Fifty150

Just the converters and oxygen sensors are over $5,000. Then there are always other issues when a car goes into the shop. Almost every repair comes in over the quote. No repairs ever complete under the quote, and the mechanic refunds money to the insurance company. The insurance company tried to declare a total loss for the vehicle. The value on an 07 pickup truck, depending on condition, is between $7,000 - $8,000. Insurance companies want to declare total loss if the repair is within 70% to 80% of the value. There was no way I could accept a payment of the repair estimate, minus my deductible. The insurance would have paid me about half of what the car was worth. I had several civil discussions with various members of the insurance company. Currently, they are sending a check to my mechanic. Then parts will be ordered. Then work will begin. The claim is left open, in the event that the mechanic needs more money.

Some thief cut a catalytic converter off my F-150.

Looks good. But I'm not paying to ship that across the country. Maybe you can donate it.

You can keep cleaning out the holes from the bottom. Or wonder what is inside the door and why the holes keep clogging. What could possibly have gotten in past the weather seal to clog the drain holes? Is there dirt, sludge, or the previous owner's stash of kilogram bricks of narcotics? It's not like you could have dead rodents in both doors. And it's highly improbably that there's a buildup of sand and leaves. Only the smallest of particulate matter could be getting past the weather seals. I'm lazy. I would just use a pick tool, or a wire coat hanger, and poke the holes to unclog them. Someone not lazy would take the door panel off, see what is inside, and correct the issue properly.

There isn't. It's just a hole. You will need nuts, washers, lock washers, and probably foam rubber and/or silicone to seal out water. Just use the existing holes under the plastic caps. That works just fine. A lot of installers use rivnuts for roof rails. You can also open the hole to make it larger, so that you can use a larger rivnut. That allows you to use a larger bolt, for more strength. Keep in mind that you are not building your solar panel rack for stationary use. You have to build it strong enough so that when you are driving, the solar panels and the bracket stay on the van. Don't be the guy who is driving on the freeway, and the panels fly off. I'm 10-8

With 122,000 miles, if those are the original spark plugs, I would bet on a misfire. Even without a scan tool to check for misfires, the first thing that I would do is change the plugs and coil packs.

I think this is the problem. The windshield and seal.

It is expensive to change a car in any way. Each of us perceives the value in a different way. Years ago, I believed I got my money's worth, and that the money was worth the investment, when I installed aftermarket parts. Today, I question myself. Would I have been better off, if I saved that money? Can I live without modifying the car, and just driving it the way it came from the factory? I had, and still have, some pretty wild ideas when it comes to what can be done with a Transit Connect.

Congrats. You did what many have dreamed of. There was a thread from years ago, where a person attempted to do the same. Then that person stopped posting, as if the project failed. Did you do all of this work yourself, at home? Or was a shop involved? What was the ballpark budget?

The first thing that you have to wonder, is what a shop, any shop, may have charged. They would have wanted at least an hour for diagnostic work - which is what you did. Some shops would have been honest. They would tell you, "look what we found in there". Other shops would have charged you an hour for diagnostics, another hour of labor for the repair. A real dishonest shop would simply charge you for 4 hours of shop time; and the cost of parts such as a new seat belt spool, gears, springs, fasteners, buckle, and shop supplies. Made in Japan. 11mm. You got real lucky with that. That 1 socket is probably worth about $10. Maybe you can sell it on eBay. Don't fret over Ford factory mechanics using tools Made in Japan. My Harley Davidson has Japanese Industrial Standard screws. Can you imagine having to special order a Japanese screwdriver and screws? Nope. You can't use a regular American Philips screwdriver. That will just strip and damage the screw.

I had the same exact problem with my Explorer and Taurus. Ford sources these same parts, from the same supplier, who makes poor quality parts? It seems like the same things fail on all Fords. Multifunction switch. Headlight switch. Interior door handles. Interior door window and lock switches. That cheap piece of plastic on the end of the steel cable, inside of the doors, that pull the locking latch when you pull on the handle. The list is quite long.

