136,735 Mile Update: Start Me Up!

Long time, no update! Vic has been putting along just fine... until yesterday.

I had noticed it sounded a little funny the last time I had started it up. The "funny" seemed familiar. I filed it away in my brain for future reference, and it came in handy not long after... like yesterday morning when I was about to go out and run some errands. Not to mention my mother wanting to also get out of the driveway.

I turned the key, and CLICK. Wouldn't start. Wouldn't crank.

Tried it a second time, DITTO.

All the dash lights went on like normal, and I could hear the fuel pump go on, so when it did start on the third try, I knew it was most likely the starter going bad.

A phone call later, I was on the way to Taxi Guy for repairs. I lucked out and got the job done along with an overdue oil change before the evening rush hour!

Thing is, I swore I had already had the starter done in 3.0. But Taxi Guy said it looked original, so it must have been 2.0. I believe that makes one for each Vic. And given the wide variety of miles on each car, they must wear out with age.

Why share a photo of Vic 3.0 next to some boring office building?  Well, that building is the headquarters of Welch's, as in Concord Grape jam and juice, and those green things behind Vic are actual grape vines growing from cuttings of the original vine!  I knew I was probably on camera so I didn't pick any of the grapes, but I did pick one up off the ground and it smelled just like their juice.

Vic 3.0 Gets Social!

6/15/20:  Vic meets O.J. ... I mean Vic meets a Ford Bronco...

7/30/20:  Vic meets some white and green speck of something that thinks it's smart...

8/10/20:  Vic parks next to a Fiat...

ADDITION TO THE FLEET: 2016 Ford Police Interceptor Utility... aka: Explorer

In March 2020 Mystery Mechanic added the first Ford Police Interceptor Utility (aka: Explorer) to his fleet.  It is a 2016 with about 95,000 miles on it.  He's not sure if he's going to replace the Taurus with it or not.  For now, we are working on making it neater and seeing if it needs any mechanical work.  Weather has prohibited any real down-and-dirty-dirt-removal.

As you can see in this (crummy) cell phone pic, it was originally black and white.  The good thing is the white was a WRAP, so no painting was needed to make it all black!

Still dirty, but doors unwrapped, roof still white...

A bit cleaner... until the rains came...

HOW TO Change a Cabin Filter in a 2016 Ford Explorer / Police Interceptor Utility

The following is a pictorial guide to changing the cabin filter in a 2016 Ford Police Interceptor Utility, aka Explorer.  From what I have seen, this procedure SHOULD be the same for police and civilian models up to the 2019 model year.

(NOTE: things didn't go quite as planned, so I don't have as many photos to share as I should)

This is the filter I picked up at the dealer, Motorcraft FP-68.  It wasn't cheap... Not sure why it cost more this time than the one I installed into the Sedan!

You will need to semi-remove the glove box door for easier access to the old filter.  Remove everything from the glove box FIRST!  That's right, all the sugar packets and napkins from Dunkin Donuts, etc.  

There is an ELASTIC TETHER that slides into a hole on the right side of the glove box door.  It helps the door from opening too far.  Slide that off.

At the top of the glove box opening, there are TWO PLASTIC TABS THAT POINT DOWNWARD.  They also help to retain the door when it is open.  I pushed them backward instead of forward so as not to break them off, but basically you need to get them out of the way of the glove box door so it will open all the way.

Now, I did NOT take the glove box door off to install the filter.  You MIGHT want to, though, as just as I thought I was done and happy, the door somehow got bumped and part of the hinge popped off.  I'll get into that debacle later...

This is what you see when you look into the glove box opening.  It is just like in the Taurus.  Basically there is a little cover, or "trap door", if you will, that has two latches and two tabs.  Undo the latches, and slide the cover down. 

This is what the cover looks like (front & back), with the tabs and latches where you can see them.

Here's the old filter still in place.  You may need a small screwdriver to help nudge it out a bit so you can get a better grip, then just slide it out.

We don't know if the filter had ever been changed, but it sure needed to be!

The new filter in place.  I added the date and mileage for future reference.

All you need to do now is reinstall the little filter cover, reattach the elastic tether to the side of the glove box door, and close it.

NOW, if you find yourself needing to remove OR reinstall the door, you need to know that there are two white plastic pins which actually come out.  We didn't know that, so when one side of the door popped off the pin, we didn't know how to reattach it.  A peek at the 'net resulted in the realization that one of the two plastic pins was not installed properly.  It was basically jammed into the wrong position.

After much car-repair-Yoga, temper flaring and use of large tools, I got both pins out.  We then put the cover in place, latched it, and slid the pins into place the way they are supposed to be installed... minus the fact we still need to lock them in.  In the photo below, you can see one and how it is slightly off-kilter.  But you get the idea.

This is a shot of an Explorer in a junk yard.  Someone had broken off the glove box door.  You can see the two white plastic pins which act as pivots.  The door is NOT SUPPOSED TO PRESS ONTO THOSE PINS!  Remember that if you find your door has popped off BUT the corresponding attachment hasn't broken off and flown off into oblivion...

And there you have it... your Interceptor will now smell like a daisy!!

(... well... a little better than before, anyhow...)

Vic 3.0 Practicing Social Distancing

Vic practicing "social distancing" at the Littleton/RT495 MBTA (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority) parking lot, which is usually filled to capacity. 

132,509 Mile Update: It Will Now Snow...

Yesterday, Mystery Mechanic and I noticed Vic 3.0 was riding pretty badly on the highways and byways of Massachusetts.  We've been keeping an eye on one snow tire that he picked up at a junk yard (not something I myself trust).  The tire must have sat for a long time in one position, possibly low on air, because one patch of tread has a roundy-softy-wornish-rotted look.  It made it feel like an out of balance tire, probably bouncing off the pavement ever so slightly over and over.  After yesterday's trip, we said "BAH!  Might as well put the RS-A's back on".  It's March and we have had pretty much NO snow in the Boston area all season.

Which means we will get whacked with a major Nor-easta' next week.

Once all the snows were off, we also noticed another one for the junk-pile... that one has cracks on the rear sidewall that look scary.  So next season I will have to do some shopping!

On the 9th, Vic finally got it's oil change, after 9 months and about 3,500 miles.  The mechanic pointed out that there were traces of "animal activity" under the hood.  Sure enough, while we had the air compressor going today, I took a peek myself and there were piles of nuts and birdseed on the intake manifold.  It took a while to blow it all out. 

The exhaust leak is still there but hasn't changed much.  Still need to source that issue out.

Doesn't look like much, but this patch was enough to make the car ride badly.

131,131 Mile Update

Not much to report, but snapped a pic of cool looking odometer...

Vic 3.0 Chats With a Relative

I was walking back to Vic 3.0 from a Dunkin' Donuts and what did I see parked rather obviously next to me?  Oh, notice who had the snow tires on and who didn't!