tcconvert

Follow Up: Thankfully, there is no conspiracy going on at my dealership re. my TC's head unit failure. I was the first to arrive at the service bay early in the AM, and after a 4.5 hour wait, while watching everyone who showed up after me during that time get serviced and sent on their way, someone finally put a code reader on my vehicle and discovered that one of two modules in the head unit (the APIM) that control audio and video, had failed. List price for the replacement (which you get to pay in full at a dealership) came to $444.38. Tack on labor and and "mechanical," whatever that is - $300 - add the diagnostic fee of $138.68. BOOM! I'm just shy of $900 just to restore the operation of this crappy little unit. And the service tech tells me that when this module goes, it's very common for the other one to follow soon after, and it's also very common for these modules to fail (he isn't supposed to tell me that). Extrapolate: Somewhere down a very short road I am likely to be out something close to two grand and another day of my time just to recover function of this sad excuse for a head unit. And this on a vehicle which has not yet seen 27,000 miles of private use. I "thanked the dealer for their service" and immediately headed down the road to the local Audio Express, where, for about $1300, including installation, I am going to have a modern touch screen unit and a couple of upgraded speakers added to my TC. A bonus was that since my purchase of the vehicle, the aftermarket suppliers now have the gear to install a 3rd party unit and still retain all the original steering wheel controls and functions. So the choice was - spend two grand to retain the original head unit -so I could continue to yell and cuss at it while attempting to get it to function - or spend several hundred dollars less and move into the modern era? It was a no-brainer for me. This is the part where I could rant about the horrors of having to work with a car dealership, and my foolish choice of buying an odd-ball, non mainstream, overpriced vehicle, but i will spare you that.

Haven't been on here for quite a spell. My 2016 has been pretty trouble-free so far, as I approach 27,000 miles. Had my first failure - the FoMoCo original battery just died. Went out yesterday and hit the starter. Click-click-click-click and no-go. Classic sound of a dead battery!. Sure enough - only reading 10.49 Volts. Odd, since there have been no warnings, and two days before I did a 200 mile drive. No issues. I decided to put a new battery in. Shock number one: the replacement cost me $184 (I haven't bought an auto battery in probably 20 years). Shock number 2: Replacement in the TC is a nightmare! If it hadn't been for a short YouTube video I found, I never would have figured out how to get that sucker out of there! I'm sure I would have come away from the dealer at least $400-500 poorer for this one. Anyway, I was apprehensive about whether or not the system would even boot and run properly after disconnecting those leads. This can create havoc in some modern vehicles. Well, she started right up. Then came the inevitable chore of re-programming the head unit. Re-set clock and date. get AM/FM working - and then the disappointment. It refused to bring up anything from the media button! No connectivity. No phone pairing. So we get to the point of this post: Does the dealer hold us hostage when it comes to having complete control over this(admittedly) tragic Sync head unit? I seem to remember some earlier issue where I disconnected the battery leads - maybe it was when I installed my hitch - I had to go to the dealer and they got all the Sync functions working again. Is it possible that the dealer can somehow electronically program these units to disable some functions, so we will have to come back to them to regain full control every time we disconnect the battery? At this point it seems I either have become a victim of the dealer, or there is some failure in the unit itself. Maybe there's just a code reset required any time power is cut off? (I don't own a vehicle computer and don't want one) To wrap this up, I would have to say that 5 years after purchase, I have, for the most part, found MY TC to be extremely useful and versatile - not to mention easy to drive, and the major concern I am having now? I usually buy new every 5 years, when depreciation begins to tank, and in that area the TC turns out to be a pig. I just hope the low miles, non-commercial use, and the addition of some insulation and padding in the cargo compartment, along with the a set of custom wheels and a hitch, can do their part to get me a decent private sale. Any suggestions? Thanks

My last new vehicle prior to buying my 2016 TC was a 2011 Nissan Frontier. I got a serious reality check when I got the TC home and discovered there was no easy way to even install a Sirius radio Rx! Don't know if it's the same with other brands these days, but now I know that if I buy another Ford I'd better be sure it comes off the lot with everything I want on it cause it's difficult/impossible to add aftermarket products. I'm at an age where I don't want to do this stuff anymore either - which doesn't help. I don't even do my own oil changes now. Didn't want to have to buy and store ramps just to get into the engine compartment. In the 1960's it was a no-brainer to get to almost anything on a vehicle. It's so difficult now that I've pretty much accepted my shade-tree-mechanic days are over. The only thing I've added to my TC is a hitch.

LOL - After driving Nissan Frontiers for more than 25 years I feel like I'm driving a sports car - even when I'm just taking an on/off ramp at the same speeds as the cars.

