aussieturtle

Dont do it - youre missing the 2 extra cylinders you needed to get it for free (not to mention the soundtrack..)

Sorry Adrian, I wasnt ignoring you, I have just got back from a very long holiday. Unfortunately I dont have a number for the kit and when I rang up today the dealer wouldnt give it to me over the phone (WTF???). I'm guessing you well and truly have it by now. If it is the full wraparound stainless hinge then it is the right kit. BTW the one on my car is only for the BF Lid with the pins contrary to being able to the BA ones with the tabs as well. Cheers Tom

Hi, The the car is at home now(Macarthur Ford dropped it off for me!) and my wife says it is the full stainless hinge and perfect (her words....). Apparently ford want $900 for this style of fitting kit if you bought it separately (boy am I glad it was warranty!). They really shouldnt have fitted the other type IMHO. So if you have the 1/2 hinge and your car is under warranty I would urge you to discuss it with your dealer/service department. Cheers Tom

Hi All, Just an update - got a call from Macarthur Ford today. Apparently the full span stainless hinge is available through spares and they are going to put the car back together with one after it is all straight. However Ford technical are still claiming the 1/2 hinge is the correct one for the hump style lid - which is sounding strange to the dealer in light of the damage they have seen now on at least 2 cars. This new hinge is supposed to accommodate both the flat and bulged type lids even though they have different hinge systems - tabs V pins????? We wait with anticipation The car should be ready Friday with any luck. Cheers Tom

Hi, Agreed - but not just mine. The Service department also checked another customers ute and guess what - its happened to theirs as well. I have also looked on Carsguide and found several cars with the same problem. So if you have a single piece BF hardlid with the black half hinge - check it out and take it back to Ford if necissary. Cheers Tom

Hi All, Here are the photos of my car, and a couple off the web to illustrate the issue. If you have a one piece BF hardlid with the black hinge have a good look at your tub and then see if you can get it fixed. Mine is going in on Monday to Macarthur Ford so we will see what happens. Hopefully they only have it for the week..... Cheers Tom

Hi, I have a BF Mk1 XR ute with a dealer fitted hardlid. When it was first fitted I was surprised by how bad the gas struts were as the lid would only just stay up (well until it got cold anyway - then it would just fall down....). My dealer replaced the struts 2 weeks ago and it now lifts brilliantly but now I have another issue - the headboard is being pulled back into the tub. It has actually migrated back 3/4" and the top metal strap is bowed. The hinge is the black type that is only around 3' long and sits over the front of the tub. Other BF's seem to have the large stainless wraparound style hinge that also picks up on the side bolts in the forward corners, but my dealer says the this is the 'factory fitting kit' and is not available to them. Are they wrong? Did they actually fit the BA lid kit originally? That would explain the low strut pressure originally as the BA lid is lighter. It would also explain why the proper struts are pulling the hinge out of the tub. Any help would be appreciated? The car is booked in next monday for them to try and fix it - although they say that this has not happened to them before. Cheers Tom

Hi, Lidlok are quoting $435+postage on their site but Greg might do better for 2 kits. The other bits cost me $50 from a wrecker(boot switch and sedan remote). These parts come up on e-bay new as well reasonably cheaply ($20 for a remote and about the same for a switch). HTH Cheers Tom www.lidlok.com.au

Cheers Will, thanks for the reply. Tom

Hi Will, Again sorry about not seeing the post - work IT access is getting difficult as they want us to work more apparently :-) No dramas with the calls - glad it all worked out for you. I didnt realise that Ford used the same plug for the BT and will keep that in mind as I'm toying with the idea of getting the BT kit myself(any good?). I'm sure you are loving the Lidlok anyway - especially with the boot release . Cheers Tom

Hi Will, The plug just makes it neater/conventional. You already have the wireing from the dash to the back side of C396 so if you cant get one from the wrecker or a female socket from an autoelec - just solder the wires to the back side of the plug(the wire colours are the same). The plug assy just unclips from the plastic tub in the kick panel. I have PM'd you. Cheers Tom

