Steve_K's 2026 Shelter Green Ranger Raptor Not A Build Thread

[STEVE_K]

Figured I'd start a thread in here to track maintenance, service, modifications, and so on..... Some items might be duplicates or be duplicated in the "What did you do to your Ranger Raptor today" thread....

I wouldn't consider this a build since the chances of me doing any type of crazy upgrades & modifications is pretty slim. This was a retirement gift to myself and will be my daily driver along with my 2003 Jeep Wrangler SE. Also looking to use it for roadtrips too!

Pick-up day:

Chilling in the side yard while clearing out it's place in the garage:

Screen protector installed:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLKWND27?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Front seat covers:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQJH1ZGS?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Back seat cover:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SHWBMCL?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_2&th=1

Keypad install:

Front license plate mounting:
https://swarfworks.com/2010-2023-ford-raptor-front-license-plate-relocation/

Ceramic coated the paint and wheels:
https://ammonyc.com/collections/exterior/products/ammo-reflex-pro-ii-enamel-coat

https://ammonyc.com/collections/wheels/products/ammo-gelee-pro-wheel-metal-coat

Line-X Bedliner

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[TxArch]

Figured I'd start a thread in here to track maintenance, service, modifications, and so on..... Some items might be duplicates or be duplicated in the "What did you do to your Ranger Raptor today" thread....

I wouldn't consider this a build since the chances of me doing any type of crazy upgrades & modifications is pretty slim. This was a retirement gift to myself and will be my daily driver along with my 2003 Jeep Wrangler SE. Also looking to use it for roadtrips too!

Pick-up day:

Chilling in the side yard while clearing out it's place in the garage:

Screen protector installed:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLKWND27?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Front seat covers:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQJH1ZGS?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Back seat cover:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQJH1ZGS?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Keypad install:

Front linense plate mounting:
https://swarfworks.com/2010-2023-ford-raptor-front-license-plate-relocation/

Ceramic coated the paint and wheels:
https://ammonyc.com/collections/exterior/products/ammo-reflex-pro-ii-enamel-coat

https://ammonyc.com/collections/wheels/products/ammo-gelee-pro-wheel-metal-coat

Line-X Bedliner

In the words of Vinny (Steve Martin) from My Blue Heaven...
"Looking good!"
Congratulations on the new RR!

 

[Dre' Dawg]

Figured I'd start a thread in here to track maintenance, service, modifications, and so on..... Some items might be duplicates or be duplicated in the "What did you do to your Ranger Raptor today" thread....

I wouldn't consider this a build since the chances of me doing any type of crazy upgrades & modifications is pretty slim. This was a retirement gift to myself and will be my daily driver along with my 2003 Jeep Wrangler SE. Also looking to use it for roadtrips too!

Pick-up day:

Chilling in the side yard while clearing out it's place in the garage:

Screen protector installed:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLKWND27?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Front seat covers:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQJH1ZGS?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Back seat cover:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SHWBMCL?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_2&th=1

Keypad install:

Front linense plate mounting:
https://swarfworks.com/2010-2023-ford-raptor-front-license-plate-relocation/

Ceramic coated the paint and wheels:
https://ammonyc.com/collections/exterior/products/ammo-reflex-pro-ii-enamel-coat

https://ammonyc.com/collections/wheels/products/ammo-gelee-pro-wheel-metal-coat

Line-X Bedliner

Figured I'd start a thread in here to track maintenance, service, modifications, and so on..... Some items might be duplicates or be duplicated in the "What did you do to your Ranger Raptor today" thread....

I wouldn't consider this a build since the chances of me doing any type of crazy upgrades & modifications is pretty slim. This was a retirement gift to myself and will be my daily driver along with my 2003 Jeep Wrangler SE. Also looking to use it for roadtrips too!

Pick-up day:

Chilling in the side yard while clearing out it's place in the garage:

Screen protector installed:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DLKWND27?
ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Front seat covers:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CQJH1ZGS?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

Back seat cover:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SHWBMCL?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_2&th=1

Keypad install:

Front linense plate mounting:
https://swarfworks.com/2010-2023-ford-raptor-front-license-plate-relocation/

Ceramic coated the paint and wheels:
https://ammonyc.com/collections/exterior/products/ammo-reflex-pro-ii-enamel-coat

https://ammonyc.com/collections/wheels/products/ammo-gelee-pro-wheel-metal-coat

Line-X Bedliner

Steve, Congratulations on retirement and your new RR. It is a very fun vehicle and great daily driver. I have the same color in the 2025 version.


Here are the things I did so far.

