[looqw]

Well I am only two years behind on starting this but I know the truck is far from complete so it will be nice to have a place to document all of the changes along the way. Seeing @Blown F-150's thread on the FX4 slowly making progress and how much information can be found throughout it with great discussion and trial and error hopefully I can share my experiences as well!

I will try and keep the timeline in order for November 2018 till now!

November 20, 2018 I was back and fourth with the dealer for about a month at this point but took the the truck home. Here's how it looked, stock as can be. I really wanted this truck specifically, the platinum had all the features which I thought was sweet even though who really needs them.
Most of all I liked the Pearl White, I knew I wanted to make the truck faster and whenever you see anyone driving one of these pearl white platinum's its almost always someone 50+ so I thought it would make a great little sleeper.

here is a list of current mods:

• XDI-35
• Borg Warner Turbos
• MBRP 4" Catback w/Flo Pro Twister Resonator
• MBRP 3" Downpipes
• AMS Turbo adapters
• AFE Intake
• CPe intercooler
• Mishimoto Hot/Cold pipes
• EcoPowerParts Intake Pipes
• Turbosmart BOV
• Throttle Body spacer
• Mishimoto oil cap
• Innovate Ethanol Sensor / Fuel Temp
• Innovate Ethanol Gauge
• Autometer Column Gauge Mount
• Ford Performance one step colder plugs
• Motorcraft 180T-stat
• Saudi Raptor Trans cooler
• WMS Catch can and CSS
• SCT X4 Tuned by Boostking
• Saleen S331 23” Wheels
• 305/40R23 Nitto 420’s
• Stiffler’s 2wd Trac Bars - Chromed
• BWoody Front Diff Brace
• IHC Adjustable Upper Control Arms
• VAS FAB Coilover Conversion brackets
• Viking Dual adjustable Coilovers
• Viking D216 Dual adjustable Shocks
• DJM Axle Flip Kit
• DJM 1” Lift Shackle
• Prothane Bump Stops
• Airlift Slamair 59210 Airbags
• RideEffex Lower shock extensions
• Custom upper shock extensions
• Dorman IWE Deletes
• Hawk LTS performance Brake pads
• Raptor Transmission mount
• All lights replaced with Diode Dynamics LED’s
• Generic rock lights x12
• Generic under hood LED’s
• Ronin antenna
• GrillCraft Lower Grille
• OEM “Limited” Grille
• Lincoln Hybrid Badges
• OEM Ford bed extender
• Bed Lights
• Clear LED Mirror Lenses
• Kenwood Front Speakers
• Husky Mud Flaps
• Yukon Gear Chrome Diff cover
• OEM Fuse 27 relocate

I made it one whole day before plugging in the SCT and at least giving a canned tune a go.. Within a couple weeks I had the urge to get a little sound out of it but I told myself I wasnt going to spend much on this truck so I opted to just cut out the muffler and replace it with a piece of pipe.. This went horribly for many reasons.. My fiance hated it so much she even offered to go halves on a new exhaust for me!

After I got a little more sound out of it I was already back to being hooked researching what to do next, I had done the VTA "mod" the first week as well which I thought made it sounds pretty cool..

However, on the local classifieds I came across an AFE intake for only $150 so I went to pick it up ASAP. I ended up having a 1hr+ conversation with the seller, who blew his motor running a Diablo canned tune on his truck. By the end of the conversation he figured I was pretty into it all and told me he had a few other things he thought I would like... So from his toolbox he grabbed a Turbosmart BOV and Roush Vent boost gauge, which he just gave me for FREE!

The truck now sounded pretty sweet in my opinion between the exhaust, intake and BOV! but I thought the stock look was pretty lame. Prior to this truck I owned a 6.0L f350 that I always wanted to lower but never did. I figured I would go that route with this truck so I started by removing the rear blocks.. It wasnt enough for my liking so a couple weeks later I ordered Beltech front Struts and Shackles/shocks for the rear. The truck now sat like this!

