Osco

I'm in the mountains now, My 2.5L LWB stays In select shift, MPG's are good, Power Is adequate, I get up these hills just fine, Got news for ya, This Little revamped Ford Ranger 4 banger with this twin cam setup rev's fine. Plenty of power at 4K rpm...

Remember me ? My Droid is now at 105,000 miles, I'm retired and have moved to the Smoky mountains. I finally had to repair something, the driver side door latch, and they did the sliding door recall fix what ever that was I don't know ? So ! 105,000 miles, BLASTED by a lightning strike, with only two other repairs in the life of this minivan, Before the strike a $225 A/C temp control thermostat, and just now a door latch $364, both dealer repaired..... I'd call that a very reliable vehicle. I think I'll get the transmission and the cooling system flushed

Nice work, I have always put just the seat back down just like you do Don, then I drape a towel to keep the bike dirt off the side of the upright seat and hooked a strap around the head rest post and a second one from the lower rear hook point on the back of the seat section. Cost of the two straps was something like $8 and no fabrication or mount. Bike has never moved yet..

93,000 on my 2015 Lwb, I guess I should change the tranny fluid,

My second sensor Has failed,, lasted about 15 months,, Oh well, Fords better Idea will cost me another $225 as I cannot do the work myself.... On a second failure and no re-design Ford should pay for this re-repair In Full. But No, they want more money so they Engineer things like this repeating common failure.. and make no attempt to put out a permanent fix. Shame on you Ford..

Continental purecontact on my Connect, DWS Is visible in the tread and I'm headed Into winter driving conditions. I should be good,, unless I screw the pooch :P

I properly cleaned my K&N Filter a few weeks back, it was really dirty. The air meter/mass air flow sensor or what ever the electronics uses to regulate air Into the engine must have had plenty of air volume and little vacuum increase because my 2.5 L engine runs exactly as It did with the filthy K&N... So It must be true what K&N said, "A K&N filter that is 50% clogged can pass more air than a new OEM filter" https://www.knfilters.com/filter_facts.htm My engine has always ran smooth, strong and efficiently. It's my heavy foot and traffic that makes me burn more gas and get a bit less MPG from what some of you enjoy that are willing to drive easy. I will not drive slower or accelerate slower than traffic around me, I prefer to blend In :P

My 2015 2.5 L Is now at 84,000 and has lived most of Its life hauling 500 to 900 pounds of work stuff over the rear axle. Bought It one year old, used with 20k miles for $12,000 less than new. I was sure It was 'broken In' but was I ever wrong. Must have been all city miles. I switched to Mobile 1 full syn oil and changed at 10K mile Intervals, I was driving 1800 miles a week In the Florida heat mostly Interstates and In and out of cities, At about three tanks of gas before each oil change I added a bottle of Chevron's Techron fuel system cleaner. The feeling people get with a new engine breaking In, like another here noted at what,,6,700 miles,,, I felt that times two from 20k miles to 25k miles. So It must have been dirty Inside, Injectors, carbon on the Piston tops, who knows ?? Engines hate to run slow in traffic, they need to breathe and rev to run right. Have retired now so my Connect no longer works hard but still runs like new, does not even need plugs yet.. My new long term fuel mpg average is 21.4 with an even mix of Inner city and rural driving. Getting my tranny flushed at Ford this week. May clean my K&N Air filter this week,, maybe, the filter goes at least 50k miles before It even needs cleaning, about 50k on It. FWIW A K&N filter tested t dirty 50K miles was passing more air with less suction than a brand new OEM filter. NOTE ! If you do a K&N filter and ever over oil it you will make a mess of your air box and air meter manifold. And you will need a throttle body cleaning big time.. The recharge kit,, use the spray on oil, never the liquid, follow the directions to the letter. If you over oil it start over from scratch.. The air meter controls air flow so your engine will run exactly then same as any air filter gets dirty,, to a point. When I first got this truck I ran the stock air filter to about 35k miles, the engine had sudden problems. low power, My smooth Idle was gone, It was sudden like unplugging a spark plug, With 800 pounds in the back and me needing Interstate speeds of 75 to 80 It was so bad I had to find the closest auto parts store. I put It the K&N, drove away with no problems after that... I actually drove a filter so dirty the air volume meter could no longer compensate... Again, my dirty 50k miles on it K&N shows no sign's of needing a cleaning, last time I check I could still see through It.. Ok I'm done :P

Had my 2016 LWB XLT for 15 months now. Got fried by lightening at 80 mph, back at 40,000 miles or so. Burned out all the electric's/electronics , even Inside the Tranny, everything but the outside light bulbs, Imagine that. Road hazard covered it, was a $6500 repair, cost me my deductable , no biggie. Never had a single complaint, now at 82,000 miles, runs perfect. I don't nit pick it, need a new driver side sun visor, Its sagging a bit, Gas cap/door kinda loose,, Not bad for the heavy use I've put it throgh.. I'd buy another..

