dr.edge

Hey guys,

 

So today my buddy and I replaced my air filter with a specter filter on my 2011 Edge Limited. Everything seemed to go well. When I started the engine back up, it choked a bit (probably because its not used to the amount of air its getting now), but that went away. The engine sounds good, but when I was driving home I started to hear a light rattle when I pressed on the accelerator. The rattle only seemed to come when I lightly pressed on the gas. Then I started to get this error: Service AdvanceTrac. Then the AdvanceTrac and AdvanceTrac OFF error symbols come on in my dashboard. I have 6k miles on her and the warming only came on after I about 50 mph. It went on and off a few times.

 

Anyone have an idea why?

 

Since the AdvanceTrac system is concerned with stabilizing the car as it rolls down the road, I'd say it's unrelated to the air filter replacement. It gets it's inputs from the ABS sensors so you might have bumped something or loosened a connector, but if it goes away and stays off, you're OK

The rattle sounds like the engine knocking. If you made a big enough change in air flow, it might be having difficulty adjusting mixture or timing to compensate.Switch back to the OEM filter to see if it goes away.

Hey All,

 

I just noticed around the fender well on the right rear of the car a nice chip. I was wondering if any of you know how much OEM touch up paint costs? Any other places to buy OEM touch up paint for cheaper? Know of places that match the paint that are not OEM?

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks

DrColorChip sells a pretty good kit for $40 - $60 depending on how much you need to do. Pretty good results with it.

I agree they'll release the new version with the 2013 models. However, I believe that version will be better and more stable than the current 2.11 version. So that's not necessarily a bad thing and nothing like the disaster with the 2011 models.

 

I also think they'll take extra time to get more bugs worked out before releasing the upgrade to existing customers.

Well one thing's for certain, one way or the other, we'll get to see what happens in a couple of months.

Raider off the top of your head do you know the bolt/screw sizes for the OEM ballasts holes you used for your rubber strops? Or were they just plastic and you re-threaded them. Also the size of the hole to drill into the back of the caps?! Thanks

The OEM mounting points are not threaded, just drilled, so you can just use an appropriate screw to mount the straps.

I think I posted this elsewhere, but here's another easy way to mount the ballasts. Drill a hole through the top and bottom flanges of the OEM HID mount and slip a cable tie through it. Position the ballast and tighten the cable tie around it.

Black chrome makes me frisky.

Careful, that's what happened the last time and it ended with you getting your hip replaced.

It was said the 13's will have the updated version. I doubt that will change. I also feel confident by April 15th we will be enjoying the new version

I would agree that they're not likely to delay the production schedule of the 2013's which means that if they stick to their announcement that the 2013's will have the new software, then they are going to push the first release of the re-write out the door in whatever shape it's in - known bugs and all. Hopefully in that case, they'll follow it up with a series of quick releases targeted at resolving those bugs, as well as consistent communication to the affected users about what's happening.

If they hadn't announced that it would be out with the 2013's then I would agree that they would do everything in their power to delay the release until it was right but now they're stuck. Which puts them in a position where they're likely to repeat the same mistakes they made before.

Having a bug free, fully tested, re-write by April 15th would be nice, but based on how they've handled the whole issue up until now, I'm not so sure.

I do believe they'll delay it this time rather than release it with any known bugs and if that takes an extra 2 months then that's what they'll do.

Well, there are 3 possible outcomes -

1. the 2013's are released on schedule with the fully functional, new and improved MFT re-write
2. the 2013's are released on schedule with the current version of MFT (2.11)
3. the 2013's scheduled release is postponed in order to accommodate a delay in the release of the re-write to accommodate some last minute bug fixes.

What do you honestly think will happen.

I was referring only to the few people here on the forum creating most of the negativity referenced by CaptKirk. Yes, there are plenty of people who are somewhat frustrated just as there are plenty of people who ARE satisfied as evidenced by recent posts. It's not all good or all bad but seems to run the gamut from no problems to really bad problems.

Yes, it's a mix of experiences - good and bad. But why would Ford invest the millions they have into a complete re-write of the system if there weren't significantly more people having a negative experience than those that are OK with it?

You keep making it sound like it's a balanced situation, and it's not. Ford's actions prove it.

