aplumma

I actually own both an in line5 Mercedes as well as the eco boost F150. Both are very good vehicles and both have been stellar in durability and reliability. The offset of the additional cost as well as the cost of diesel fuel down here .90cents a gallon makes diesel less attractive. As far as the eco boost you can love them or you can hate them it will not change the way Ford is heading and if the eco boost technology is not for you then you have quite a few other options to chose from. It is kind of funny how different Mechanics in different areas have a favorite Brand and Engine. One garage I repair their plumbing at cringe when a Toyota comes in but everyone fights to work on the Honda. The mechanic that works on the Mercedes HATES the vehicle not because of the engine but because of the difficulty of getting parts in a timely manner. Art

A trip to the shop to have the ECU and the Transmission control Module read thru is in his future. Now a days a burned coil pack can make a car feel like the transmission is shuddering and hesitating when it is just a cylinder that is dropping out under load. Art

You might want to get the ecu reflashed when I purchased mine in 2012 I did not get very good MPG (17 highway) a bulletin was sent out about water slugging from the cooler and they reflashed the ECU. it dropped my H.P. to 300 but I am not missing it at all. I also am running a 3.73 gear set which adds 500 RPM's so I should be getting worse millage than you. Right now I am at 17.0 MPG but the last tank has been short trips to town. Here is a link to a forum that has the TSB as well as a little discussion on what it has done for their trucks. http://www.f150forum.com/f70/computer-update-success-138353/index2/ Hope this helps the truck should be doing better than what you are getting from the info you have provided. Art

I have owned Gas,Diesel,Turbo,Supercharged, 4x4, 2x4, 2 and 4 stroke over the years. All of them have had shining points and all have a bad side no matter who makes the vehicle. I have built motors that have been turbo, and supercharged and some have had their horse power doubled or better. With this said I prefer turbo engines both fuels work excellently and when driven correctly can get better mileage than non turbo engines. Gearing is another thing most people overlook, you can take a one horsepower engine and with gears move 1000 lbs not fast but it can be done. Maintenance is also very important to keep things working smoothly it will make any mechanical item work correctly and last longer. When I buy a vehicle I order it with lower gear sets and tow package for the cooling and the heavy up of key components to make it's work load easier to handle. With these actions I can make any manufacturers vehicle give me a long and happy life. Art

To see what I am talking about see this link http://www.homedepot.com/b/Electrical-Electrical-Tools-Accessories-Electrical-Test-Meters/Infrared-Thermometer/N-5yc1vZboffZ1z1180y The idea behind it is not so much to see what a temperature of each wheel or brake is since it changes with speed and temperature but to see if the other wheel on the opposite side is within 15% of the other side. That means the front left VS front right , rear L and R and trailer L and R. By reading the caliper thru the wheel openings you can spot a dragging brake pad. By reading the tire sidewall it will give you an indication if it is over heating from something as minor a a low pressure condition. Usually I also shot the hub of the trailer it will tell you if a bearing is seizing up. To check all 6 tires 2 hubs and 4 rotors is less than a minute with this tool. While I do not do this most of the time I drive I try to check the vehicles once or twice a month and so far it has helped spot a hung caliper and a dry set of bearings from a blown seal. Both would have been survivable on a road failure but when I am up North and heading into cottage country it can take a day or so to get the parts to fix. It is why I pack my bearings yearly and replace my tires on the trailer every three years no matter what the tread left is. Art

Here is a link to some cold weather tips as well as the mechanics of what your body does when it gets cold. It kind of puts the rub your hands in snow or dip in water theory in question. While it mentions it as a women thing it actually is mostly for both sexes. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2277153/So-THATs-womens-feet-hands-cold---Its-hormones.html Art

