marksboss

Good day all. I have lost track of the architectural history and evolution of the 3.5, the 2.7, and finally the current 3.0 V-6 Ecoboost units we find in the current Explorer ST. So, is the current 3.0 a de(bored/stroked) version of the 3.5? Or, is the 3.0 an enlarged 2.7? If I recall, there were some significant differences between the 2.7 & 3.5 when the 2.7 was first introduced. Any insight will be greatly appreciated.

Just curious as I haven't seen this mentioned elsewhere. Is there a plan to incorporate the 5 link rear suspension design from the 2021 Raptor to the rest of the F150 lineup? (or all F series). It seems to be an expensive piece to develop for just one model. Or, is this design too expensive for the average F150?

Interesting reading through all the comments here. Seems like the only real 'hack job' was by our friends at MT. I'll share a little story on those folks. As a young guy getting started in the business I was working for a certain small European manufacturer and got to tag along to a meeting with the M/T staff. Did they want to talk about the option mix, colors, transmissions, etc they wanted to use in the COTY test vehicle? Nope. Didn't care even a little bit. All they wanted to talk about was what the advertising budget was and the corresponding marketing plan. To top it off, when we picked up the press car after the COTY test we found the vehicle test log book the MT staff mistakenly left behind. Within it read a note. "Are we still supposed to be extra picky on this car because it's an [name withheld] ? Eye opening experience and funny MT hasn't bothered to change their ways.

We really need to let the aluminum "bet" play out. Ford is not alone using all aluminum bodies or even frame structures. Look at Audi, Acura (NSX), BMW, Mercedes, Tesla, and even Cadillac-they all use it to great success. The more widespread aluminum is eventually used the cost of production will eventually come down as new and innovative production processes come to light. Think economies of scale. In the long run this is a winner with aluminum being the most abundant metal in the earths crust. The payoffs will not be immediate but Ford needs to stay the course and keep expanding aluminum use as it can and where it makes sense. After all, it's going to take 5-7 years for all these GM, Dodge, and Toyota's to succumb to the inevitable death by rust! Keep referring to your GM & Dodge driving friends as "Rusty" and they'll eventually get the hint. As for GM's hodge-podge use of various lightweight materials I have to laugh. That falls in line with the same kind of reactionary and haphazard engineering GM is famous for. I applaud Ford, they took a clean sheet approach and the result is a well thought out and well engineered product. I live up here in the rust belt so the corrosion is a real world issue and it's a value proposition for myself and others like me. As long as Ford keeps building with aluminum I'll keep buying.

Dare I ask why this wasn't built with the aluminum body? Too costly to manufacture? Not worth the investment in factory tooling for the expected volumes? With aluminum being the most abundant metal on earth I have to believe they can bring more long term efficiency to the aluminum builds the more volume it's built in. Up here in the rusty upper Midwest the no-rust aluminum body is a winner with me and many others.

Thank you. I will check these out. Mark

Thanks fordtech1. Attached is a picture I snapped today. Kinda hard to see the whole thing as I don't want to pull the entire moulding off. Appreciate the assistance. Mark

A 2010 Fusion Sport - AWD. The lower bodyside molding (skirts) have started to work loose on the drivers side of my beloved Fusion. It seems a couple plastic clips have broken over time and as luck would have it the only way the dealership can order the clips is to get an entire new molding at around $700 by the time it's painted. I tried a couple local body shops and they said the same thing. One even went so far as calling their shop supply vendors and they've struck out too. I've searched the net for body shop suppliers as well and haven't been able to find these clips. So....does anyone know of a way to track down who the original supplier of these moldings to FoMoCo would have been? Surely that vendor would have a way of locating a half dozen 50 cent clips to keep me from spending &700 for a new modling! Just get me a company name and I'll do the rest! My next step is to contact Ford Customer Service but I thought I'd start here. There are alot of folks on this message board that know a guy, who knows a guy......... Thanks!

A 2010 Fusion Sport - AWD. The lower bodyside molding (skirts) have started to work loose on the drivers side of my beloved Fusion. It seems a couple plastic clips have broken over time and as luck would have it the only way the dealership can order the clips is to get an entire new molding at around $700 by the time it's painted. I tried a couple local body shops and they said the same thing. One even went so far as calling their shop supply vendors and they've struck out too. So....does anyone know of a way to track down who the original supplier of these moldings to FoMoCo would have been? Surely that vendor would have a way of locating a half dozen 50 cent clips to keep me from spending &700 for a new modling! My next step is to contact Ford Customer Service but I thought I'd start here. Thanks!

I'll chime in on the conspiracy theory for you folks. Not a theory, but a fact. As a young lad getting started in the business I was working for a certain European manufacturer and got to tag along to a meeting with the M/T wanks. Did they want to talk about the option mix, colors, transmissions, etc they wanted to use in the COTY test vehicle? Nope. Didn't care. All they wanted to talk about was what our advertising budget was and the corresponding marketing plan. Eye opening experience for a someone just getting started.