It's only a few people who have had really bad experiences. Hopefully this won't be an issue after the upgrade.

However there are much larger number that are frustrated with the overall performance and poor software design. As you say, hopefully this won't be an issue after the upgrade but until then, it's unresolved.

Hey Dr.Edge,

Looks good! Just wondering, are your LEDs too bright at night? I've been flashed a couple times by oncoming cars and was interested in milosm's idea about being able to dim them at night. I had my wife drive behind me and they're not blinding, I think it's just when they hit at the perfect angle that it's bothering oncoming traffic. I thought that Kc300c had posted somewhere that he had tapped his yellow wire into the head light assembly and that dimmed his LEDs at night. The only wiring diagrams I saw for the Phillips led me to believe that if they were wired unto the headlights that the LEDs would turn off automatically when the lights kicked on (not really what I want) My control box is still working fine, so I guess that's what's boosting the voltage enough to keep them bright but I only need them super bright during the day to use as DRLs, at night I'm fine with letting the HIDs do their thing. It's to the point where I've thought of tinting the lenses or installing a switch to just kick them off at night

 

Milosm,

Not really an electrical expert by any means...I know my way around a voltmeter and how to secure a strong splice, but that's about it, Is the rewiring fom parallel to series something that recognizes when the headlights are on and then lowers the input/output (?) power? I looked at your post and you said that you had a simple sketch on how to do that. Can you post that sketch?

 

I love this mod. Super glad I did it and it definitely increases safety during the day, I just don't want it to detract from that safety at night.

No problem with the LED bars being too bright at night. They're crisp and bright but certainly not enough to cause a problem with oncoming drivers. With the diffuser bar still in pace, the light is spread out quite a bit so I wouldn't worry about dimming them at night.

What I mostly like about them at night is that they match the color temperature of my HIDs (6000K). If I have just the stock LED bar lit, they almost look a sickly yellow-green color compared to my headlights.

Yeah, I know it's not car related, but it's still badass. I'm having a hip replacement later this month. I'm going to have to use a cane for a month or two or three. I decided that the wooden shepherd's hook cane just wouldn't do. Check it out. Triple hand-wound carbon fiber. 14 oz. total. If I'm going to be the 34 year-old gimp, I'll do it in style. Thoughts?

 

Looking pretty good!

OK, cool! I might just give it a try.

Best cell phone holder EVER.

So where do you place it? On top of the dash?

Ok that helps from both of guys thanx and great pics bro. But for the does that include all the wires or is it plug and play with out the wires. And retro are so expensove though

Yes, the Retro-Solutions kit includes everything you need for the installation - lamps, ballasts, wiring harness, control relay. The nice thing is that it fits and it works but if you do have any trouble, their support is quick and responsive.

They may be a bit pricier than other options, but I think you get what you pay for.

I am really interested in doing this, looks great. One of the things that kinda puts me off on doing stuff like this is the steps that usually involve removing some really nasty sealant and baking crap in the oven to reseal it

Unlike a headlight retrofit, you don't actually have to worry about that for this mod. The light assemblies are welded together so warming them up in the oven just allows you to break them apart easier.

If I had to do it over again, I might actually just cut them apart with a Dremel tool and a cutoff blade. To glue them back together you just use a good quality epoxy.

Just got the iPhone 4s from Sprint.

I have my contacts through Gmail.

I synced to my iPhone and see my contact photos on my phone.

I paired to MFT successfully.

Contact photos not showing up on MFT.

 

My understanding was the iPhone 4s supported contact photos.

 

Did I miss any steps to make this work?

 

Has anyone got this to work?

Nope. Never worked for me with iPhone 4s and various IOS levels. Looks like only iPhone 4 with IOS 4.2.1 is supported.

I've asked you not to ridicule other people's statements and opinions about MFT. It's just plain nasty and totally not necessary. Everyone (including you) is entitled to their own opinions and experiences even if you don't like them.

And yet somehow it's OK for you to do it? - http://www.fordedgeforum.com/index.php?/topic/8960-looking-for-a-2011-edge-questions/page__st__20

I think you just nailed it. Misery loves company.

I found this DC to DC step up converter module. What do you think of me using this? I have an enclosure to mount it in.

