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...)

PHOTOS From the Rhode Island State Police 2nd Annual Vintage Cruiser Show 9/24/17

Rhode Island State Police 2nd Annual Vintage Cruiser Show

September 24, 2017

... and Crown Vics Were There!

... getting shot at in Orange County, CA!

UPDATE: Wipe Away My Tears...

Tomorrow is the first day of winter, and we have already had a decent amount of snow in the Boston area.  It looks like a lot of it will be melted before Christmas, but that won't help my rusty fenders any...

Crummy pic of chewed hose

Last week while helping someone shift around his AMC collection, we found out that the hose that carries wiper fluid from the tank to the sprayer was in 2 peices.  It looked like something actually chewed it!  There has been a rat problem in our area for a while, so this made me want to kill the stupid things even more than before.  The next morning was supposed to get snowy, so that meant I had a small window of time to do the repair.  My boyfriend picked up some used hose from Taxi Guy and I knew what I would be doing the next morning.

What Todd thought would take a half hour took me 2 hours with freezing hands and feet, and the loosening and tightening of many bolts.  But finally the job was done and just in time, as it has snowed a couple of times since.

I also have to think about changing out 2 of my Goodyear snow tires.  Two are fine, but two are older and are showing cracks.  Todd gave me some more generic snows last year, and I think I may have to put them on for safety sake. 

Ultra Small N Scale Crown Vic! (AKA: Mini Vic)

Recently I decided to order something off Ebay.  What was it?  An N scale Crown Vic!

A company called Willmodels sells resin model railroad items, mostly buildings and cars/trucks.  They offer both wedge & final bodystyle Vics in different styles.  I went with a simple stock one.  And it is SMALL!  Well,  compared to the usual die-cast scales.

The headlights are "sunk", not flush, there are no side mirrors, and the wheels, while nice, are not accurate.  But what do you expect from a cottage industry-made model?  ANY Vic in N scale is a wonderful thing!
Having a little Vic for my Not Quite Model Railroad will be a hoot!

VIDEO: Ford's New Police Squad

I found this video of the Ford Interceptor over at Fox News:

The Worst States For Speeding Tickets in USA

Craig Fitzgerald of Yahoo! Autos/BoldRide has written an article about speeding tickets around the US.  Being New England based, I found some of the results very interesting.  The whole article can be read HERE, but if you'd like to cut to the chase, read excerpts below:

Most Expensive First Offense: (Tie) Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, Nevada and New Hampshire

These five states all hold drivers liable for a fine of up to $1,000 for a first offense. The fine is up to a judge’s discretion and can be based on how many miles per hour you’re ticketed over the designated speed limit, or if you were caught speeding in a work or a school zone, both of which tend to double a fine. In addition to the fine, you can spend up to a year in jail. Granted, speeding in a work zone is bad for everyone concerned, but a few moments of inattention resulting in a $1,000 fine? What’s the first offense for a weapons violation in those states?

Most Expensive State to Fight a Ticket: Massachusetts

Back in 2005, Vincent Gillespie got a $15 parking ticket in Northampton, Massachusetts, a bucolic community in the Connecticut River Valley in Central Massachusetts. In order to fight the ticket, Gillespie had to pay $319.90 in filing fees with the Hampshire County Superior Court, which was non-refundable whether he won his case or not. His case went to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial court, where Gillespie’s lawyers argued that the fees effectively negated his constitutional right to due process. In its ruling, the SJC noted that the plaintiffs hadn’t met the burden of proof that the laws weren’t in keeping with the state constitution, and that the fee system serves the purpose of discouraging “the filing of nonmeritorious appeals,” thus conserving scarce judicial resources.

Sneakiest Speed Traps in America: Vermont

Mt. Tabor is a one-horse dot on Route 7a in western Vermont that doesn’t even have a traffic light. What it does have is a speed limit sign that drops to 40 mph, and you will get rung up by its zealous constable, a guy who drives a Camaro and gets paid by the number of tickets he writes. And he’s not alone. One constable in the village of Island Pond made national news by writing 1,100 tickets, with fines totaling $100,000 – a tenth of the entire revenue of the town that year.

Most Unmarked State Police Cars: Connecticut

In all my years driving in New England, I’ve never seen a fully marked Connecticut State Police car. That’s because only one is assigned to every troop. Apparently, they’re white with yellow and blue markings. Most Connecticut State Police cars are silver, with a pushbar up front and a low-profile lightbar on the roof, which carries the only “State Police” marking on the car. Connecticut’s also been notorious for using Camaros, Mustangs, Grand Nationals and other non-traditional cars as unmarked patrol cars on the state’s highways.