madlock Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 I've two questions about the TC's rear doors. First, the left-hand side rear door, features what appears to be a removable cover plate near the top door edge which appears to be removable by the black plastic retention nut inside the door. Does anyone know what this is for? Is it meant to be an access panel, or is it a dummy cover for another feature (perhaps available on the European versions) like a rear area light or camera? (I'd love to turn it into the mounting point for a backup camera) Second, as the "Chicken Tax" thread has revealed, each TC arrives stateside in Wagon form, and the seats are pulled, floor is rubber matted, and the side windows removed and plugged on any cargo versions that require it. I presumed they simply did the same thing to the rear windows (if necessary), as any TC Wagon also has windowed rear doors. However, upon looking again at a 110A Cargo Van (no windows), it appears the rear doors are indeed solid rather than being covered by "plug" inserts as the sides are. The article makes absolutely no mention of this. Is there a different part entirely for windowed and non-windowed rear doors, and are they installed in-port like the side window plugs? While I'm still wrestling with whether or not I should cover my side windows in vinyl (rather than replacing the glass with the solid metal plug inserts), but it appears that I have no such option for the rear. Any insight to either question would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isellford Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 I will see what I can find out about the rear doors. I would assume that they are produced that way in Turkey as the Chickenb Tax only requires the rear seating so the rear glass would not be an issue. As for the plug, in Europe that is where the rear brake light is but it had to be repositioned in the center to meet our DOT regulations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madlock Posted November 21, 2009 Author Share Posted November 21, 2009 I will see what I can find out about the rear doors. I would assume that they are produced that way in Turkey as the Chickenb Tax only requires the rear seating so the rear glass would not be an issue. As for the plug, in Europe that is where the rear brake light is but it had to be repositioned in the center to meet our DOT regulations. Fantastic. Thanks! That means the existing plug is going to get drilled for a camera mount, and a replacement ordered to restore it to "stock" afterward. Terrific! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooney2oons Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 I've two questions about the TC's rear doors. First, the left-hand side rear door, features what appears to be a removable cover plate near the top door edge which appears to be removable by the black plastic retention nut inside the door. Does anyone know what this is for? Is it meant to be an access panel, or is it a dummy cover for another feature (perhaps available on the European versions) like a rear area light or camera? (I'd love to turn it into the mounting point for a backup camera) It is intended for a back up camera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madlock Posted November 23, 2009 Author Share Posted November 23, 2009 It is intended for a back up camera. Thanks. Which one (make/model/part number) please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Cat Posted June 24, 2010 Share Posted June 24, 2010 It is for the center mounted brake light. You can see them clearly on the older TC's offered for sale on eBay United Kingdom. Now the newer brit TC's have the same plastic rectangle which we have filling that hole on the top left rear door. I would guess that some nations still require that third brake light instead of our roof mounted versions, so Ford just filled the hole on some and stuck in a brake light on others. The English also have a flat top TC. It is a lot cooler looking than the pop top US version. On the down side, you would have to live in England to get one! :-( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connect owner UK Posted November 8, 2010 Share Posted November 8, 2010 The English also have a flat top TC. It is a lot cooler looking than the pop top US version. On the down side, you would have to live in England to get one! :-( The flat top TC is 7 inches lower, and also 10 inches shorter, most of that is in the middle, making the side loading door really tiny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Cat Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 The flat top TC is 7 inches lower, and also 10 inches shorter, most of that is in the middle, making the side loading door really tiny. Yes, that is a lot of room to do away with just for a flat top! Thanks for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George_97220 Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 It is for the center mounted brake light..... Now the newer brit TC's have the same plastic rectangle which we have filling that hole on the top left rear door. There sure are a lot of stories floating around about that! Every salesguy at my dealer had a different story to tell! Go to the foreign Ford websites. (www.ford.co.uk, www.ford.de, www.ford.fr, etc.). You may not be able to speak the language, but you can surf the pages for pictures. I was told it was the back-up camera, too. I'm guessing the side-view-mirrors-only won't cut it in some countries if you have the solid rear doors. But pictures on the UK site (I think it was) clearly show a light there! So......... ? If it was a camera, I would love to have one, with a clear, elevated, undistorted view to the rear (unlike the US back-up camera). I can't be the only one having difficulty using the rear view mirror with the ridiculously wide center post in the TC with rear windows. (My old Chevy van is only about 4" wide!) It's a real hazard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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