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Brrr. 42 degrees this morning when I went to Walmart for some groceries. They say it will warm up to 55 next week. I can't wait. Ordered a JVC double DIN radio for the truck from Crutchfield.com. Should be here today. Can't wait to be able to hear tunes in that thing. I will pay a shop to install it and connect all four speakers. I'll buy an antenna from them too just to get the right one, and have it installed correctly.
Jim
Last edited by Nighteyez; Dec 9, 2025 at 12:09 PM.
What a week... Paid to have the JVC installed. Found out the left rear speaker was blown. They happened to have an open box speaker that fit so they replaced it for free. They tried to install the $73.73 Official Ford antenna mast from the stealership but ran into the same problem. No threads in the antenna base. They looked up one on Amazon for $20. but that was not for an F-150, it was for a F-250 and higher. It had a stud where the female end should be. Looked on eBay and found a complete antenna. Mast, base and wiring for $20.00 BUT, he wanted to charge $57 for shipping! So, I told him no. The people at J's Alarms (where I had the JVC installed) suggested JB Weld. I ordered a syringe from Walmart, and I will install that overpriced Ford antenna mast when it gets here. However, the truck is throwing a temper tantrum again and all the gauges are not working. Another interesting thing about that is now that it has a stereo in it, it does not want to shut it off when I turn off the engine and open the door. The old stereo would turn off once the driver door was opened, and the JVC did too when the gauges were working, but not now. I asked some friends at church about an auto electrical repair shop they could recommend, and all three mentioned the same place. Electric Laboratories about 3-4 miles from here. Called for an appointment, and the earliest they can get me in is December 29th. They must be good if they are that busy. They also gave me an estimate of $495 for two hours of diagnostics. However, he said it is possible it could be less if they find the problem early with a minimum of work. So, I will pray that happens.
495 for 2 hours , nobody is that good , highway robbery Jim
currently 34deg, I’m starting to think old man winter has officially arrived , bout time to start pulling out the Thermal’s
495 for 2 hours , nobody is that good , highway robbery Jim
currently 34deg, I’m starting to think old man winter has officially arrived , bout time to start pulling out the Thermal’s
That seems a bit high to me, but….. my Mechanic is now $160/hour for Shop Time/labor period. I saw his building rental and associated fees on top of employment expenses . I’ll just stop there to keep the BP in check.
The Diesel is running good after a front end refresh including ball joints, u-joints, PS Gearbox, assorted lines and holes, Steering Dampener and such. Oh, and two new tires. The Alignment Shop refused to do work until 7 items were fixed/replaced.
495 for 2 hours , nobody is that good , highway robbery Jim
currently 34deg, I’m starting to think old man winter has officially arrived , bout time to start pulling out the Thermal’s
Maybe, but if they can fix it, I would be happy. Since they cannot see me until the 29th, I may call around to other shops in the area to compare prices. I will NOT be asking the guy on the corner. All he wants to do is replace the gauge cluster. He has not even done any diagnostics on it.
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They also gave me an estimate of $495 for two hours of diagnostics. However, he said it is possible it could be less if they find the problem early with a minimum of work. So, I will pray that happens.
495 for 2 hours 
, nobody is that good , highway robbery Jim 
. I’ll just stop there to keep the BP in check.