I also had way to many light bars in my f350 which I missed dearly when driving back roads or highways late at night when no one was around.. I decided the f150 needed more light than anyone needs.. 2 x 32" light bars, a 42" and a 20"..

I also wanted to be able to see when reversing but didnt want the lights to be visible so I mounted them underneath the truck, you can only see them if you really get down there!

I would later remove this setup, even though I never had any troubles with cooling even in the summer, I figured if I wanted to focus on performance I should let more airflow through!

The first summer with the truck was coming and I knew how hot black leather gets so I went with 30% front tint to help keep the truck a little cooler!

After lots of asking around facebook groups and reading on the forum, I bought my first real performance mod, MBRP catless Downpipes. I had also been running a tune from gearhead for 5-6 months at this point! Part way through the summer I got the chance to Dyno the truck.

It was a mobile Dynocom Dyno and my only real mods at this point were the downpipes and gearhead tune. 384/463 was good enough numbers for me, for now.....

I thought I would try and make the truck a little more aggressive so I added some 1 3/4" coyote wheel spacers, Which the truck looked great and all but the rubbing when turning and constant image of my wheels falling off on the highway resulted in me removing them only a couple months later.

Probably about 5 more posts and I will catch up to current day...

 

[snakebitten]

Better late than never!

That's a sweet truck, although I'm a little biased for those White-Loaded-Oldman trucks. Lol

And yes, Ryan's (Blown F150) build thread has inspired more than a few folks to $pend their resources on their trucks.

Keep it coming.

Sent from my SM-G988U using Tapatalk

 

[looqw]

After the Dyno I really wanted some power, and there was set to be one more dyno day at the end of the year, So from what I could find the easiest route was some water methanol. I went out and bought an AEM kit, which over the course of me using the kit I had installed in several locations till I found one that worked. The controller coming out into the glove box was always handy and discrete.

About 30,000km after buying the truck (was now around 185,000km) I had to do my first bit of maintenance. The water pump was leaking right by the pulley.. I replaced it with an AC delco part as they are the only replacement that uses metal fins instead of plastic. In the past I have heard of plastic breaking so this just seemed to make sense to me!
I also put in a 180degree T-stat at this time which was recomended by Matt for the colder climate here in Alberta.

Shortly after this, I bought a cheap old focus to drive to and from work, This then became my winter beater and I decided to park the truck for the remainder of winter. This was great because I could really work on some changes at this point.
The next big mod I got was the CPE intercooler!

For the price I couldnt go wrong, and from what I could see it was the biggest intercooler I could get! These things are not light though!

The next time I had to do any kind of Maintenance was a bit of a weird one. Since I got the truck the telescopic feature on the steering wheel had never worked, I figured it was just the motor had gone bad..
One day while poking around under the dash I found the connector to this motor, What was odd was that one wire to the motor had been cut, it looked intentional but I could not figure out why.

Anyway I soldered it back up and now all the my trucks features worked!

After having the truck apart for a while to replace the coolant fittings on the driver side turbo that were leaking, I finally had time to put in the CPE intercooler.. I had the front bumper off for other reasons and thank god I did, lifting the thing into place without bending any fins was hardly a one man job!

As you can see its a tight fit, I later rotated the BOV to release downwards as well.

Before all this BS virus started my fiance and I were set on getting a trailer for the summer, Where we like to go is in the mountains so this was part of my justification for the cooling mods (really just wanted more power).
At the same time, I knew our brakes are more than good enough, but it was winter and I was bored so I decided why not give the brakes a little help.

Here is what I came up with, Brake cooling ducts using the fog light holes as inlets. The result worked great, however we never did end up getting the trailer...

 

[looqw]

Apparently I decided I just really liked installing and un installing the downpipes, Ordered up some AMS turbo adapters because I figured every little bit helps, They matched up near perfectly with the opening in the MBRP downpipes, so if there was any restriction before.. It was now gone!

