OK - I am new to this sight and think it is very informational. I have had a '94 Chevy since it was new and am very familiar with the crank down/up spare tire access. Got a new 2010 F 150 today and this afternoon I checked out several items to make sure all is well. However, I have read the owners manual section on how to crank the spare down and it says there is a "guide tube" behind the hole in the rear bumper where one removes the access lock. I do not see a tube and also cannot find where the jack handle extension is supposed to mate up with. If I can't get the info her I'll head back to the dealer tommorrow.

Thanks,
Wayne

 

I had the same problem two weeks ago when I had a flat tire.My 150 does not have a tube to guide the wrench. I had to look to find the slot where the jack pole inserts. You have to insert the pole in an angle towards the center of the car in order to find the slot where the wrench goes in.Hope this helps.

 

Welcome to FTE Wayne! I hope you love you new truck. Your salesman should have gone over all this with you. Shame on him / her.

 

I know it is of little consolation, but for the first timer, it is almost easiest to insert your jack handle sections through the access hole in the bumper, lay on your back underneath the back of the truck and guide the jack handle to where it needs to go. You might need to drag a flashlight along so that you can see where the tire lift mechanism & jack handles connect together. Then, when you get back up, you can check the angle of the jack handle to give you something to work off of in the future.

 

I bought my truck used and brought up that there was no lug socket (spline drive thanks to the aftermarket wheels that were on it) and he just kinda shrugged and said bummer. At that point I just wanted to leave and be done with him.

 

Thanks to All- My problem was that I was going in a little bit too straight with the extension. After I realized the angle of inserting the jack handle extension it was pretty much a "piece of cake". However, it sure would be nicer if they had made the "guide tube" a bit longer like it is on my Chevy truck.

Wayne

 

Hmmm, another 6.0 guy up here lurking. Are you thinking of joining us Chris?

 

The 2nd day I owned my truck, the spare came out from underneath and went in the box (I have a cap on the box but lockable restraints, even a bike lock, are cheap too).
Ever change a tire at -30 c ? / in a foot of snow? / in a swamp?

I've done all 3 (but I'm old).

You may not wish to be playing around with cranking a tire down from beneath your truck in any of these circumstances.

In addition, I bought a bottle jack ($40) as I find the stock screw jack leaves a lot to be desired in adverse conditions.
Regardless of what type jack you use, you might find carrying a square foot piece of plywood in the box to set the jack on will save you from grief in many situations.