Archive for the 'Ford' Category

It’s Just Cool: ‘36 Stainless Ford

Wednesday, November 5th, 2008

If you think stainless steel is only good for kitchen appliances and Doc Brown’s home-brew time machine, take a look at this 1936 Ford Deluxe.  Allegheny Ludlum Steel Division and the Ford Motor Company built this and a handful of others just like it as an experiment, and to raise awareness that stainless steel had many applications in the automotive world.

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Posted in Automotive, Ford, It's Just Cool | 9 Comments »

Ford Recalls 37,000 Diesel Super Duty Trucks

Thursday, March 22nd, 2007
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CNN is reporting that Ford announced a recall yesterday of “over 37,000 of its new 2008 model F-Series Super Duty trucks after reported tailpipe fires in the diesel version of the pickups.”  From CNN:

“Ford said it had received reports of three cases where leaking fuel or oil ignited when trapped in a diesel particulate filter near the tailpipe of the new trucks.  In one case in Texas, a truck’s hot tailpipe set off a grass fire when the driver pulled off the road.”

Considering how popular the Super Duty models are as work trucks here in Texas, I’d imagine more than a few Texas dealerships’ll be seeing these in the near future.

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Posted in Ford, Recalls, Work Vehicles | No Comments »

Hot or Not? The Redesigned F150 as Work Truck

Saturday, March 10th, 2007

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I’ve had a ‘97 F150 for quite some time now; I inherited it from my father who bought it used years before that.  I’m sad to admit, though, that when my Dad bought it, I gave him crap about it.  “You shoulda bought a one-ton,” I said, “It won’t tow enough.”  Well, after a few years of hauling and towing (things I probably shouldn’t have) and even taking trips in it, I’m a fan.  It’s rated for towing over 8k, and I’ve personally pulled more than 11k with it before.  It drives like a car thanks to the modern front suspension.

I’ve even almost come to accept the red interior.

But now I see the 2004+ redesigned model, and I can’t help but wonder if all the same stuff’s still there.  While it’s just a personal opinion, I’m not fond of the little “dip” in the window — modelled, I’d assume, after the F250 and F350.  But what about usability?  Does this model stand up to the previous one?  Or exceed it?

Let us know in comments.

Posted in Ford, Hot or Not, Work Vehicles | 10 Comments »

Ford F150 Heater Core Swap, Part 2

Friday, February 9th, 2007

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I posted yesterday regarding my, um, surprise when I discovered that I’d have to remove the entire dash to get at the heater core in my good ‘ole ‘97 F150 pickup.  Well, the job’s part way done, and we finally exposed the heater core.  The above picture shows what it looks like right now.

I always liked my F150, but this job has taught me a few things about Ford pickups.  First, you obviously don’t want to own one long enough to have to replace the heater core.  People aren’t kidding when they say it’s a big job.  It requires removing the dash, the HVAC vent system (that’s as big as the dash), and — if you beleve the manual — the steering column.  As you can see, we managed to leave the steering column in, but that’s not really all that much help.  We’re currently 12+ hours into the job, and the hard part is yet to come.  And this is a couple of guys who’ve done their share of car work sitting in a shop chock-ass full of tools.

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Posted in Editorial, Ford, Work Vehicles | 34 Comments »

I Hate my F150 Right Now

Thursday, February 8th, 2007
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I generally don’t like to whine on Toolmonger, but screw it, today I’m gonna get my whine on.  It seems like every vehicle has an achilles heel when it comes to repairs.  Sure, it might be easy to replace the water pump, but the fuel pump’s on top of the gas tank.  Or the water pump’s behind half the front of the engine.  You know what I’m talking about.

Well, I found one of those on my ‘97 Ford F150.  Guess what you’ve gotta do to get at the heater core: pull the whole f*#$ing dash.  I’m not talking about the instrument cluster, either.  You’ve got to pull the entire damn dash out, including dismantling the passenger-side air bag.  Apparently Ford decided that leaving the core accessible below the glove box — like all sane manufacturers have for years — isn’t the way to go.  Instead, they decided to place it in the freakin’ middle of the firewall behind the dash.

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Posted in Ford, Work Vehicles | 18 Comments »