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rear diff - 95k - Aug 25

  • Rear pinion leak addressed by changing out the seal as shown in this video.
    • nut re-used, locking mechanism not used, re-used because it had markings on it. Using a new nut seems incompatible with the procedure shown here.
    • Additional anxiety caused by slightly scoring the seal mating surface. Though I didn’t use a bearing puller (as was discouraged in the video).
    • Diff fluid also changed, didn’t see squeeze out in one spot, but 24 hours later, and about 20 miles later everything seems dry.
  • During this procedure, presumably because the car was dinging that it was in neutral, the battery died. As far as I can tell the battery was OEM, despite it having a 2/19 sticker. It was replaced by a platinum duralast from autozone (and by autozone).
  • Also L-Track was installed in the middle of the truck bed so that I can easily haul two sport bikes to the track.
  • Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/wM6JavoAwX3Z4wpi9

lights and running board - 94k - July 25

  • running boards as requested by all the parents.
  • third brake light reverse led lights were out and were replaced with this full led bar.
  • license plate lights were some of the last non-leds on the car and were replaced with this product which seems to not be available anymore.
  • the rusted hitch mount was replaced with diode dynamics hitch light.
  • minor leak found where the driveshaft meets the differential. Seems like a pretty common problem and I'm overdue for a diff service anyways. This seems like a high quality tutorial.
  • Pretty pleased with the whole lighting situation of the rear now, parents are much more comfortable entering and exiting the truck.

sun-roof inquiry - 91k - May 25

  • long ago (around bachelor party time) the sun roof failed to close. After some spamming of buttons it did fully close.
  • two types leaks were experienced occassionaly, some dripping on backseat passengers
  • water by my footwell. On one occasion also dripping on me.
  • After much sufferring I was able to replace the sun roof rails, they still aren't perfectly in sync with regards to the pins, but it seems to be fine.
  • I tested for water after and discovered in-fact water going into the rail area. I tried many adjustments before researching and finding that this is somewhat normal and that there are drains that are supposed to capture this water.
  • I blew out all 4 drains and verified that they were flowing water, at-least one was genuinely clogged.
  • I put it all together and it seems promising
  • deep clean inside ~80%
  • new wipers and washer fluid top off
  • 90% glass clean.

oil change - 90.7k - Apr 25

  • that exhuast clunking sound came back. It was like the whole exuast was shifted back by some amount. I loosened everything and used the jack to raise it up to the right place and then tightened everything down. I took it close to the max of the 1/8 impact I have. I considered going further, these are some pretty thick fasteners but I'll wait to see if the problem comes back first.
  • did oil change and reset the oil interval

brake job - 86k - Oct 24

  • Heard some squeeking under tow conditions decided to do brakes
  • Brakes were feeling pretty squishy in general
  • Started with the pads in the front they had a reasonable amount of life left (more than half)
  • The back pads were cooked, possibly I should have just bled the brakes when it felt squishy.
  • Finally changed the rear rotors with these. They looked and felt pretty high quality.
  • Cross threaded a caliper bolt and ordered a replacement.

services - 82k - May 24

  • oil and filter change
  • transfer case fluid change
  • transmission fluid and filter change
    • initially wrong filter ordered, right filter purchased from ford fulerton
    • sheered front passenger an bolt, replaced with alternative from autozone, clearly marked with double washers. Filter was leaking a bit and level will be checked again shortly.
  • front diff fluid changed slightly, too hard to get a pump in
  • undercaraige bolt sheared replacement bolt kit ordered and will be fitted throughout.

mystery noise - 80k

  • I'm hearing a noise that I don't fully understand. It kinda sounds like the wheel bearing noise but seems different, doesn't seem related to a turn, could be exhaust noise because it seems to happen most prominently at 6th gear.
  • it was the exhaust, a little loose

brake fluid - 76k

  • Aug 2023
  • Went to change rear rotor and brake pads, I had the wrong brake rotors, but the pads were correct so I changed those. Potentially slightly early but I wanted to replace the brake fluid and not worry about this for a while.
  • Changed the pads in the back with ceramic brakes from R1 (same in the front) and then me and dad did a brake fluid replacement.
  • We did 10 pumps on each brake twice (20 total) starting from front driver, front passenger, rear passenger, and then rear driver. Used most of Bosch ESI6-32N Brake Fluid (Direct Replacement for DOT 3, DOT 4, and DOT 5.1) - 1 Quart
  • need to call R1: 1-714-777-2323 and see if they are willing to do a replacement of the rotors. They were not.
  • Also installed this sub, sounds great, did need to do some forscan business

oil change - 75k

  • July 2023
  • changed oil & filter. Put 6 qts in. I always forget what a pain changing the o-rings on the filter is. Also what a chore getting the heat shielding off is. note to self for the next change -- it's the one that's bigger and more in the center of the vehicle. Probably could use a new drain plug next time.

