Brad Clayton

I'm still here!!!!!

Now that is a good one!!!

Looks like we wont be getting to the bottom of this one. The customer traded it in and the truck went bye-bye.

I have replaced a ton of these fan clutches on the 6.7's

Worked fine for me, yep.

Holy shit, that's crazy. I like it. Good catch.

Yeah I chipped a nail today, guess I'll keep it to myself.

......without every having to remove a gas tank shield to lift a Super-Duty. I remember thinking how idiotic these things were when introduced back in 2011. I went out of my way to avoid removing them to lift a truck and was fortunate enough to have decent lifts that could reach the leaf springs. That all changed today and the lift I have now must engage the frame......alas.

We keep a running tally at the shop, every Transit that has come in so far has crushed rear pinch welds before the rear tires.

I second that. I have never really subscribed to the "I would love to meet an engineer in a dark alley" but these things make me want to hurt somebody!

Just pulled the trans on a '15 and it blew junks. The trans crossmember bolts came out hard and one required a little torch action to get it moving. That was the easy part, the subframe on the other hand was a nightmare. The right rear bolt was frozen in the control arm bushing and both cage nuts spun.

Yikes. So I am not working on the one in this post but I think they are putting a new water pump on it and rechecking. We will see.

We got one of these things in the shop, I forget the mileage but it makes a strange, rhythmic thumping noise at idle when hot. The noise seemed to be localized to the right side of the engine in the valve cover. The VC was removed and the usual valve stuff was examined and deemed ok. The timing chain tensioner shows about 4 teeth. The vacuum pump (cam driven) was looked at and full of oil so it was replaced and we thought that was it. Still makes the noise. Then the alternator belt was removed and the noise disappeared. The belt is clean, and the water pump was removed and it looks fine, no looseness in the internals or anything like that. The alternator spins freely. Not a whole lot of info, I know but curious if anyone has heard any strange noises from these engines other than the cold rattles.

Bahahahahahaha!

Yes.

Has anyone ever investigated one of these gears that grinds and makes all kind of racket when turning? The fix around here is to replace the gear, but I was curious if anyone cracked one open to see if it was a repairable thing or not.

Well, it looks like I may be going back to the bargaining table, a little soon to elaborate but things have gotten interesting in Eastern NC.

Well, I started my new job at the dealer today.......on a Friday. They have a bit of a back log so they wanted me there as soon as my two week notice was up at my old job. The place is very nice but a bit cramped compared to all the room I used to have. I don't have all my stuff there yet and it was a bit unhandy but I managed to settle in the best I could.

I hook the meter to the battery and turn the park lights on.

Welp, we have a winner. Pecheles of Washington won out with a deal that was good enough to bring me out of my little fishing hole and retirement.

Don't think that hasn't crossed my mind.

A sync issue, New Hampshire, I'm thinking rust jacking on the cam sensor could be at play also.

I totally agree and only mentioned Sale Ford as a bargaining chip (a bad one at that). I will not be going back there for sure. I have set up an interview Wednesday with the dealer in Washington....wish me luck. Did I mention that it's an air conditioned shop?

Ford dealers that are staffed with diesel certified techs have it good. Sometimes they don't know how good they have it until they lose their diesel tech providing they only have the one to begin with. A smart service manager will prevent such a stressful situation from happening by all means necessary. This can include having multiple trained diesel techs even if you have only one go to guy. It can involve keeping an open line of dialogue or an open door policy with all techs. It is far better to hear of grumblings right up front before they fester and next thing you know your faced with a tech giving his two weeks notice. All techs matter but I have a soft spot for the diesel tech and thus his place in the dealer should be monitored and steps taken to ensure he his appreciated. There are always poachers out there who would love to jump at the chance to lure a tech away. A dealer who is properly equipped and has fostered a healthy relationship with it's techs will never have to worry about such a situation. I have found myself in a very weird plaace as I write this. I live in Eastern North Carolina in a small town called Ayden. We have a Ford dealer and there are about 8 Ford dealers in the surrounding area. Greenville is 10 miles to the East and has Hastings Ford which I worked at when I moved down. Hastings is still clinging to their diesel guy. Little Washington is North about 35 miles and has Joe Pecheles Toyota/Ford and they have currently lost their diesel tech. I called them and they sounded absolutely desperate to fill the void.....hmmmm. Doug Henry Ford is in my town of Ayden and guess what?...They have just lost their only diesel tech and they are beyond desperate as they have a major diesel clientele. And then there is Sale Ford in Kinston where I worked for the past 5 years and slowly went broke. They are getting ready to lose their diesel tech and they have been calling me daily trying to get me to come back. They even told me they would pay me hourly (which was one of my requirements to stay before I quit to which they said they would take their chances without me). So it appears that it is an employees market at the moment and the highest bidder may bring me out of retirement and end my lustrous career as a carpenter. We shall see what happens and I will update as things unfold.

Yes, I really wish they would separate the Transit from the Super-Duty in the PC/ED altogether.