Fifty150

The recall notice came in the mail today.

Michael, thanks for you experience and insight. It will save someone a lot of headache and heartache, buying some expensive tools, for them to not work. Any chance that you can share the part number and/or source? As the guy at the next dealership may not be as sharp, or motivated enough to spend 20 minutes, trying to figure out what to order.

The van comes with a Group 40. There are 2 spacers in the battery box. Ford sells the spacers for installing a group 96 battery. A small kit like this will have the tool, and a few extra fasteners just in case you damage any while removing them. A piece of plywood or MDF on top of the folded down seats would be fine. It will distribute the weight evenly. And protect your seats from whatever you load on top.

It's a 2019. Still under warranty. I would let Ford do a diagnostic, and fix it.

There's a recall for the windshield.

That's what I was afraid of.

See you out on the road. high 5.

In The USA, the 3rd brake light is probably a legal requirement. For different Ford models, going back over a dozen years, the high mount stop lamp has been a source of leaks. On some models, Ford began to sell replacement lamps with thicker gaskets. There are also aftermarket lamps with bigger foam rubber gaskets. And some aftermarket companies sell just the gasket. You can install a fan by cutting into the roof. A lot of shops do installations for rooftop fans, air conditioners, and refrigeration.

No thoughts. I know nothing about building a transmission. I only know how to change the oil. Sorry I can't help. There are other people on this website who are extremely knowledgeable. Hopefully, one of them can help.

After that many miles, and whatever amount of time, it's probably electrical. Whatever got wet, is probably now corroded. Corrosion can be anywhere. Inside one of the car's many computers, or at the electrical connections. I would start by inspecting the connections. Look for obvious signs of corrosion. I know. The car is full of wires, and they all have connectors everywhere. The car's computer operates the car based on information collected from sensors. Those sensors also have electrical connections which could have corroded. A lot of trouble.

I would suggest a remanufactured transmission.

Call a transmission company. They should be able to help with technical information like compatibility, the transmission control module, etc.

Interesting that Ford sells the vehicles with a "lifetime fluid", and has a full line of equipment for dealership technicians to service the transmission.

Do you want the aftermarket wheels and tires to drive the same? You will need to configure a wheel and tire combination with similar specifications. You need more information. You have to figure out what the full dimensions of the wheel are. You need the backspacing, the pitch circle diameter, bolt pattern, and backspacing. Then you can shop for tire size. If you don't care, then you just install whatever will fit. Your only consideration is that when at full lock steering, nothing is making contact.

Mercon LV is specification. Motorcraft, a brand of automotive parts, has a low viscosity, automatic transmission fluid, which meets the Mercon LV specification. It is also licensed by Ford. It's all in the wording. Approved? Recommended? By who? That's what you have to question. There have been marketing and sponsorship agreements. My fuel cap says BP. I would be screwed if I could only use BP gas. There are no BP stations in my area. Certain owners manuals were printed, stating that Ford recommends Castrol. In some markets, there is a Ford logo on bottles of Castrol. I wonder how many people question if that Castrol bottle of Ford oil can go into a Toyota. When you read the label on a bottle of ATF, you have to keep in mind that "recommended for" is marketing terminology. And unless it specifically says, "recommended by Ford", it is not recommended by Ford. On a bottle of Valvoline, where it says "recommended for"; it's Valvoline recommending that you use it. Valvoline is a product I use. It is the transmission fluid in my Transit Connect. It is a good example, of a bad example. Valvoline's literature clearly states: You can find this at: https://sharena21.springcm.com/Public/Document/18452/9e447451-fe75-e711-9c10-ac162d889bd3/5ca3517a-e29c-e711-9c10-ac162d889bd3 If you only want to use the actual factory fill fluid, you will buy Mercon LV. If you want a fluid to specification, you will buy a fluid of any brand, which meets the specification, and is licensed. Some fluids may claim to meet specification, but does not label as a licensed product.

Triax now has a product labeled specifically for low viscosity. I would try it if the price goes down.

