Spare tire lock

[Pod]

Still waiting for lock and tailgate cylinder since January. Dealer still says it’s on the way.

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[vvgogh]

Ford put out a notice that they no longer include the lock on any F-150s. Luckily I got my dealer to install one the week before this came out.

When was this bulletin dated and released?

 

[Lightning Rod]

anyone had any luck getting @Ford Motor Company to make this right or even provide a part number?

A local dealer parts employee wrote down the part number for me.

 

[jedi713]

I wasn't told what the part number was, but I did have my dealer get one.

 

[Lightning Rod]

I wasn't told what the part number was, but I did have my dealer get one.

No charge?

 

[jedi713]

No charge?

Correct.

 

[carys98]

When was this bulletin dated and released?

I’m not sure but I think it was early May.

 

[Jim Lewis]

The sales rep at my dealer who handled my sale told me he'd look into getting me a spare tire lock but predicted that if Ford wasn't providing them in the 2023s, they'd no longer stock the part. I never heard back from the dealer rep. I got the part number at Accessories.Ford.com and, IIRC, the rep I spoke with confirmed the lock cylinder would work on my 2023 Lightning, but, sure enough, that part didn't come up in any search on their website whether I filtered on my vehicle VIN # or not.

So I ordered the part from Lakeland Ford Online Parts on 6/1/23, and it arrived today. Ford F-150 Spare Tire Lock - ML3Z1543262A | Lakeland Ford Online Parts, Lakeland FL

You can set the lock "combination" to match the "cylinders" in your fob physical key. I found a detailed tutorial on how to install the spare tire lock cylinder here: '23 Spare Tire Lock (whats everyone doing) - Page 2 - Ford F150 Forum - Community of Ford Truck Fans

Haven't gotten to work on it yet, so I'm not 100% sure I have all the parts I need to use with the cylinder.

While searching YouTube How-To videos, I came across the following interesting video on how to use a bolt, nut, and two washers to block the spare tire lock port. It occurred to me that if one used a big enough bolt with a hole in it, one might actually put a lock of one's own devising through the bolt.



There are lots of YouTube videos on how badly the Ford spare tire lock rusts over time. My neighbor, something of an F-150 guru who's owned two F-150s for many years, says that spare tire lock rusting is a Northern road salt problem, and it's not going to happen in South Texas (!). I'll keep my WD-40 handy, and if the lock eventually succumbs to rust, I may just try the bolt, nut, and washers approach.

Incidentally, it might merit a whole thread by itself, but in talking about changing tires, my neighbor mentioned that the Ford dealers he's gone to habitually overtighten the lugs on his tires. He said Ford is high at 150 ft-lbs. IIRC, he said overtightening the lugs can lead to damaging the discs and pads. Besides that, you can also find out that when you go to change a flat, you can't get the wheel rim off the hub; it's on so tight. So every time he has his tires rotated, he retorques them to check them out at 150 ft-lbs as soon as he gets a truck home. He recommended getting a long-handled torque wrench for the added leverage.

 

[Lightning Rod]

The sales rep at my dealer who handled my sale told me he'd look into getting me a spare tire lock but predicted that if Ford wasn't providing them in the 2023s, they'd no longer stock the part. I never heard back from the dealer rep. I got the part number at Accessories.Ford.com and, IIRC, the rep I spoke with confirmed the lock cylinder would work on my 2023 Lightning, but, sure enough, that part didn't come up in any search on their website whether I filtered on my vehicle VIN # or not.

So I ordered the part from Lakeland Ford Online Parts on 6/1/23, and it arrived today. Ford F-150 Spare Tire Lock - ML3Z1543262A | Lakeland Ford Online Parts, Lakeland FL

You can set the lock "combination" to match the "cylinders" in your fob physical key. I found a detailed tutorial on how to install the spare tire lock cylinder here: '23 Spare Tire Lock (whats everyone doing) - Page 2 - Ford F150 Forum - Community of Ford Truck Fans

Haven't gotten to work on it yet, so I'm not 100% sure I have all the parts I need to use with the cylinder.

While searching YouTube How-To videos, I came across the following interesting video on how to use a bolt, nut, and two washers to block the spare tire lock port. It occurred to me that if one used a big enough bolt with a hole in it, one might actually put a lock of one's own devising through the bolt.



There are lots of YouTube videos on how badly the Ford spare tire lock rusts over time. My neighbor, something of an F-150 guru who's owned two F-150s for many years, says that spare tire lock rusting is a Northern road salt problem, and it's not going to happen in South Texas (!). I'll keep my WD-40 handy, and if the lock eventually succumbs to rust, I may just try the bolt, nut, and washers approach.

Incidentally, it might merit a whole thread by itself, but in talking about changing tires, my neighbor mentioned that the Ford dealers he's gone to habitually overtighten the lugs on his tires. He said Ford is high at 150 ft-lbs. IIRC, he said overtightening the lugs can lead to damaging the discs and pads. Besides that, you can also find out that when you go to change a flat, you can't get the wheel rim off the hub; it's on so tight. So every time he has his tires rotated, he retorques them to check them out at 150 ft-lbs as soon as he gets a truck home. He recommended getting a long-handled torque wrench for the added leverage.

Thanks for this info.

How much did the lock cost you?

 

[Jim Lewis]

How much did the lock cost you?

$112.56. $97.91 for the lock and $14.65 for USPS shipping (no tax!). I can see the expense. There’s lots of little parts that you put together to assemble a working lock that fits your fob key: springs, “tumblers,” the cylinder, the cylinder holder, etc.

 

[RickLightning]

There are lots of YouTube videos on how badly the Ford spare tire lock rusts over time. My neighbor, something of an F-150 guru who's owned two F-150s for many years, says that spare tire lock rusting is a Northern road salt problem, and it's not going to happen in South Texas (!). I'll keep my WD-40 handy, and if the lock eventually succumbs to rust, I may just try the bolt, nut, and washers approach.

I have a 10 year old F-150, and my lock is in great shape. Here's why.

Every 6 months, drop the spare. This ensures the cable works. Fill the tire to the max sidewall pressure. This ensures you have a viable spare. Then, lubricate the lock. This ensures it doesn't rust and not work.

This isn't rocket science, it always amazes me how many people never check their spare, then when they have to use it they can't.

 

[Lightning Rod]

I went to my dealer and I showed them where the lock is standard equipment for the 2023 Lightnings. Parts and service people researched and made phone calls for >30 minutes. They finally told me that they could not verify that the lock should have come with the truck, so the service guy said that he would order the lock and also he would key it alike with my existing key. He had my truck for 2 hours and he said that the dealership will eat the cost and labor.

They had a valet person (very nice young lady) come and pick my truck up and bring it back when it was finished. I told her that I have some splash guards that I ordered in January and I told her to have the parts guy just throw them in the back seat and I would install them this weekend. I called the service guy an hour later to find out the ETA and he said that they were installing the splash guards and it will be done soon. I told him that I told the valet that I just wanted my mud flaps thrown in the back seat. He said, don't worry about the labor, he would also eat that cost. He said that the pretty young lady often screws up when it comes to business communications, ha ha.

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