Looked at a 08 expedition with 30k miles really like the vehicle but then the salesman advised us that it was a RAV vehicle. I like the vehicle but had to walk away at that point. Salesman says its not the same as lemon law but it souded like an identical situation. Said ford bought the vehicle back because of numerous complaints on it. I looked at the report and it was mushy brakes, vibration, and ticking noise complaints. It had been in like 12 times for these 3 reasons. What do you think did I make the right decision by walking away?? Also they had another one on the lot that was also a ford buyback, whats the deal with that.

 

[I wouldn't walk away I would RUN!!

 

LOL, any feedback as to why there would be two of these vehicles on one lot??? Are they having alot of problems with these new expys?

 

Did you drive it? I wouldn't neccesarily dismiss it outright because of that description. I've worked as a tech in a few dealers and seen complaints about things just like that when there was absolutely NOTHING wrong with the vehicle. Some folks are extremely "prickly" about certain things on their cars/trucks. I'd certainly go and drive that truck if I was interested in it and go from there. See if the dealer will let you drive it for a few hours, IF you're interested. "Mushy" brakes.... If I drive my wife's 07 EB Explorer and then jump i9nto my 07 Expy Limited EL, my brakes do feel "mushy" compared to her EB but my truck stops BETTER than hers does. Non-issue. "Vibrations"... Could be something as simple as a wheel weight that has fallen off or a bad tire. Easy fix. "Ticking Noise".... My 07 with 19k on it has a slight tick on first-start early in the morning when the weather the night before was cold. It's valvetrain noise that almost every car/truck has in the morning due to tolerance variation. Non-issue.

Not to say the truck ISN'T a crapper, but it may not be what the last owner complained it was. It typically isn't. Let me relate a story...

I'm working as a tech for a Toyota dealer when the RAV4s first came out. A woman comes into the dealer and buys 2 brand new RAVs unseen and pays cash out the door. True story.. no BS. She brings on back to the dealer about a week later with just over 400 miles with a complaint that the "Engine makes more noise than the other one when I start it in the morning. I WANT IT FIXED!!". We take the vehicle, check everything, test it a few mornings, sign it off as "No problem Found". There was NOTHING wrong with the truck. She did not like that answer. Make a longer story short, eventually it got to the US tech manager out in Long Beach and he FLIES in to inspect the vehicle. We go over everything with him and he goes through the truck with us and verifies our findings. Customer states she "Wants it fixed! It doesn't sound like the other one I bought!!! FIX IT!!!". At this point, we've had the truck for about 7 weeks. With production tolerances being what they are, the two trucks were perfectly fine and identical in operation EXCEPT for the first 30 seconds of start-up where this particular one had a very slight valvetrain "tick". I'm talking almost unnoticeable here.

After resorting to all avenues to try and make this customer happy, which she simply was not, she and Toyota agreed to replace the ENTIRE ENGINE ASSEMBLY. Complete long block including accesories, top to bottom! I pulled the engine and we waited 3 MONTHS for Toyota of Japan to pull an engine OFF THE ASSEMBLY LINE and box it for shipment to us. These RAVs were brand new and parts like this, engines!, were not available yet. We got the engine, I got the whole thng installed and back together. Ran it..... guess what???

SOUNDED JUST LIKE THE ONE I TOOK OUT!!! Needless to say, Toyota ended up buying back the truck and we sold it to a very happy customer who was waiting at a discount and they absolutely LOVED IT!!!! There was never anything wrong with it in the first place but it is what it is. One person's "horrible truck" was another's "Best Deal" of a lifetime.

Point of that whole long winded ordeal? Don't write it off until you've tried it. You might just find a good deal.

Maybe....

 

Yah I have since been second guessing my decision because I did like the vehicle. I would like to do a overnight test drive before buyingit, but wouldnt it be titled as a lemon. I dont think that would be good for resale value and such factors.

 

BTW are there any common problems I should be looking for before buying. Is there certain years that are better than others. Why does the 07 have better mpg estimates then the 08?? What kind of real world mileage are people getting? Thanks

 

It's a lemon. Ford buys back their lemons immediatley before the BBB will label it a lemon to save face and or money.(in some states a reaquired vehicle maybe a lemon) I had a lemon they bought back the day before my mediation hearing which they would have lost. Once it's labeled a lemon

Why even chance spending your hard earned money on a vehicle like this unless you are a mechanic and like to fix cars AND get it for at least 1/2 of low blue book?

07's had some bugs with transmission firmware which would cause hard shifts, etc. I would look at an 08 and up. Other than some very minor changes, the 07-10's are identical.

 

All things being fair and equal, if your stuck on this truck then I would request a weekend test drive. Use the dealer tags, go some place and enjoy yourselves.

I'd look for the build date on the door jamb. 30K miles seems like a lot to me unless it's actually been in operation for two full years.

Knowing it's past a little bit, if your going pull the trigger, get the Ford ESP with it.

Being that's it used, you'll have no recourse if it truely is a POS.

Tim

 

Yea I am just gonna wait till something else I like comes up, might spring for a new one if I can get a good deal. Why the mileage difference between 07 and 08 anybody know?

 

Not sure, maybe they calculated it different. Should be the same mpg.

 

This would be my guess as well. Real world... My 07 Limited EL gets around 13-14 city and I see around 18 or so highway. But I always have my foot in it since the truck is so damn much fun to drive.

 

Thanks for all the info.

 

Yes, the formulas used to calculate and estimate fuel mileage were revamped for the 2008 model year. This caused the mpg ratings for all vehicles to go down. In all reality the mileage will be the same between the '07 and '08's in most vehicles. It's just that the EPA changed the driving cycles used to test to more accurately reflect real world driving.

 

Yes the EPA changed the way they calculate the mileage due to high number of complaints as to why the sticker figures were so much higher than real world. They're still higher, but not as much. They give themselves every advantage with the testing. We have been getting 14.5 steady in mixed town/rural driving, but have not had our '08 Limited on the highway yet really.

 

i used to work at a dealer the was the regional RAV repair center. we got the vehicles when no one else could fix the problem. once they left us, they never came back. it all depends on the quality of the last mechanic.