Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with truck

drain on Ford F150's new battery?

Elsa — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 11:27:29 -0800

Help us diagnose our Ford F150: what could be draining down the (new) battery overnight? We're suddenly seeing apparent battery drainage in our pickup truck, a 1994 Ford F150. Though the truck starts up fine, the dashboard battery gauge reads low immediately upon ignition, the windshield wipers are sluggish, and the dashboard lights are dim. We thought the old battery was likely dying, so we had it replaced with a new battery... but that hasn't solved the problem. (I'm posting this for my husband, who drives the truck. Here is the problem in his words.)

It's a 1994 Ford F150 pickup. Two days ago, the battery light came on and the battery gauge on the dash was at the low end of the meter when I started the truck after work (it had been sitting for about 9 hours). I assumed it was a bad battery, so I had the battery replaced at a chain auto place.

Everything seemed fine until I got out of work that night (after the truck had been sitting for about 9 hours) and the problem was exactly the same. The alternator seems to be working, as the battery gauge goes up to where it belongs if I let the truck run for about 20 minutes. There are no lights left on (glovebox, dome light, etc). It seems that, when the truck is off, something is drawing power from the battery.

When the gauge is low, the dash lights dim, and the windshield wipers are slow and sluggish. When it's charged back up, everything is normal again.

While I'm letting the truck idle to charge up the battery, the gauge will go up slightly if I rev the engine, but goes back down when I take my foot off the gas. Once it's fully charged again, revving the engine has no effect.

Both before and after getting the battery replaced, the truck started up just fine (no problem at all), even though the battery light came on and the battery gauge was low.

Once the battery is charged up again, turning the truck off for ten minutes-a half hour has no effect; the battery is still charged normally after that length of time.

We'll be taking it in to the mechanic on Monday, but with holiday errands and visits pressing, we'd love to get a headstart on the diagnostics over the weekend.

Some specific questions

1. Aside from the things we've checked (dome light, glovebox light, ashtray light, radio), what could be draining down the battery while the truck is off? Especially, do you know of any idiosyncratic drainage problems with the Ford F150? (We're also checking the forums on a Ford-specific board, but any hints would be helpful.)

2. Are there any simple home diagnostic tests we could make? Again, anything specific to the Ford F150 would be useful, but not necessary.

The fact that the truck starts normally (that is, readily and vigorously) seems to make this a different question than previous AskMe questions (which all seem to include a car that won't turn over) about a drained battery or dying alternator... or am I wrong? If the alternator is faulty, would the car be starting normally?

I need the name of this small motorized friction toy truck. Please!

orehek — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 08:59:00 -0800

I need the name of this small motorized friction toy truck. Please! Hi All,

Around 3 Christmas' ago, I saw a small toy trucks sold at Walmart. They were in the same aisle as MatchBox cars. These toy trucks were packaged within a cardboard frame (packaging was around 9" x 5" or so) with a rigid clear plastic cover. There was also an opening in the plastic to permit one to place their finger inside so that one could propel the truck and you would see it move by way of friction...no batteries.

The truck was actually housed inside a circular ring. So when examining it in the store, you pushed the truck from behind and it would begin to scale the ring/surface which it was house in for demonstration purposes. The truck had a low gear motor which allowed it to move at a slow consistent speed yet had a great deal of climbing power due to the low gear ratio.

This truck did not wound back. You simply pushed it firmly forward and it would start to really scale the ring it was contained in. To be clear, the ring was not part of the toy, it was just part of the packaging so that one could see how the truck worked. I think it came to two sizes but the one I remember was about 2.25" long and about 1.5" tall. Lastly, they had robust rubber tires for good traction. Does anyone have any idea as to what this toy truck product and/or series was called? And is it still on the market? Thanks so much.

Mold in Truck! Out Damn Mold!

fieldtrip — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:28:58 -0800

I'm asking for my sister. And, yes I saw the previous sorta related mold questions but this is specific enough and those were long enough ago that I thought, perhaps, there might be some new mold-fighting technology or tactics: "We have a serious mold problem in our truck! Has anyone had success battling mold? "...We are still trying to determine the cause. It is likely from a leak, but could also have been compounded from wet stuff left inside. We don't drive it much, so the wet stuff was in the cabin for four weeks before we saw any results. Granted it also rained VERY heavily for many days during that time, too.

