Low mileage 2014 TC Titanium

[DoubleOh7]

Just traded in my 2014 Kia Soul (with all the bells and whistles and 70K miles) for a 2014 Transit Connect Titanium (with all the bells and whistles and 27K miles).  Still getting to know the van and came here to do that a little faster.  I find user forums to be a wealth of knowledge, so at this point I'm looking to see what mods are being done and how well they help.  I'm gonna do a K&N filter (always do that) and who knows what else.  This van has so many features I hadn't seen on any I ever saw (and I looked at a lot of them), so there is not much I need to do to it.  But I never leave well enough alone.

 

Cheers- Roger 

[Don Ridley]

Nice! And welcome. 

[Fifty150]

I like K&N products also.  But I wonder if you will gain anything at all from a drop in filter with the Transit Connect.  

 

You won't see much in the way of performance mods for the Transit Connect.  But I'm guessing that you couldn't do much, if anything at all, to bring more power & torque into a Kia Soul either.  I haven't seen any performance brake kits either.  There is a little buzz about fabricating lift kits.....but nothing really effective yet.  But don't let that stop you from being the first to make the Transit Connect go faster, hug corners, clear tree stumps, and stop on a dime.  You could be the first to make a Transit Connect "GymKhana".  

 

If you're into wheels & tires, several people have experimented with different combinations.  Since you just got the van, and I don't see snow in those photos, you're probably going to be okay with stock tires.  

 

Most interesting mods so far for me, has been seeing how camper build-outs are configured, and where people are mounting cameras to compensate for the blind spots.  One guy built a roof rack system with an awning.  A lot of youtube videos on Transit Connect campers.  I like how 1 member added a higher fiberglass roof.  Several members posted photos of how they load their motorcycles, chock the tire, and tie it down.  

 

If you do your own maintenance, there are some good threads.  Pay attention to how people are performing their own transmission service.  

 

 

[DoubleOh7]

Don't see myself GymKhana'ing anytime soon, but the mods I look for are the ones others have found to make it gooder in some way. 

 

As for the K&N I do those as a lifetime filter.  Clean and reuse and keep the dealer out of there when I get the oil changed.  I also replace my own cabin filters to avoid them walking out with a cruddy one telling me for $40 they'll replace it for me  I do all my own service except oil changes while the thing is under some warranty - then go from there as I feel. 

 

I'm currently lacking a garage (except for the 2 sheds and a ghetto garage sitting in the background next to my barn-find '66 F100).  It, and the ghetto garage; containing my '63 Falcon Ranchero 289/T5 3.45 TracLoc which I hand-built a few years ago, are out in the weather as I painstakingly await my garage to be built. 14 months and counting to get that done. Permit mess.

 

I'm planning to use the van as half work and half passenger.  The Kia was just to small - though I loved my Soul a lot.  But I sold my Soul to buy another Ford (again).  ?  I'm gonna be starting a Handyman service after being asked to clear my desk after 37 years, along with many others, when the company I was with circled the drain and folded last year.  I was plant engineer, so, at my age, decided to just wing it on my own - and wanted a better work vehicle.  I hope the TC serves me well for what I'm hoping for it.  Certainly has far more potential.

 

I'm daily finding the little features it has - like auto wipers, lights that come on in curves and others. Finally found all the manuals it was missing on Ford's site. One thing I sure miss keeping my key fob in my pocket.  Keyless entry and push-button door and start was nice to have; if even for a while.  That's the one "step back" part of this I feel. Keep asking myself, "What's up with this "key" thing."  ?️

[Fifty150]

Oil changes are not hard once you get the splash shield off.  Drain plug and filter are easy to get to.  I found that Ford MotorCraft FL-400S filters are the same thread pitch, same diameter, same gasket diameter, just a little taller, and fit fine for a little added capacity & filtration.  

 

Several good threads regarding transmission fluid exchange on the forum.  

 

While under warranty, there is nothing that will do beyond your own oil change and tire rotation.  Anything goes wrong, let the dealer make the correction.

[herb]

6 hours ago, Fifty150 said:

Oil changes are not hard once you get the splash shield off.  Drain plug and filter are easy to get to.  I found that Ford MotorCraft FL-400S filters are the same thread pitch, same diameter, same gasket diameter, just a little taller, and fit fine for a little added capacity & filtration.  

 

Several good threads regarding transmission fluid exchange on the forum.  

 

While under warranty, there is nothing that will do beyond your own oil change and tire rotation.  Anything goes wrong, let the dealer make the correction.

 

How do you get underneath the van ,  there's no room .   Maybe you have those ramps , i have an old metal set of ramps but the bottom front plastic area would get scraped really bad if i attempted to use it.

[herb]

8 hours ago, DoubleOh7 said:

Don't see myself GymKhana'ing anytime soon, but the mods I look for are the ones others have found to make it gooder in some way. 

 

As for the K&N I do those as a lifetime filter.  Clean and reuse and keep the dealer out of there when I get the oil changed.  I also replace my own cabin filters to avoid them walking out with a cruddy one telling me for $40 they'll replace it for me  I do all my own service except oil changes while the thing is under some warranty - then go from there as I feel. 