I looked at all those pictures above and to me they all look far more, 'Dorkier' than the transit. I bought mine for three reasons, 1. I needed that low rear loading deck, took out the third row seats, 2. The ford 2.5L 4 banger engine, Basically been around forever in the rangers, I trust It. 3. The price, felt like I stole It, New was $29,000 actual selling price was $27700 Got mine eleven months old and with 20,000 miles for $16,000 It Is serving my needs perfectly.. Besides, If I feel the need to look cool or Impress someone I take my Candy Red Pony car :P, Paid for,,It's mine ~

Ok, So I got my retirement job and It Involves a few long 12 hour days outside in the hot humid Florida summer weather. The heat and humidity turns me Into a 'Walking Rain Forest' :P Cant burn up a half a tank of gas and cook my engine Idling and running the vans AC all day so I fixed the problem, Ryobi Generator, $550 Powers all my toyz for five and a half hours on one gallon, (After I'm started It runs on Idle all day) more on this later.. I was not about to spend $1000 or more for the Honda, The Ryobi may have a cheaper motor but once broken in and on full synthetic oil It always starts on the first pull when cold or warm, (got to do It right, no mistakes, as It Is sensitive) Smooths out In 30 seconds and then It Purrs like a kitten :P 5,000 btu AC $98 at walmart, cools just fine in 95 degree heat and direct sunlight, I got tinted windows and I do shade the windshield and cover the heat genrating black dashboard, glad I got a white transit. Next, Two HD Properly rated extention cords, a long one (100') for reaching a wall plug when available ($65) and short one (25') for the Generator ($30). Remember,being cheap here causes problems and can be extremely dangerous. The 100' cord Is heavy, both are rated sustained at 1875 watts and both are 12 guage outdoor rated. I cannot stress this enough ! Your trusty old extention cord, key word Is 'old' can cause real problems. Remember, the longer, the stronger you must have and anything over 50' use even more caution. I tried the back hatch open/wall mount,(last picture), no good, rain was a problem and It was hard to set up and seal up. My side window set up Is easy. Drop the platform In the window, then drop the small seat back, the cross board Is not needed but makes things sturdy,, Strap the ac down and shove pipe Insulation tubing In the space around the ac, Plug in and done. I bag the shelf so the ac water wont rot the wood........ Starting procedure was Important: Start the generator with auto Idle OFF, so It runs wide open,,, Let It settle, Start the AC with the temp control wide open, leave it on 10 always. as the compressor cycling really loads up the generator and burns the fuel. The generator can handle the 1500 to 1900 watt start drain just fine but still, I control the temp inside by setting the ac fan to low. Shut down to fuel up BUT let the AC remain OFF for at least three minutes to 'Unload the compressor head pressure' If you do not do this the start up wattage can hit 2100 to 2400 watts and hold for a full minute. The generator handles this ok but It's bad for the AC compressor valves, will overheat them and shorten the ac life span. I power the A/C drawing 515 watts and my Lappy for my work drawing 65-90 Watts and my Ryobi work fan on low drawing,,,not much, The fan equals out the temp by blowing a light breeze from the rear all the way to the front windshield. The generator does all this on Idle and gives smooth pc power, digital ya know.. I am cool and comfy all day for the cost of 2 gallons of NON Ethanol gas, currently at $2.99 a gallon, Generator runs better and I am sure will run longer spending that extra 2 bucks..