So far, we wiped down all surfaces (fabric and hard plastic) with a mold remover spray. We then shampooed the seats and carpet and dry vacuumed them. I also just put a dehumidifier in the cabin (a cheap plastic thing with little kitty litter like balls--like those silicon packets that come in shoes???). It hasn't collected any water though it has been three very wet and rainy days.

We have been advised by our local car expert to take out the seats and carpet and completely wash and dry them. This is our new plan for the Thanksgiving holiday when we can use our parents' garage. (We live in a city apartment and park on the street). We have been told that even cavemen could do this.

Does anyone have additional suggestions/hints?

Thanks so much!
Ellen in Seattle"

Auto-broker, good or bad idea?

furtive — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:13:48 -0800

Does buying used through an auto-broker make sense for me? I'm in the market for a used car (1-4 years old, one owner, still under warranty) but I live 90 minutes away from the nearest urban area with a proper used car market. To compound things my truck is on it's last legs and every trip out I expect it to be the last. This makes shopping around for a used car rather difficult.

It dawned on me that there must be a market for auto-brokers, and googling them found me several in the nearest city. Does anyone have experience with these? What should I be aware of? I don't mind paying a few hundred extra for the convenience.

What's wrong with my truck?

geoff. — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:37:21 -0800

I have a 2001 Dodge Ram that I use when I need to haul things. It runs great, except in the morning after it rains. The truck will not want to rev beyond 1800-2000rpm. If I idle it or drive for for about 10 minutes the problems go away. Any ideas? This has been happening for about a year but I don't use it very often so I sort of ignored it. I've been using it a bit more and I sort of want to get it taken care of if it is causing damage, if it is not I can just ignore it. It is also an automatic so I'll try to explain gear changes as best I can, but I could be wrong. Keep in mind this only happens in the morning after a rainfall. It did occur once without rainfall, but in that instance I parked it in a field that was very dewy; there's definitely a moisture connection. I haven't noticed the problem if I drive it on a dry day and it rains in the afternoon. Here's the best description I can come up with:

It will make the transition from first to second at about 1800rpm so I don't initially notice it. From second to third, on normal conditions, it'll get up to 2400rpm before changing gears. When it is experiencing problems it won't go above 1800rpm or 2000rpm and if I apply more pressure on the accelerator the engine sounds like more power is coming out of it but the tachometer doesn't seem to want to move up. It is as if I hit a ceiling or there's a hole at around 2000rpm. If I accelerate slowly I can get up to the speed I want without any problems. This is really noticeable when getting on the highway and I need a lot of torque to get up to speed. If I push it when I hit this "wall" , and I only did this once, it gives up and drops down to like 1600rpm. I don't know if I would describe it as a popping sound or just a cessation of power? When I did this (just once!) the engine light came down, when I let off the accelerator the engine light went off. It has yet to come on again.

It is most definitely every single morning it rains the night before, I've been driving it everyday this last month to isolate the problem and to make sure the rain thing wasn't a red herring. I'm really confounded as to what it could be.

Truck battery cost

Kam1761 — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 16:30:17 -0800

My 18 year old son went to Express Oil Change to have a new battery put in his 2004 Ford Explorer Sport Trac. His battery was dead and when jumped off, it would not hold a charge. They put an MTP-65 Interstate battery in and charged him $146 for the battery alone. With installation, charging system testing fee, and taxes, the total cost was $208.93. Does that sound high? I was expecting to pay half of that.

Truck Nutz not included

emilyd22222 — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 07:47:07 -0800

Help me find cost-effective hitch/trailer or truck options. I will be moving from Cleveland to Champaign IL in early August with an apartment's worth of boxes, a couch, and a dining room table. My dad will be helping me move, and we are planning on either putting a hitch on his car (2009 Toyota Rav4 AWD) and towing a trailer, or towing his car behind a truck. I will be driving separately in a very small car that is unable to tow a trailer. He needs to bring his car to Champaign, as we can't afford a truck plus air fare back to Cleveland.

