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Cheeze ... some people will put a push bar on most anything, right? <G> Then again, here's my '75 "Monchero", something I slapped together to combat the Japanese Invasion. Noticed a lot of Datsun and Toyota drivers keeping a real close on on it when I pulled up behind them at a light. PS ... like what you did with the wall behind the seats ... nice clean look to it.

Was hoping to find something like that for the TC when I went to "pop" the top, but ended up going with a fixed roof that gives me a dual purpose, weekend camper/wheelchair accessible ride. Even has some decent lines that fit the vehicle. Hard part was getting someone to do the conversion, but no regrets as it's working well for me ... and best of all ... no leaks! PS ... the fiberglass roof is from a company called Fiberine in California. This one adds eight inches, but they do make one a full foot. I'm over six foot and have to crouch a bit, but it's still a BIG improvement over the stock height. They also do an optional plywood inner liner that adds a LOT of strength if you plan on adding an AC or solar or whatever. And ya, I know I could have gone with a standard raised roof Transit, but really didn't want to end up driving a truck. ;-}

PlastiDip? They do entire cars with the stuff - a few emblems shouldn't be any problem, and you can always peel it off later on ... To each their own though. I've been adding stickers here ... ;-}

I'd be tempted if they were to raise the roof on a Flex, went with side slider doors, and got rid of the windows while they're at it ... kind of a retro delivery van look. Was actually looking at those before buying my TC, but couldn't find an aftermarket roof for it. It's a really flat stock roof, and most any universal van top would do the job, but I like how the TC turned out after the conversion, so no regrets. Problem there is the bean counters called it a car and killed it with the rest of the "cars" in the Ford lineup. I'm sure they haven't tossed the tooling though ... nudge nudge ...

Oh, great ... yet another SUV ...

Bluetooth transmitter and wireless speakers? Bypasses the factory radio head entirely, but no great loss there. I'm sure you could dig up a good one that also accepts USB input from a thumb drive for spinning your own jams, but do your research there ... some are only set up as charger ports. Seems to me some even have voice control? Not sure why Ford never made the AUX port standard ... I mean, all the radios have the connections and button, fer peat's sakes ...

Shouldn't be much of a surprise that there's some nice aftermarket goodies available in Russia ... The Transit is the best selling import there AND they've even got a factory building them for the last five years? If it helps any, I've bought a few odds and ends from there for my Ural sidecar rig, and never been disappointed. Shipping is surprisingly fast, and if you use PP, they do all the currency exchange stuff, so it's usually just click 'n done. PS - not sure if they're exporting any vehicles, but who knows, yours might have been built there!

Oh, no! You're gonna die if you remove the cage divider! Is what I was seeing here several times when folk saw how I gutted mine. ;-} Short version - I ain't dead yet ... Good looking stuff though. Maybe help if you post up what years they fit?

No dedicated outlet I'm aware of. Don't suppose you have an OEM backup camera? Swipe some 12v from the mirror maybe? If not, it's not all that difficult to loosen up the windshield moulding and run a new wire up the post and across to wherever you want to mount accessories. I did that for a couple bookshelf speakers here. Goes without say, you'd want to make sure whatever you put up there is tied down good. I just drilled a couple holes in the shelf and screwed the speakers in from underneath - great jams!

About what I figured though ... stoopid computers! Be interesting to find out when that bulletin was published. If it's been a while, shame on the dealer who's supposed to keep up with that stuff. If it's something they finally just came up with due to customer complaints, well ... way to go, team! Score one for the squeaky wheels of the world!

I suppose next step would be to get the detector system replaced. Seems to me, that's a separate module mounted up behind the rear bumper cover? I know it was an option on the earlier models that could be added after delivery if you decided you couldn't live without it, and it 's a fairly simple procedure until the bolts seize with age. Then again, could be some way to adjust the sensitivity of the detector array once they get in there. Then again, could be your mechanics haven't bothered to read the book and doesn't know to apply some super secret code in the TC's brain ... Luck wit it. Worse comes to worse, just disconnect the thing - my grand daddy got er done with mirrors and hand signals, eh. ;-}

How about an old VW gas heater like they had in the vans? <FLASHBACK> Had an old bug with rotted manifold heaters. Those boxes weren't all that good even when perfect, and I got more heat out of farts. Dug around and found an old van gas heater figuring to mount it up in the trunk and run ductwork to the glovebox. Plan was to just run the exhaust out the side wall of the trunk, and I hooked up a contact switch so all you had to do was open the glove box door to fire it up. I also added a standard floor register behind the door so I could aim the heat as needed. That worked, but ... Here I am a bit later, sitting at a light (toasty and warm I might add) and the heater fires up, belching a column of black smoke at a little old lady waiting at the corner for a bus. Dang near gave her a heart attack it did. Plan B ... put an elbow on the pipe and ran an extension straight up. A short extension didn't work that well as the soot on the windshield didn't help visibility much, so ended up with a couple feet of pipe to clear the top of the roof. Either way, that vertical pipe collected rain and drowned the heater. Plan C ... put a flapper on the top of the pipe ... that actually worked until I killed the bug. You think UDF is a thing? I invented VW-WTF with that setup. ** Fun way to pass the time - tell a passenger to open the glove box door, and watch them jump when that heater started belching BTUs in their face ... priceless! </FLASHBACK> ... so anyway ... maybe not such a good idea after all. Forget I mentioned it ... ;-}

Mine aren't bad yet, but I'm thinking of getting a set of Yokohama Avid all season tires. Always had good traction and ride with those.