Here you go guys and girls - I hope it helps...... Cheers Tom Lidlok_Remote_Conversion.pdf

No worries Rog, It is alot easier than I typed :wacko: The how to with pictures is coming - if I could just get back to Sydney........ Cheers Tom

Hi All, I was sucessful today in sorting out the Sedan switching and remote for the Lidlok in the ute. I was going past the wrecker yesterday and grabbed a Boot Switch, Remote, and a sedan plug. As I suggested earlier, the dash wiring is all the same and the boot release wiring is in place down to the main orange plug in the RH kick panel C396. The switch plug is tied back behind the Instrument Cluster along with the one for the fuel door release(that is also doable to if you can be bothered and you get a door of a sedan or wagon - the latch points on the fuel door are different between the ute and sedan/wagon). You need to get a plug C396 off a sedan to steal the violet pin(84) out of the plug as it is not installed in the ute(the connectors are AMP so you could possibly get one from an auto electrician). My wrecker had a front cut and the plug you need is part of the loom that is cut when the chassis is split so that was part one sorted. I pulled out the cluster and fed the plugs down to the switch. I then grabbed the switch and removed the fuel release switch as I wouldnt be needing it, and fitted a blank off the BA ute from below the driving light switch. You then plug in the boot switch and tape back the other plug to prevent rattles and fit the assembly into the dash. Next you remove the RH kick panel and undo the orange connector C396 and take the Lidlok open wire(Red) and disconnect it from the Common Door Unlock(Red-Yellow) and solder it to the pin off the violet wire in the sedan plug removed earlier. You then fit the pin back into the empty slot(84) in the ute plug and reassemble the connector. Refit your trim. Finaly, you pair the sedan remote to your car using the procedure in your owners manual and that's it! (Note - you need to pair all remotes for the car each time you do this procedure or the others will not work until you redo them....) My Lidlok now opens off the boot switch in the dash and the boot release on the remote. It also locks off the remote lock key and the button on the ICC as it used to. I will probably do a instruction sheet with photos once I get back to work next week so I can PDF it and make it a sensible size. I think this is a better way of wiring it up as the lid can be unlocked separately to the doors and vise-versa. The best part is that the parts only cost $50 from the wrecker. I have connected to the car and there are no codes generated so it would appear that the BEM does not expect a reply from the Boot Ajar when the Boot Unlock is used. Cheers Tom

Hi Will, I had a look at the wiring diagram and it looks like it can be done. You would need to hook up the 'open' wire from the lidlok harness to the 'boot unlock' wire coming out of the BEM (It normally connects to the common unlock for the doors). I'm pretty sure that last time I had the cluster out that the plugs are there for the sedan boot and fuel door switches if you wanted to fit them too. You could then buy and train the sedan fob to your BEM using the proceedure in your owners manual. The only drawback is that you would possibly have to run a wire and switch from the tailgate to the BEM to indicate that the lid was unlocked. When you remote unlock the boot it normally gets a 'boot ajar' signal coming back to the BEM. This is the same as your doors so that the central locking will not lock if all doors are not closed. If it doesnt get this signal it may log a code indicating that the boot release is faulty in your BEM which may prevent the car from being locked by the central locking. I dont know if the boot ajar signal is required or not (I suspect not but I'm not sure) - if the BEM is not looking for it then it wouldnt be a problem and the additional wiring would not be required. I just havent been bothered to commit the time and money to take it to the next level yet. But if someone else is in a hurry and wants to try - fill your boots :-) Cheers Tom

Hi, I agree, I have GEXenon 6000k hi/lo in my XR8 and would never go back to halogen. I left the stock alignment and have had no issues with flashing or glare over the last year. A great enhancement IMHO. Cheers Tom