Of course I was lucky enough to have the very last stud break when removing them.. Thankfully I already had a tool from previous jobs to help me get the broken stud out! glad I was doing this all while not requiring the truck for anything.

After removing the intercooler and piping I saw how dirty things really got in there, I figured even if it didnt do that much good it couldnt hurt to have a catch can setup. I was lucky to come across a local Ford performance shop that makes their own catch can setup with all the components machined locally as well. The price was better than the other big name setups but from what I have experience the quality and functionality are on par. +1 to western motorsports!

The kit also came with the Clean side separator which I wasnt quite finished hooking up when I took this picture.

Not that I really needed the running board because the truck was lowered, but my fiance did. and I was tired of having to push the up with my foot because the motors were having trouble. After taking them apart, I could see why there was so much built up sludge in the the motors never had a chance. Being the rookie I am I cleaned it all up and refilled it with gear oil. I mean it made sense in my head, they are gears so why not. a year later they are still working like they are new so it must be fine!

Still with the mindset that I would tow eventually I saw this cheap option to upgrade the transmission cooler. The saudi Raptor cooler was probably the easiest and quickest mod I have ever done! As you can see it is quite a bit larger over the cooler that comes with the max tow package.

Got the transmission cooler in and the front end is looking great. I scored a brand new chrome bumper for only $100 and @Blown F-150 had his old lower grill kicking around so it was time to let some more air flow and ditch the remaining 20" lower light bar!

Potentially my best find to date on the local marketplace was a brand new set of 20's for $300.. They match the grill and the tailgate perfectly.

Since I decided the truck was going to be summer only for me I sold the set of Hankooks I had sitting in the garage and picked up a new set of Nitto 420's for the new wheels. I was very happy with the look and hopeful the new tires would give me enough grip when launching!

 

[butthead]

Can't be an "Old Man Sleeper" unless it's driven by a sleepy ol'man (I know, and qualify, pushing 70 and love to snooze)!!!

Have a ball sneakin' up on unsuspecting motorist, especially Dodge Ram's. I do for sure. KM

 

[TOWMA8R]

Welcome, and nice!!!!!! I like refer to mine as a middle aged man's sleeper.........

 

[looqw]

Well the trailer never did happen, but we do still like to get out camping, so we got the next best thing that was still in the budget. This Burmis Roof tent was a great time, nice and warm and very comfortable. The trucks skid plates were put to work a few times to get to some camp locations, and I have no idea how the lower front valence held on but it did great!

With what now seemed like enough power, I decided I should help the truck in the Grip department. Stifflers seemed like a great choice to eliminate the rear wheel hop. After talking with the owner at stifflers he suggested I go the 2wd route since my truck is lowered. They are slightly shorter than the 4wd version but they mount where the frame bends upwards for more clearance!

You can see them just poking out in this picture, still quite discrete, the truck still looks like it is owned by a 60 year old according to my buddies so I am doing well in the sleeper department. At this point I had been working with @Boostking for quite a while, he had helped me work around my trucks false knock issue it had been plagued with since the beginning!

The opportunity also came up to buy @Blown F-150's old XDI 35 HPFP. Which seemed like a no brainer as lately we were watching my Fuel pressure dip durasticaly when I was attempting to run E30. This would be the fix.

To add to the idea of being a sleeper I didnt want people to even know it was an ecoboost. I bought some Hybrid emblems from early Gen Lincoln MKZ's although not cheap, I did not want it to look tacky and I think the end result looks pretty OEM. The emblems have confused quite a few people now, exactly what I was hoping for!

This was the moment I decided to ditch the water methanol setup. From what I could tell water had been leaking into the throttle body and had now caused the motor to seize when I went to drive away one morning.. Lucky for me our local parts vendor @Blown F-150 had one in stock and was even able to bring it over for me. Replaced and back on the road in a couple hours.. I was concerned about this happening repetitively so out came the AEM kit.