I found your Eco boost for you. lol http://www.caranddriver.com/ford/f-150 Turbo charging by design is to increase the efficiency of a pump which is basically what an engine is. If you have a displacement of 3.5 at atmosphere pressure then add 28 lb of air pressure (2 atmosphere) you have doubled in theory the displacement to 7.0. Now with fuel, combustion rate and pressure variables as well as spooling the turbos you are actually loosing around 20% . The time that the turbo is spooled up in boost is in relation to the amount of fuel injected into the chamber. This is what causes people to find huge differences in their fuel economy a person who is slow to accelerate and holds a consistent speed will get much better gas mileage than jack rabbiting from down low and passing the slower people around them. What did Ford do then to make a 2.7 Eco Boost relevant to a large pickup? They made it spend more time at lower boost so the fuel map is less aggressive but when you put your foot into it you are using more fuel and more air pressure to make it jump. This has the potential to get a good MPG rating for people who drive the truck non aggressively and do not tow very often. There is a saying " There is no replacement for Cubic Inches" well that is true but Turbo charging will make cubic inches work harder and appear to double in size. Gas consumption is the down side of owning large vehicles if your life style does not require you to have one don't buy one if it does who cares if it uses gas doing the job it was designed for. Art

I actually am lucky I travel with my brother Joe and he would rather drive than ride. I usually drive for a few hours as he stretches but for the most part he is doing the majority of the driving. I use a good tire on the trailer and change them every 3 years as well as carrying a temperature sensor to spot issues on the truck as well as the trailer brakes and tires. Art

My pops has a big issue with his hands hurting when they get cold. He has frost bitten them as well as burned them so even 40F is enough to cause him pain. I have tried all of the toys but they are either to heavy/ bulky or for some reason failed. I bought him a set of these http://www.ventureheat.com/battery-heated-gloves/26-heated-glove-liners.html They are not bulky and you can wear them under a set of gloves including rubber ones. So far they heat up within 45 seconds and the high temperature will drive your hands out in less than a minute. The battery packs work very well and with intermittent use on low or medium last longer than an eight hour trip. Art

Actually the annealing and tempering are done before the grinding. The blade if ground correctly is done without letting the blade getting hotter than comfortable touched. I have both the shaping belt grinder and the water grinding machines to keep the blades from being weakened. Almost all of the hand forged blades are made of a composite of metals to give it the qualities that make a knife of superior feel and quality. If you are dealing with mass produced knifes then you are basically getting a piece of steel that was either lazer/cct(waterjet) cut or even worse stamped. Don't get me wrong they work but hardly qualify as a work of Art. Art

The big difference is that I am pulling a custom covered bassboat and a covered bed so my wind resistance is a lot less. On my meter it shows 14 MPG if my googled converter is correct . It is 960 miles from my house to the Nip and it is 13 hours deducting stops gives me an average speed of 73 mph. Art

Gerrit the ability to make the knife whole is very expensive. The blade will need to be broken down and then reforged to restore it to it's former length. You can regrind it to the correct shape however it means the knife blade section will using part of the knife called the spline as a cutting edge. Most spines are made of a tempered steel that is more ridgid but softer on edge retention. Replacing it at $75.00 is a lot cheaper most of the knifes I regrind cost 125 - 300 dollars to get them to have the same flexibility as the did before they were shortened. Art

Wayne I am getting 13.8L per 100 kilometers mpg combined and 13L per 100 kilometers highway. The towing of 6000 lbs gets me 16.8L per kilometer mpg when I run to Canada but remember we are doing 65-85 mph all the way. I am very happy with the Eco Boost and so far have had 0 issues with it. For the people who say they blow up or have issues usually it is the way they are driven rather than the engine having a design flaw. All companies have an off day on the build but so far Ford has always stood behind any of their products and made things right for me at least. Premium gas is not needed if you are driving it normally so it is not an additional expense that I have. I also have a 3.72 gearset instead of the normal 3.31 so I run 500 rpms more at highway speeds than the stock units. I have a new Transit van coming in the next few weeks so I will be the owner of 2 Eco Boosts now. I am for the most part a Ford man rather than a Dodge person because I have over the years made friends with the auto shop and the dealer so I get treated better than average. Once you decide to spend 40-50 thousand on a vehicle for towing the cost of fuel really does not make or break the deal of getting it. I have motorcycles that can burn up to 10 l per 100 kilometers and a few boats that get between 1.5 and 3 MPG so to grump about my truck would be foolish lol. Art

