Greetings from beautiful British Columbia, Canada

[nickjtc]

Hello to all, Nick here. I had been looking for a sensibly priced first generation Connect (2010-2012; I like the body style) for several months. But, be still my beating heart, the prices that the sellers are asking have left me speechless. The cheapest I could find was $6900, and the prices went up from there to as high as $15,000+, even for a 2010. Even for really high mileage ones. I was resigned to having to go out of province to find one, because it was the vehicle I wanted.

 

Anyway, to make a long story longer, as luck would have it a commercial computer and logistics company about a kilometre from my home put their 2010 up for sale last week and I caught the ad by fluke the other day. The good news was they only wanted $5,000 for it. The less good news was that it was a bit tatty around the edges and has the dash "ABS/brake warning light always on" syndrome. Plus the low tyre pressure warning light. 175,000kms. Anyhoo I picked it up yesterday and it drives and brakes just fine. The company had kept a pile of service documents 1/2" thick going back to day 1.

 

I bought it as a mini-camper and to be able to move my Honda Grom around. A bonus is that it has a built in full width loading ramp at the back.

 

It had sat under a tree for a couple of months so I took it to be detailed today. They even de-rusted the wheels and re-painted them. So far I am happy, but will now have to research through the forums to get a handle on the warning light situation. Any pointers will be greatly received. Will post pics tomorrow.

 

Thank you for wading through this. ;-)

[Beta Don]

The tire pressure warning light is probably a bad sensor in one of the wheels  -  Thy are battery powered and the batteries usually go bad after 7 or 8 years.  Buy a new set of 4 the next time you need new tires (since changing them requires dismounting the tire from the wheel) and that problem will be solved

 

The ABS/Brake warning light could be any of half a dozen different things  -  I would find out exactly what it is and get it fixed though before I drove it anywhere.  It could be serious and a warning light should be ignored at your peril

 

Don

[nickjtc]

Thank you for that, Don. Interesting comment about the warning lights, and fairly obvious, too. But also interestingly enough the van has been being driven with the warning lights on for a long time, since the previous owners were told by a (supposedly reputable) local shop that it was a malfunction in the dash and the whole dash would have to be replaced. The owners decided not to go to the expense of replacing it. However I have never heard of ABS issues that were not connected with the sensors down at the wheels.....

[nickjtc]

Here is the beast, incidentally.

[nickjtc]

And here is what I will be carrying in the back in my travels.

[Beta Don]

15 hours ago, nickjtc said:

Thank you for that, Don. Interesting comment about the warning lights, and fairly obvious, too. But also interestingly enough the van has been being driven with the warning lights on for a long time, since the previous owners were told by a (supposedly reputable) local shop that it was a malfunction in the dash and the whole dash would have to be replaced. The owners decided not to go to the expense of replacing it.

 

I would want to know much more than just the story line the seller was using to get his van sold!  -  That light could mean something serious and I'd want to know exactly what it means . . . . and before it was discovered during an accident reconstruction.  *If* you lived where there was a comprehensive vehicle inspection program in place, that van would have to be parked until it was fixed . . . . . for the safety of the general public, as well as it's owner

 

Don

[sKiZo]

 

Best recall ever ...

 

ALL FACTORIES REQUIRED TO RECALL ALL VEHICLES TO DISABLE ALL WARNING LAMPS

 

Every bad warning light or OBD code I've ever got has been due to a malfunctioning sensor. Get rid of all that crap, and maybe people would actually do required maintenance to catch real problems before they're like ... a problem?

 

-  +1 on tire pressure sensor.

 

- ABS? Last time I had a code on that, some kinda sorta trained garage monkey had knocked a sensor out of alignment during routine maintenance. Simple fix - just beat it back into position. 

 

And ya ... I'm a fan of the first gen body style too. 

 

 

 

 

[OLDSCHOOLFOOL]

1 hour ago, sKiZo said:

 

Best recall ever ...

 

ALL FACTORIES REQUIRED TO RECALL ALL VEHICLES TO DISABLE ALL WARNING LAMPS

Skizo, you have my vote for president or dogcatcher or whatever else you're running for.?

[nickjtc]

I have the work sheet from the shop that said the warning light issue was a dash related scenario, confirming this in print. I will not take that as gospel until I have had a chance to see the ABS codes being thrown. That will have to wait because we just had a dump of the white stuff.

 

Great idea about the factory disabling all warning lamps! I will throw out a question in the brakes part of the forum about the viability of completely eliminating the ABS system. 

[WillMartin]

On 12/14/2019 at 4:06 PM, nickjtc said:

Here is the beast, incidentally.

That's a fantastic ramp!  It looks like it folds, too.  Perfect for motorcycle loading.  I find that the Daytona front wheel pokes in between the seats, and so does the DRZ.  It's tight, but it works.

[Cubit]

Looks pretty good . I too live in BC ( 604 ) .I too bought a used TC - 2012 XLT - 69000km  . Looks like new , so people say. I had the thing inspected before I bought it. I did the Car Fax check . I checked with the local Ford dealer re any work done under that VIN # and any recalls . I did online research re owner satisfaction and vehicle performance . That’s where I messed up. I didn’t spend enough time on the transmission problem section. If I were you I’d drop by the local parts supply shop or Canadian Tire and pick up a scanner( level ll or higher ) to plug into the van for some diagnostics . Then hop online and start tracing your error codes and potential repairs yourself before you head off to the mechanic. Would I go to the dealer with a 2010 ? No. Hopefully you know a reliable and knowledgeable mechanic. You’re going to need him .

when I went to the dealer after my personal experience of “ limp mode “ from from 70 mph on the freeway, they all knew or did not express surprise about the problem . Your dry, dual clutch transmission will be the source of the bulk of your carnival display of warning lights  on your dash. Don’t ignore them .

 

ps you did check on the vehicle registration form that the van is not registered as a rebuilt ?