forscan mods -75k

  • July 2023
  • enabled bambi mode
  • enabled turn signals as DRL
    • required a config that enabled the feature and then second I set it as a feature
  • disabled sirus xm
  • prereq for a satisfying grill upgrade

evap leak 75k miles

  • got a check engine light after filling up at a gas station after scanning the code it said: P0456: Evaporative Emissions System Leak Detected (very small leak). There were 2 instances of this code. The code first appeared on 06/04/23
  • on 06/24/23 I cleared the code to see if it was a one off.
  • On 07/08/23 I got the light again. Again I had filled up recently.
  • People suggest cleaning the oil cap as a first step, however I'm a little skeptical this is the solution to my problem because on a hot day if I push the gasoline fill cap in I hear it vent. As if it is, in fact presurized. Which is somewhat confusing.
  • The next most popular fix is this part but parts and my eyes tell me that's not compatible with the ecoboost.
  • these parts come up as relevant according to the site but don't seem to be the equivilant according to youtube:
  • The part that people on youtube are replacing is GL3Z-9B325-B
  • Youtubers are also aluding to some part that requires the tank to be dropped, looks like that part code is JL3Z 9D333 D, for code P2450.
  • I've also always noticed a very harsh idle right after filling up, I wonder if resolving this will fix that issue, hope so.
  • Replacing GL3Z-9B325-B so far seems to have solved the problem. I also topped up my gas and did not experience a harsh idle for the first time. When I took out the old part I was able to blow through the valve (?) and I was not able to do that with the new part. Truck runs a bit more smoothly too. July 2023.

exhaust replacement 75k miles

  • old exhaust was rusted, the tailpipe had a black finish (maybe diy from previous owner?) and it was coming off. Replaced the exhaust with this one from rough country.

Wheel bearing replacement 71k miles

  • when traveling between 40-80mph slightly turning right causes a noise similar to engine breaking.
  • I jacked the vehicle up and performed the shake test, ever so slightly there is a wiggle to the drivers side wheel. The vibration is slight and so is the noise.
  • Purchased this part from parts.ford.com:
    • HUB393 (aka FL3Z-1104-H)
    • dust cover: 9L1Z1131A
    • Cancelled order via calling 7329510500 (John) and was able to order motorcraft (oem) from amazon
    • amazon cancelled the order, this part is sold out everywhere
  • Sockets:
    • 21mm or 22mm for lugs
    • 13mm (1/2) pads
    • 21mm for caliper
    • 5/16th for trim
    • 15mm axle nut
    • 21mm for hub bolts
  • Measurements
    • 24 in.Hg for 4wd engagement
    • 30 lb.ft (40 Nm) for Axle nut
    • 129 lb.ft (175Nm) 4 bolts
    • 15.5mm axle travel
    • 27 lb.ft (36 Nm) for brake caliper
    • 150 lb.ft (204 Nm) for lug nuts

Took the car to Mavis, they didn't know what was wrong with it, after learning much more I realised it is not actually failing the shake test and the true noise can be heard by performing the spin test. The front passenger's side was groaning while spinning. I had to learn about the steering lock as well as the vacum actuated front 4wd.

It was massively difficult to get the rotor off and break the bolts, but once I understood how to do it the next weekened doing brakes and rotors were a breeze.

Front brake and rotors were also replaced at 71k miles, I did not lube the pins, and I did not replace the back (enough life in those brake pads).

The best manual I've come across

Rear bumper replacement - 48k - Dec 20

Damage

Damaged rear bumper in a recreational area near dover vt. Backed into a tree, was just travelling too fast.

Rear Bumper

Replaced the rear bumper with this product: Barricade Extreme HD Rear Bumper for Factory Hitches for Ford F-150 2015-2020. Installed it with dad, solid replacement. Still have some damage on the tailgate. I would consider wrapping this car if I had a straightforward way to fix that damage.

Lighting

Rear right blinker bulb went out, replacing with this: Barricade Extreme HD Rear Bumper for Factory Hitches for Ford F-150 2015-2020

Purchase 46k Nov 20

Carmax 10-02-2020, $37k, 46k miles.

Motivations to getting this truck

Interior

More interior comfort. Jeep has lots of space, but the experience for passengers is lacking because the backseat is physically very small. The butt to bottom of leg portion is very small. So it makes it feel uncomfortable, especially for dogs. The second thing that makes it uncomfortable is: you can feel that the jeep has a high center of gravity. It's very wobly. This makes the situation even worse for the dogs.

The interior comfort of the truck is expected to be much higher. Large seats with plenty of legroom and the ability to fold the legroom portion up. This would be so smuch space for dogs to become comfortable.

The interior also has a bunch of creature comforts like outlets, heated seats, carplay, and a backup camera.

Bed

The bed is also really appealing. So currently I use the cycle holder that goes over the spare tire for cycles. Kayaks and Skis go on the roof. This is a massive hassle and often comes at a great expense.

Roof mounted stuff limits clearance (I scrape skis on the parking garage roof in jersey city) and tire mounted stuff impacts trunk access (really annoying on long trips).

Other neat features

  • Remote start
  • App to control the car
  • Keypad to enter the car (so I can lock the keys inside when I ski / kayak)

Driving experience

  • The jeep driving experience is mixed. It's fun for the driver because it's very engaging, but it can be tiring on long trips and it can be not fun for passengers.
  • The tradeoff I'm interested in making is: trading character for comfort and giving more people the ability to drive the vehicle.

vin

1FTEW1EP4HFC48566

Outstanding Issues

  • Hood latch alarm
  • Unclear Hyperflash
    • Can try new turn bulbs after that
  • L Track
  • Restore spare tire
  • Remove junk on the windshield
    • Inspection?
  • Belt
  • Coolant flush
  • New Spark Plugs