For months @Boostking had been trying different revisions etc as my truck would just not hold boost up top. Eventually one day when datalogging at the top of 3rd my passenger side turbo decided it was time to say goodbye. Here was the end result.

The really bad part was I was set to leave (with the truck) on a 700km roadtrip in 2 days time with my whole family!

Once again, Saved by @Blown F-150, he had his old GT's conveniently ready for me to buy. although OEM was cheaper, it would not have been in time. and if this wasnt the perfect excuse to upgrade I dont know what was.

So the next morning I ripped out the old ones, was lucky enough my dad ran around to multiple ford stores to get all the gaskets and hardware required. The new turbos were going in that afternoon and @Blown F-150 was over for the entire evening getting them in.

@Boostking even had me a revised tune ready to go for the roadtrip the next day! These guys seriously saved the day!

The induction sound of these new turbos was significantly louder than OEM, enough so when climbing some of the passes my dad had to wait to talk to me or yell over them. As a result I decided to buy a little cover for the Intake and it has made a world of difference. Probably a little bit quiter than stock turbos with open airbox.

Also just because I like shiney things I decided to buy @Blown F-150 's spare Mishimoto intercooler pipes that did not work with his 18+ turbos. Engine bay was looking great.

 

[looqw]

It was now nearing the end of the season here and the cold weather was coming so we decided to take one trip up to the closest 1/4 mile track in the province (3hr drive). I had to get an idea of what I was working with so I weighed the truck 2800kg even.

In hopes to get all the help I could I removed the tailgate, tonneau cover, spare tire, and skid plates. I lost close to 150kg and was hoping it would make a good difference.

@Blown F-150 and I were happy to meet up with a group of other f150 enthusiasts we have come to know through local facebook pages @Mikey_Ltd being one of them who even broke into the 12's this day!

As a total amateur at the track (havent been in 10years since I was 19) I wats pretty happy with this best pass of the day, Although I would have been very happy to get into the 12's my poor launches and lack of traction said no. You can ignore the reaction time as I was just going whenever I was ready haha I knew someone would say something!

Before we went to the track @Blown F-150 also let me borrow his dragy to get an idea how it would do. I was very happy with the 0-60, although now I want to try and break 4.5...

The 1/4 run actually was .03 faster than my best time at the track, which is odd because the DA is higher in our city and I had also not removed any weight from my truck at this point!

Here was the last picture before I put her away for winter hibernation. I just had picked up a Chrome rear bumper for only $10. Drilled a sensor hole in one side and now the front and rear match!

Thats all I have so far, had I been doing this along the way I would be able to go into a lot more detail on mods etc, but I hope to stay up to date with it here forward. Even if it is just for myself to see how it/I progress along the way! Have some hopeful plans for this winter but it will all come down to budget!

 

[looqw]

Can't be an "Old Man Sleeper" unless it's driven by a sleepy ol'man (I know, and qualify, pushing 70 and love to snooze)!!!

Have a ball sneakin' up on unsuspecting motorist, especially Dodge Ram's. I do for sure. KM

That's just my point though! Whenever anyone see's a chromed up pearl white f150 you instantly expect it to be an old guy driving it, and especially arent expecting it to be quick. Unlike for example driving up next to a blacked out one with dark windows. I guess its just stereotypes but atleast around here it seems to be true! I have yet to see someone who looks within even 20 years of my age driving one haha!

Unfortunately I think because of how it looks no one ever even wants to race! So far only one 2020 Audi A7 and a v8 Pontiac G8. I guess one ram but cant really count that as a race 😂.

 

[Mikey_Ltd]

It was now nearing the end of the season here and the cold weather was coming so we decided to take one trip up to the closest 1/4 mile track in the province (3hr drive). I had to get an idea of what I was working with so I weighed the truck 2800kg even.

