OP
OP
ExplorerTom
Full Access Members
I love this rack.
Tom’s 2014 XLT 4X4
- Thread starter ExplorerTom
- Start date
Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.
OP
OP
ExplorerTom
Full Access Members
Tap tap….. is this thing still on?
Well, believe it or not but I’m still here. I still own the 2014. I still really enjoy this thing. The 2014 has basically been been just churning along without much attention. We’ve taken it on several road trips from Denver: SW Utah, Chicago, Minneapolis, Little Rock, and Lubbock. It’s fantastic on the highway- so smooth and quiet. And if you can drive slow enough, decent gas mileage. On a recent trip to Lubbock, I set the cruise roughly 5 mph under the speed limit. I got 18 mpg on the way down. I was thrilled. I towed a car back from Minneapolis into a headwind and got 9-10 mpgs the whole way.
The Cooper tires I put on back in February 2020 were pretty worn out in March 2022. I only got 42k miles on them. Their snow traction took a nose dive and while driving to Minneapolis in March 2022, they nearly killed me- twice. I also wasn’t thrilled with my factory wheels. I searched Marketplace for some F150 wheels and found a set with some nearly new Michelin Primacy tires. I really like the look of the F150 tires (and yes I had to trim the rear axle shafts). Since the Michelin tires are more of a highway tire than the A/T nature of the Coopers, they are even more smooth and quiet. Also, my average MPGs are trending upwards since switching.
Well, believe it or not but I’m still here. I still own the 2014. I still really enjoy this thing. The 2014 has basically been been just churning along without much attention. We’ve taken it on several road trips from Denver: SW Utah, Chicago, Minneapolis, Little Rock, and Lubbock. It’s fantastic on the highway- so smooth and quiet. And if you can drive slow enough, decent gas mileage. On a recent trip to Lubbock, I set the cruise roughly 5 mph under the speed limit. I got 18 mpg on the way down. I was thrilled. I towed a car back from Minneapolis into a headwind and got 9-10 mpgs the whole way.
The Cooper tires I put on back in February 2020 were pretty worn out in March 2022. I only got 42k miles on them. Their snow traction took a nose dive and while driving to Minneapolis in March 2022, they nearly killed me- twice. I also wasn’t thrilled with my factory wheels. I searched Marketplace for some F150 wheels and found a set with some nearly new Michelin Primacy tires. I really like the look of the F150 tires (and yes I had to trim the rear axle shafts). Since the Michelin tires are more of a highway tire than the A/T nature of the Coopers, they are even more smooth and quiet. Also, my average MPGs are trending upwards since switching.
Attachments
OP
OP
ExplorerTom
Full Access Members
I upgraded the factory radio and ditched the SYNC. I got a Pioneer head unit from crutchfield.com. I got the wire harness that retained the steering wheel controls. This head unit has Apple Car Play- which is fantastic.
And I got a Trackform phone mount that is rock solid. Yes I had to drill into the dash to secure it, but it is solid. Very happy with it.
And I got a Trackform phone mount that is rock solid. Yes I had to drill into the dash to secure it, but it is solid. Very happy with it.
Attachments
star-art
Full Access Members
My Winter tires (my first set were Cooper) are quite "sticky" compared to my Summer tires. I lose 10mpg when those are on. If you want better mileage, a smooth-riding tire is a must. 
OP
OP
ExplorerTom
Full Access Members
In my opinion, the cigarette lighter 12v plug in the dash is pretty worthless. There’s another one on the back of the center console and another one in the rear cargo area, so having a third in the dash is overkill. Sure I can get USB adapters, but my experience with those is hit or miss.
I picked up an extra 12v plug from a junkyard. One reason I got an extra is so if I boogered it up really bad, mine wasn’t ruined. The other reason was to get practice removing it: it’s not easy.
I bought a Blue Sea Systems (#1045) dual USB charger. I’ve used these on other vehicles with great success. They are quality pieces.
I had to trim some of the 12v plug plastic away, but I got the Blue Sea Systems to fit in there like it’s supposed to.
