Hello. I am new to this forum. I previously owned a 2011 F-150, but just purchased a 2021 F-250 Super Duty 6.2L gas truck. I noticed that on a lot of the pre-owned F-250's I looked at on the dealer lots, there were holes punched through the front of the rear wheel wells. These were obviously punched through from above, as the metal is splintered outward into the wheel well. No one, not even the dealer, can tell me why these holes have been punched out on so many F-250's I had looked at. Is this a water drainage hole, or was something else attached to these holes from inside the truck bed? The bed has a liner in it, so the hole is not visible from the bed area. Does anyone know anything about this, and why this was done, especially the WAY it was done? Why not just drill a hole? Short of trying to locate the previous owner or company that owned it, I'm hoping someone on here knows the answer. I'm planning on installing a bed rug and tonneau cover, so I don't want rain water splashing up inside the wheel well and getting into the bed if these were in fact drain holes. The holes are not flush with where the bed would meet the wheel wells either.

 

I can’t believe they’re drain holes as my 2020 has several areas where they didn’t even seam seal the weld seams there’s plenty of opportunity for water to drain.if I were to ever put any kind of bed liner in I’d want to caulk the seams.

 

Thanks Don. I'll make sure I do that before the install. The fact that these holes were literally "punched" thru the wheel wells has me questioning why.

 

Yes I agree, I would be interested to know too. Good luck with your truck!

 

Could those trucks been "Service" trucks where there may have been a rack installation?

 

You know that's a good possibility. Looked at mine and directly under where his holes are there is a cross member the box sets on. I bet something was bolted thru the bed onto the cross member.

 

I was able to obtain a copy of the Carfax report for my vehicle. It seems that it was a rental vehicle through Enterprise for 6 months before being sent to auction.
The Ford dealer I purchased it from bought it from auction, and added it to their inventory with a lot of other F-250's. I saw these same wheel well holes on a
few other F-250's on their lot. I called the place that serviced the vehicle rentals from Enterprise, and he said that a lot of these trucks are rented by companies
who opt to rent rather than purchase, and that they have to turn the vehicle back in once they reach a certain mileage. I purchased this truck with 19k on the odometer.
It is in mint condition, and still smells new inside. It does not appear that this was a "work truck" per se, but it could have belonged to a foreman or company boss.
Biffster could be correct in his assessment that there could have been a rack, or something else installed in the bed. But the bed shows no signs of work related wear and tear.
It just seemed weird to me that they would just punch a hole through the wheel well for this purpose, and not drill a hole instead. Since I couldn't really get a definitive
answer from Ford, or the rental company as to what company rented this truck, and why these holes are there, the mystery continues. I used a block of wood to hammer
the holes and close them up. I'm going to put wheel well liners in the rear wheel wells which will cover these holes, and also make the truck look a lot better.

 

I couldn't understand why Ford simply paints the inner wheel well the same color as the truck....at least on mine. (2020) I bought a can of black 3M undercoating and did mine, looks great if I do say so myself.

 

Glad you have an action plan to resolve!
I would make sure it is sealed so no crap can get in between the box and the box liner!

 

Like I said also caulk the seams, evidently seam sealer was on back order too when the built mine..

 

Will do. I already sealed the area where the holes were after I hammered them closed. How do you like the way the undercoating looks in the wheel well? What kind
of prep was needed to get the undercoating to adhere? I may opt for that if it looks better.

 

Myself I like the way it looks...a lot. Being an old auto body man I learned urs ago for something like that to buy 3M undercoating, it sticks great an if in an area where it shows the 3M goes on nice and even. Prep? just wash it real good, get the dirt out so the undercoating is being applied to the factory paint. Did mine shortly after I bout truck new in Nov 2020, still looks like it was factory applied. Just my opinion you I think it looks much better than the paint and much more affordable than Ford liners.

 

Thanks Don. I will definitely check that out.