 

http://www.aliexpres...holesalers.html

It looks like it should work and it has enough capacity to drive the LED strips. The only down side I can see is that you have to adjust the voltage while you measure the output voltage. Not a big deal, just a little cumbersome vs. a selector switch.

94 Reviews and 0 Replies... Hmmmm that isn't helping me much!

The vendor you're buying them from should be able to tell you if they fit your application or not.

I figured as much. It makes sense that if the LED is facing directly out of the lens, you have more focused light exiting the housing rather than dispersing the light in many directions before exiting. I think I am looking to have my cake and eat it too. I want an evenly spread "florescent bulb" - shaped light source (as in the existing OEM light bar), that puts out a bright focused beam similar to a spot light. I'm going to play around with the light assembly and possibly widen the reflector slot to the same width as the DRL assembly. Right now, the slot is overlapping the DRL reflector about 10% on each side. I may also try removing the DRL's lens and leave it open inside the OEM housing and seal it. I figure if I F.U.B.R., I'll just buy a new light assembly from Ford. I think they cost $80 - $90.

 

Do you know of any Switchbacks that are more powerful/brighter? Before I bought these, I had asked ijdmtoy.com for the LED bulb wattage spec, but they said they didn't know. (Hmmm?). In any event. I'll tweak the reflector and install a boost converter and see how it all turns out in the wash.

You could try something like these - http://store.ijdmtoy...back-drl-7h.htm or http://store.ijdmtoy...back-drl-7j.htm (except these look like they're out of stock now).

I'd guess that those are 2W LED elements (8W and 12 W total output) vs 1W LED elements that are more commonly used so maybe twice the output?

Here's a video of the Switchback DRL in action. It shows the lights with the light bar diffuser installed and without. There really isn't much of a difference in total light output nor quality from various viewing angles (maybe a bit more without the diffuser). Anther reason for the apparent lower than expected light output (other than the lower 12V voltage applied) is that the white and yellow LEDs themselves are mounted on the side of the reflectors not on the back. So the light must bounce off of the reflector before it passes through the lens.

The LED bars that I used are these which have the LED elements mounted in such a way that they're facing directly forward. That may make some difference but maybe you're expecting to get more output out of them than they're capable of? Maybe a higher power kit would work better?

Thanks Dr. Before I go through the PITA and the skinned fingers again I wanted to be sure it could be done without trimming. So once seated your beam patters and cut off are good no issues?

Yes, beam patterns and cutoff are fine. If they aren't then you might not have the bulb seated correctly (even with a mirror it took me a couple of tries the first time).

Can't find it in the thread and don't know if it was you dr.edge, but someone had posted a link to a DC - Dc converter (http://www.powerstream.com/dc-2171.htm). I was planning on ordering it, but it's out of stock until March. Does anyone know of another place I can buy one?

They have some other ones available that should work just as well. Just look around on the site and get something similar. There wasn't anything special about the one I used, it was maybe a few dollars cheaper.

For those that went with the 9006 bulbs, did you get a correct fit and proper beam pattern? I'm have a helluva time trying to get my 9006 bulbs fit into the housing (from The Retrofit Source). I can get 2 to catch but not the 3rd. Its really difficult because I cannot see what I'm doing its all done blindly.

 

Do I have to trim the bulb tabs on the 9006?

I was able to get mine to fit without trimming the tabs although I needed to use an inspection mirror to keep checking to see if they were installed correctly. Overall, a huge PITA.

 

How much of an improvement in light output can I expect by boosting the voltage? If I can only get another 20 or 30% out of them, then they are going back and will have to find some that are brighter or there's no sense in even having them.

 

Boosting the voltage will make a big difference. Hard to say how much until you try it but you can crank them up pretty high.

The other issue that you've probably seen is that the apparent light output is pretty sensitive to being on-axis i.e. if you're looking straight at them, they pretty bright, if you get off to the side, then they start to drop off. The diffuser bar helps spread the light around but then it doesn't appear to be as bright since you're spreading the same amount of light over a wider area. Another reason to crank up the voltage.

If you want that sharp, crystal clear, Audi look, then run without the diffuser bar with the voltage boosted, and make sure that the center-line axis of the strips is oriented with the center-line of the car.