Hi, I guess you would have to compare the 2 wiring diagrams. If the boot release wiring was in the dash harness and the BEM was the same as the sedan it could be done. The next step could be that assuming the BEM was the same, it might be a case of getting it coded by Ford and hooking up the boot pins out of the BEM to the LIDLOK harness. Then it would work off the boot button on the sedan fob. My thoughts anyway...... Cheers Tom

Hi Tab, Sorry about the delay but I had an APEC free weekend in Mudgee checking out the vino. You need to have a little clearance so that the actuators can lock. The instructions call for 2mm but I have mine just sliding as I was worried about the same thing. They still work fine and the lid doesn't rattle around either hot or cold but I have the BF style with the hump - a mate of mine with the flat lid says his tends to curl up and down depending on the day so that might be why they call for 2mm???. I have had no issues with water through either rain or the automatic carwash and the back is still dust free at this stage (dust can get in through the drain holes in the front of the liner I suppose but I havent had a problem so far). So all good at this end so far As for Rus - yep you get 2 actuators. Cheers Tom

Hi SCRIBR, I just hit the lock button on the ICC before I drive off - this locks everything including the lid. But if you have the lidloks programmed on the second unlock command with your central locking, they dont unlock when you open your drivers door using the handle - so you dont have to remember to relock them. If you choose to unlock the car from the inside using the ICC switch, it will unlock both doors and the lidlok. But they will confirm lock with every lock command - either from your remote fob or from the ICC switch. This is how I set it up and it is better then if the wife is out by herself as only the drivers door unlocks on the first command and she always locks herself in (a couple of her friends have had bags snatched off seats in town whilst stopped at lights - and there are always those people that like to hijack nice cars these days as well). Cheers Tom

Excellent - thanks for that. It really is a nicely done practical mod. Cheers Tom

Hi Roger, The wiring comes out the back of the actuator. Lidlok have engineered it so that if you fit the actuator per their instructions on the factory hard lids, it lines up with one of the vertical channels behind the liner. You then drop the wires down these channels and out the drain hole at the bottom. You then run it along the factory loom under the tray and into the cabin through the grommet at the back of the cab. It will then plug into the front loom in the drivers footwell. The actuator is the only thing visible once the kit is fitted and you dont cut the factory loom if you do it properly. It has been nicely engineered. A mate of mine drives for the dark side and went to the VE pre-launch the other night. A central locking option is available on all their new utes with hard lids from the factory - I hope Ford take note for Orion....... Cheers Tom

Hi Tumbleweed, Did it reduce the rigidity of the lid when you routed out the holes for LED strips? Also, with the holes cut was it easy to feed the wires though the lid inner or was it foam filled. I will do this if it is straight forward as it looks like a winner! Cheers Tom

Hi Guys, I installed the kit on Monday and it took around 4 hours - but I am fussy. All I can say is I dont honestly know how anyone would put up with keys with a product like this on the market. The instructions provided with the kit are clear enough and the finished product looks factory. You only need to remove both kick panels and the glovebox for access inside the cab, but I did elect to remove the instrument cluster and the tissue box holder so I could run the switch wires across to the passenger side footwell along the factory harness. This only involved 5 screws for the cluster and 4 screws for the tissue box holder. You dont need to do this - but as I said I was fussy and did not want any rattles. The extra room allows you to tie off the loom properly IMHO. Greg from Lidlok even called on Monday afternoon to follow up on how I went - exceptional service! Everything is plug and play excluding the 2 switch wires that run to the passenger footwell. These solder onto existing wires and access is good so it should not present any real issues if you have an iron. The harness is assembled from Lidlok and the lengths and connectors are correct and fit properly. I have set it up on the second unlock command so that the lid stays locked unless I hit the button a second time which will unlock it with the passenger door - or you can have it unlock all doors together. It is covered in your owners manual to set it up either way. I have attached a photo of the finished actuator installation only as the rest is covered well enough in the instructions and it is the only part that can be seen with the car complete. Like I said, the harness is pre-assembled. Cheers Tom