1a. First and foremost have the Procal installed.... gettie up!
1. Came with a factory bed liner but if you don't have one get it ASAP
2. Rubber bed mat from Ford on top of the spray in.
3. Tonneau cover from Leer Ford branded. Almost water proof and lays very flat.
4. If you do a tonneau cover seal the bed fender caps to keep water our. I used black silicon and Gorilla water proof patch and seal.
5.. Hydraulic hood struts from Red Line.
6. PPF on front, hood and front fenders with small piece on rear fender well.
7. Ceramic coat the whole thing. Canceled my car wash... saw where a member had the
antenna ripped off from one. Pricey but I think will be well worth it.
8. Hard wired my Valentine One Gen 2 radar detector to my rear view mirror power (amazon has
a kit to back tap the connector (some one had a real good post on what and how to tap)!
9. Muslogy center console storage organizer, especially the one that fits inside the console top.
Great for putting wallet, gift cards and cash in.
10. Black ET Truck Spline Lug Nut Kit; 12mm x 1.5; Set of 24 (19-26 Ranger)
11. Three front grill lights from Ford Next Gen Raptor- RP24 Dual Colour LED Grille Lights
(White & Amber). I tapped the under hood fuse box by adding a circuit easy installation. I put a quick connect / disconnect on both the amber and white so I can change colors if I want.
12. I purchased the 10yr/100,000 mile Premium care warranty for my peace of mind. I bought the first one from the dealer (mistake) and the second one from Granger Ford and saved over $1,000!
13. Last but not least a custom license plate RPatrol, those born before 1960 will get it!

 

[Medic 6]

Congratulations on retirement and the RR. I also completed items 1,2, and 9. Instead of item 10, I opted for Ford Performance black lugnuts. Good luck with the mods and have fun with it.

 

[STEVE_K]

@Dre' Dawg, great list of stuff! So far I have managed to get several of those take care of and still researching some of those a bit more.

1a- Probably get the ProCal at the first service.
1 - got that taken care of a couple days ago at a Line-X dealer and it came out great.
2 - Will be adding a bed mat as well, did that with the drop in liner on my last truck and it made things more comfortable when climbing around the bed.
3- Waiting for my Diamondback Switchback to arrive, probably have a couple more weeks to go.
4 - THANKS FOR THE TIP ON THIS ONE! I will probably do this soon before the cover arrives.
7- Did a ceramic coat on the paint and wheels too, next wash will a cake walk!
8- Do you have a link for the wiring kit you used?
9- Looked that up on Amazon and going to get!
12- Added a couple of the Ford plans for warranty and service, wife thought it was a good idea with me retiring and could be helpful if something dies
13- Rat Patrol the TV show? Think I remember watching reruns as a kid.

I will probably hit you up for some other links on things you mentioned as I take care of things over time.

 

[Dre' Dawg]

Steve,

The mirror tap for my V1 Gen 2 was purchased from Amazon, https://www.amazon.com/dp.
See this post as I did not even have to use my volt meter to check, plug and play.
Mirror tap and Fuse tap for Detector or Dash Cam?

• Thread starterHyperM3
• Start dateFeb 1, 2024
• Watchers48

The Muslogy center console storage kit link is below. Check to make sure you ordered the one with the secret insert tray. I ordered one and it only had the stack trays for console and the cap insert. It is very handy for hiding wallet, credit cards and cash. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DGQHRCHK?ref=fed_asin_title

Yes Rat Patrol, thought those that are too young would assume Raptor Patrol. Hit me up if you need more info..

 

[STEVE_K]

Squeezed in a little garage time this morning before doing some house painting preparation.....


First up was installing an oil catch can. Right now just doing one on the PCV side since I can remove it easily when going in for service, don't want the dealer giving me any crap on warranty coverage. Sometime in the future might switch one that can function while in boost, however those seem to require some permanent modifications to run. The install was pretty easy but would have preferred if the connectors had the same type of release mechanism as the factory ones since I found those easier to remove.

https://www.jlosc.com/j-l-oil-separator-3-0-pcv-side-2024-2026-ford-ranger-raptor-3-0l/

Next up was geeking out with my new electric cooler that I bought for my roadtrip to Raptor Rally 3. I picked up an ICECO APL20 that I'll be running from the outlet in the bed of the truck with a small 300W power bank and a 250W battery from ICECO. So far between the two batteries the cooler has been able to run for 72+ hours at 32F while in my garage with temps between 50F - 90F. Since I'll be driving around for about 2 weeks or so, I wanted a cooler to pack food in so I'm not eating too much fast food and didn't want to mess with hassle of having to buy and monitor ice constantly. Overall it's been pretty impressive with the run time while on batteries and pretty quiet too which will be nice for the few nights that it might be in a hotel room with me. Sometime in the near future I will zip tie the battery packs inside that black crate to keep things secure and organized with whatever other items I want readily available from the back of the truck.

https://icecofreezer.com/products/apl20-black-freezer

 

[STEVE_K]

This morning I went to Discount Tire to have the spare K03 mounted to matching wheel. Ceramic coated the wheel, then got crazy with a pool noodle to protect the spokes of the wheel even though there is some rubber padding up in the spare tire mounting area.... Yes, perhaps I am a bit crazy.

While checking out the spare tire area I remembered I had seen in a few YouTub videos that the back side of the bumper seemed to be an area that Ford factory workers sign for fun or maybe some sort of inspection check-off area.... A thanks to Lenele (???) for building my truck!

