I was wondering if anyone had any idea what could have happened to my truck. I bought it in August with less than 4k miles on it and I noticed the grille was a little skewed in all the pictures I had. Actually I bought it only by looking at the pictures the old owner e-mailed me because I'm in Iraq right now. My dad went to take a look at it and he said it looked brand new. I guess he's not as **** as I am. Anyway, here is the deal: Where the front corners of the hood meet the grille, the gap is uneven. The driver's side gap being larger. Also, the gap on the driver's side where the grille meets the bumper is smaller than the gap on the passenger's side. And the driver's headlight is aimed a little higher than the passenger's.





I never noticed it in the pictures I had, but when I went home on leave recently and saw the truck in person, it looks like the driver's side of the grille was pushed in just a hair. All the other gaps between the fenders/hood are even. The passenger's side of the grille looks perfect. It doesn't look like it has had any paintwork done to it either. I was just wanting to know if any of you had some idea what could have caused this, or if I could adjust the grille, or mounts to make it sit right. Thanks for any input and also for reading this entire big-@$$ post.

 

They are not always perfect from the factory, there have been some post on alignment issues on various parts of the trucks in the past.
as special as they are they still are truck bodys which are'nt held to the highest standards/tolerances. if its bolted or screwed on it can be adjusted
good luck, looks nice

 

Yep, it does look a bit closer on the pass side.

BTW: I live in Alabama also

 

Your truck looks just fine to me...What's important to this group is that you come home ok and enjoy your truck...soon...

Never mind reading your long post either...You take care now

 

My truck was uneven like yours. I adjusted it here and everything lined up.
You can see in the photo how far it was out from the factory by looking at where the red stops on the screw.

 

My 2001 is off about 1/8'' also. Alot of trucks suffered from the "gap"

 

If you don't like that... don't start examining the gap between the bed and the cab.

 

SHHHHHHH, don't get him lookin over the whole thing

 

Or the lower fascia pieces between the cab and the bed ...

< grin >

 

..or the front bumper to grille gap.
has anyone ever had a Ford product with decent fit and finish?

 

It may be just the way the picture is taken, but it looks like the R/H side headlight is slightly different than the L/H side. If it is different, and there is uneven gaps on the R/H side, that would lead me to believe it was in an accident.

 

Thanks alot guys. I'm suprised that you didn't mention how the stock exhaust hangs under the factory cut-out, rather than being tucked up into it.

litnfast- I don't really think it happens to be the hood adjustment on my truck. the front edge and the driver's fender meet perfectly. I think it's just one of the grille mounts on the driver's side.

Red Death- The right side headlight is definitely aimed higher than the left side headlight. I was following my buddy to a ball game while I was home and he called me asking what was up with my lights. I figured it was in an accident too, but like I said, I couldn't find any evidence of paint work.

Anyway, if it was in an accident, maybe I can work it in Feb. to get it looking right. Thanks guys. I would ask for pics of how the grill mounts in, but I would probably earn myself a "Search" button.

 

there is not one truck out there with the stock exhaust neatly tucked up in the cutouts

 

While I was looking at buying a truck recently, I found one I like until I noticed the same thing. After I looked a little closer I could follow the problem to the bumper. It turned out that the truck had been in an accident, and the bumper being pushed in caused the difference in gaps from one side to the other where the grill meets the corners of hood. But I can't really see what you're talking about in those pictures.

 

Just becuase the gaps are uneven does'nt mean it was in a wreck. Mine has been uneven since it was made.