 

I'm currently lacking a garage (except for the 2 sheds and a ghetto garage sitting in the background next to my barn-find '66 F100).  It, and the ghetto garage; containing my '63 Falcon Ranchero 289/T5 3.45 TracLoc which I hand-built a few years ago, are out in the weather as I painstakingly await my garage to be built. 14 months and counting to get that done. Permit mess.

 

I'm planning to use the van as half work and half passenger.  The Kia was just to small - though I loved my Soul a lot.  But I sold my Soul to buy another Ford (again).  ?  I'm gonna be starting a Handyman service after being asked to clear my desk after 37 years, along with many others, when the company I was with circled the drain and folded last year.  I was plant engineer, so, at my age, decided to just wing it on my own - and wanted a better work vehicle.  I hope the TC serves me well for what I'm hoping for it.  Certainly has far more potential.

 

I'm daily finding the little features it has - like auto wipers, lights that come on in curves and others. Finally found all the manuals it was missing on Ford's site. One thing I sure miss keeping my key fob in my pocket.  Keyless entry and push-button door and start was nice to have; if even for a while.  That's the one "step back" part of this I feel. Keep asking myself, "What's up with this "key" thing."  ?️

 

I looked for a K&N air filter for my 2018 LWB but surprisingly K & N does not offer one for it .  K&N has them for the earlier TC's but not my 2018 .

Edited December 20, 2018 by herb

[DoubleOh7]

13 hours ago, herb said:

 

I looked for a K&N air filter for my 2018 LWB but surprisingly K & N does not offer one for it .  K&N has them for the earlier TC's but not my 2018 .

 

I've read about the issues some have had putting in the K&N on this year TC, but I'm not going to dig into this until we have at least a couple hours, or more, of dry weather here.  I don't need it so bad to get soaked doing it.

 

As for oil changes - I find these to be the least satisfying to do myself.  I do my own oil changes on my collector cars, for obvious reasons, but to move those out of the garage (when I had one to move them out of) to do contortionist moves on these new cars to reach where they put filters, and such, has not been happening of late.  But I doubt I'd have an issue doing it if I wanted to.  I'm not yet familiar with what's under the hood, or under the van, since the same soaking issue would apply.  Spring will be here soon enough and I hope to be fully equipped with what I learn here, and elsewhere, with the things I'll do to it.  Hopefully by then I'll have some forward movement on my garage... fingers crossed.

 

Thanks Fifty150 for your tips.

[Fifty150]

16 hours ago, herb said:

 

How do you get underneath the van ,  there's no room .   

 

 

I place a UniJack under each lift point.  

 

[Fifty150]

I think the filter is the same for all the 2nd generation Transit Connect.  Just get the filter for 14+, and it should fit.  Buy it from Amazon so that you can return it if it is not the same.

Edited December 20, 2018 by Fifty150

[DoubleOh7]

5 minutes ago, Fifty150 said:

I place a UniJack under each lift point.  

 

 

I know it wasn't my question, and I'm not sure what the lift points look like yet, but this jack (as most bottle jacks) has a pretty high minimum height.  This one said a minimum of 8.5".  My low/high SUV jack failed last year, so I sold it off at a garage sale I had when I moved (which is why I'm building a new garage) - but it had a minimum of 3" and a maximum of 22" and still struggled going under some parts of a few cars I've done work on.

 

I assume this van has a jack and can be jacked up with it to remove tires - so my best guess is to use it to lift it high enough to get another jack, and jack stands under it.  My plan for the new garage is to get a lift, so at that point I may not even replace the floor jack.  I have an old vintage "O'Brian" jack I plan to restore and may fast-track that.  It's a cool old jack.

[herb]

17 minutes ago, Fifty150 said:

 

 

I place a UniJack under each lift point.  

 

 

 

Still a little confused on this , so you need to purchase 4 Unijacks to do your oil change ?

[DoubleOh7]

9 minutes ago, Fifty150 said:

I think the filter is the same for all the 2nd generation Transit Connect.  Just get the filter for 14+, and it should fit.  Buy it from Amazon so that you can return it if it is not the same.

 

Please be aware that things that fit may not be correct to use - especially when it comes to oil filters. Some have baffles and restrictions inside to do things like restrict oil drain if they are mounted face-down or face-up, etc.  Not saying these, as mentioned, are not cross-compatible, but having a history as a parts guy (back when you had to use books to look things up) and in a rural area where farmers had older equipment you could not find in a book - I had to do a lot of creative parts finding.  Anyway, just saying - external dimensions are not all you need to consider when changing a part out to another part.

[Fifty150]

But with a K&N drop in air filter, it will be fine as long as it fits.

[Fifty150]

1 hour ago, herb said:

 

 

Still a little confused on this , so you need to purchase 4 Unijacks to do your oil change ?

 

I use a small floor jack to lift.  Then once the van is on 4 UniJacks, I lift it up to where I am comfortable crawling under.  

 

You can use ramps, jack stands, or whatever you want. Personal preference is not to use the OEM emergency scissor jack, ever, on any vehicle.  There is even an inflatable balloon jack that is perfect for lifting a low profile car to a comfortable height for service.  

