1997 FORD F SERIES MOTORHOME AND COMMERCIAL CHASSIS Owners Manual

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Special Notice
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The Ford F-Super Duty Motorhome Chassis is
not suitable for producing ambulances or school
buses. In addition, Ford urges manufacturers to
follow the recommendations of theFord
Incomplete Vehicle Manualand theFord Truck
Body Builder's Layout Book(and other
pertinent supplements).
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Your Vehicle Identification
Number (VIN)
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Your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) is the
same as the warranty number that appears on
your owner card. You should include this
number any time you write to Ford Motor
Company about your vehicle.
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6 [II05550( M)01/96]The Vehicle Identification(VIN)is stamped on a
metal tag attached to the chassis front end
structure. It is visible from outside the vehicle
under the hood.
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Safety Compliance Certification Label
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You'll also find theVINand other important
information on the Safety Compliance
Certification Label. It is required by the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration and is
made of special material. If someone tampers
with it, it will be destroyed and/or a destruction
pattern will appear.
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The label contains the name of the manufacturer,
the month and year of manufacture, the
certification statement and the Vehicle
Identification Number. The label also contains
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and Gross Axle
Weight Ratings, wheel and tire data and
information codes for additional vehicle data.
For further information about the Safety
Compliance Certification Label and the
information contained on it, refer to the Index.
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Incomplete Vehicles
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On completed derivations of incomplete vehicles,
the Safety Compliance Certification Label is
affixed at a location determined by a subsequent
stage manufacturer of the completed vehicle. In
these cases the completed vehicle is
manufactured in two (or more) stages by two (or
more) separate manufacturers, with the
manufacture of the completed vehicle occurring
at a later date than the manufacture of the
incomplete vehicle. Consequently, the model
year of the completed vehicle may be later than
the model year of its chassis.
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Federal Highway Administration
Regulation
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Regulations such as those issued by the Federal
Highway Administration or issued pursuant to
the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA),
and/or state and local laws and regulations may
require additional equipment for the way you
intend to use the vehicle. It is the responsibility
of the registered owner to determine the
applicability of such laws and regulations to
your intended use for the vehicle, and to
arrange for the installation of required
equipment. Your Ford dealer has information
about the availability of many items of
equipment which may be ordered for your
vehicle.
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Breaking Your Vehicle In
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Your new vehicle goes through an adjustment or
break-in period during the first 1,000 miles
(1,600 km) that you drive it. During the break-in
period, you need to pay careful attention to how
you drive your vehicle.
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Avoid sudden stops.Because your vehicle
has new brake linings, you should take these
steps:
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Ð Watch traffic carefully so that you can
anticipate when to stop.
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Ð Begin braking well in advance.
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Ð Apply the brakes gradually.
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The break-in period for new brake linings
lasts for 100 miles (160 km) of city driving or
1,000 miles (1,600 km) of highway driving.
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Wheel lug nuts must be retightened to proper
torque specifications at 500 miles/800 km of
new vehicle operation. Proper torque
specifications are provided in this guide. Also
retighten to proper torque specification at 500
miles/800 km after any wheel change or any
other time the wheel lug nuts have been
loosened.
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q
Use only the type of engine oil that Ford
recommends.Don't add anti-friction
compounds or special break-in oils during the
first few thousand miles of operation. These
additives may prevent piston ring seating.
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Instrumentation
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The instrument panel (dashboard) on your
vehicle is divided into several different sections.
The illustrations on the following pages show
the major parts of the instrument panel that are
described in this chapter. Some items shown
may not be on all vehicles.
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In your vehicle, the warning lights and gauges
are grouped together on the instrument panel.
We call this grouping a cluster. Your vehicle has
a mechanical cluster.
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10 [IS01500( M)01/96]
full page art:0021215-CMechanical/stripped chassis cluster
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The Mechanical Cluster
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The following warning lights and gauges are on
the mechanical cluster. All of the warning lights
and gauges alert you to possible problems with
your vehicle. Some of the lights listed are
optional. The following sections detail what each
of these indicators means.
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Brake System Warning Light
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The warning light for the brakes can show two
things Ð that the parking brake is not fully
released, or that the brake fluid level is low in
the master cylinder reservoir. If the fluid level is
low, the brake system should be checked by
your dealer or a qualified service technician.
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This light comes on when you turn the ignition
key to START to verify that the indicator bulb is
working. If the light stays on or comes on after
you have released the parking brake fully, have
the hydraulic brake system serviced.
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RWARNING
The BRAKE light indicates that the brakes
may not be working properly. Have the
brakes checked immediately.
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one inch art:0020044-A
Brake warning light symbols
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12 % [IS04000( M)01/96]Safety Belt Warning Light
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The warning light reminds you to fasten your
safety belt. Each time the ignition is turned to
ON, the warning light comes on for four to
eight seconds to remind you to fasten your
safety belt.
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Safety belt warning light symbol
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Check Engine Warning Light
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The Powertrain On-Board Diagnostic II (OBD II)
system consists of the hardware and software
necessary to monitor the operation of the
powertrain. The OBD II system is designed to
check the function of the vehicle's powertrain
control system during normal operation. If an
emission problem is detected, the Check Engine
Warning Light (in the cluster) is turned on.
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one inch art:0020048-A
Check engine warning light symbol
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