Years ago, I saw a story on television, about this guy who had the same car for decades. It wasn't any kind of special car. It was some kind of GM. He bought spare parts like water pumps, alternators, starters - from some auto parts chain with a "lifetime warranty". He would go back, and a store manager would have to give him another auto part. Eventually, a manager would not give him a replacement. He took it up the food chain. They told him that the store managers made the onsite decisions when it came to replacing items under warranty. He wasn't satisfied. He hired an attorney. He received some sort of settlement. And he got on TV. I remember the TV host interviewer asking him if he was abusing the store policy. After all, he paid for 1 auto part, and got 4, 5, or 6 replacements, over a quarter of a century. His answer was that the store was abusing the customer by not honoring their warranty. You could try doing the same. Next time that you have to replace a fuel pump, or whatever, see if there is a warranty. Ultimately, most parts are replaceable. You just need to drive 250,000 miles a year for the next 4 years.

Sometimes the Transit Connect issues are the same issues people had with a Focus. Is there a similar Focus platform? Have Focus Ecoboost models randomly shut off? Just a hunch. I would look in Focus forums for a similar problem.

That should be an interesting experience. Will they use a fluid exchange machine? Or will they use the drain plug and fill port? Will they perform a triple drain and fill, or just drain it once? Will the shop use ULV, or substitute with a multi-vehicle fluid? My personal opinion is that a machine is more efficient. I wish I had a machine at home. In the past, with other vehicles, I would disconnect the transmission return line, let the contaminated fluid drain into a bucket, and fill with fresh fluid. When clean fluid begins to drain out, I know that the transmission is full of fresh fluid. The Transit Connect does not have a tranny cooler in front with quick disconnect lines.

A 6F35 uses Mercon LV. A 8F35 uses ULV. Mercon ULV is not backwards compatible with any other ATF. You cannot use ULV when the specification is for another fluid. So the logic would be that the opposite is also true. You cannot use any other ATF if ULV is called for. That is correct. If you go to a store, and find bottles of "multi vehicle ATF", it is not LV. If ia fluid is multi-vehicle, then it is not specific to any vehicle. Some of the multi-vehicle ATF formulations have been bottled and sold with the same recipe, since the 60's, 70's, or 80's, and at best, are okay for use with Dex/Merc transmissions. A few multi-vehicle ATF formulations are labeled as "recommended for" or "approved for" LV. It's how you interpret the wording. Who is recommending it? Who approved it? Not Ford. Ford has a specification. Ford and GM have never issued a service bulletin to ignore the fluid specification, and just use something that's close enough to it. If it meets the specification, the bottle will say that it meets the specification, and/or will read that it is a product licensed by Ford. If you are buying ATF online, or from a store, LV is now a common item. It's not hard to find. It's readily available. There is not a good reason to use the wrong fluid. Yet, some of us still use multi vehicle ATF. I am using Valvoline that I bought at Wal*Mart. I don't have a good reason. I have a reason. It was cheap. Valvoline ATF cost less than most other ATF.

If the spoiler was design for down force, so that when driving, the wind pressure presses the wiper blade onto the windshield...... let us know if the wind blew the wipers off instead. But most likely, the spoiler design is for airflow. So that air flows over the wiper in an aerodynamic way. It may get you an increase in mileage. My bet is that whatever the reason for the engineering - you won't notice a thing if you flip your wipers.

Not that I've thought about it much. There is an adapter for the 2" tailpipe to the muffler's 2.5" inlet. Just about any muffler shop, or someone who knows how to weld, could cut off the OEM muffler and tailpipe, and install an aftermarket muffler and exhaust tips. Even a do-it-yourself person could find exhaust pipes with different angle bends, and exhaust tips. Not that I've thought about it much. https://magnaflowmedia-uswe.streaming.media.azure.net/5dc2c3f7-52c4-4ffc-9e2a-e1812ea02c92/Muffler_Transverse_960x524_1500.mp4#t=0.001 MagnaFlow Transverse Muffler

It would mount and look like what the shop did to a 90's Camaro.

You could replace the OEM muffler with something like this: