Underbody reinforcement brackets

[sherpadog]

We are going to put a cap on the bed of our Ranger. Ford requires us to get their accessory part- Load Box Reinforcement Kit (VN1WZ26277726A) and they must install it so as not to void our warranty. I called my dealer to order this part and they said it is 2 hours of labor to install. I've looked at it online and it looks like more like 1/2 hour of labor. Is it really going to take them that long? The part itself is $170 and with 2 hrs labor it's going to be nearly $400! It feels like they must have made the Ranger pretty weak to need this to begin with. And, if it needs this, it should be offered for free on a brand new truck or the dealer should make the buyer aware of this problem. I'm mostly upset about paying for 2 hours, is that a reasonable amount of labor or are they overcharging me?

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[Catalyst]

Search J-Braces on this forum, lots of conversation and information on this topic.

 

[Geotoxic]

Took me a little over 2 hours to do it myself. That is only because I didn't know how to remove scrivets properly and wasn't sure how to remove fender flares. The 2nd side took about 35 min, whereas the first side took me almost around 90 min.

 

[Jason B]

Here they are from 5G sponsor Levittown $139.59 if you wish to tackle them yourself.
Genuine Ford Load Box Reinforcement Brackets Kit Of Two For Non-Raptor - VN1WZ-2627726-A | Levittown Ford (levittownfordparts.com)

 

[sherpadog]

Took me a little over 2 hours to do it myself. That is only because I didn't know how to remove scrivets properly and wasn't sure how to remove fender flares. The 2nd side took about 35 min, whereas the first side took me almost around 90 min.

Thank-you, I think that confirms that Ford isn't exaggerating on the labor.

 

[Joejr]

We are going to put a cap on the bed of our Ranger. Ford requires us to get their accessory part- Load Box Reinforcement Kit (VN1WZ26277726A) and they must install it so as not to void our warranty. I called my dealer to order this part and they said it is 2 hours of labor to install. I've looked at it online and it looks like more like 1/2 hour of labor. Is it really going to take them that long? The part itself is $170 and with 2 hrs labor it's going to be nearly $400! It feels like they must have made the Ranger pretty weak to need this to begin with. And, if it needs this, it should be offered for free on a brand new truck or the dealer should make the buyer aware of this problem. I'm mostly upset about paying for 2 hours, is that a reasonable amount of labor or are they overcharging me?

It's a bullshit move by Ford. We paid a lot of money for the truck already. Then they make it so you need to spend more to actually use it like a truck. Many people put toppers on, many people put ladder racks on, many people put roof top tents on. So clearly the truck needed these things from factory. It's just Ford giving us all the finger to get more money from us.

 

[Mike9816]

These brackets have been developed by Ford to brace the floor to the wall of the load box to ensure that the off-road durability performance of the load box is maintained with the installation of load-bearing elevated accessories.

 

[jedadiah]

No one could install them in 1/2 hour. I'm not sure two experienced guys could if one took each side of the truck.

 

[Moto26]

It would take about 20 seconds if they did it on the assembly line...

 

[Mlowery1]

Here they are from 5G sponsor Levittown $139.59 if you wish to tackle them yourself.
Genuine Ford Load Box Reinforcement Brackets Kit Of Two For Non-Raptor - VN1WZ-2627726-A | Levittown Ford (levittownfordparts.com)

thanks for the link! After looking at it, they’re charging $49 for shipping…
Seems kind of high for a part like this. Shipping from ford is only $10.

 

[sherpadog]

Update on the reinforcement brackets - I went to the service Dept at my Ford dealer on Saturday and they said they would install them for FREE! I still have to buy them, but Ford is offering 15% off online for the parts so with tax it was $152.77, free shipping to the dealership, and that's all it should cost me. It's still stupid that we have to do this on a truck, what happened to "Built Ford Tough"!

 

[Jason B]

That is good to hear. Why the change of mind? Is Ford covering the repair because of a poor design to begin with? Or do you have the #1 dealer in the US?

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