part but just leave it pulled forward and resting on the steering column. The IPC connector as Don R shows has a release lever, but you have to push a small button down first to get the lever to shift to the right to release. I couldn't figure this out on my own and consulted with Don R for help. Lastly, be careful with the lower two screws as Beta Don pointed out. For getting the odometer reprogrammed, I used the place Don R recommended, odo-pro.com. $89 with return shipping and the turnaround was fast. It cost me $13 something to ship it USPS from CA to Odo-pro in CO. http://odo-pro.com/index.html So for around $175 you can get an upgraded IPC for your van. It's a low risk upgrade and well worth the effort.

@amish soldier and Zalienz - I share the same sentiments about the cargo light. I too paid extra for the LED version. No switch and having it stay on for 10 minutes after I close the door was too much for me. Plus in my case, the location wasn't optimal. As posted earlier, I took the cargo light out and later put up a side panel covering that spot. I installed four LED lights wired together and can control them with two switches. I have a hanging rack in my van but you can easily mount these lights in other locations. The lights come with two sided tape and a pair of brackets with a single screw each. One switch located in the left rear. The second on the driver's side slider on the right side of the panel. The switches are not wired as a 3-way setup, which wasn't really necessary for my use but there are some times when I could have used that option. I really like having the ability to control the lights from two locations. The amount of light seems just about right for my needs. Nothing fancy but very practical. Link below for the LED lights I got. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CJ634KK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Just read an article on MSN linked below about the problems with this transmission. Sounds like a nightmare. Anyone else been following this? Glad the Gen 2 TC has a different transmission = 6F35. Not sure what the Gen 1 model has. https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/ford-knew-focus-fiesta-had-flawed-transmission-sold-them-anyway/ar-AAEb0x6

@amish soldier - Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new van. How about some pics so we can see a nice new shiny van. What's the grid on the slider windows? Nice paint job. I like the contrasting gray color on the black van. I did the same last year but didn't do the clear coat. The spray coat didn't give me a nice even finish so I ended up rolling paint on. I should probably add a clear coat the next time I repaint the panels.

Thanks Drew103. You've got the inside advantage to getting this done. Good for you. Interesting that your own tech support couldn't help you with making this change. You can be a real hero and take a 2014 or 2015 off your used car lot, when one comes in, and perform the necessary BCM upgrade and then see if you can do the same approach light disable function. I'd really like to hear how that goes. It's still a mystery for me, and others apparently, why multiple Ford techs at multiple dealerships around the US were unable to complete these steps successfully. A few did, but most didn't.

@drew103 - Thanks for sharing your mod and congrats on getting your approach lights disabled. Can you share more info on how you went about using Ford's IDS software? Did you purchase a time-based license to get an activation code and how did that process go? Did you also get the required interface Vehicle Communication Module (VCM) or Vehicle Measurement Module (VMM)? https://www.fordtechservice.dealerconnection.com/vdirs/wds/diagnosticsites/ids/mcs/Overview.asp There has been some recent discussion about trying to get this task done using Forscan in the thread link below:

@Greastart - Welcome to the forum. Congrats on getting a pair of new vans. That's cool! We'd love to see pics of your new vans. Regarding roof racks, check out the thread link below as a starting point. Lots of options.

That's cool. You'll have fun with that project. Your mind will be dreaming up endless opportunities. First remove the step molding on both sides and peel back the mat. I took the entire mat out and replaced with plywood and carpet. I separated the foam lining that's spot glued to the mat and used that as a underlayment. Great for sound proofing. I also used added separate sound proofing, two layers, but in hindsight it probably wasn't necessary in this area. Some pics below to wet your appetite.

@Jsbrown44 - Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new van. Thanks for sharing your van pics. Very nice! You've added some interesting amenities to your van. Fancy craftsmanship isn't as important as form and function. As long as it works for you is all that matters. One mod you might want to consider is taping into the area behind the front seats under the deck or the footwell area for the passenger wagon version. You've got some decent storage under the platform that you can make use of. There have been several designs posted on the forum that you can replicate or use as a starting point to create your own custom design. I love having mine and am very glad to have made that addition. Below is one thread showing some mods.

okay, thanks Don. Good to know that the option shows up regardless of the calibration version. I'm assuming at this point that my BCM was never updated correctly by either dealer and multiple techs trying. I still wonder if the BCM was updated correctly in my 2015 if the approach light function can be toggled using Forscan.

okay, thanks Don.

@Don Ridley - thanks for posting the update. Interesting read on why and when to update your vehicle profile. After you updated your IPC, did you create a new profile?

I made a post back in 2015 about the sun shade a got. Towards the bottom of the first page of the thread linked below. Covers up the windshield nicely. Rolls up and stores in a bag but not super compact.