I'm frustrated that so far I've been unable to find rental options that aren't more expensive than the value of the couch and table. UHaul is about 300 for hitch + trailer, plus installation costs (which seems to be one potential area to save, although I don't have the first clue about how to install a hitch), and about 500 for a truck + car towing apparatus. Penske seems less expensive to tow the car, but they don't offer hitches from what I can see.

Any ideas? I'm open to other money-saving moving tips as well.

Where can I rent an import truck?

aeighty — Mon, 04 May 2009 10:10:56 -0800

Where in Vancouver, BC can I rent a Toyota and/or a Nissan truck? I'm planning to buy a truck, so I've been surveying the scene. I've already had a chance to drive Ford F-150 and Dodge Ram 1500 and 2500 diesel (nice!). I'd like to try the import trucks now. Unfortunately, the rental places have domestics only. In US, I know that Toyota does rentals through dealerships, but this doesn't apply to Canada. Anyway, do you guys have any ideas? I tried googling, but no go.

Thanks!

How to manage two consecutive car accidents?

fermion — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 16:03:28 -0800

My parked car got hit by a truck. Then, before I could get it fixed, it got hit by another truck. How do I handle two claims at once? The first accident was a couple of months ago--a truck hit my parked car and ripped my rear bumper halfway off. The wheels of paperwork have been grinding slowly, partly just because I've been busy, so I'm still working things out with that insurance company and hadn't fixed the damage yet. This morning, a garbage truck hit my (again, parked--I haven't driven it at all for a few months) car and did some damage to the door and mirrors, as well as taking my bumper the rest of the way off.

What do I tell the garbage truck's insurance company about this most recent incident? I don't want to get compensated for the same damages twice, but I also don't want to give them an excuse to claim all the damage was pre-existing. I know that the appropriate actions in situations like this can be counter-intuitive, so I'm hoping you folks can give me some advice.

Potentially relevant info: I'm in Washington State, and my insurance is liability-only (it's an old car) so I'm dealing with the other insurance companies directly rather than through my own insurer.

What does the inside of my car door look like?

carsonb — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 10:36:43 -0800

I'm replacing the 6.5" door speakers on my 1999 Chevy S-10 (regular cab) and I have two questions. I. What does the linkage between the outer door handle and the latch mechanism look like? As I was removing the door molding (a minor fiasco, but done) I accidentally poked my finger in through a hole in the metal and unseated the rod that connects the outer door handle lever to the door latch. I can't see the linkage directly, so I don't know how it goes back together. If only I knew how they connected, I could put them back together.

II. The factory speaker that I'm replacing connected to the wiring via a socket. My new Pioneer speaker doesn't have this socket; it came with wires that crimp onto the speaker on one end and are an inch bare on the other. Can I simply cut the socket insert off the speaker wires in the door and just join them to the bare ends coming from the speaker?

Your help is greatly appreciated.

Any firm resources on Chevy Truck inter-model parts compatibility?

SquidLips — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 19:43:54 -0800

What years / models of Chevy Trucks / SUVs have interchangeable (for the most part) interior mechanicals, specifically seats? I own a 2004 Chevy Avalanche. The driver's side seat decided to break... one of the main back supports seems to have broken, and the seat belt no longer retracts fully.

I've contacted several local salvage yards, but it seems 2004 Av's are in pretty short supply. I know that there are certain models / years of other Chevys that use essentially the same seats in some cases... but Google continues to turn up enough conflicting information about what is and isn't compatible... everything from 'nothing else is compatible' to 'Anything from 99-07 will work'. Obviously I want to make sure it will fit before dropping the $.

I'm guessing that there may not be a 1:1 relationship here... it might depend on what options I have? Is there a way to compare the option / RPO codes between trucks to determine compatibility with other models or years?

And before anyone suggests it... yes, I did talk to the service department at two different local dealerships. Neither could find any members of their service staff who could give a definitive answer on compatibility with other models / years.

Bonus points for replacement tips, and if you can tell me if a seat with more options than my current simple 6-way power will work just fine (not looking for the extras to work, necessarily, as long as I have at least the 6-way power I have now).