I put 5 years on each of three new (2-wheel drive) Nissan Frontiers prior to purchasing my TC. They had incredibly large turning circles. Countless parking spots were passed up because they just couldn't swing tightly. I think the TC virtually turns on a dime. Because the rear axle is so close to the back end, I can swing it sharply into tight parking slots and do u-turns on just about any road - things my pickups could only dream of.

I bought my van at the end of 2016 (21,000 mi.). It's windscreen is more pitted than on any vehicle I have ever owned. Position a massive amount of glass like this low down to the road and pitting is inevitable. I have had several large craters repaired, but there's nothing I can do about the hundreds of tiny pits that abound. Stones that might hit the bumper or grill of a pickup go straight into the windscreen of the TC! I drive primarily on paved roads and freeways.

Since this topic is still going, I'll chime in to say that after one winter and most of a summer season under my belt with the Pirelli Cinturato Strada AS's, I am still very pleased with the performance and would recommend them to anyone looking to upgrade from OEM. Driving on them has been very pleasurable in all conditions. Highly recommended. Note: I do not carry heavy loads, and most of the time I run empty. For me a heavy load might be 200 lbs.

My shade tree mechanic days are over. The only tools I carry now are a AAA card and a cell phone.

Well Don, I am 70+++ and I get where you're coming from. I'm long past the car ego trip era, and honestly, I don't care if I ever service my own vehicle again. The only reason I would have continued with my own oil changes is that I could get full-synth oil instead of the combo mix the dealer or an oil change shop gives me, for less cost, and would feel entirely comfortable going at least 10,000 miles between changes after the break-in. Not to mention I wouldn't have to waste two hours, and drive 30 miles at every change, like I do now. I don't have room to store car ramps. Maybe I could fabricate something much more compact and store-able out of wood, but I'm not certain how much height I would need to get under there and get to everything. Maybe my time-of-life also explains why I did some partial interior mods to clean up the rear and try to reduce the noise level, and then gave up. I just didn't have the time or incentive to see it through. I heartily agree it handles like a car. I've had nothing but compact and mid-sized Datsun and Nissan pickups going back to the early eighties, needing the occasional hauling capacity for my business. Well, not counting the VW Rabbit diesel PU I owned briefly - possibly the most under-powered vehicle ever conceived! So this puppy doesn't just handle like a car to me, it handles like a "sporty" car. Except for the road noise I really enjoy driving it. The dealers (I have only two within 100 miles) all gave up on the door adjustments, and so have I. I have fiddled with anything attached to the door systems that can possibly be moved or adjusted - to no avail. Even if I reduce it the rattles always return, especially the sliders unless I hit a really big bump - then the clam-shells join in! I could see how this wouldn't bother commercial users. Once they pack a bunch of racks and a few hundred parts and tools into the back, the rattles are moot. It could be that my brief ride in the wagon version seemed so hard because every seat was occupied, but I couldn't help but notice every bump. I guess that because it was a "passenger" version I was expecting something cushier.

Lots of valid points made here. With a couple years and 18,000 miles on mine I would say I have developed a love/hate relationship with it. It IS the most useful vehicle I have ever owned. I serves me perfectly in my professional art business, where I sometimes have to haul large, but not heavy loads. It's perfect for transporting my large RC aircraft. It has served me well as a portable dressing room for changing into winter flying clothes at the airport, when getting suited up to fly my open cockpit home-built. It's just the most convenient vehicle I have ever owned for transporting just about everything I can think of (after 25 years of pickup trucks). It far surpasses my three generations of (4-cyl 2WD) Nissan Frontiers in the power department. Mileage is remarkable. And it's oddly pleasant and sporty-feeling to drive, and astounding when it comes to parking and maneuvering - or just getting in and out. Down-side...It's commercial breeding is in-your-face. There is NOTHING luxurious about it. It's noisy, uninsulated. The doors rattle and two dealers have been unable to silence them after multiple tries. The Ford Sync head unit sucks, and it's "practically impossible" to add anything electronic to the vehicle that it didn't come equipped with. It's the first vehicle I have owned since the early 1960's that has driven me to give in to paying someone else to do simple services like an oil change - because access is so difficult. I had an occasion to spend more than an hour as a back seat passenger in the wagon version. It was about as pleasant and hard-riding as being in a Soap Box Derby racer, and made me glad I didn't pop for that version. Maybe the final word should be what one dealer's mechanic left me with after giving up on silencing the rattling doors - "Hey...It's a van!"

