Hello from San Diego

[John Angelyn Canete]

I'm new to the forum and stoked about my new  2017 Transit Connect XL.  I am using it to haul my surfboards and gear.  I will also use it for camping.  I plan to insulate the walls and ceiling soon.  My first "mod" was removing the plastic wheel covers...poor man's black wheels!  Haha!

[windguy]

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new van. Very nice!

Thanks for sharing pics.

I like the plastic wheel covers - kind of dresses up the van a bit but then again my color is silver so it matches nicely.

No wheel covers means one less thing to lose when you hit a pot hole.

I use my van primarily as a beach cruiser and it's very cool. See pic below. The door holder has been upgraded. Need to post about that too.

I have cloth seats so I added seat covers made of some semi water resistant material. I often will get into the van to move it when I still have my wetsuit on not to mention all the food that ends up on my seat.

You might be interested in adding some roof racks if you're carrying long boards or want to store the boards up top if you're camping in the back. I did so a few months ago, pic below, and plan to do a write-up about that, but there are a few threads already on the forum regarding racks. Lots of options.

Looking forward to seeing how you customize your ride. Enjoy!

 

 

Edited August 22, 2017 by windguy

[John Angelyn Canete]

That's a sweet rig Windguy!  

I am definitely going to add a roof rack soon.  Which racks do you have mounted?   I also like the wooden rack rail you have mounted on top of the back doors.  I'm assuming you use that to dry your wet-suit or towel?

[windguy]

10 hours ago, John Angelyn Canete said:

That's a sweet rig Windguy!  

I am definitely going to add a roof rack soon.  Which racks do you have mounted?   I also like the wooden rack rail you have mounted on top of the back doors.  I'm assuming you use that to dry your wet-suit or towel?

thanks. I love my van.

For the racks, I used all Yakima parts - tracks, risers, crossbars. I'll do a write-up with part numbers, pics and what I learned.

The wooden stick across the barn doors in that first pic was my first prototype, that failed miserable. So did version 2. But version 3 has been working very well and I never modified the prototype version since it's working. My main reason for needing this is to keep the doors open when it's windy, which is why I'm at the beach most of the time to go windsurfing. Having the doors close on both my gear and me is a bummer so I really needed to have this. The version uses the existing locks to stay in place with enough flexibility to move with the doors back and forth a bit, but not too much. You release the holder using the door handles. Very easy to use. You could use this to hang wetsuits from but I might use a thicker piece of wood for that. Having this is a lifesaver for me.

 

[windguy]

Another accessory you might find beneficial is adding a keypad. Having a Ford vehicle gives you the advantage to their keypad option. See pic below. I put mine on the back door because it's most convenient when you get back to the van with your board under your arm. 

Not having to stash the key fob, which is always a sketchy thing to do, is really helpful. It's been documented that the crackhead thieves will watch you stash your key and then break in later stealing wallet and electronics.

There is another thread regarding what to get and how to program it. Very easy to do. You'll love having it and being keyless at the beach.

http://fordtransitconnectforum.com/topic/2991-keyless-entry-keypad/?tab=comments#comment-8793

 

[Boomerweps]

I've had the rear doors blow into me on windy days. No fun, just pain!

i thought you might be using that wood bar for adding a canopy over the rear doors at first.

[Fifty150]

High 5 from NorCal.

 

 

[John Angelyn Canete]

 

Windguy, Thanks for posting the info. and pics on the racks.  I'm going to do something similar.    I am also going to do the keypad. Currently, I'm hiding my keys under the van when I get in the water.  The keypad is a more secure solution. 

[Fifty150]

This might sound stupid, but have you tried making friends with the crew at a local coffee shop?  There's a cafe right across from the water.  Whenever we go, we leave our keys with the girl behind the counter.  The owner is cool with that.  We get our beer & sandwiches from them.  We support them, they support us.

[kookmyers]

Message sent Re keyless entry pad.

[John Angelyn Canete]

Thanks for the tip. I might try that. 

On 9/4/2017 at 3:36 PM, Fifty150 said:

This might sound stupid, but have you tried making friends with the crew at a local coffee shop?  There's a cafe right across from the water.  Whenever we go, we leave our keys with the girl behind the counter.  The owner is cool with that.  We get our beer & sandwiches from them.  We support them, they support us.

 

[mrtn]

Wait, did you change your user name or is my memory acting up?

[windguy]

On 9/3/2017 at 11:47 AM, John Angelyn Canete said:

 

Windguy, Thanks for posting the info. and pics on the racks.  I'm going to do something similar.    I am also going to do the keypad. Currently, I'm hiding my keys under the van when I get in the water.  The keypad is a more secure solution. 

Hiding the keys under the van isn't such a good idea. With my previous surf mobile, Volvo wagon, I used a combination key lock box from Home Depot attached to the roof rail. That worked out okay but the TC key fob wasn't going to fit in that thing.  I've heard too many stories of thieves watching cars at the beach  to see where you stash your keys or just searching around the car in the usual spots: on top of the tires, inside the bumpers, inside the gas filler, wiper/dash area. Too risky. The keypad is a sure thing for me.

[windguy]

On 9/4/2017 at 3:36 PM, Fifty150 said:

This might sound stupid, but have you tried making friends with the crew at a local coffee shop?  There's a cafe right across from the water.  Whenever we go, we leave our keys with the girl behind the counter.  The owner is cool with that.  We get our beer & sandwiches from them.  We support them, they support us.

That's an interesting idea. Thanks for sharing. I guess if you have a specific spot with a local setup like that then it might work out okay.

For me, I like to be self sufficient and not hassle with someone else to take responsibility for my keys. Especially if I'm going back and forth to the van multiple times during my beach visit. Plus, I surf and windsurf in different locations and there aren't businesses nearby to let me do that. Having the keypad is a low cost no-brainer for me. I also keep a spare key fob stashed inside the van so if my fob goes missing, I can easily get into the van and drive away.