Loafer

I have used the 12V blankets and they are very mild in comparison to standard electric blankets. I'm always impressed by owner innovations. Well done!

It's interesting to see Ford moving to more time sensitive innovation, shortening the time between ideas and production. It will be interesting to see how quality is managed under the new accelerated culture. It's difficult to imagine such extensive organizational cultural change although it's probably more evolutionary in a systemic sense. This is exciting stuff and will be fun to watch.

The City of St. Louis has been lobbying to join St. Louis County. St. Louis County does not want the City of St Louis because of the added expense. There is City/County cooperation regarding the St. Louis Zoo and the Art Museum with respect to revenue sharing. The question of the viability of the City of St. Louis is openly debated. A study done several years back indicated that St. Louis could not survive in the long run because of ageing infrastructure, primarily sewers and roads. Currently there is new building using the old infrastructure. That seems backwards in the long run. The schools have failed there and were on provisional status for years. Recently they have improved. Crime is rampant with shootings on the rise. The police chief told the people that he could not protect them with the force he has. The State legislature refused to generate more money for additional police officers. Missouri is an agricultural State and the legislature is agriculturally oriented. Many have questioned the use of tax funds to build a new ballpark for the Cardinals which they did. The same was true for the football stadium a few years back, it too was funded, and now the Rams are gone because of inadequate revenues. A new tax funded soccer stadium was recently defeated even though St. Louis is a legendary soccer town. The north side of the city has seen property values drop consistently. Crime there is out of control. There are a few pockets on the south side that are rising in value. When the Chevrolet plant moved out of the City to an exurb, the city suffered. The Ford and Chrysler plants also moved out of the area leaving a dent in revenues. When the fighter jets built here were moved to Houston Texas under President Bush, McDonnell Douglas became Boeing but the fighter business was gone. Granite City Steel laid off large numbers of people as well. Many city business owners, bars and restaurants and other entertainment venues are complaining about the lack of revenues. They blame the revenue drop on the ascent of serious crimes, robbery and shootings. Small businesses are closing their doors or leaving the city as well. So when I said that the Ford TC CNG's were being used here were a good thing, I meant in lieu of all the bad news. It's a small bright spot but any bright spot is good for a city in decline. With respect to independent cities, I have always heard via media that there were only two cities that were independent and St. Louis was one of them. Perhaps they meant two major cities. I grew up there but no longer live there, I live in an adjacent county but consider myself a St. Louisan. St. Louis has many fine institutions, buildings, parks and organizations working for it. It is a budding tech center and the broader area leads in biotech. Passenger planes are still built here. Fighter trainers may be built here if St. Louis wins the contract. The city does have a metro link rail system but the crime keeps the ridership limited. A recently elected new mayor may help. It's interesting to watch Beta Don. I was building in the City but moved my business out because of the corruption regarding pay offs to move plan approvals and construction along. I didn't mind playing hard ball but didn't want to play dirty ball. So St. Louis' survival is an open question and there are very serious areas of decline. Given the makeup of the State legislature it's unlikely the city can look to the state for help. It plays out every night on the evening news. The St. Louis Hockey Blues are now looking for a new stadium as well. Kansas City has one available and empty, so who knows. It's an adventure....LOL.

St. Louis has bad air pollution. So it's good to see that the CNG's are in use here. St. Louis is one of two independent cities in the nation (not part of a larger county). Although that served them well during their golden age, it is now a burden. Given that many industries have moved out of the city, and the old homes are too expensive to repair for many residents, too many homes are being abandoned or losing value lessening the cities tax revenues. Once the homes are abandoned they are quickly stripped of any value by drug users. The cities crime rate has increased so badly, 12 shootings last weekend, and some shot on highways for no apparent reason, that non-city dwellers are reluctant to go there anymore, and businesses are suffering. So although it's a small thing, it's good to see that the Ford TC CNG's are in use there. Every bit of good news is welcome in St. Louis as the city struggles for continued viability.

Chetc, this is the ideal time to be looking for a 2017 for price reductions. Since your local dealer does not have the TC that meets your needs, ask them to do an internal search to find the closest dealer that does have a TC that meets your requirements. The 2017 is likely going to be your best deal. Get a list of several dealers that have the TC that you want. Good luck.

