OneBulletDan

I always wanted a "Hippie" van, so after I retired, I bought a Transit Connect and went wild. 1,148 RGB LEDs, two color organs to drive them, a 400 watt amp built into the upper cargo bin, an extra 550 amp battery on the passenger side, half inch foam on the cargo area floor, and 50 square feet of denim insulation stuffed everywhere I could put it. She rides a lot quieter now.

The aux battery will charge much quicker (supposedly) if you run the ground wire from main to aux. Cost a bit more, but it's working fine in my setup. Here's the link I went by: http://www.fridge-and-solar.net/dual_bat.htm

I found a manual for the 2012 Focus online. They torque the M12X1.5 lugs at 100 fp. Since I'm using the same alloy wheels, I guess I'll leave it at 100. I did recheck the TC manual and 66 fp is correct as you folks stated. Still sounds kinda light to me, but I don't claim to know more than the guys that built/designed it.

Thanks for all the input. It took a decent sized breaker bar to get the wheels off in the first place. Apparently, the dealership I bought it from likes to use impact wrenches to tighten everything (lazy). When I bought the van, the dealer assured me that it had gone through Ford's 176 point check list to make sure it was road worthy. I noticed on the way home that the thing rode hard enough to shake the hairs out of my knuckles. I'd never owned a van or a Ford before, so I though it was the nature of the beast. I checked the tire pressure just for giggles. They'd transposed the front and rear tires and didn't bother correcting the tire pressure so they wouldn't have to retrain the TPMS. I put the correct pressure in all the way around and went by the book to reset the TPMS. Rode a lot better afterward. I spent a few days checking everything else just incase they'd got lazy on the other things, too. 66 foot pounds just scares me for some reason. I might pick a happy medium between the hundred it's torqued to now and the given torque. Either that or I'll find a Focus forum and see if I can find what they torque the 17" alloy rims to. Thanks again, folks!

Found a set of 2012 Ford Focus 17" rims to go on my 2010 TC. Thanks to all the "new wheels" posters on here, I went with 225/50/17 tires. They ride great, much quieter than the original tires, and look nice, too. In my owner's manual, they call for a 66 foot pound torque on the lug nuts. It sounded kind of wimpy to me, so I headed to the local dealer to see what they thought. They claimed the standard steel rims were supposed to be torqued to 98 foot pounds. I'm not sure if alloys make any difference, but I went with a flat 100 foot pounds. What are you guys torqueing them at?

Me either.

I bought a 2010 TC last year and spent the summer heavily modifying the interior into the ultimate hippie van. This spring, it's time for the outside to get it's treatment. I purchased four 17" Ford Focus rims from a seller on eBay for $300 with the TPMS still attached. Now it's time to shop for tires. I've read every article posted on here about sizes and saw one that mentioned 225/50/17 tires. It seems like 225/55/17 in the load range needed are much more plentiful. Will the slight extra size aspect cause problems? I'd hate to spend the money just to find out that they rub on something. Excellent site, by the way. Lots of great info to be had.

I'm adding one to my 2010 FXT. I'm not sure whether I want the Curt or Hidden Hitch setup. Both look fully capable of towing more than I'll be towing. I'd like to find some pictures of both receivers mounted on a TC. So far, Google isn't helping.

With some careful shopping, I got the electrical manual for $20 and the mechanical manual for $80, delivered. Both were sold as used, but I can't tell they've ever been opened. Original Ford issue, too! After looking at some CJB videos on youtube, I'm thinking about going for a four hole block ran directly off the battery. I bought a battery isolator and am waiting for my next "rocking chair check" to buy an auxiliary battery. I hope to have the interior done by August ( light show, Pioneer touch screen, four way front door speakers, three way rear, back up camera).

I'm adding some accessories to my 2010 XLT van and was wondering how difficult it would be to utilize the CJB. I noticed there's a lot of blank spots that are unused. Has anyone tried this yet? Are the wires soldiered into the back? I could run a hot from the battery and put in a small fuse block, but with all the unused spaces, I'd rather use what's there. I bought the electrical shop manual, but they don't show the backside of the block.