10th Generation F-150 Overland build (The Craptor)

[TXHokie7]

Very cool build. I'm curious as being a parent myself (4year old, 2 year old and 8 month old) what is your car seat setup for the kids. I know the backseat of that truck isnt very big just curious what you use. Do you guys unhitch the car seats each night you camp and reinstall when you head out? You mentioned you have another on the way too. Are you going to keep the same truck?

I've been trying to figure out a capable vehicle for my family but with all the car seats I'm a bit stumped as I don't want to have to buy a new/newer truck(they are super pricy)

 

[OBS460]

Very cool build. I'm curious as being a parent myself (4year old, 2 year old and 8 month old) what is your car seat setup for the kids. I know the backseat of that truck isnt very big just curious what you use. Do you guys unhitch the car seats each night you camp and reinstall when you head out? You mentioned you have another on the way too. Are you going to keep the same truck?

I've been trying to figure out a capable vehicle for my family but with all the car seats I'm a bit stumped as I don't want to have to buy a new/newer truck(they are super pricy)

Currently our plan is to have my 7 year old daughter sleep on the front seat on her air mattress, my 4 year old son will sleep on the rear floor with his air mattress (seat folded flat), and we will sleep with the newborn in the back of the truck.

We simply place the car seats under the canopy or in the shower hut to shelter them at night. So far, it works for us!

 

[OBS460]

In the Neverending quest for more power, I addressed the air intake on the 5.4. The bean counters at Ford won, and had the engineers install the same air box on all F150s except for the Lightning.

The factory air box is too small in volume to properly feed 5.4 liters, and the inlet opening is smaller than the throttle body. First, I tried the 'Gotts Mod' and found that I gained about 3-5 g/s with my mass air flow reading at WOT. This should be roughly a 4-7hp gain. Still, I felt things could be improved.

In my reading, I found that the Ford Lightning did not share the same air box as the other trucks due to its higher air flow needs. This box has roughly 2.5x the internal volume, a 3x larger opening by area, and places the MAF away from the walls to help prevent stagnant flow around it.

I cut up the factory tube to reuse the connections for the IACV and breather, purchased a generic 3" cold air tube kit, and a Lightning air box. From there, I cut the inner fender opening larger to match the snorkel dimensions of the new air box.

Once it was all installed, I logged my MAF readings on the same stretch of road as before and found 10-18 grams per second increases over the Gotts Mod! We are looking at another 15-20hp gain, and the truck feels much stronger at all RPMs.

 

[TXHokie7]

Currently our plan is to have my 7 year old daughter sleep on the front seat on her air mattress, my 4 year old son will sleep on the rear floor with his air mattress (seat folded flat), and we will sleep with the newborn in the back of the truck.

We simply place the car seats under the canopy or in the shower hut to shelter them at night. So far, it works for us!

Hmm interesting. Have you found a car seat for the new born that will fit the rear bench? I have my kids in Britax seats and they are huge. I used to have a 10th gen and would like another but I'm not sure with the car seats if the extended cab would work. You've given me some hope though

 

[OBS460]

Hmm interesting. Have you found a car seat for the new born that will fit the rear bench? I have my kids in Britax seats and they are huge. I used to have a 10th gen and would like another but I'm not sure with the car seats if the extended cab would work. You've given me some hope though

My daughter is in a booster seat behind the driver's seat, and my son is in a compact child seat behind the passenger seat. The newborn seat fits in the center, as the seat can extend in between the front seats with the center armrest down.

Its not the most roomy thing in the world, but it suffices for our needs. I have extra space in the bed drawers for clothes and things so we do not have to pack things in the cab.

 

[zgfiredude]

Well done! I like the creative solutions to problems as they arise. And without blowing up the budget along the way.

 

[OBS460]

Well done! I like the creative solutions to problems as they arise. And without blowing up the budget along the way.

Thanks! You can really save some money if you stick to building things yourself, plus its half the fun!

 

[OBS460]

I installed electric cooling fans from a Ford Windstar as they pull 4400cfm with both on full. Controlling them is a Hayden dual can controller. I saw an immediate 1.0-1.5mpg increase out of the truck with combined mileage, its quieter, and dyno results have shown about 7whp and 15wtq 'gains' from removing the parasitic drag.

At a constant 55mph, my fuel economy app is registering 21mpg (19-20mpg is more realistic, as it seems to drop 1mpg for every 5mph after 55mph) which correlates with what I see at the pump. By 70mph, Im usually around 16mpg.

After installing my electric fans, I was unhappy with the way the fans worked in conjunction with the air conditioning system.

I had the system set to turn the fans on anytime the ac clutch cycled on. While this worked well around town, it caused the fans to turn on down the highway when they are not needed. (Or when the defrost is on during winter months)

To remedy this, I installed a different high pressure switch from a Kenworth semi that closes it's contacts at 260psi and reopens them at 200psi. I then tied the fan trigger wire to this switch (and the other side to the normal AC system circuitry).

Now when traveling down the highway the high side pressures stays low enough to not trigger fan operation, and they also do not cycle with the defrost in the winter. Perfect.

 

[Dougnuts]

Great work and please continue to share your projects and progress. My Dad has my late Grandpa's 130k mile 2001 4x4 and I can see that working on it may be in my future.

 

[TXHokie7]

I installed electric cooling fans from a Ford Windstar as they pull 4400cfm with both on full. Controlling them is a Hayden dual can controller. I saw an immediate 1.0-1.5mpg increase out of the truck with combined mileage, its quieter, and dyno results have shown about 7whp and 15wtq 'gains' from removing the parasitic drag.

At a constant 55mph, my fuel economy app is registering 21mpg (19-20mpg is more realistic, as it seems to drop 1mpg for every 5mph after 55mph) which correlates with what I see at the pump. By 70mph, Im usually around 16mpg.

After installing my electric fans, I was unhappy with the way the fans worked in conjunction with the air conditioning system.

I had the system set to turn the fans on anytime the ac clutch cycled on. While this worked well around town, it caused the fans to turn on down the highway when they are not needed. (Or when the defrost is on during winter months)

To remedy this, I installed a different high pressure switch from a Kenworth semi that closes it's contacts at 260psi and reopens them at 200psi. I then tied the fan trigger wire to this switch (and the other side to the normal AC system circuitry).

Now when traveling down the highway the high side pressures stays low enough to not trigger fan operation, and they also do not cycle with the defrost in the winter. Perfect.

In the pics it looks like the factory intake is back on. Did you pull the lightning intake?

 

[OBS460]

In the pics it looks like the factory intake is back on. Did you pull the lightning intake?

No, it was just an older set of photos from the fan install. I realized I hadn't added the fan change to the build thread, so I figured late was better than never!

The Lightning intake is still on, and I'm very pleased with the added power and throttle response. It makes the truck feel 800lbs lighter when accelerating.

 

[CountryboyNC]

Man, I’d love to find a good 10th gen instead of wheeling my 2019

 

[OBS460]

They're out there! The 10th gen isn't the absolute best F150 for an off road build, but it does have its merits.

 

[badm0t0rfinger]

Man, I’d love to find a good 10th gen instead of wheeling my 2019

The best platform for an overlander is the one you got.

 

[OBS460]

The best platform for an overlander is the one you got.

This is my sentiments as well. Having familiarity with it is huge if you have an issue while off grid as well.