Thanks in advance!

What repair fixes a misfiring 4-Runner?

carsonb — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 08:42:47 -0800

Why does my uncle's 1998 V6 Toyota 4-Runner misfire at highway speeds? Last month we drove from Los Angeles to Tucson and back, and at what seemed to be random points while we were driving the engine would buck repeatedly. Once it started, it would continue at all speeds, with the engine running particularly rough at low/idle RPM. We took it in to 3 different Toyota dealerships along the way, and to it's home dealership once we got back. They were all happy to service the vehicle, but none were able to fix it and two insisted they couldn't find any problems with the vehicle. Before we go on, my uncle has always insisted on dealership service. His 4-Runner is in pristine condition, to the day on all of its tune-ups and servicings, and only has 130,000 or so miles on it.

The problem first started near El Centro. We limped south along hwy 86 to the dealership there, where they diagnosed a misfire on 'cylinder one'. They 'made some adjustments' but didn't replace or repair anything, and as we left the truck ran fine. In fact, it ran great all the way through Yuma and Casa Grande, but by the time we were passing Picacho (just north of Tucson) the problem had started again. Throughout this leg of the trip we didn't see any instrumental indication that the engine had a problem. (No check-engine light.)

Then Christmas came, and all the dealership service bays were closed. Eventually we got it into a dealership in Tucson, where they couldn't find a whit wrong with the vehicle. Since it was due up, my uncle went ahead and sprung for a full tune-up while we were there. He didn't test the truck at highway speeds after getting it back though...

And sure enough, a few days later as we were rounding Gila Bend on the way back to LA, cruisin' along at a stately 70mph, the engine started bucking again. The check engine light came on occasionally. This time we limped further, all the way to Yuma, where the young salesschmuck told us after 3 hours of diagnostics that they could start by replacing 'the coil', that the distributor needed replacing as well but since they were in the middle of nowhere they didn't have the part on hand. Fine, said unc, so they replaced 'the coil' and sent us on our way. We weren't 20 miles outside of Yuma before the engine started misfiring again.

We make it home (14 hours, Tucson to LA) and my uncle takes his truck into its home dealership, where it's been serviced since he bought it new. According to him, they can't find a single thing wrong with it, including the distributor. There's nothing they could do, apparently.

So what the hell? What could be causing the misfire? Why won't any mechanics diagnose the problem? What are they, what are WE missing? My poor uncle has poured thousands of dollars into repairing his beloved vehicle, and it's still not fixed. I'd love to be able to help him get it running right again.

How should I drive a 03 Tacoma in the snow?

sir_rubixalot — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:31:12 -0800

Driving in snowy conditions and getting tire chains on a 2003 Toyota Tacoma (5 speed manual, basic model), possible or not? Also, should I get snow tires as well as tire chains? I plan to spend some time up in Tahoe this year, snowboarding and such, but I plan on driving myself up using my truck. Is this advised, possible, any tips or suggestions? Being a rear wheel drive truck with no weight in the back I am concerned about traction having never driven this truck in the snow.

Neglect my ride

Skorgu — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 11:20:57 -0800

How would you make a well-running car or pickup truck look, smell, and/or sound like an eyesore/deathtrap/junker without affecting its real abilities or safety? The only hard criteria is that anything loud or smelly has to be able to be removed with only hand tools and it can't do permanent damage to the car (i.e. just letting bits rust).

Cancel a reservation on uhaul.com?

amusem — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:19:15 -0800

Is it possible to cancel a uhaul truck reservation on the uhaul website? It does not seem to be possible. I ask because the wait to cancel over the phone is interminable. Thank you.

van driving in NY

raphael19 — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:11:21 -0800

Which highways (or roads) should i avoid while driving a van in NY? I need to move some stuff from the city to upstate NY with a van (15'-17' long). It is a 20 miles drive. How do i determine which highways are commercial? I don't want to have a ticket. Mapquest has an option as "avoid highways". Would that help me? Or through which source or website can i get the correct route? Thank you.

I hope they choke on the fumes...

