Has Ford kinda abandoned the whole FITS thing?

[OneAlienBoi]

Or you do what my 7 year old did, and step on my brand new FITS double cupholder while climbing into the front seat from the back like the cupholder was meant to be a step.... That cupholder lasted about 2 hours. I assume if I put in my FITS garbage can she will do the same thing within a week, even after feeling super bad about killing my cupholder.

Kids, you can't live with 'em... that's about it.

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[NJBob]

One complication is that the most common material that is used for 3d printing is call PLA which is likely what the library used. The problem with that material is that it will not hold up well in a car on a hot day and it will soften and deform if not actually melt. There are other materials which are more heat resistant but they can be more difficult to work with especially on an inexpensive home 3d printer.

Thanks my question exactly not sure what plastic Ford uses.

 

[Sembazuru]

One complication is that the most common material that is used for 3d printing is call PLA which is likely what the library used. The problem with that material is that it will not hold up well in a car on a hot day and it will soften and deform if not actually melt. There are other materials which are more heat resistant but they can be more difficult to work with especially on an inexpensive home 3d printer.

True. The library that the OP used probably used PLA if he didn't ask (or know to ask) for a different plastic. Most consumer 3D printers that print PLA should be able to print PETG which should hold up in a car environment. Some libraries will print in PETG if you request, but that relies on you knowing that you need to request PETG... Yeah, PETG strings a bit more than PLA, but that is nothing insurmountable and tuned print settings help. (In my experience the profiles that come with the better slicers are already tuned "good enough".) I printed lots of PETG early in the pandemic for face shield frames, ended up tearing chunks out of my PEI build sheets because I didn't get my surface prep quite right on one or two batches. Oops.

Many of the people on the web who make FITS accessories (like on Etsy, for example) should know about the car environment and print with at least PETG. And, they should advertise (or at least mention in the product description) what plastic they used. Ideally, you would probably want a more engineering style plastic that come with challenges that some printers handle fine, or the owner of the printer has modded to handle.

Things like nylon printing need really good humidity and draft control (like an enclosure or enclosed printer). ABS and other styrene based plastics really should be printed with ventilation and/or filtration to control noxious fumes during the printing process. Other high temperature filaments need both a printer that can reliably get hot enough (all metal hotend) and use an enclosure (or enclosed printer) to avoid drafts across the print during the printing process.

 

[Braderick]

Plugged and forgotten...

 

[Captain Blackheart]

I think it was sort of a stupid marketing idea. Sort of like having the QR code on the cubby doors like that alone will have customers flocking to buy a Maverick.

It's a good marketing gimmick with the expectation that not only would DIY owners be able to craft and personalize certain aspects of the car, but it also opened the door further for the aftermarket. And I'm quite confident the general public isn't drawn to any vehicle simply by QR codes and doo-dads, but there was some forward thinking with a touch of fun involved.

 

[MichaelGA]

One of my coworkers has had aluminum tooling 3D printed. I need to look into what the cost would be.

 

[GPSMan]

Maybe because this is just not that interesting. Not that useful.

I used my trash can for like 2 weeks then took it out and never put it back in. That was 6 months ago.

 

[GPSMan]

The sliding rail "cleats" in the back are another unnecessary gimmick.

They are no better than fixed anchor points, and may be worse, as in not as strong or durable. I mean, how often does you rope tie down point need to be placed with 1 inch of precision? Slim chance to never.

 

[Don11]

What is a fits?

 

[Skeeter163]

FITS kits can be purchased at the dealer parts dept.

 

[JokingJ]

Ford supplied the canvas now it's up to the artist

Except they haven't been making a lot of canvas lately, or really at all in the grand scheme of things.

I think if there were more trucks in driveways, this might be a more fully-realized feature. But Ford would also need to have promoted it more than once. In obscure marketing materials. Two years ago.

 

[bbyBlue]

I don't think they left it. What they did is leave us with a plug that we can really add whatever ! I have been messing around using PLA+ pro they say it should be heat resistant but my truck lives in the garage LOL I am going to be testing out PETG though just need to upgrade my nozzle on my printer (flash forge adventure 3)

 

[Sembazuru]

I am going to be testing out PETG though just need to upgrade my nozzle on my printer (flash forge adventure 3)

Let me preface this by stating that I don't know much about the Flashforge printers, but I do have a Prusa MK3 that I built from a kit and upgraded parts of my hot-end for better thermals and printing abrasive filaments. I've printed various PLA blends, PETG, TPU, and Amphora co-polymers (what ever those are).

Why do you need to upgrade your nozzle for a printer that claims to be able to print ABS (according to my PrusaSlicer generic profiles ABS prints in the 255°C region, but PLA prints in the 230°C to 240°C region)? I'm genuinely curious giving my lack of familiarity with your brand of printer.

 

[jdiaz]

We never even got the free FITS kit that was offered to the first buyers. I think my dealer just kept it.

 

[Don11]

I didn’t get anything from my dealer. I asked about the mug he said he hasn’t seen them in months. Funny I seen one on all their desk.

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