My Transit Is just fine now and that big fiberboard lower chassis cover under the engine Ford Lost has been replaced with a brand new one free of charge. The new rear shocks are on and handling Is much Improved, Must have need to replace them sooner. The best part Is I am changing jobs this month and where I used to drive 1500 to 1900 miles a week before the lightening strike I will work locally. I will work four to five shifts a week driving only 100-150 miles a week plus the Mustang Is now paid for and the Transit has only 73,000 miles and should last me along time. I no longer actually need the Transit but It will still be perfect because It Is now My official mountain bike hauler :P Hanging bikes on the back of the Mustang Is just wrong In so many ways :P

Still Running 41 front and 44 rear, been at that for 30k plus miles, Getting perfectly even tire wear across the treads, plenty of wet and dry traction. My Continentals perform great. I am not loading any notable weight anymore, but If I run 38-39 psi front and go below 41 rear I get squirmy handling and tire noise. IMHO these tires are designed for these pressures on this vehicle and perform best when Inflated correctly. In the brutal heat of mid summer I drop to 40 front and 42 rear cold..

I got my Droid back :D $6400,, my out of pocket was $500. Road Hazard.. It was In the shop for 11 weeks and half that was waiting for back ordered parts I was told. So, what did Ford replace ? Everything and I mean Everything, even stuff Inside the Transmission. It runs fine. what else can I say. Only glitch, they forgot to re-Install that big fiberboard lower chassis cover under the engine, you know the one we have to unscrew and swing out of the way to change the oil. Was told It's there to protect a few things from rocks and for sound damping and for aerodynamics. A new one Is being ordered free of course as they lost the old one LoL On the Interstate I do notice a little bit more cabin noise So It will go back on. I found a blown left rear shock but since I have 70 k miles the Insurance won't replace them both for free. was not blown before the lightening strike. Funny, Its the one directly below the lightening exit point on the body. I'm happy, got to drive my Mustang a bunch while the Droid was In the shop..

Possible update soon to follow,, Today the Power control Unit,,'puter Is suppose to come in.. This length of time waiting for one was typical Ford told me, The Service guy will call me at the end of the day,, It could possibly be ready. He said once It's Installed they had to program it and then with that In they can test all the other Gizmo's. He said all the other things they have seen burn out before would be In stock locally... I have really REALLY enjoyed this month off work, But I don't think I want another month off. I'll keep ya'all up to date...

About that,, To the bolt, my tires are only 1/2 Inch of rubber and no way that's Insulation enough.. 1/2 Inch you ask ? but tires are five or six Inches tall you say !!...... Nope, steel belted radials,,, steel belts, ah ha ! 'Light Bulb'.. Remember, I simply got In the way, the bulk of the current traveled through the body and chassis to reach the sky from the ground.

Ok an Update. Insurance adjuster made It to Ford Tuesday, Estimated repair is $4,000 and I should get It back mid week next week. They found the entry point, a small 1/4" size spot just above the rear Left tail light assembly. This spot was polished bare metal, no primer, nothing, It was as If the metal had been buffed with wet sand paper and polished with a jeweler's polish, smooth to the extreme. the paint, that was very odd. It was burned in a dime size circle with a yellow/gold ring that faded to white. Parts to replace, ball park costs for each. have not seen the spec sheet. Main computer,$800. Air bag controller,$240.. Anti lock brake controller $700... Main fuse box $170.... Tire pressure monitoring system $200 ,, did not remember the cost. body work,, who knows, the rest Is Labor. The wiring harness was undamaged. The claim will remain open, so even two, three years from now,, no set end, If I have problems ford will bill the Insurance company direct up to the current 50% value of the vehicle and over that It gets totaled out.. The old formula for estimating repair cost when dealers deal with Insurance companies is in the same ball park as 30 years ago.. Add up the cost of parts, double that number and you should be near the total repair cost labor Included.,,This still holds true.... As for me, I took the week off, and prolly the first half of next week, my mouth Is still sore and healing, I Bit my Inner lip pretty bad. Joints are fine now, except for neck and left shoulder, elbow and wrist,,tender. I should be healed up about the time my Droid comes back online,,Imagine that ! :P

I'll update,, I just noticed under my avatar,, Gender declined,,LoL Age group declined,,hahaha too funny, I musta missed those details,,, :P