Backed out of the garage three days ago into about 6" of snow, sitting on top of solid ice. (We have not been above freezing for more than two weeks) I stopped and closed the garage door and then attempted to move forward. NADA! My sad OEM Cont's, with 18,000 miles on them just sat there and spun on top of the ice layer. There wasn't enough tread to grip the snow and pull me up off the ice sheet. Only an extensive rocking session got me moving enough to get back into the garage. This caused me to take a good look at the tires, and I realized they had a lot more wear than I would have expected at 18,000 miles. Working at home means I am not forced to go out every day, and can usually wait for things to moderate a bit before I attempt to go anywhere, but the massive fail behavior of those sad Conti's drove me to the computer to research some new skins. I spent almost an entire work day looking for a good alternative to the OEM's. Along the way I brought up reviews of the OEMs that came stock on my 2016. The biggest complaint was the shocking early wear - some people showed extensive wear at only 10,000 miles! Then there were the sidewall bubbles and failures. Not good! I searched for a good all-season tire that would give me a bit more grip in modest conditions than I had at present with the Conti's (none!). I didn't want to have to drive around on snow tires in an area that typically has more dry weather than anything else. The road noise in these cans is bad enough as it is, and I value my 27 MPG average mileage. I ended up settling on a Goodyear all-weather tire that had stellar reviews for all conditions and got raves about their long wear. Unfortunately, as is all too common for TC owners - these babies did not come in the TC's stock size. I could have accepted a taller tire, but I didn't want to alter my speedo readings. Bummer. Further local searches in my area for what the few typical tire stores (Discount, Big-O, etc.) actually offered left me disappointed. I was going to have to pick from what was available and offered in the TC's size. I ended up at Discount Tire, reluctantly taking the suggestion to fit a set of Pirelli Cinturato Strada AS's (a model exclusive to Discount Tires). I Drove off in the 22 degree weather on my new, very unexciting-looking $500 tires for the trip home, expecting to not notice anything different. BIG SURPRISE! The Pirelli's had completely changed the feeling of my van. The steering was lighter. The wheels pointed quickly in the direction I wanted. The van had a much tighter and crisper feel all-around, and maybe equally as welcome was a much reduced level of road noise! This made me realize what crappy tires I had been driving on for the last two years! I have since driven them through some packed snow and over some ice. These things are not winter tires, In truth, they are performance tires, but they do provide a higher degree of grip than the Conti's, and I expect them to be able to get me through modest winter conditions just fine. The best thing is that I feel like I am driving a completely different vehicle! So, here you are guys and gals...Need new shoes? If your needs parallel mine, I think you will find a lot to like about these pirelli's. Check 'em out.

The dealer informed me this can be done, but they had to refer me to an outside independent installer and told me I would likely lose some of the control functionality on the steering wheel. I was shocked to discover, after purchasing, that there was no easy way to connect satellite radio! Seems that today, if what you want is not already on the vehicle when you buy it, it is very difficult to add aftermarket electronics, essentially because the necessary interfaces aren't there. Maybe this is not the case with other vehicles. In any case, it was too difficult and I didn't want to lose my steering wheel controls, so I gave up on it. After a while I accepted that the interior road noise was so overpowering that I would have to crank up the volume of ANY add-on to such a level that what is left of my hearing would be compromised (you probably don't worry about that unless you are my age). This opens up an even bigger can of worms.....considering how to noise-insulate the interior so you can hear your music (and everything else). I gave up on that partway through. It was all just too overwhelming for a vehicle I would not own any longer than 5 years. There are some great things about the TC. And some not-so-great. I would like to see a cargo version with interior insulation and paneling for those of us who value the space and don't need the seats, but would appreciate a higher level of comfort.

This is where you discover that if it wasn't on the vehicle when it left the dealer, it's a challenge to add it later, because there are now few-to-no plug-in interfaces for add-ons, for example, satellite radio. Seems to be the wave of the future. I was very disappointed by the poor voice-activated system, and considered a touch-screen head unit replacement (I had been using them for years in previous vehicles). Then I was told by the dealer it would be very challenging (and pricey) to do so - certainly more than I would want to do myself as I age. It would also eliminate some of the stock steering wheel controls, which I was reluctant to do.

Nice job. I have to agree with you about quality issues. Three new Nissan Frontiers preceded my current van, and I also don't feel the love when it comes to Ford quality. My Frontiers were not top-of-the-line, but there was still a tightness and quietness in the build that is missing from this Ford. Of course, It's a van. And one dealer who was unable, after several attempts, to resolve a rattling sliding door issue on this van, ended by saying to me..."Hey, it's a van." Is this what I should expect from a van? I drove a Focus loaner for a few days while they had my van to try and resolve the door rattles. It was a real piece of juck, with noises and looseness everywhere. Couldn't wait to get rid of it. Last time I owned a van was in the mid-1970's. It was a Ford window van! I don't remember it having the cheap feeling this current day van has. Like you...I love the concept and the utilitarian usefulness of the TC. I just carry this feeling that I can't quite trust it. I can't say yet, if when I reach my usual five-year trade-in period, I would pop for another one. Time will tell.

Hah! I don't have the leaf problem, but I have always wondered if my cargo van HAD the claimed air filter, and where the heck it was! I could never locate it.