Just bought a SuperCrew - first impressions...
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Junior Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1
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From: Edmonton, Canada
Just bought a SuperCrew - first impressions...
Hi all! I've been surfing this website and this newsgroup for the last 2 months and it has been really helpful in getting ready to buy my Screw. Many thanks to those who participate in the forums...your input is really appreciated by those of us who just read.
I bought my silver 2002 Screw 4x4 5.4l XLT a couple of days ago in Edmonton, Canada for $18000cdn to boot with my '99 F150 2x4 XLT 4.2lv6 in trade. I am amazed how big this Screw is and we actually had to measure the height of it with a tapemeasure after the testdrive to be sure it will fit in my parkade. It is a full 8 inches higher than my old truck and I still have half a foot of clearance. It would have sucked to drive my new truck home and not have it fit in the parkade!
How do I like it? I am way impressed. I thought my '99 was nice, but man o man this Screw is solid, yet smooth..know what I mean? It really drives nice. The adjustable pedals were the difference for us as my wife is kinda short and was right up agains the steering wheel in the old truck, and she can sit way back in the new one. I like the real 4 doors and the 4 wheel drive was put to immediate use in the snow up here in Edmonton. The 4 wheel ABS is amazing on the slick streets too. As we drove it home I couldn't help but think it is a better truck than I thought it would be.
There's only 2 small glitches so far. One is the passenger wiperblade which appears to have no 'spring' on the blade and will not scrape cleanly(it's not frozen)...and the other is a slight alternator whine heard over the speakers of the radio/cd player when the volume is down..at least I think that's where the noise is coming from. Has anyone else experienced this whining issue?
The only other thing I have to check is the radiator issue. With a 5.4l and the trailer tow package on my Screw, how thick should the radiator be? If it isn't the correct size what can I do about it?
Mmmm...wife wants to go for a drive now...gladly
I bought my silver 2002 Screw 4x4 5.4l XLT a couple of days ago in Edmonton, Canada for $18000cdn to boot with my '99 F150 2x4 XLT 4.2lv6 in trade. I am amazed how big this Screw is and we actually had to measure the height of it with a tapemeasure after the testdrive to be sure it will fit in my parkade. It is a full 8 inches higher than my old truck and I still have half a foot of clearance. It would have sucked to drive my new truck home and not have it fit in the parkade!
How do I like it? I am way impressed. I thought my '99 was nice, but man o man this Screw is solid, yet smooth..know what I mean? It really drives nice. The adjustable pedals were the difference for us as my wife is kinda short and was right up agains the steering wheel in the old truck, and she can sit way back in the new one. I like the real 4 doors and the 4 wheel drive was put to immediate use in the snow up here in Edmonton. The 4 wheel ABS is amazing on the slick streets too. As we drove it home I couldn't help but think it is a better truck than I thought it would be.
There's only 2 small glitches so far. One is the passenger wiperblade which appears to have no 'spring' on the blade and will not scrape cleanly(it's not frozen)...and the other is a slight alternator whine heard over the speakers of the radio/cd player when the volume is down..at least I think that's where the noise is coming from. Has anyone else experienced this whining issue?
The only other thing I have to check is the radiator issue. With a 5.4l and the trailer tow package on my Screw, how thick should the radiator be? If it isn't the correct size what can I do about it?
Mmmm...wife wants to go for a drive now...gladly
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 252
Likes: 0
From: Boise, Idaho
Beukerru:
Welcome to the site and welcome to SCREW ownership. As you have probably figured out by now, there are many intelligent people on this site with a wealth of knowledge. This is pure heaven for any Ford owner looking for info or tricks to better their ride.
The only downside...it will cost you money reading about all the nice things we can add to our trucks. Kinda like the old Lays potato chip commercial, "no one can eat just one!", well...no one can add just one upgrade.
Congrats and hold onto to your checkbook!
...
Welcome to the site and welcome to SCREW ownership. As you have probably figured out by now, there are many intelligent people on this site with a wealth of knowledge. This is pure heaven for any Ford owner looking for info or tricks to better their ride.
The only downside...it will cost you money reading about all the nice things we can add to our trucks. Kinda like the old Lays potato chip commercial, "no one can eat just one!", well...no one can add just one upgrade.
Congrats and hold onto to your checkbook!
...
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 865
Likes: 0
From: South Dakota
Re: Just bought a SuperCrew - first impressions...
congrats on your new s-crew. ford intended to only put one size radiator on all s-crews, whether or not they contained the trailor tow package. you have the correct radiator size. on '01 models the literature about the s-crew lead people to believe that they'd get a "heavy duty cooling" system with the class III trailor tow option. ford never intended for this to be the case. nevertheless, because of their product literature error, they are now paying out money and radiator upgrades to keep from having to pay out much more in lost customer relations and a class action lawsuit!!
