Project Toy Hauler

The dealer put a new (refurb) alternator on the Excursion when I purchased it, I was hoping it was just due after 110k miles.  But, that wasn't the case, after only a few months this alternator also failed.  I was warned by a friend with a 6.0 that the electrical system is very sensitive on this powerstroke and that I need to be very careful with the FICM because low voltages can cause it to fail and when a FICM fails it can also take fuel injectors with it and then you get a nice fat repair bill of thousands of dollars.  Ouch!  I don't want that, time for some serious preventative maintenance. New Matching Batteries My truck came with two unmatched batteries and it was obvious one was much older than the other.  A quick trip to Costco and I had two new matching batteries under warranty! New Heavy Duty DC Power 250Amp Alternator I was determined to install my last alternator and make the electrical system bulletproof.  After a little research it lead ...

Something I struggled with since day 1 with my used Excursion was wheels that always had a bit of a vibration to them especially around 70mph.  I had them balanced and rotated multiple times with minimal results.  Let me tell you, driving 12 hours each way to San Diego and back with even minor vibration is really really annoying!  For a while I thought it might be something I would just have to live with. After a few months it was time for another tire rotation and I wanted to DIY so that I could inspect the brakes and rotors.  When I pulled the first wheel off I was a bit shocked to find massive 2” spacers attached to the wheel.  I immediately had flashes of what kind of disaster would happen if one of those spacers broke while towing my toy hauler and with the whole family...talk about a sick feeling.  I already wanted to replace the 2015 factory take off wheels someone else installed with something aftermarket, now I had a really great excuse to move n...

For the time being the Ford Excursion is my daily driver.  This gives me time to work out any issues with it before loading up the family and pulling a 12k lb trailer all around.  Hopefully I can find any problems with it and take care of them before risking stranding my entire family on the side of the road in the middle of the Utah desert.  I'll tell you what I learn in multiple blog posts, while driving it 5 days a week nearly 80 miles round trip from Ogden into Salt Lake City. For anyone who has driven a modern vehicle, stepping back into time 10 years might cause some techno-shock!  Lack of technology is a problem for somebody like me who loves gadgets!  We're talking a 10 year old sound system that was made before bluetooth was invented!  This just isn't going to work for me and I knew this going into the purchase.  I had planned a massive sound and tech upgrade from the beginning. Apple Car Play (or Android Auto) is Priority #1 Ever since t...

I could write a fairly long post about my search, but I don't want to bore you.  Instead I'll summarize my journey into a few short tips. Patience Basically I was very patient, waiting for the right rig to come along and ready to snatch it up when it did.  I was searching from Excursions in my home state of Utah, as well as Colorado, California, and spent a lot of time looking at southern states where no salt is used on the roads.  I spent a lot of time scouring eBay, Craigslist, and Autotrader. Price As I mentioned before I had set my price range around $20k as most of the clean diesel rigs with about 100k miles on them were selling around that price on eBay which gave me a good indicator of what I should be willing to spend.  NADA and Kelly are completely wrong by the way.  They aren't accounting for these vehicles becoming rare and in demand and prices have stopped depreciating on them from what I can tell.  Age doesn't matter much, only condition ...

In my previous blog I decided a Ford Excursion is the only SUV that is capable of meeting my goals for a toy hauler and family adventure rig, so what are my choices to think about before purchasing one? A little history, the Excursion was made from 2000 to 2005.  During that time the biggest difference is in the engine and transmission choices.  For me all the other differences are minor in comparison and I won't bother to cover them here. Engine Choices V10                310hp          425lb-ft    4-speed 2000-2005 7.3L               250hp          505 lb-ft   4-speed 2000-2003 6.0L               325hp          560 lb-ft   5-speed 2003-2005 The V10 is actually a great motor other than poor gas mileage.  Most of your ga...

I went to the Salt Lake City Auto Show this winter and I about hit the floor when the sticker price for a loaded up 2015 Suburban or Expedition was OVER $70,000!  What?!  This is for a 1/2 ton gasoline SUV, is Detroid out of its mind???  Who the hell pays $70,000 for an american Ford/Chevy SUV?  And then I recently found this article from Cars.com called " No Joke: We Drove a $73,000 Chevrolet Suburban ".  That's MORE expensive that this gorgeous Dodge Cummins with the fabulous new 5-link rear end and load leveling airbags that was also there: I thought I was Detroit's  ideal demographic, a dual income middle class family who actually NEEDS and wants a full sized capable SUV and can afford to drive just about any vehicle we wish...minus the exotic stuff I like to dream about.  So who are these people paying $70k for an american made suv by Ford and Chevy? Certainly not me!  As much as I both want and need one, that's way above what I'm ...