Thoughts and Ramblings after a 2500 mile road trip

[Sonicsunspot]

Interesting to hear the temp readings. This summer I have been doing more highway driving. Truck is 100% stock. With temps 90+ I have been watching more closely. Doing a lot of highway driving across MO, KS and CO cruising at 80mph+ and watching temps hover up to 220-225 gets me nervous but maybe it’s normal? Seems 210-215 is normal for cruising around town.

For highway cruising, what’s the danger zone temp-wise?

 

[nikhsub1]

Great write-up and thanks for the pics! Definitely looks like a good time. I'm in Los Angeles as well (Sherman Oaks) and a few of my friends/family gave me a hard time, "Why would you get a F150 Raptor in LA?" My response is exactly yours, "HAVE YOU SEEN OUR ROADS? I drive toward the potholes, laugh when people have to come to nearly complete stops to pass through intersections where the cross street dips down. I just keep going, don't even flinch." Still not sure why our gas tax is so high, clearly not going toward maintaining/fixing the roads

Yes, to all of it There are just so many roads here - people don't realize how large LA really is or how bad the roads are.

Interesting to hear the temp readings. This summer I have been doing more highway driving. Truck is 100% stock. With temps 90+ I have been watching more closely. Doing a lot of highway driving across MO, KS and CO cruising at 80mph+ and watching temps hover up to 220-225 gets me nervous but maybe it’s normal? Seems 210-215 is normal for cruising around town.

For highway cruising, what’s the danger zone temp-wise?

Not sure what the actual danger zone is as far as actual temps - water boils at 212F at sea level. I know pressurization and coolant raise that but that number is stuck in my head as bad. I've seen some report 240ish or so - pretty sure there is a dummy light that will come on if the truck gets too hot. For me, in 100+ degrees cruising at 80+ on flat ground the truck stays about 185 - 190 ish.

 

[TheCzar]

Nice pics, nice trip, If I had to guess, using the paddle shifters is manual mode, so you wouldn't want the transmission to ever shift on it's own anyway. Nice mods on your raptor too!

my understanding is if you still have it in auto, you can use the - paddle shifter to limit the highest gear that auto will select. So dropping it down to 8, auto wouldn't shift above 8, but could go lower than that depending on speed, etc.


Earlier this year I lived out of my truck for a 2 week, 5k mile road trip with not nearly as many upgrades as you and had a blast as well. best road trip vehicle IMO

 

[nikhsub1]

my understanding is if you still have it in auto, you can use the - paddle shifter to limit the highest gear that auto will select. So dropping it down to 8, auto wouldn't shift above 8, but could go lower than that depending on speed, etc.
Yes, this is correct

Earlier this year I lived out of my truck for a 2 week, 5k mile road trip with not nearly as many upgrades as you and had a blast as well. best road trip vehicle IMO

Agreed.

 

[REMIX]

Nice write up! This is kind of off topic...

I love the bike carrier. I am going on a solo 2,000mi round trip from Florida to N. Indiana end of next week. Really wish I could use a setup like this but - being solo - I do not trust my bike to NOT be stolen if the vehicle is out of my sight for more than a few minutes, so bathroom breaks would be a big NO. Also, being solo, you have to be able to hide **** since no family member is around to keep an eye on your belongings inside the truck when it's unattended. Hotels are a problem as well because I need to make multiple trips from my room to the truck to get everything out. I bought one of those Odero underseat organizers so I can hide my backpack which has my laptop when I stop for something.

Last time I did this trip, I used a hitch mounted bike carrier and worried about my bike the entire time. This time I'm just going to remove the front wheel and put the rest of the bike in the bed under the Bakflip, along with my luggage. But I really like that carrier! If I had family or friends riding along as sentry I'd love one of these!

 

[nikhsub1]

I've had the bike racks for years. They do lock to the rails, rails locked to the truck and the bikes locked to the racks. Theoretically it is all locked down, but our bikes are just cheap $600 ish deals that are not of much value to anyone. I leave them that way overnight at hotels without incident for years. If I have high dollar bikes it would definitely be another story.

 

[dirtgod]

Thanks for sharing! Great pictures and a fun looking trip in the “do it all” Raptor ! Never see myself without one.

 

[Retired in TN]

Please post pics every time you travel, this post is outstanding. You spin a story masterfully as well.

 

[dillard09]

First off great pics! Looked like a great trip. Love your truck too. Where you at in LA?
So that is exactly what I do in my truck. I have very similar mods as well. I watch my ngauge and when boost hits about 7-8 psi I will drop to 9th and boost up again ill drop to 8th. Would way rather roll in 7th-8th at 2500-3000 rpms with 3-5 psi boost then in 10th at at 18psi boost for an extended period of time. Also agree that an Intercooler and the 170 Tstat should come in a combo pack.
Also would recommend a Dometic or like fridge cooler. Plug it in, set temp, and no ice. Don't have to worry about stuff getting wet.

 

[nikhsub1]

Please post pics every time you travel, this post is outstanding. You spin a story masterfully as well.

Thanks!

First off great pics! Looked like a great trip. Love your truck too. Where you at in LA?
So that is exactly what I do in my truck. I have very similar mods as well. I watch my ngauge and when boost hits about 7-8 psi I will drop to 9th and boost up again ill drop to 8th. Would way rather roll in 7th-8th at 2500-3000 rpms with 3-5 psi boost then in 10th at at 18psi boost for an extended period of time. Also agree that an Intercooler and the 170 Tstat should come in a combo pack.
Also would recommend a Dometic or like fridge cooler. Plug it in, set temp, and no ice. Don't have to worry about stuff getting wet.

I'm right near Pink's - La Brea / Melrose area. Urban jungle. Yeah I've thought about electric coolers but the yeti is just so good. I don't mind the ice / water - their is a drain plug that relieves the water and ice will stay for days if you don't open it too frequently. Ice is easy to come by in hotels too so really no biggie. If I were overlanding, that would be a different story I guess.