View attachment 168903

In hopes to get all the help I could I removed the tailgate, tonneau cover, spare tire, and skid plates. I lost close to 150kg and was hoping it would make a good difference.

View attachment 168904

@Blown F-150 and I were happy to meet up with a group of other f150 enthusiasts we have come to know through local facebook pages @Mikey_Ltd being one of them who even broke into the 12's this day!

View attachment 168905

View attachment 168906

As a total amateur at the track (havent been in 10years since I was 19) I wats pretty happy with this best pass of the day, Although I would have been very happy to get into the 12's my poor launches and lack of traction said no. You can ignore the reaction time as I was just going whenever I was ready haha I knew someone would say something!

View attachment 168907

Before we went to the track @Blown F-150 also let me borrow his dragy to get an idea how it would do. I was very happy with the 0-60, although now I want to try and break 4.5...

The 1/4 run actually was .03 faster than my best time at the track, which is odd because the DA is higher in our city and I had also not removed any weight from my truck at this point!

View attachment 168908 View attachment 168909

Here was the last picture before I put her away for winter hibernation. I just had picked up a Chrome rear bumper for only $10. Drilled a sensor hole in one side and now the front and rear match!

View attachment 168910

Thats all I have so far, had I been doing this along the way I would be able to go into a lot more detail on mods etc, but I hope to stay up to date with it here forward. Even if it is just for myself to see how it/I progress along the way! Have some hopeful plans for this winter but it will all come down to budget!

Honestly was a great time. For our trucks 1.8 60’ is awesome. I learned some stuff at the last dyno day which is gonna allow me to go further on my 93 as i had to much cooling which was hurting my top end. Hopefully next year i can make a couple adjustments and get to mid 12’s on 93


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[looqw]

Honestly was a great time. For our trucks 1.8 60’ is awesome. I learned some stuff at the last dyno day which is gonna allow me to go further on my 93 as i had to much cooling which was hurting my top end. Hopefully next year i can make a couple adjustments and get to mid 12’s on 93


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yep I cant wait, I think the more @Boostking dials it in and if I can get some traction I should make it somewhere in the 12's too! then I will be happy haha

 

[Mikey_Ltd]

Yep I cant wait, I think the more @Boostking dials it in and if I can get some traction I should make it somewhere in the 12's too! then I will be happy haha

You will beat me on your e30 im pretty sure once your dialed in. Im excited to see
What next year brings


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[looqw]

You will beat me on your e30 im pretty sure once your dialed in. Im excited to see
What next year brings


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Me too! I dont know though, that things fast! Worried for us once Ryan takes care of his wheel hop as well!

 

[Mikey_Ltd]

Me too! I dont know though, that things fast! Worried for us once Ryan takes care of his wheel hop as well!

I got a couple boxes of tricks in the garage in the forum of a zex wet nitrous kit. Just for back up haha


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[looqw]

I got a couple boxes of tricks in the garage in the forum of a zex wet nitrous kit. Just for back up haha


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

lol Im really going to have to step my game up here... 😅

 

[TOWMA8R]

lol Im really going to have to step my game up here... 😅

looqw, what Octane tune are you running?

 

[WooBoost]

how many miles were on turbos when they broke? I bet your high alt running more boost did that

 

[looqw]

looqw, what Octane tune are you running?

I finished the season just starting an e30 revision with brett, we didnt really get much for chances to do revisions to perfect it, I am also curious if I can potentially run even more than e30!

 

[looqw]

how many miles were on turbos when they broke? I bet your high alt running more boost did that

About 210,000km when it went on me. I had been running various tunes since 160,000km. However in the last few months we were upping the boost and slowly tightening the stock wastegates to try and combat the boost loss up top. I'm sure those accelerated the wear on them as well.

 

[looqw]

Alright I’m not gonna miss a thing on this thread, so up first is these sweet licence plate bulbs I just got from Diode Dynamics LOL