I picked up an extra 12v plug from a junkyard. One reason I got an extra is so if I boogered it up really bad, mine wasn’t ruined. The other reason was to get practice removing it: it’s not easy.
I bought a Blue Sea Systems (#1045) dual USB charger. I’ve used these on other vehicles with great success. They are quality pieces.
I had to trim some of the 12v plug plastic away, but I got the Blue Sea Systems to fit in there like it’s supposed to.
Attachments
OP
OP
ExplorerTom
Full Access Members
My IWEs were making some chattering noise when cold. It was pretty subtle. I tried to diagnose what in the vacuum system was bad so I could just replace that. I hooked up vacuum pumps and gauges and everything appeared to be working properly. I spun the wheel, turned the steering, moved hoses around……. Nothing. Everything would function properly while being diagnosed, but it would chatter while driving.
I got tired of that. I convinced myself that even if I did find the component that was bad, another would be shortly behind it and I’d be troubleshooting again.
I ordered some RCV IWE lockouts from Stage3Motorsports. Installation was pretty straightforward.
Chattering is gone.
For those that ask about impacts to MPGs: the answer is that it was negligible. I track every tank on fuelly.com and didn’t notice any changes. Switching from the A/T Coopers to all season Michelins made a noticeable difference, but not the RCVs.
I got tired of that. I convinced myself that even if I did find the component that was bad, another would be shortly behind it and I’d be troubleshooting again.
I ordered some RCV IWE lockouts from Stage3Motorsports. Installation was pretty straightforward.
Chattering is gone.
For those that ask about impacts to MPGs: the answer is that it was negligible. I track every tank on fuelly.com and didn’t notice any changes. Switching from the A/T Coopers to all season Michelins made a noticeable difference, but not the RCVs.
Attachments
OP
OP
ExplorerTom
Full Access Members
My AC performance has never been what I’d call “great”. It cools well at speed but sucks in stop and go.
I don’t know if this is related or not, but sometime around Thanksgiving, my AC clutch grenaded itself. When I started the engine to leave work, I noticed a funny noise. Soon after a squealing noise and smoke poured out from when the hood. The smoke smelled like burning rubber. And then it quit.
Weird.
And I had to be somewhere. I saw the smoke coming from the AC clutch so I wasn’t too worried and I continued on. I wasn’t able to address it for a couple days. For the most part, the engine ran normal. Occasionally it would screech but cycling the AC button got it to stop. But then the engine would shake. That outer ring would get hung up and be way out of balance.
Removing the old clutch wasn’t as easy as it’s supposed to be. That center bolt wasn’t coming out for me.
Out comes the angle grinder!
I was able to cut off the outer ring, leaving only the center hub. I did this so I could drive it over to a friends house to use his welder. I welded a washer to the bolt head and was able to turn it out. I cleaned up all the melted rubber, got the friction surface all clean and installed the new AC clutch.
I hoping this solves my poor AC performance but I won’t know until the weather gets hot.
I don’t know if this is related or not, but sometime around Thanksgiving, my AC clutch grenaded itself. When I started the engine to leave work, I noticed a funny noise. Soon after a squealing noise and smoke poured out from when the hood. The smoke smelled like burning rubber. And then it quit.
Weird.
And I had to be somewhere. I saw the smoke coming from the AC clutch so I wasn’t too worried and I continued on. I wasn’t able to address it for a couple days. For the most part, the engine ran normal. Occasionally it would screech but cycling the AC button got it to stop. But then the engine would shake. That outer ring would get hung up and be way out of balance.
Removing the old clutch wasn’t as easy as it’s supposed to be. That center bolt wasn’t coming out for me.
Out comes the angle grinder!
I was able to cut off the outer ring, leaving only the center hub. I did this so I could drive it over to a friends house to use his welder. I welded a washer to the bolt head and was able to turn it out. I cleaned up all the melted rubber, got the friction surface all clean and installed the new AC clutch.
I hoping this solves my poor AC performance but I won’t know until the weather gets hot.
Attachments
Similar threads
