Beta Don

As with the automatic transmission in just about any vehicle, there are owners/drivers who can blow one up in relatively few miles because of the way they maintain them, the way they load their vehicle, possibly with what they tow with the vehicle and just the way they drive everyday . . . . and then there are people who plan from the start to make them last a long, long time and some of those get 250K to 500K without needing a new transmission. It all depends . . . . When I was 20 years old, I had a 1958 Corvette for about 2 years and I managed to destroy 3 transmissions, two engines and at LEAST 8 or 10 differentials. I also broke the welds where the spring perches were attached to the axle tubes and had to have those rewelded. But, I was having fun and had no other place to put my money other than into that car ? Don

If what you say was true, then for sure there would be a max lifting rating stamped on the hitch also . . . . and there isn't. Bolt on hitches were not designed to support the weight of one end of the vehicle and should not be used as a jack point Don

IMO, $60 would make a $200 improvement in the way they look on your van - As it is, they scream "SOMETHING IS MISSING HERE!!" Don

Bu11frogg - Those alloys do look good, but they look like they're missing hubcaps to me. Didn't they come with a cover for the center part? IMO, they'd look even better if you found a set of those Don

They make them that way because it makes them MUCH harder to cross thread - Too many guys, even some who work in tire shops, stick the lug nut into an air gun socket and try to start them that way, so leaving 3/8ths or so at the beginning that's not threaded gets the nut straightened out and less likely to start crooked. You should ALWAYS start lug nuts by hand and screw them on 3 or 4 turns before you hit them with a wrench I've got a set of 4 OEM 16" steel wheels from my 2014 stacked in a corner because I'd hate to toss them . . . . but I have no use for them. For sure not interested in trying to box them up and ship them, but one day . . . . . I'll find someone local who needs them for something. Nobody within a thousand miles of here needs another set for snow tires (thankfully) so there's not much call for used OEM steelies around here Don

Is that really a TC or is it a RWD Transit?? Don

Your van looks Awesome! by the way!! Obviously, lots of planning, work (and money) went into getting it to where it is now - Be careful of the potholes, or you'll lose that pretty front spoiler Don

Sorry, but "fun" and "sportier" doesn't describe the "ride" of any lowered vehicle with ultra low profile tires - He wants to know if he'll need crutches after a 200 mile trip on less than perfect roads. Choppy, uncomfortable, maybe even backbreaking would probably better describe how it feels to drive a long distance on anything other than billiard table smooth roads . . . . "Fun" wouldn't be in anyone's vocabulary. The "ride" in a stock TC isn't "fun" and "sportier" would be a Mazda Miata ?

There are lots of wheels from other Ford products which fit fine - I'm using some pretty alloys from a 2012 Focus ST on my TC and I bought a blemish-free set of 4 of them on eBay for $350, which included shipping. Stock TPMS from my steel wheels transferred over with no problems Don

The 2012 TC has a 4 speed auto trans and it's NOT a dual clutch model Don

It sounds like it's a vacuum issue - Has the electric vacuum pump ever been changed? How many miles? They do go bad Don

95% chance the electronics will be different and maybe gear rations and other things too. If you get the ECM from the Focus and can transplant that into your van, you might have a chance of making everything work We did have one member here who did this with a Gen2 van and a newer Focus because he wanted a manual transmission. He bought the van specifically to do the swap and then bought a Focus specifically to do the swap and had both both cars shipped to a shop who said they could do the work. He posted updates here for 6 or 8 months, detailing every incompatibility they ran into (there were many) and how they solved them . . . . and then we never heard from him again. I sure hope he ended up with a running van with a manual transmission because there's no telling how much money he spent but it was a ton - Labor alone must have been thousands With all the electronics in modern cars, the days of hoisting a different engine/trans into your car using the limb of a shade tree are long gone - Everything is 20X more complicated than it used to be, where all we had to do was weld up a new motor mount or two, bolt it in and drive it away. Engine swaps from other vehicles are all *interesting projects* these days! Don

I ran into *some* of that when I installed a Pioneer Nav receiver in my 2014. The angle isn't the best for viewing, especially when sunlight hits it. I wanted to keep my backup camera in the small screen above the receiver and that's next to impossible to do and have steering wheel controls. In the end, I kept the camera and forgot about steering wheel controls Newer cars use Can-Bus for everything and that makes installing aftermarket stereo systems problematic - Gone are the days when you can just put 12 volts on the stereo and have it turn on and function normally. Now, the Can-Bus is the only thing that turns it on and it keeps it on even after you shut off the car . . . . until you open the drivers door. If your Nav receiver needs a speed sensor, or a parking brake indication, it gets those from the Can-Bus too. When an aftermarket installer wants $300 or more to make it all work, they just might be earning every penny of that - Sad! Great that Crutchfield is working with you on the returns - That says a lot about the company, IMO Don

When I got the recall to 'fix' the sliding door latches, I hesitated . . . . for a year or more . . . . because I'd read all over the Internet & here too that after the dealer performs the recall, the doors never open the same as before. After ignoring several mailings about the recall, Ford eventually called me to make sure I got the recall done and they assured me this wouldn't be a problem, so I reluctantly took it in Wish I hadn't! Took it back a total of 3 times and showed the service manager how the passenger side door opened (the same way as before the recall) and then showed him how the drivers side door opened - Much more difficult to get it to unlatch. He agreed, so they took it apart again and 'carefully' examined the way the new parts were installed, but it was the same after they were done and the manager assured me everything was installed properly . . . . and nothing could be done about it! That's the last time any dealer's service department will ever touch my van, for sure . . . . and that was under a recall - I would FOR SURE never PAY them to screw up my van! My first 'issue' (under warranty) was with the way the passenger side window raised and lowered - About an inch and a half each time you pressed the switch - It took 5 or 6 presses to fully lower or fully raise the window. They kept the van for a week while they ordered and replaced several parts, including a new window motor . . . . none of which fixed the problem. In the end (after they finally read their literature on the van) it was a computer reprogramming issue and took 5 minutes to fix. If I had been a paying customer there is not a doubt in my mind I would have paid for every new part they installed in my door - None of which was needed or fixed the problem - but they would NEVER have admitted those parts weren't needed, or that I shouldn't have to pay for them Don

