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I'm not having any issues with the current exhaust, so is it worth it to do any upgrades to improve towing or leave it as is? I can set a set of Gibson GP125S Stainless Steel Headers for about $320. My Ex still has its factory exhaust, so taking it off would risk breaking studs, repairing them would be an added expense and time? Replacing the Y pipe would be about another $200. I already have the X4 tuner but no custom tunes, but that's more $$. So again, is it worth the time and money for what I might get out of it or best to leave it alone as long as it's not giving me any problems?
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Originally Posted by ShelbyHauler
(Post 17853255)
I'm not having any issues with the current exhaust, so is it worth it to do any upgrades to improve towing or leave it as is? I can set a set of Gibson GP125S Stainless Steel Headers for about $320. My Ex still has its factory exhaust, so taking it off would risk breaking studs, repairing them would be an added expense and time? Replacing the Y pipe would be about another $200. I already have the X4 tuner but no custom tunes, but that's more $$. So again, is it worth the time and money for what I might get out of it or best to leave it alone as long as it's not giving me any problems?
Get some good custom tunes from 5Star, they provide a small bump in power and a huge improvement in trans performance, well worth the cost in my opinion for a better towing experience. The headers, a real Y pipe (if you have the factory T shaped pipe) and a decent muffler like the 3030XL will bring a little bit of extra power to the party with better throttle response and will have a nice exhaust note without any drone. I don't know that they will ever "pay for themselves" if you do a ROI cost analylis, but they will contribute to a better tow rig. I'm very happy that I did my Banks headers, Y pipe and muffler, I work my tow rig pretty hard and all of the improvement mods do add up for a better final result. |
Used a 3 gauge pod to make a holder for my trailer brake controller, MaxTow trans temp gauge, and XM Radio head.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...96dcfbfec2.jpg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...d2f1a09a95.jpg https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...5542f26e01.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...288d588fc6.jpg |
Now with @Bananarama's incident, I thought I'd bring up that along with my Android HU, I also got a WiFi 3g/4g dongle for it. The Dongle was around $45 and I only use data for the data apps (Waze, google maps, etc) no streaming and my monthly bill comes up to a total of $25 including all taxes and fees. On both the HU and my Android phone I added the "GeoLoc" https://kid.gl/ family locator app so that I can track the location of the HU, which is in the dash of the EX.
For my 69 Shelby GT350 I do have a standalone Coban GPS tracker that has built-in alarm functions. / With it, I can set alarms that I get notified via TXT messages and can even send a STOP message that will activate a relay on the device that you can use to control a number of options (kill the ignition, kill fuel pump, etc). This unit requires a cellular plan as well, but just a data/Text plan (no data is actually used) and cost me about $120 per year per device. Just wanted to toss this out there in case anyone might be interested in what I have done and or use. Once I start towing and showing the car, I might add the Coban unit to the EX as well. |
Back to an older idea, the 3rd eye brake light. I had replaced the incandescent bulbs with some smaller LED's but was not happy with how bright they were. I had also seen a mod someplace (maybe here?) where someone took a motorcycle brake light flasher and wired it into the 3rd brake lamp. I had mounted my backup cam under the 3rd lamp but it was easy to remove the lens, the wiring and replace the LED lights with brighter ones.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...b73eefc84e.jpg A quick test and these light up very brightly. My normal parking/brake lamps are LED as well. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...e8e4d04bff.jpg I removed the upper trim from the rear hatch, identified the Pos and Neg wires for the 3rd lamp and spliced in the Strobe controller. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...6d50cee4d4.jpg Pushed it up into the empty space https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...84285416b1.jpg Reassembled it all and gave it a test. 4 way/emergency flashers first then a single step and hold on the brake pedal. You'll have to click or copy/past the link as my animated gif photo is not loading/saving here. http://redshost.com/2004excursion/im.../image115.html |
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...20681bde0e.jpg
Where the back pad should fit https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...71945d442e.jpg Bottom pad in place https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...06ccee03a7.jpg Carpet and pad removed https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...e9707b356c.jpg Original carpet on left, new on right https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...8bad100c6d.jpg Skinned the padding off the original carpet https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...6984e15c88.jpg Getting ready to install new seat bottom pad https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...29d0fee886.jpg New switch mounted on seat control panel https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...7fdfd9919e.jpg Wiring up the control panel https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...0b18bca494.jpg Drivers side done. Not happy with all the wrinkling around the trans hump. As mentioned in another thread, I had purchased new ACC carpet from Rock Auto and its been sitting around for a while. I'm heading up to Tn this March and my seat heaters are mostly not operational. So with new seat heaters purchased, its time to replace the carpet, and put in the seat heaters. Removal of the seats and center console was easy. I removed the door sill plates and pulled the carpet from under the other panels. The new carpet has no pre-cut holes and is oversized. I had to lay the old carpet over the new and mark where to cut holes and trim. After many, many tries at fitting the new carpet in, I had a hard time getting the front to fit well over the trans hump. Honestly, its just not molded correctly. Next, the carpet is separate from the backing, and the backing they sent is a couple of generic flat sheets. Nothing like what is bonded to the back of the original carpet. So I spend about an hour carefully skinning the original carpet off the original backing, so I can use it instead of the new backing. At least that fits well. With the help of some videos, I found it very easy to remove the bottom seat material and replace the heater pads. The backs I simply opened up the bottom and worked in the cavity to remove and install the heater pads. The hog rings are super easy to install compared to my old 69 Mustang seats. While I had them apart, I cleaned and painted the track assemblies. The new heater pads have a single control unit with a pair of switches that look like they were meant to be installed in the center console. As they are a single button, multi-function control, I had to add about 4 feet of wire to the passenger button so it would reach the location of the original button which it replaced. It's not a perfect fit, but a little silicone and a tie strap on the back will keep it in place, and it's not bad looking. Maybe I'll use something more solid in the future. I took power from the factory relay under the driver's seat. My 1 day project has now turned into a 3 day project, but it's turning out nice. |
This is a small item so I did not start a new thread. I replaced my damaged front bumper and moved the facia over from the old bumper, but am looking for the inside fasteners that hold the ends down to keep them from popping out. The facia is item 13 in the image, and there are two round plastic pins on each side that go through the bumper. That or another method of attaching wold be appreciated. A simple method I can think of would be to drill a small hole in the pin and use a small cotter pin over a washer?
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...a0bcc956c9.jpg |
Here was the old front bumper when I replaced it back in 2019 followed by the replacement that I painted to match the old one. I also installed the missing driving lamps.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...ba10997d20.jpg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...cd76cf5100.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...4cbb563bc1.jpg |
Back in 2021 I looked at the roof and hood, and decided that they needed some work. I took the roof rack off and cleaned the roof, and started doing some dent fixing on the hood. The roof looks pretty good when it's wet!
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...db0a4e4cbf.jpg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...644a3bd82e.jpg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...78d4382104.jpg I got buys, picked up my 2015 F350, and work on the Excursion got delayed. So now here it is 2023 and I finally get back to it. 1st I work on the hood. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...87bb3720fa.jpg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...7728e70c98.jpg primer https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...82c98b2d8b.jpg paint https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...46e640cf8e.jpg clear coat The hood will need a fine sanding and then buffing. Then I worked on the roof. Luckily it was just surface rust. https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...fc25eacdb7.jpg let the sanding begin https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...baf97b7a90.jpg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...4fb68bf652.jpg primered https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.for...1b0aed35ab.jpg painted I do have some white Rapture Liner that I was going to spray on the roof that would cover the area that the roof rack would sit over, but not sure if I will do that or leave it. Either way, now it's presentable enough to put it up for sale. |
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