I was throttle off dumping speed approaching a heavy rain cell on the Florida Turnpike. As I passed 60 I got hit. Felt like someone rear ended me and at the same time Hit me in the back with a baseball bat. The van shot forward suddenly with a rather extreme G-force load on me. Wipers stopped mid windshield, most but not all of the dash lights were out but I was, 'Dead Stick' engine off and not coming back. My Chest hurt, I was bleeding out of my mouth but felt nothing else. The Old saying, 'Feels like an elephant sitting on your chest',, It's true. I drifted out of the travel lanes and did not get hit due to a smart Tractor Trailer driver behind me, He straddled the center line of the two lanes and kept traffic behind him and away from me. I could not see, Very heavy sheet rain and no wipers. I got out of the travel lanes and onto the paved shoulder, I could see the edge of the pavement, I was successfully out of the travel lanes so I slowly came to a stop. 4 way flashers were working. On the Instrument cluster every single warning/trouble light was on, My cell phone had powered off, I restarted the phone and I hooked up the charger, I had 12 volts at the power outlet. My left hand was up next to the glass on the door jam, I was stretching when the hit came, My hand was burning. In the center of my palm I had two blisters, one shallow and the other deep. It was the entry point, must have come off the glass as It was damp on the Inside. I had chipped a tooth,, another dentist bill I am sure, The blood In my mouth was that, I bit myself. Remember the ARMY commercials, 'Be All You Can Be', well that was the wrecker driver, He locked my keys in the van, 4 ways flashing and park lights on. The Two hour ride to my Local Ford dealer with the Idiot wrecker driver with bald front tires In the rain was stressful. He slid up behind more than one car, once pointing to the grass, a real low IQ person driving a truck,, Yep, This Is the Stupid Virus that's Infecting so many these days. Dropped the Transit at the dealer, keys on the drop box, It's dead.. The State Trooper that showed up said my sudden G force, my van surging forward at an extreme rate for just a second was most likely the vehicle getting sucked into the void, the vacuum of the space where the bolt removed the air, the thunder clap Is the air rushing back Into that space as you all should know. Seems I got pulled into that space. My Van and I were In the middle of a massive electrical field, At the very least my computer is fried, at the worst, wiring damage and a totaled vehicle.

No shimmies or wobbles as I said I got a GOOD axle/hub/tire/wheel set up. I took it the long way with the small load stated below, perfectly smooth at 75 on the Interstate, No Issues with stopping or sway, My setup Is just too light. My only 'LOADED' trailer ride was just an estimated 350 pounds of wood fences sections strapped down flat being returned to the supply warehouse. I could not even feel the trailer behind me, My wild guess is the trailer is 250-350 ish pounds with my new better axle. This trailer max load capacity is only 1200 pounds, so fully loaded plus the trailer would keep me well under 2,000 pounds. I will never put much on it weight wise anyways. I doubt I will ever haul more than 500 pounds actually. This FORD FACTORY hitch system, IMO they got it aftermarket I bet :P, BUT It had no stickers so who knows, anyway It's a 2" receiver frame mounted set up, the hitch system is rated for 3,500 pounds but my Transit is only rated at 2,000 pounds so I have no worries at all about my equipment. BTW I DID use the sport feature on the transmission and the higher shift points were smooth. not needed but felt good In city traffic. And I had the trailer tires balanced, do not forget this IMO critical step...

8 months I've had this 'Driod', Got this 2015 LWB/XLT 2.5L wagon In January this year, Had 20,000 miles on It,,,,,65,500 miles now. It's broken In now, the Transmission shifts smoother than at 20k miles or I've gotten better at driving it IDK. Driving only about 1,000 miles a week now, no complaints of any kind. I will say, for me, for my needs I find this 'Wagon' to be a far better fit than my 2013 F-150 XL. and It fits in the garage with my Mustang :P

We got a rather large local company down here,, near me called, 'RedNeck Trailer'. (They got branches all over I think) All I need Is the time to stop in.. http://www.redneck-trailer.com/ They got coupler's by the case load in the show room. My Harbor freight trailer me build it kit was just what I needed, but,,the chinese channel iron axle, hubs, wheels and tires wen't straight to the county dump. Redneck fixed me up with a proper axle, good hubs that spun true and wheels and tires that would not shake my stuff to pieces :P It's the one In the above pictures~~

I need a new coupler on the trailer, the chinese one is,, chinese..

Cost,,,, Ok this was because I was way too busy to do It myself,,Time Is money and all that.. Receiver $150 Wiring kit $39,,,NOTE : The Ford Factory Kit was $75 and My Installer, (Topper King) would not use it because they WOULD NOT splice into the vehicle wiring. Kudo's Topper King, Kudo's Labor for the receiver Install was $100 Labor For the wiring kit was $150 Total out lay Tax Included $470 I'm happy :P

second and third pictures,,