PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

That is great news!

 

Bolded part indicates that it could be the AC simply cycling off. Get it checked out. AC systems are weird, but that behavior is not abnormal. Car cools when temp gets too high, cycles off when it gets cooler than chosen setting.

 

We call that "short cyling" and it can be a sign that the refrigerant is a little low

 

The compressor in my truck does this when it's cooler outside, but the A/C still seems to blow cold...

 

Just read this whole thread. Great news man. You and are a like. We worry sometimes about things that are out of control or we go down the worst case scenario lane!

 

Sweet. Amazing what a $5 part can screw things up.

 

Thermostats are probably the cheapest part that gets overlooked. I have a 2010 Silverado that dropped a lifter at 125k and ate the cam. Long story short with vehicle prices what they are and my son coming of driving age in the next two years I elected to have a new crate 5.3 installed at a cost of a little over $10,000 then save the truck for my sons first vehicle. It took about 5 weeks to get the engine and get it installed. I got it back in mid July and noticed it was running a little hot and took it back into the shop just a couple of miles after I had picked it up. The service writer proceeded to get pretty pissed and told me they went through the truck before giving it back to me and that I needed to understand that sometimes they just run hot. I kinda lost my shit and went off telling him that I just paid them $10k and that if that temp showed a fraction over what it did when I brought it in they could keep it until it was right. The mechanic that did the swap was a master tech in his mid 50's and seemed like a good guy. When I picked it up he came in with the owner (private shop) and shook my hand and said "man, I am glad you pay attention to that stuff. We put a new thermostat in it when we swapped the motor and it was defective and if you had not caught it we would be replacing another engine under warranty". A $6 part can cost thousands in repairs if you are not careful.

 

I just installed a hud to have a number instead of a bar graph. Lots of other features including code reading and clearing as well as oil temp and manifold pressure but would not have pulled the trigger without the water temp feature. It sits on the column for now but I can still see the odo right through it.

 

2021 Ridgeline AWD is getting 23.7 mpg.
I hate the Start/Stop. It gets turned off before I ever put it in gear.

 

Not sure what type of driving that is from, but my Taco matches/exceeds that lol

 

50/50 city/highway

 

So I have to tell on myself because it is a funny story. So I am a total gearhead and a pretty decent wrench in my own right and typically do not trust shops at all. I have done some pretty extensive wrenching in my time but now normally go to a shop for anything that is nasty or involves spending my weekend on my back in the garage. 12 years or so ago I purchased a low mileage 2007 fully loaded F150 because I had one as a work truck with a 5.0 and loved it. My mistake was not being a ford guy and not doing my research I got a nice very low mileage (20k) truck but it had the 5.4. I was unaware what a nightmare that engine was but normally only put about 2,500 miles a year on my truck so it set most of the time. When I got it I changed the oil and did the routine stuff then parked it and left for work where I was gone for a few weeks. I got back and the first thing I see is a puddle of oil under the truck. I do some investigating and it looks to be the oil pan gasket. I took it to a shop and paid $800ish to get that done. A few weeks later I leave for work again and when I get back see the same puddle. I take it back to the same shop and they tell me now its the rear main seal that that's $1,200. They would not work with me on the price so I take it to a dealer an hour away and have them do it thinking they will do it correctly. After I pick the truck up I took it to a really good local transmission shop and had them do a tranny service. Leave for work again and get home and what do you know, oil all over the driveway. I took it back to the dealer an hour away and they replace the rear main seal again at no cost to me. By this time I had invested $8ish per mile that I had put on the truck trying to make it right. I was so frustrated with the truck that I had become hyper sensitive about any noise it made. So driving back from the dealer after the 2nd rear main seal I am scrolling through the digital readings on the dash and come to TR. I assume this means trans temp and for some reason left it on that. As I drive I see it climbing steady and about halfway home am starting to get concerned that my trans temp is over 200 degrees and climbing steady! Getting more and more pissed I stop by the trans shop that I have used for years and by this time the trans temp it north of 240 and I am about as hot. The owner comes out and pulls the dipstick and everything looks normal. He looks at the dash and confirms my concern, pulls the dipstick again and smells it and it does not smell burnt. After an hour of he and I trying to figure it out. I get back in the truck and there it is. Trans is still reading hot but now its not 240.2 it's 240.5 and we realize that he had taken it down the road a short ways and that in a 2007 F150 Lariat TR does not stand for Trans. It is an abbreviation for Trip and that is simply the mileage counting up. I have not felt that stupid many times but a few weeks later I was so over the truck that I just sold it. Moral of the story is it is easy to let yourself go to the worst case scenario.

 

That's great fuel economy for a vehicle that size. I guess they've improved engine efficiency over the years. My 2007 Honda Pilot with the same 3.5 V6 engine as the Ridgeline at the time averaged around 15-16 mpg. Good you can turn the Start/Stop off/

My 2.7L Tacoma has been averaging around 22.5 mpg lately.

 

The 9 spd transmission definitely helps.
And it doesn’t hunt gears as bad as you would think.

I think Sport mode is a bit too aggressive

My mother has a 2011 Pilot. It gets about 17 mpg.
So yours and her mpg is about the same.

 

Why does that shock you?

 

4WD would be nice, and more interior space. My truck is getting old...

 

We have Chrysler Pacifica minivans ad company vehicles and they have this feature. Thankfully, it can be shut off at the push of a button.

 

"I needed to understand that sometimes they just run hot."

Sounds like the service writer needs a tune up...

 

Yup!

 

Service writers are complete dipshits in most cases. Most now could not tell you the difference in an oil filter and a spark plug.