picked up an '03 Eddie Bauer v8 with the full time AWD knowing that the transfer case needed to be replaced, I got a good deal so it was worth it. It's still driveable but it binds in sharps turns and I get the occasional knock. I have two questions really, what is the correct PN for the single speed transfer case for this year model? All the online ford parts store will give me is 7A195... well yeah, there's like a hundred different variations on that part number. And what year Mountaineers and Aviators will cross over to the Explorer? I've been searching ebay but their info is all over the place, no consistency.

As an after thought, how difficult would it be to convert this to a 2 speed part time 4x4?

 

why not rebuild what is in it ? The "auto" monitors the rear wheel speed compared to front wheel speed. Locks in the front end when there is a big difference... I can pull off the side of the road, crank the wheel REAL HARD, and turn 180 degrees on a two lane road and the front end will "grab- bind" as the inside wheel front is turning much slower than the rear wheel outside.... Just the way it works. You don't notice it in normal turns or on the road.

 

Just to be clear, is the stock unit full time AWD or automatic 4WD? There is quite a difference. Do you have any controls for the transfer case in the cabin?

-Rod

 

Full time, single speed. Part of the reason im asking how difficult it would be to convert to true 4x4. Im finding tons of used part time transfer cases cheap but the full time awd is harder to come by for explorers, but I'm finding a lot for aviators and mountaineers.

I thought about a rebuild but a new viscous clutch is about $800, a reman is about 500 plus bearings etc youre looking at a minimum $700 to rebuild. A used case from the boneyard is running 250-450 depending on the part number..

 

I had a 2004 Mountaineer with AWD and the V8. It worked just like the AWD in the Explorers that I drove, and it had absolutely no user interface. I traded the Mountaineer in on a 2004 Aviator, and the AWD in the Aviator was different from the Mountaineer. In the Aviator the truck would switch between RWD and AWD automatically and had an option to lock the AWD through the information center.

If you get an AWD unit from a Mountaineer (it might need to be one without RSC / AdvanceTrac) it should work for your Explorer. I don't think the transfer case from an Aviator would work properly though.

-Rod

 

that's where that consistency issue comes into play, it seems Mountaineer and Aviator cross over regularly, but only Explorer and Mountaineer crossover... Makes it difficult to know if I'm looking at the right parts...

 

In general I wouldn't agree with that statement. The Mountaineer is nearly identical to the Explorer except for a few body panels. The Aviator is quite different from both - different engine, several different body panels, a few different windows, quite different interior, and also, from my experience, different transfer case.

If you're seeing transfer cases that list they work on both the Mountaineer and Aviator, I'd suspect those are for Mountaineers with AdvanceTrac which might be different from what's in the Explorer.

-Rod