ZaneJ. — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 01:48:45 -0800

Should I get a new catalytic converter for my truck? A few days ago, after having my Toyota Tacoma sitting for a few days, I started my truck. It sounded as if someone had ripped of my exhaust system. Undaunted and drunk, I got myself home. The next day I examined my exhaust system to, lo and behold, discovered someone had sawsall'd my catalytic converter out of my trucks exhaust system. My community has a lot of tweekers in it and a copious amount of metal theft, so I have a feeling someone is smoking the shit out of the $100 dollars they got out of it.

I'm poor, and really don't give a fuck about replacing the converter itself. All I want is my truck to not be as goddamned loud as it is now with a short exhaust system. I live in rural Washington state, Centralia specifically. Should I actually worry about replacing the converter itself, for the sake of my truck and my legality, or could I do with just welding in a piece of pipe to vent my exhaust and make my truck quite(er) again?

Again, I don't care about legality, I just want a quieter truck and a repair job where I don't have to worry about harming my engine.

Which Manhattan streets to avoid with a truck?

aswego — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 14:40:32 -0800

Rental truck to NYC: Which streets on my route forbid such vehicles? Which streets would be just plain inconvenient to drive on with such vehicles? I'm not looking forward to driving a rental truck in Manhattan, and want to avoid as much hassle as possible. I'm moving from Maryland to, let's say, near Columbus Circle. I would be driving into Manhattan Sunday morning/early afternoon, and was originally planning on taking the GW Bridge and then heading down the West Side Highway.

Then this AskMefi Question scared me.

So what are my options, and which would be best? Will my UHaul or Ryder truck be unwelcome on particular streets or avenues in the neighborhood? Is there anything else I should be particularly cautious about?

Why won't my pickup start?

lysistrata — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 10:27:07 -0800

Please help me figure out what's wrong with my truck. It's driving me nuts! I own a 1990 Ford Ranger. For the last three weeks it has been intermittently refusing to start. This usually happens after it has been driven for a short while. (Example: I'll drive it the store a few miles away, run in, come out and it won't start. The engine cranks/revs but won't start.) Once the engine cools down completely it will usually start fine and I can run it long enough to get it to a garage.

I've been to four different mechanics about this and it still isn't fixed. Two of the mechanics couldn't duplicate the problem and told me they had no idea what it could be. A third thought it was my fuel pump relay and replaced that but it didn't help. The latest mechanic told me it was my ignition coil and replaced that. This was a few days ago. I drove the truck for one day afterwards and it was ok. Then yesterday I took it to the store and when I came out it wouldn't start. I let it cool down completely and went back and it still wouldn't start. I left it overnight, went back this morning and still all it does is crank without starting. So it seems that the problem is getting worse. Now even it when it cools down it won't start.

I have a newer car that I use on a daily basis so I'm ok on transportation but I use the pickup to haul stuff for work so I'd really like to get it fixed if I could. Plus I just love the thing and don't want to give up on it yet. But I'm running out of patience, time and money.

I'm having it towed back to the garage that replaced the ignition coil so they can take another look at it but I thought I'd put it to the hive mind as well since it seems no one can give me a proper diagnosis.

Does anyone have any idea what might be going on? Or is it time to give up on the old boy and look for a newer truck?

Can having 1 truck tire smaller than the others be dangerous or cause damage?

isopropyl — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 01:15:02 -0800

Nearly a year ago I blew out my right from tire on my 2001 Toyota Tacoma. It is also a PreRunner and TRD. My tires are Dayton Timberline AT (all terrain) size 265/75R16. I could only afford on at the time but knew I would be needing three more soon. I checked my tire size in order to get multiple estimates from all the local companies and I realized they had put on a 265/70R16 on accident. I have driven nearly 20,000 miles on the oddly matched tires and had them rotated 6 months ago. Should I be worried about and damage to my truck? I've called the company and they apologized and offered to give me 4 new tires, one for free and all at the 75 size. They also said they would match the competitors price which was 50 dollars cheaper because I was a loyal customer.He then assured me that no damaged could have been done from their error. They were unable to acquire the 4 new tires I originally had and are now looking for something of equivalently quality. Should I go to a mechanic or trust the tire place who already charged me for one tire and delivered a smaller cheaper one .