 

Just don't buy a used jack at 007's garage sale.  He only sold it because it doesn't work.

 

And when he gets a lift, all the Left Coast members are going over to his place.

[Fifty150]

Here is the page from the owners manual with the indicated jack points.  

This is what the bottom looks like with the splash shield removed.  Oil filter is really easy to access; behind the fan and in front of the oil pan.

 

[herb]

11 minutes ago, Fifty150 said:

Here is the page from the owners manual with the indicated jack points.  

This is what the bottom looks like with the splash shield removed.  Oil filter is really easy to access; behind the fan and in front of the oil pan.

 

 

 

Wow,  thats fantastic info thanks .

[Fifty150]

6 hours ago, DoubleOh7 said:

 

 

Not saying these, as mentioned, are not cross-compatible, 

 

 

I took the chance.  After seeing what the filters look like when cut open, I decided to use the larger FL-400S.  Why?  I'm cheap.  I bought a case of filters from Amazon.com, and I didn't want to waste them.  

 

I've also got some FL-1A filters in my garage also.  Same thread pitch.  I would use those also, if I can get them to fit.  Once it fits, it's working.  Oil will flow in & out, and filtration will happen.  I know that there are plenty of people who will point out the obvious......different filters are manufactured to different specs, and each engine is engineered with a specific filter spec.  

 

My engine is fine.  It did not suffer catastrophic failure from a taller filter with more capacity and filtration media.  Looks like I got away with it.

 

 

[herb]

14 minutes ago, Fifty150 said:

 

 

I took the chance.  After seeing what the filters look like when cut open, I decided to use the larger FL-400S.  Why?  I'm cheap.  I bought a case of filters from Amazon.com, and I didn't want to waste them.  

 

I've also got some FL-1A filters in my garage also.  Same thread pitch.  I would use those also, if I can get them to fit.  Once it fits, it's working.  Oil will flow in & out, and filtration will happen.  I know that there are plenty of people who will point out the obvious......different filters are manufactured to different specs, and each engine is engineered with a specific filter spec.  

 

My engine is fine.  It did not suffer catastrophic failure from a taller filter with more capacity and filtration media.  Looks like I got away with it.

 

 

 

Always a good thing to just come out and say it , nothing wrong with being a tightwad , it's an admirable trait to have in a person , not something you should immediately make clear when searching out a potential companion of the opposite sex though .

Edited December 21, 2018 by herb

[G B L]

If you go to the wix website you can find all the relevant filter cross reference information , size, thread size , gasket dimensions  . anti drain-back info, and bypass valve pressure .

This is the way I get under my TC

[herb]

1 minute ago, G B L said:

If you go to the wix website you can find all the relevant filter cross reference information , size, thread size , gasket dimensions  . anti drain-back info, and bypass valve pressure .

This is the way I get under my TC

Some people just have all the luck , that would be awesome for working on the TC lol.

[Fifty150]

7 minutes ago, herb said:

 

 not something you should immediately make clear when searching out a potential companion of the opposite sex though .

 

 

Says you.  I wish I can find a girl who is even cheaper than I am.  Do you know how much I could have saved over the years?  All my ex's spent money like crazy.  They just didn't care.  Don't women know what coupons are anymore?

[Fifty150]

9 minutes ago, herb said:

Some people just have all the luck , that would be awesome for working on the TC lol.

 

 

Lifts are not all that expensive.  A couple of big pieces of metal.  Some wiring.  Some hydraulics.  

 

The real problem is where to install it.  A bit of a challenge when you are in an apartment, and you park on the street.

 

In case you were wondering, this is the splash shield you need to remove for access to the engine and transmission.

[herb]

1 hour ago, Fifty150 said:

 

 

Says you.  I wish I can find a girl who is even cheaper than I am.  Do you know how much I could have saved over the years?  All my ex's spent money like crazy.  They just didn't care.  Don't women know what coupons are anymore?

Oh i see , you have been a victim like myself of the female species , i avoid all females these days , i view them from distance but never get too close .   No more screaming at the top of their lungs in my ear due to PMS and these days i take the garbage out whenever i dam_ well feel like taking it out . 

Edited December 21, 2018 by herb
misspelling

[Fifty150]

1 minute ago, herb said:

 i avoid all females these days 

 

 

That's a bit extreme.  

 

I just learned to say "NO".  "No means no".  

 

Real simple.  No excuses.  I don't lie about not being able to afford it.  I don't lie about not having the money for it.  I can afford it.  I have the money for it.  I just choose not to spend my money on that.  So, "no".  

 

You'll find that every once in awhile, a woman may actually respect you because you said, "no".  Not often.  Most of them will simply leave, and move on to someone else who will spend money.  Problem solved.  She's gone.  I still have my money.  

 

For the most part, they will just call you names, like "cheap-skate".  Then you can move on to the next one, who may actually realize that your miserly ways is what is paying for that nice, new creepy van that you're driving her around in.......YES!  Vans are creepy.  Metal cages with no windows.  A girl does not want to go out on a date with you, and end up with her photo on the side of a milk carton.