Need Test drove a silver 01 L yesterday and have some questions about paint in the engine bay.

1) Do the little rubber tipped screws that adjust the level that each side of your hood sits at have paint on them, like they were already attached when the truck was painted at the factory?

2) On pics of red trucks it is easy to tell that the entire engine bay is painted red, but on this silver truck the engine bay, radiator support, inner fenders were all painted a very light tan like some sort of primer. Normal?

3) On most new autos there are VIN stickers everywhere, do L's have these anywhere under the hood? I looked on both fenders and the hood and couldn't find one anywhere.

The dealer said he picked it up from a local dealer auction and showed me the Carfax report with a clean bill of health, and where it was sold at the auction with 26,111 miles, when I drove it off the lot it had 26,151. Everything else seemed great with the truck as far as mechanically and super fast. Just from all those indicators I was concerned that the front end had been smashed pretty bad. Sorry so long, but any 411 from the L gurus would be greatly 'preciated.

 

Here is a pic of my truck from last year, when I pulled the motor. You can see that the paint under the hood is a different color than the silver on the outside. Yes it does look like a primer, I think it is due to not being clear coated.

 

I bought my 03 L brand new and yes the rubber hood stops are painted blue and the blue under the hood is not the same as the blue on the truck. Like don said i think its due to the lack of clear coats

 

Thanks guys, you saved me a trip to the nearest Ford dealer to peak under some hoods. Now to try and find the original owner to see y it went thru an auction in the first place. Thanks again!

 

Where are you located?

This is what I use:

http://www.geneq.com/catalog/en/ctgauge.htm

NEVER FAILS!!!

 

You will find a date code stamped on the fenders, twords the front, and on the underside of the hood. dates should be close to the build date on the VIN sticker you see when you open the drivers door.
Have FORD run the VIN in the warranty computer and it will tell them every repair done, and if the warranty was voided.
Good luck