 

[STEVE_K]

Today I decided to take the day off from retirement projects and installed my Diamondback Switchback bed cover. Fifteen minute install my a$$! Could have done it in 15, but I had to overthink everything and take lots of breaks.... Just because! Overall, very happy with it.

Sealed up the bed rail caps a few days ago since I had got that suggestion from @Dre' Dawg. Turns out the cover pretty much covers them completely, but still glad I did it:

Lay down the front bulkhead seals and also found some other holes that I sealed up with some silicone:

Placed the cover on the bed to start lining things up. This warning sticker pretty much ruined my weekend plans:

Had to notch out the bed rail covers at all 4 corners for the clamps that hold the bed cover down:

The finished product. Supposed to leave it closed up for 24 hours to help get the gaskets to form to bed. I think I need to add another turn to each clamp to pull it down a little tighter, so will do that tomorrow since I didn't feel like crawling under the cover to the front of the truck to do those... Sometimes I just have to cave-in to laziness:

Yes, I love Stihl products! Nothing beats 2 stroke smoke in the morning!

 

[STEVE_K]

First up today was taking the RR out to breakfast before mowing my lawn and a few other small tasks in the yard.

After yard work was completed I installed my BoostedSafe that arrived a few days ago. I probably won't need it on a daily basis but will leave in full time, but on road trips I have various Standard and metric ratchets, a plethora of freedom seeds, and various other accouterments. Overall the quality seems pretty good. Nothing is 100% theft proof, but it would certainly increase the time that someone would have to stick around and work on it to get open or out of the vehicle since it attaches to the ISO/child seat mounting points and requires the safe to be opened to remove it. I did the Elite version with key, fingerprint, and pushbutton combo lock, stores up to 50 fingerprints so I can have my wife added to it easily. Got if for $339 with a coupon I found online.
boosted-safe-elite-the-pinnacle-of-security-and-innovation

The shipping box includes some targets on the inside with some humorous disclaimers.

Added the LED light strip from Diamondback to my bed cover. Seems to light up ok even while in my garage during the day, but expecting it will be good in darkness.

 

[STEVE_K]

Today I installed the ProClip phone mount that arrived a few days ago. I like how it's easy view and out of the way since it's not taking up space anywhere in/on the center console.

 

[STEVE_K]

Did some preparation today for an overnight roadtrip that I am going to do on Thursday. It's just a quick trip from Snohomish County, WA down to La Pine, OR to visit friends and enjoy some food and drink.

First up was doing the front license plate mount again since I finally picked up some new hardware that was the correct length.

Checked the engine oil and the oil catch can even though it only has about 200 miles (200 miles on the catch can) on it. There wasn't much in there but wanted to get an idea of what was going on with that setup.

Installed the some stickers in the under hood fuse box since they are not labeled. Someone on here had suggested this from Sticker Fab. https://www.stickerfab.com/products...lid-labels-2024-ranger?variant=49441705427263

And up last was trial fitting stuff for the road trip. I'll try it out to see how it works and will pick up more tie-downs and bungie cords after I get back. But for now, everything will stay in place but Ill want to clean up its looks later

 

[STEVE_K]

Today is clean-up from the overnight road trip I just took on Thursday & Friday... The truck performed flawlessly as expected. It was very comfortable for the 8ish hours each way. It was just about 850 miles roundtrip and averaged about 19mpg with the 4 fill-ups. I kept the right foot pretty light most of the time, but on a few occasions I just had to see what it could do.

Cleaned up my tie-down situation before I left since it looked like a rat nest previously. I'm kind of a pain in the a$$ when packing. Everything has a place and was easily secured so it wouldn't slide around..... Yes, that's a step stool on top of the cooler. Even at 5'10" I find it a pain in the a$$ to get in the bed or to check the oil.

Had to complete the testing of the IceCo cooler..... the Modelo was quite refreshing when I arrived at my destination.

A quick stop at the Stone Henge WWI Memorial. I have only walked around inside it once, a little depressing but a great monument to those of Klickitat County who well in the war. Just need to stop by with my wife's CRV to finish having all of our vehicles photographed here.

Lots of smoke from the annual arson activities. Gotta say the smell of smoke was not very noticeable in the cab. Still haven't figured out or really even looked for it, but guessing the hvac system was on recycle or has one hell of a cabin filter.

 

[STEVE_K]

Tried out a 4 tire inflation setup from www.fasterflate.com today. This is something I have wanted for a while since my wife's CRV has a funky way of monitoring tire pressure and can be a pain in the a$$ sometimes after tire rotations or when going back and forth from summer to winter tires. After getting my RR with the tire pressure reading on the dash, I figured it was time to get one of these since it would drive me crazy if the pressure was several pounds off corner to corner.

It's nice being able to hook up all the tires at once and let everything balance out in a couple minutes! This will also be handy when airing down for trail use as well as filling back up.

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