Amazing. 40+ years later and the "reversed C" side stripe looks as at home on that 2011 Mustang as it did in the 1969 Boss version and the Ford GT before that.

Poor Freddy. Did you get the response you needed? I think we're all trying to help. Nobody intended for this to turn into a firestorm. Bottom line--get a 2nd opinion just to put your mind at ease. Many of us have experience with the DOHC's and what one may consider a noise another may not. I had a 2.5L Duratec in a Contour SE that had a certain amount of what I'll call "clatter" in the valve train ever since new. 150K trouble free miles later it was still there but others I'd asked to listen could not detect it. This 3.5 has a bit of that "clatter" too so I completely ignore it. Good luck...enjoy your ride. These Fusion Sports are sweet.

I have a 2010 Sport AWD with 9500 trouble free miles and haven't witnessed any such noise. I'd recommend having a friend or neighbor listen for it too. Maybe you're hearing things.....maybe you're not. Another set of ears may help identify the source. I would also check the oil level just to be certain.

I tried to cover all the bases and mix in as many historic figures and models as I could. As you likely guessed sing along to the tune of Don McLeans American Pie. Enjoy: The day the Mercurys died. A long, long time ago.... I can still remember How those Mercs used to make me smile. And I knew if I had my chance That I could make those Zephyrs dance And, maybe, they’d be solvent for awhile. But February make me shiver With every Topaz I delivered. Bad news in the heavens I missed my XR-7s. I can’t remember if I cried When I read about Edsels wounded pride But something touched me deep inside The day the Mercurys died. So bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors.... Don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors. You were the messenger to the gods Whose engines built so many hot rods. Did Iacocca tell you so..... Did your Elimi-nator roll Can a Merkur save your sporting soul? And can McGarrett drive his Park Lane real slow..... Well, I know your fenders are stuffed with pride We kept you for our daily ride. Then you lost your styling clues Man, I dug those Mercury Blues. My girlfriend was a sexy minx I loved to drive her ’80 Lynx But I knew we’d run out of luck The day the Mercurys died. We started singin’ Bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors.... Don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors. For fifteen years we’ve been a clone Just a blemish on the FoMoCo stone But that’s now how it used to be. Dan Gurney drove for the Cougar team In a Mustang he cloned from Shelbys steed And a style that came from you and me, Oh, and while Poling was looking down, General Motors was going upside down. The Feds came and gave them cash.... A death sentence was inferred And when my uncle loaned me the Colony Park I’d take my girlfriend out and park And we got naughty in the dark The day the Mercurys died. We were singin’ Bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors.... Don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors. It was helter skelter in an import swelter The Maurauder was parked in the fallout shelter Eighty bucks for a tank of gas.............. We made ethanol from blades of grass and The Sable looked like a forward pass With the Comet on the sidelines, out of gas. Now the mid century air was sweet perfume The Monterey was full of zoom We all just loved to dance Oh, the Merc never got the chance. ‘cause when the Milan tried to take the field The import blitz refused to yield Did Toyota recall all that was revealed? The day the Mercurys died? We started singin’ Bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors.... Never build a Cougar with 4 doors. Oh, we were all stuck in one place. An automotive legend lost in space With no time or cash to start again. So Jacques be nimble, Jacques be heard My Cougar is now a Thunderbird? Cause the Grand Marquis is my daddys only friend. Oh, as we watched this play unfold A Villager was sold with badges of gold. When will all the madness end And break this downward trend? As the Monarch fell into the night The Tracer tried with all its might We saw the General laughing with delight The day the Mercurys died. He was singin’ Bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors.... Never build a Cougar with 4 doors. That hot Mercury girl who sang for her dues I asked her for some Mercury news, But she just smiled and turned away. I went down to McNamara’s Mercury store Where I’d heard the rumble years before But the man there said the Mercurys couldn’t play. And in the streets: the flatheads screamed, The Capris cried, and the Bobcats dreamed. But not a car was rolling, The Cyclone name was stolen. And the three men I admire most; Henry I, II, and Edsel’s ghost, They caught the last transporter for the coast The day the Mercurys died. They were singin’ Bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors.... Don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors They were singin’ Bye-bye all you Mercury guys Drove the Montego with an ego But the ego went dry And them good old boys drove their lead sleds some more Singin’ don’t build a Cougar with 4 doors....

I see the dilemma and I've found the same thing. I'm lucky to get a Fusion or Escape but I always make sure to ask for one. Sometimes they'll pull one off the wash line for you. Folks...look at it this way. The next time you're given a Hyundai or Toyota, beat the living crap out of it! Leave smelly fast food wrappers under the back seat. Drive it like you're 16 and don't give a damn. Treat it like all those folks who thrashed the Ford rentals for years. This way, the next person that gets the Turdota will wonder aloud why this alleged quality import seems so used up. And one more thing, when you turn in the car and the attendant asks if the car was OK, tell them no, that it's a lousy little crapwagon and I'll never rent one again! Have fun with this one.