Originally posted by beukerru
Hi all! I've been surfing this website and this newsgroup for the last 2 months and it has been really helpful in getting ready to buy my Screw. Many thanks to those who participate in the forums...your input is really appreciated by those of us who just read.
I bought my silver 2002 Screw 4x4 5.4l XLT a couple of days ago in Edmonton, Canada for $18000cdn to boot with my '99 F150 2x4 XLT 4.2lv6 in trade. I am amazed how big this Screw is and we actually had to measure the height of it with a tapemeasure after the testdrive to be sure it will fit in my parkade. It is a full 8 inches higher than my old truck and I still have half a foot of clearance. It would have sucked to drive my new truck home and not have it fit in the parkade!
How do I like it? I am way impressed. I thought my '99 was nice, but man o man this Screw is solid, yet smooth..know what I mean? It really drives nice. The adjustable pedals were the difference for us as my wife is kinda short and was right up agains the steering wheel in the old truck, and she can sit way back in the new one. I like the real 4 doors and the 4 wheel drive was put to immediate use in the snow up here in Edmonton. The 4 wheel ABS is amazing on the slick streets too. As we drove it home I couldn't help but think it is a better truck than I thought it would be.
There's only 2 small glitches so far. One is the passenger wiperblade which appears to have no 'spring' on the blade and will not scrape cleanly(it's not frozen)...and the other is a slight alternator whine heard over the speakers of the radio/cd player when the volume is down..at least I think that's where the noise is coming from. Has anyone else experienced this whining issue?
The only other thing I have to check is the radiator issue. With a 5.4l and the trailer tow package on my Screw, how thick should the radiator be? If it isn't the correct size what can I do about it?
Mmmm...wife wants to go for a drive now...gladly
Hi all! I've been surfing this website and this newsgroup for the last 2 months and it has been really helpful in getting ready to buy my Screw. Many thanks to those who participate in the forums...your input is really appreciated by those of us who just read.
I bought my silver 2002 Screw 4x4 5.4l XLT a couple of days ago in Edmonton, Canada for $18000cdn to boot with my '99 F150 2x4 XLT 4.2lv6 in trade. I am amazed how big this Screw is and we actually had to measure the height of it with a tapemeasure after the testdrive to be sure it will fit in my parkade. It is a full 8 inches higher than my old truck and I still have half a foot of clearance. It would have sucked to drive my new truck home and not have it fit in the parkade!
How do I like it? I am way impressed. I thought my '99 was nice, but man o man this Screw is solid, yet smooth..know what I mean? It really drives nice. The adjustable pedals were the difference for us as my wife is kinda short and was right up agains the steering wheel in the old truck, and she can sit way back in the new one. I like the real 4 doors and the 4 wheel drive was put to immediate use in the snow up here in Edmonton. The 4 wheel ABS is amazing on the slick streets too. As we drove it home I couldn't help but think it is a better truck than I thought it would be.
There's only 2 small glitches so far. One is the passenger wiperblade which appears to have no 'spring' on the blade and will not scrape cleanly(it's not frozen)...and the other is a slight alternator whine heard over the speakers of the radio/cd player when the volume is down..at least I think that's where the noise is coming from. Has anyone else experienced this whining issue?
The only other thing I have to check is the radiator issue. With a 5.4l and the trailer tow package on my Screw, how thick should the radiator be? If it isn't the correct size what can I do about it?
Mmmm...wife wants to go for a drive now...gladly
Senior Member
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 219
Likes: 0
From: Richarson, TX
beukerru -
Welcome to the ranks of many happy Supercrew owners. It's a great truck!
About the radiator. When the Screw was introduced, there was a lot of literature from Ford that either promised or alluded to a bigger radiator with the towing package. The documents that I am aware of were: the Supercrew brochures handed out in the dealer lobbies, the Supercrew owners manuals, and the spec information given out on the website www.fordtraining.com (I think the website is used for salesmen to look up info on Ford vehicles). I am sure that there are more Ford documents around than the ones I have mentioned, these are only the ones that I personally know of.
When owners began to discover that they had paid for a larger radiator and did not get it they began going back to the dealers. From the posts on this site, it appears that about 1 out of 4 got the radiator replaced with very little trouble. The remaining 3/4 of us had to be persistant, make a stink, threaten legal action, or actually hire lawyers to get the radiator replaced. I suspect most people just gave up.
I have never seen this information from Ford, but from what I understand, there are three radiators that fit in the Suppercrew: a 1" core, a 1.4" core and a 2.02" (or 2.2"?) core. The core of the radiator is the part that has the fins - be sure to measure the core and not the support bracket on top. The 1" core is standard for both Screw engines. I was told by a questionable source that the 1.4" core is for the trailer package and the 2.2" core was installed only on the Lightning trucks with the supercharger. On the other hand, it sounds like half the guys got the 2.2 when they got replaced. Someone else who really knows might speak up. The Expeditions with the tow package (still) come with the larger 1.4" core.