Brings to mind the question - anyone retrofit a cargo van with the AC duct work from a passenger type? Doesn't seem like it'd be all that difficult. That said, I'm surprised the stock AC does as well as it does, with the help of a MaxxFan mounted towards the back of the roof. My kind of camping, eh. I set up in a "primitive" section and have an inverter for some low watt AC stuff I can run thru an inverter. Van is small enough none of the tent types have ever complained ... at least till I open up my tiny little 4x8 trailer anyway ... it's WAY bigger on the inside! <G> PS - lost a leg and couldn't drive the Ranger stick shift anymore, which is why I went with the TC in the first place. I've already go a convertible bed and kitchen set up in the TC (I posted up a pic of that "in progress" earlier in the thread), but have been mulling over converting the back bedroom of the tent trailer into a foyer and attaching the thing to the side door. Stay tuned!

Glare ice here the other day, and my series one spun a bit going up a slope, but kept on going. OEM tires too. Traction control? Didn't even know these had that feature. I'm used to my older vehicles clicking and whatever whenever that engages. Can't say as I've noticed any of that on the TC. I'd actually prefer to have that sort of response to give me extra warning that I should maybe consider being a bit more careful. Long as we're on the subject of snow, anyone carry extra weight for traction? Seems a couple sand bags behind the front seats would give the front tires a bit more bite, and extra weight on the rear axle could help keep the back end of the van where it belongs ... behind you.

Probably nothing a bit of spit and polish couldn't clean up.

Don't quote me, but I'm pretty sure that's just a plastic cover for the actual floorboard. That little footrest was actually a good selling point for me, as I'm an amputee and that makes getting in a whole lot easier - just plant my good foot, grab the pillar handle, and boost myself in. Anyway, that foot rest feels rock solid - way too solid for just a plastic wedge. Luck with it, but I think your Plan B would involve either a torch, a really big hammer, or both.

In either case, maybe consider going with a "universal fit" slider like mine. Just cut a hole and slap em in. Surprisingly good visibility out the back as well ... at least way better than trying to see thru steel. <G>

Just thinking out loud here, but best bet in either case might be to put any mounting system inside so the door opening stays clear. Not a problem here, as I've already ripped up the interior some, so just another part of the project. Use hanger rails fer instance - those are readily available in whatever length we'd need and should blend right in. Or just a simple piece of tubing would do the job with holes for the hooks would be cheap and easy. Leave enough slack in the canvas so any rain pools away from the door and drips down the side. And speaking of Amazon ... flex track that can be cut to any size?

So, how's THIS for a truck tent? <G> Slow day here, so had some fun with Photoshop. Pretty much to scale too ... As mentioned earlier, the CombiCamp is here and itching to get converted to a truck tent on the TC. LOTS of extra room to play, especially with the screen porch mounted up on the other side towards the front of the van. Also a full size bed already in the trailer, which appeals to my old and fragile bones. T The section that would be converted to a bridge between the two is currently set up as a kitchen for when it's raining when on the road. Got that covered inside the van now, so no great loss. You can see that area is fully floored too - I've got a piece of painted plywood and a carpet that slides right in and stores on the bed when traveling (along with all the furniture). Shouldn't be all that difficult to modify, and I'll bet a magnetic seal to the TC would be just the ticket. I figure the extension could fold back enough to clear for quick trips out for a meal or whatever without tearing down the trailer. More I think on it, the more I like the idea.

Getting any of that stuff over the big water can be a real b!tch sometimes. The CombiCamp I posted up earlier is a good example. Company apparently thought this would be a lucrative market, but I hear tell the hoops they had to jump thru to get thru customs and licensing and what not just wasn't worth the time and effort. Too bad, as they're a quality product quite popular in GB and the continent. Then again, a lot of that probably had to do with the fact that we're now talking towable "vehicles", so I'm sure that complicates things a whole bunch more. Kinda like the BS Ford had to go thru to get the series one into the states I suppose, but they've got billions of dollars and all the time in the world to git er done ... ;-}

I'm thinking a couple spring loaded adjustable shower rods to sit between the doors and hook a bungie net to those ... no mods required on the van at all.

My series one Aurora has all sorts of adjustments for height, cush, wings, headrests, lumbar, etc, but fortunately all mechanical so I don't have to worry about them going flat ... just maybe exploding, catching on fire, or dragging me into the eternal abyss if I manage to p!ss them off ... ;-} If all else fails, maybe ditch the stock air assist and go with an Airhawk pad. Got one for the bike and love it. No problems with it ever going flat ... Not cheap, but hey, you're worth it, right? ;-} https://airhawk.net/product-category/airhawk-Everyday-cushions/ PS ... so here you are sitting at a light, and pumping away down south because your seat went flat. Ever get any of THOSE looks as people look on in disgust at what they think is happening? ;-}

I read "driver's side airbag" and thought ... WTF ... I didn't think you had to blow those up ... just hit something? <G> That said, I think I've heard everything now. Never imagined a factory inflatable seat that used an air pump. Sounds like something you'd find in a clown car - does the pump make farting noises too?

I've got an old CombiCamp collecting dust over here. It WANTS to get hooked up to the back of the TC ... Haven't done any measuring, but a bit of head scratching here, and I'll bet I could convert the extension bedroom (to the right in the pic) to attach to one of the side doors, and still be easy enough to detach if I just want to leave it in a park while I wander out ... PS ... this is what it looks like folded up for travel. It's a LOT bigger on the inside! PS ... not shown is the add-on screen porch. That pretty much doubles what's already a good amount of covered area.