Best way to get my stuff from Mpls to Chicago?

ictow — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 08:11:28 -0800

I'll be moving to Chicago from Minneapolis at the end of the month, and I'm trying to figure out the best (read: easiest/cheapest) way to get 3 people's bedroom furniture plus a living room out there. There's a lot of good advice on askme already, but I thought with ever-increasing gas prices I'd see if new alternatives have popped up. Initially I was going to rent a Uhaul, but after reading up on it it seems like that's asking for trouble. Now I'm looking at renting a 16' truck from Budget or Penske, but I wonder:

Will it hold our stuff?
It's listed as being able to transport 2-3 rooms, I'd guess our inventory will be about the following:
4 mattresses and box springs, 3-4 bookshelves, 2 dressers, tv and stand, couch, recliner, desk, misc. furniture plus some boxes.

Is there a better alternative?
With the addition of gas costs, this is going to end up being around $700. I'm fine with that if that's the best I can get, but the miser in me wonders if there's a better way. I've heard about ABF U-Pack, but I'm not quite clear on how much space I would end up renting given what we're moving. Anyone with experience doing this sort of 400-mile move have any recommendations on how to do it best?

Should I bail out of my SUV now?

revan — Fri, 23 May 2008 08:36:11 -0800

Should I dump my SUV? I have a 2006 Expedition, I've only put 12,000 miles on it since I purchased it new. My commute is 12 miles round trip and I only drive it in the winter and when it rains in the spring and summer, I bike on all other days. My concern is two fold. First, I am currently under water on my loan and will have to come up with around $5,000 on a trade or private sale. Second, if I keep the vehicle am I effectively throwing good money after bad, will this vehicle be unsellable / undriveable in a few years. I know that my question requires some prognostication, but I would appreciate some opinions.

What is my best option, moving from San Diego to Toronto?

geodave — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 21:18:33 -0800

Moving from California to Toronto, how can we do it cheaply? Got about enough stuff to fill a cube van, nothing big. Could potentially put it all in the back of a decent sized pickup truck.

I'm looking at car rental places, truck rental sites, none of them seem to let me put in a Canadian destination to drop off the van. Would it be cheaper to just hire a moving company to do the same thing?

Cheapest I found was $899 to go from San Diego to Buffalo using budget trucks, and then somehow make it the extra 2 hours through the generosity of friends or something.

Any ideas?

Do truck tuners and other supposed mileage boosting equipment work?

tosteka — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 15:02:24 -0800

Does the Hypertech Max Energy Programmer really increase fuel economy for trucks and SUVs? If so, why do auto manufacturers not simply include them in their vehicles so as to beat out the competition? I saw an ad for an aftermarket tuner that connects to the computer of trucks and SUVs and supposedly has an "economy" setting that can up your fuel economy by "2 to 6 MPG".

Do tuners really work to increase fuel economy, particularly for a 1/2 ton Ford with a 5.4L triton V8?

At first I was excited and wanted to try it, but with a price tag of nearly $380, I figured I'd better think twice. Still, at current fuel prices of $3.50/gal, and with only a 2 MPG increase, it would only take one year's worth of driving to pay for the unit with the fuel savings, assuming one drives 15,000 miles per year and goes from getting something like 16 MPG to something like 18 MPG.

I became skeptical, though, when I considered the pressure on the auto manufacturers to increase fuel economy. Surely if there were a legitimate way to boost efficiency by tweaking settings in the vehicle's computer, auto manufacturers would have already added the device to vehicles, with a switch in the dash as standard equipment, wouldn't they have?

Is there any conceivable reason why auto manufacturers wouldn't have already added this device to every vehicle?

While we're on the subject, there are a variety of MPG increasing strategies at this website. If these strategies are legit, why are they not standard? Are there any standouts that are worth a try?

stock ford ranger edge grille?

Salvatorparadise — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 16:21:58 -0800

where can i get a stock honeycomb grill for a 2003 ford ranger, just like this one? everything I find is of the more blinged out variety, chrome etc...

alllll i want is the one just like the grill that came with my 2003 Ranger Edge - before i smashed it by driving too quickly into my garage and into my bike....