Back to your question. This summer Ford made a number of statements. One said that the 1" radiator was large enough for all applications. Recently they sent out a package that allowed the owner to choose between a check for $100, an replacement radiator, or $500 off a new Ford. The package included a statement that said something about a mistake by marketing. Somewhere along the line there was also a statement about not replacing any radiators on trucks PURCHASED after a certain date (that is the one that will be hardest to fight). Do a search on radiators on this website for more information - the time will be well spent. I think the date in question was a few months ago. I'm guessing that Ford got rid of all documents in the showrooms that mention the big radiator and from this point on customers will not be able to claim that they thought that it came with the tow package.
Good Luck on this battle. I live in Texas and really did buy the tow package for the radiator (Can you say 108 degrees F?). I first heard about the problem in Feb. and didn't start my battle until April. In those few short months Ford had really geared up and was very, very clever with the ploys and insinuations to keep from installing the radiator that I had paid for. It was tough. Fortunately, I was well equipped with information from this site and had kept all the brochures from the dealer. If you get serious about fighting this you might also try finding an Expedition on the lot with your same engine, trans, rear end, tow pkg and a big radiator. If the same drive train on an Expy needs a a bigger radiator why doesn't your Supercrew? Go armed with lots of arguements, 5 or 6 at least, and keep hitting them. Once again, Good Luck.
Welcome to the ranks of many happy Supercrew owners. It's a great truck!
About the radiator. When the Screw was introduced, there was a lot of literature from Ford that either promised or alluded to a bigger radiator with the towing package. The documents that I am aware of were: the Supercrew brochures handed out in the dealer lobbies, the Supercrew owners manuals, and the spec information given out on the website www.fordtraining.com (I think the website is used for salesmen to look up info on Ford vehicles). I am sure that there are more Ford documents around than the ones I have mentioned, these are only the ones that I personally know of.
When owners began to discover that they had paid for a larger radiator and did not get it they began going back to the dealers. From the posts on this site, it appears that about 1 out of 4 got the radiator replaced with very little trouble. The remaining 3/4 of us had to be persistant, make a stink, threaten legal action, or actually hire lawyers to get the radiator replaced. I suspect most people just gave up.
I have never seen this information from Ford, but from what I understand, there are three radiators that fit in the Suppercrew: a 1" core, a 1.4" core and a 2.02" (or 2.2"?) core. The core of the radiator is the part that has the fins - be sure to measure the core and not the support bracket on top. The 1" core is standard for both Screw engines. I was told by a questionable source that the 1.4" core is for the trailer package and the 2.2" core was installed only on the Lightning trucks with the supercharger. On the other hand, it sounds like half the guys got the 2.2 when they got replaced. Someone else who really knows might speak up. The Expeditions with the tow package (still) come with the larger 1.4" core.
Back to your question. This summer Ford made a number of statements. One said that the 1" radiator was large enough for all applications. Recently they sent out a package that allowed the owner to choose between a check for $100, an replacement radiator, or $500 off a new Ford. The package included a statement that said something about a mistake by marketing. Somewhere along the line there was also a statement about not replacing any radiators on trucks PURCHASED after a certain date (that is the one that will be hardest to fight). Do a search on radiators on this website for more information - the time will be well spent. I think the date in question was a few months ago. I'm guessing that Ford got rid of all documents in the showrooms that mention the big radiator and from this point on customers will not be able to claim that they thought that it came with the tow package.
Good Luck on this battle. I live in Texas and really did buy the tow package for the radiator (Can you say 108 degrees F?). I first heard about the problem in Feb. and didn't start my battle until April. In those few short months Ford had really geared up and was very, very clever with the ploys and insinuations to keep from installing the radiator that I had paid for. It was tough. Fortunately, I was well equipped with information from this site and had kept all the brochures from the dealer. If you get serious about fighting this you might also try finding an Expedition on the lot with your same engine, trans, rear end, tow pkg and a big radiator. If the same drive train on an Expy needs a a bigger radiator why doesn't your Supercrew? Go armed with lots of arguements, 5 or 6 at least, and keep hitting them. Once again, Good Luck.
Last edited by InfernalCombustion; Dec 1, 2001 at 08:57 PM.
Member
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 52
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I.C.
Thanks, you didn't forget the fifth 1/4 of us who Ford now says do not qualify for the radiator program because we bought our trucks (with the tow pkg.) after May 5. Even though we may have the literature, documents, pricing, etc. to make a case - Ford says too bad.
Thanks, you didn't forget the fifth 1/4 of us who Ford now says do not qualify for the radiator program because we bought our trucks (with the tow pkg.) after May 5. Even though we may have the literature, documents, pricing, etc. to make a case - Ford says too bad.