Historically diesel was cheaper for many years here. The new sulfur content marked the change over to more $ for diesel. It is not that the process warrants the price it is just because they can. Most of the oil companies profits are made on diesel and heating oil due to the laws of economics and the gas crowd makes more noise than the diesel consumers. With the introduction of the Eco Boost and other more efficent gas engines it makes the US move even further from being major diesel consumers. Art

So far the Ford eco boost engine has been worth its weight in gold for me. The pick up has towed and preformed excellently with runs up to 14 hours straight towing a boat and a weeks worth of gear.. The gas millage has been on average 17 MPG with a tow package and geared for towing at 3.72. The upgrade from the 3.7 to the eco boost is $1800.oo on average and was the first upgrade I did when I ordered my new van. While I like diesels and have owned/own them in the past the surcharge on fuel makes Gas a better choice. The 17MPG VS 22MPG is negated by the .70 cents average over charge on the diesel. Art

I guide about 10 trips a year on my boat and every once in a while I get a bad customer. Most people do things out of ignorance so we have an introductory speech before we cast off the lines that outlines what to do if an emergency arises and what is appropriate boat behavior. We had a few excessive drinkers on the boat (legal drinking on my boat due to head and sleep quarters) they were not the primary charter so we requested the charter to not invite them next time. Since I supply all of the equipment it does get a few knocks during the season but so far anyone who has been the breaker has offered to pay for the damage. I would have lots more bad stories I guess if I was a public charter but it is all referrals so I can pick and chose my charters. Art

Looks like it is either a love it or hate it set up. It appears to be clunky from other reels you use but it also has a few desirable features as well. Once you use it I am sure you will decide on the first trip out. Art

while the price of fuel is cheaper here in the US we pay a premium on diesel for no good reason. The price right now is 90cents a Gallon higher than regular fuel. Reg. 2.35 VS 3.24 diesel per gallon. Art

A Happy New Year to you and Goldie and the family. My trip up North last year was a pleasure and my next on this July will be spent at your fine place as well. Both the accommodations and the friendship you all shared made the 13 hours of travel one way worth it. Art and Joe

This is going to get locked if we continue attacking someone else opinion of a product. If you have a fact share it, if it is different than yours DONT attack it.please. Thanks Art

Chris it is a metal boat with jet drive. The course is set up with lots of turns and it is up too the navigator to steer the driver. When they did the onboard you will see his hand in front pointing the direction of the turns. They are 454 blown engines with burkley jetdrives and fins to steer. They are wicked fast and turn on a dime. It is called SPRINT boat racing and they are done in a field that they have dug out trenches and then filled with water. It is not main stream but very popular in Australia. Another fun race to see is unlimited outboard boat racing. We used to marshal the course on jetskies keeping the spectators from anchoring on the course as well as checking on the drivers if they blackout from the gees in the turn. Watch them on the straights they air it out and then slam it down and corner on a rail.

This is my favorite type of racing. Art

I checked with my Pops who is a wood worker and he recommended that you raise the temperature (5-10 degrees F) in the room to help flash off the oil as well as create a breeze in the room. Keep the door closed and open the window enough to get the fumes out for 8-10 hours if you can. The oil may make them cough or their throats feel slightly scratchy but it will not cause any real health issues. Art

A teacher told me many years ago "Knowledge is power" never a truer statement has been said. Good job on the repair. Art

Gas 2.45 a gallon and Diesel always 70-85 cents a gallon more. The split last year was only 40 cents. The funny thing is all of my oil stocks are showing a profit and dividends are averaging 3 to 4 % whoo hoooo. So if you use 10 thousand dollars of fuel and you own 40 thousand dollars of their stock you will be getting fuel at a discount of 16 percent. With the banks paying one fishing lure per 10 years guess which one is better. Disclaimer This is not advise on how to grow your future what worked for me might be bad for you. Art