Very nice set up. I'm curious about a couple of things. 1. What did you place between the mattress and wood to keep the mattress from absorbing moisture from the wood? 2. How did you fasten your window coverings? It's good that you used what looks like a six inch mattress...way better than the three inch foam so often used.

With companies offering greater innovation including software it seems to be both a blessing and a curse. The blessings result from a reasonable world view. The real world view perhaps suggests otherwise. With the world in turmoil, it is not inconceivable that, given that the nuclear clock has been moved forward to 30 seconds before midnight (nuclear war) is now very possible. Some say that America is planning a first strike, and given that the Russian nukes and defenses are four generations more advanced that America's, it's likely that America will likely suffer some serious damage, especially among the coastal cities. Also given that some of the nukes are designed to knock out electronic systems, would it not be wise to keep an old pre-software beater, should you survive the initial attack. It seems that one cannot depend upon either politicians or corporations to influence backing away from the brink of nuclear war because they are part of the military industrial complex and therefor reluctant to back away from profitable governmental contracts. So again, although likely pollyanna positivism, would it not be a good idea to keep an old beater in good mechanical condition? Just sayin'.

Oh....thanks!

Great story and the cars are spectacular! Although my talents being other than mechanical, I do enjoy other peoples creations. My first car was a 1951 Ford Coupe and I always dreamed of having one restored but the opportunity or dollars never materialized. That just whets my appetite more. It's a dream that I released to my more mechanically talented friends.

A forward looking collaboration especially for diesel.

A cool and worthwhile program !

Tegris is a fine idea, especially for a cargo van. Would the kit include both door panels or just one? Also, what is the appx weight of each panel. I would expect it to be somewhat light given it's use.

Clever use and good clean looks of Ikea.

Beta Don, I tried twice to respond to you but the site ate the posts. I do appreciate the clearly stated information. Thanks. While researching alloy wheels today I learned about their variations. Some are for performance, some for looks, and some for toughness. Most rims are composed of an aluminum-nickel alloy; less nickel makes for a light and agile rim but one that bends more easily under impact with potholes or other hazards. More nickel makes a heavier, more stable-seeming rim which does not bend easily, but is often brittle and cracks under impacts that will only bend softer wheels. The best rims tend to occupy a middle ground between these two extremes. Some of the wheel makers that repair shops see less often are Ronel, Konig, Enkei, American Racing, and BBS. I also read that for vehicles that carry cargo over the road the best wheel is the steel wheel that comes with the TC. It is more rugged. So, since that is what my TC will be doing, I’ll stick with the steel wheels and just keep replacing wheel covers as needed. They can be found on Ebay for typically $25.00 each. So, my issue appears to be solved. Thanks for all the help received.

I'm curious about alloy wheels. The Owners Manual speaks about the electronics being coordinated with 15 inch wheels. Mine is a 2012 Connect XLT. Yet, to my knowledge, Ford does not make alloy wheels for the Transit Connect. It seems that those offered are stated as remanufactured. Therefore my question is, how much of a load will the various alloy wheels support. Will they support the weight of the vehicle plus 1600 lbs of cargo safely? Who are the trusted remanufacturers and where can the load limit be found? What is a safe load limit for a Transit Connect alloy wheel. I'm raising this question because I lost a wheel cover over the weekend and have been told that the covers for the Transit Connect are known for getting lost. So I'm considering alloys as an alternative. Thanks!

Be careful for what you wish for! As we head into a centralized, big brother dystopian world, these cars will go where big brother wants you to go, non necessarily where you want to go. Your behavior has been questionable so it's time for your car to shuffle you down to your local police station for questioning. Got an attitude? We'll take care of that.

I have had good luck with a place called etrailer.com I just installed a Curt hitch and hitch cargo basket purchased from there. They ship fast and have a lot of selection.

Yup, I have a lot of admiration for folks who can do major mechanical work.

Looking all dressed up!

Thanks for the info.

Welcome to the Transit Connect family Chetc. You will enjoy your time here learning about the various iterations of the Transit Connect and all the aftermarket variations that folks enjoy working with. Stay tuned.

Great idea Boomerweps!

My Main Squeeze is my van's nickname

Heading to Mariposa Ca tomorrow from St Louis in a 2012 Transit Connect. There is a large festival there coming up soon where my son will be presenting and vending. I've hear it's beautiful country there.