Probably the same fix. The seat belt rolls into a spool. There are some gears. Take it apart. Let's rule out the possibility that the seat belt really has reached it's limit, and that your passenger is just too large of a person. You might be able to find an obstruction, or see a broken part which is causing the problem. From there, it's just replacing parts.

The reason for that camera angle is so that you can see the wall of the loading dock, the bumper of the car behind you, or a trailer so that you can line up the hitch ball.

ScanGauge is a little outdated. It should still work though. I installed a ScanGauge in my pickup about 15 years ago. And even back then, with that version of ScanGauge, I was able to read Ford transmission temperature. I'm also using Forscan. You can run Forscan on your phone. But if you are doing other things with your phone, I get it. You don't want to have to keep playing with the phone screen to switch between apps. I use Forscan with an Amazon Fire tablet, and an OBD II plug in device. I bought the smallest, least expensive tablet, and it mounts on the dash with a cell phone holder.

You will be fine mixing brands. Just be sure that whatever fluid you choose, it is labeled as LV fluid. Don't use Dex/Merc, Mercon V, or anything else which is not specifically labeled as low viscosity. Also check the label to make sure that the fluid meets or exceeds Mercon LV specifications. My next ATF exchange will involve Mag1 ATF. There is an LV formula which I got at a reasonable price. Note that it is licensed by Ford.

You don't have to use Ford Mercon brand. There are other "low viscosity" ATF. I'm using Valvoline. It works fine, and a lot less expensive. I recall that other forum members have used several other brands also. Even Wal*Mart sells a SuperTech labeled for "LV" specification.

The oil change message flashed on the dash approximately 1 year from the last oil change. I checked my mileage. Barely 3,000 miles and change.

I don't remember anyone actually installing a drain plug on the pan. Most people want to drop the pan and change the filter, then flush the system. If you want to do it, I would drill the hole at the lowest part of the pan. I think that the bolt on drain plug kit is easier, and you should not have any problems. Of course, welding would be better, if you have the equipment to weld with. Good luck. Keep us posted. If you do it, post some photos.

I hope this gives you an idea of what you will need. I thought about it myself. Then just decided to bolt on an LED light bar instead.

You will need the lower plastic trim panel with the holes already cut out. Then there are additional pieces that the lamps mount on to. The lamps are sold separately. There are LED options. Now you will have problems. Adding the OEM wiring harness, connecting those lamps to the computer, adding the OEM dash switch, connecting the switch to the computer, then programming the computer to make it work. You can physically add the lower bumper trim piece and lamp assembly. No problem there. If it were me, I would run a new circuit, with a fused relay, and install a simple toggle switch in the van.

Crutchfield will have a lot of that information. A lot of those aftermarket radios are sold with the camera, GPS, and WiFi. Everything will be included. You will get instructions for installing.

No. You will need the dash with the cutout for the screen. The center curved hump of the dashboard pulls out. Then there are bolts which hold the front of the dash that fits the radio. Then there are probably more bolts which hold the radio down. Remove the radio. That is the easy part. You may not have any of the correct harnesses. Or maybe not. I'm not really sure if all of the radio harnesses are the same. With luck, the van's security system is not integrated with the radio head unit, and you can still start and drive the van without the radio. But you'll need to remove the OEM radio, to see what it looks like behind the dash. Then source whatever it is that you want, and see if you have the correct wire harnesses. The radio is connected to a computer in the car. There will be some programming involved. It works with the factory camera. But this will not be simple. It's not like an aftermarket camera installation. The camera is not a video cable and power wire, running to the stereo. The camera goes to one of the computers in your car. The computer sends the image to the screen.

I got a mattress from Ikea. For me, it was priced right. I just lay it down in the back, then pack my stuff into the van. When I get to camp, I can pull out my camp gear, and there's my bed. I bought the Minnesund Twin. It was good enough for me. You could get the Nyhamn and cut it to fit. The width of the mattress is wider than the van. That would make for a great mod. Custom fitted bed for under $100.

The bill for $98.05 is for the free oil change. That is what they charge for an oil change, if I did not get it for free.