I have a 750 watt inverter hanging in the drivers side rear most hatch - I ran a 4 gauge wire up to the battery to power it and I use if to recharge my Segways and also to run a 120 volt air compressor. It's super handy to have and I've used it for all sorts of things Don

. . . . . assuming the offset of both wheels is close to the same Don

I went with the Gen 2 mainly for the 4 wheel disc brakes, the six speed trans-axle which gets me right at 30 mpg . . . . and most of all, because of the lower roof height which I'm sure plays a big part in that 30 mpg. I've never once wished I could stand up straight in my passenger van, but I'm sure if it only got 25 mpg, I'd be wishing every single day for 30 Don

When you have any problem with a brand new vehicle which might plague you for the rest of it's life, you take it back to the dealer (as many times as necessary) until you get it resolved to your satisfaction Don

As with many Wiki articles, this one is old, out of date and so full of misinformation one wonders if any of it is actually accurate First they say all TC's are imported from Turkey and only high roof models are imported to North America - I *think* this was true (or mostly true) for the Gen 1 models, which haven't been imported at all for many years Then they say that since 2019, all vehicles are still imported from Spain and that's been true since at least 2014 - My Gen 2 was made there and never set foot in Turkey I did read an article waaaay back in 2013 about Ford being busted by the Feds for 'technically' getting around the Chicken Tax and that article said it was over for good then. I've looked at a few new cargo models and can't find any evidence that seats or anything else has been removed from them, so I'm left to wonder what facts (if any) are behind the Wiki article - Wikipedia certainly isn't a fact based source in my book, as so many people are free to edit the articles. I doubt if any court would recognize it as a source of fact either Don

How many miles on your 2014? Did you buy it new? If you don't know it's maintenance history and you've got 50K on it or more I would be seriously thinking about changing the trans fluid - Unless you have a professional flush it for you, it's not easy to get a 100% exchange (well, it's actually impossible to get a 100% exchange) just by draining it and refilling it because more of the fluid is trapped in the torque converter than is available in the transmission to drain, but . . . . if you buy 12 or 14 quarts and drain it 3 or 4 times it is possible to get better than a 90% change to all new fluid. These 6F35 gearboxes are hard on their fluid and if you're at all hard on the vehicle (the way you use it and drive it) then there are plenty of owners who have had to have transmissions rebuilt long before 100K miles. I did a 4 part drain and refill on my 2014's trans at 25K and I'm going to do it every 25K and hopefully save myself $3K or so by not needing to have the trans rebuilt Don

Several of us who converted to the Group 48 size and AGM format did so because we are running things off the battery and not just using it to start the engine, so we wanted more power, more reserve capacity and less self discharge I carry a pair of full sized Segway I2's in the back and I wanted to be able to charge them using an inverter while driving and I didn't want to have to shut down the inverter when I stop for gas , or lunch, or shopping along the way. I installed a 750 watt inverter in the back of the van fed by a #4 wire and a 70 amp fuse, powered off the battery. Others are running refrigerators and other things, usually with inverters, so stuffing the most reserve amp hours into the stock battery box was a good idea . . . . and it has worked well for all of us Don

My point was . . . . forums are all about sharing solutions to problems and if the vehicle has been around for awhile, most problems have been addressed several times so you won't be making the same mistakes others have already made in the past The Sam's Club battery is taller, but there is a lower space in the center of the battery which allows you to use the stock hold down clamp with no problem. The Interstate battery must be designed differently . . . . good to know No Sam's Club? Can't be THAT far away - When I needed AGM 6 volt Golf Cart batteries for my boat, they were not stocked in any Sam's Club in Mississippi, but I found them at a store in Alabama. Road trip! - I drove past 2 or 3 other Sam's Clubs to get to the one with the batteries I needed ?

Lots of variables to consider - Gen1 or Gen2 TC? What seat are you trying to install? One from a same generation TC van . . . . or a generic seat you picked up from a van in a wrecking yard? How are you planning to mount the seat belts? To the seat, or to the van floor? Unless you did some custom welding, I think it would be pretty hard to do a 'legal' installation - One which wouldn't get you in a ton of trouble if someone was severely injured or killed in an accident There are so many variables that most installations will be 'custom' with you coming up with solutions to the various problems on the fly - I really doubt you'll find anyone with pictures of the same van you have, custom mounting the same seat you've bought . . . . but you never know - This is the place to ask and maybe you'll get lucky! ? Don

You should read here first and then post later - Several good threads here on Gen2 battery replacement and better batteries to use than the stock, overpriced and under performing battery A Sam's Club Duracell AGM size 48 (H6) is a perfect fit with no modifications necessary and the stock hold downs fit correctly. You then have a bigger, more powerful, AGM battery which will outlast the stock battery 3 to 1 Don

There is a forum for full size Transit owners - I mistakenly went there trying to find this forum when we first bought our van Don