Hey all,<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>
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I am usually over in the Excursion side but Wifey wants a new ride. She likes the Jeep Commander and Ford Explorer. She found a decent deal locally on a 2002 but everything I have read says they are the bomb! Really, they grenade the trannys left and right along with the rear hatch cracking. So I think I am supposed to be looking for a 2005 or better. Is that correct? Is it a good direction to go? I have the Excursion for all the major heavy duty stuff so not looking for a work horse. Mainly Wifey's daily driver for four kids (under 7), groceries, strollers, bags, etc. <o></o>
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For me, what lifts are available for it and tire sizes. I know independent suspension front and rear so probably knuckle work, but I'm not looking for a prerunner or rock crawler. Something she would look hot in cruising around town. Purely cosmetic. 4x4 needed since we live in the country and are on a dirt road. <o></o>
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Here is one I found kinda close, http://www.autotrader.com/atcarid/at-1027541f <o></o>
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What do you think? Take it or adjust what I should be looking for? Price okay?<o></o>

 

Go to cars.com and autotrader.com and see what similiar ones are priced at. Ask him if he has all the maintenance records that he referrs to. Ask him for the vin so you can run a carfax report. He already stated that price is negotiable, so you should have some bargaining room.

 

He says he'll go 11k. Is that year a better year? Are they reliable enough?

 

Will he give you a carfax report on it? If he is a dealer, he should be willing to that.

 

Private seller.
Here's the vin if anyone has carfax access 1FMZU74W24UA37676.

I'm also interested if you all think the 05 is a reliable year. I read a lot of horror stories for the first three years (02-04) about bad trannies, spark plug holes, and broken lift gates.

Thanks.

 

I ran the vin and it looks pretty clean. Originally sold in MA and was retitled in CA in 4/08. Looks like it's had 3-4 owners. There is a lien on it as recent as 5/08 which is possibly when the current owner bought it. If you PM me an email address, I can provide a bit more info.

Mike

 

marragtop,

Thanks for doing that. It looks like the tranny was replaced in the first year! I read that was major problems with the first three years but I guess it continued.

 

I have an 02 with just a tick under 200K miles. Here are the ONLY things I have done to it besides normal maint.

Wheel bearings (very common, not too expensive)
rear axle seals (leaking)
HVAC temp actuator
Shift interlock solenoid in the column
MAF
IAC

And yes the rear hatch is cracked, but my wife drives it like its a battling ram so it blends in with the rest of the car LOL

 

My '02 just turned 120k on the mileage. Only things that have been done are

rear end growl- fixed under warranty, no probs since
rear hatch cracked- fixed under warranty, no probs since
wheel speed sensor for abs- fixed under warranty, no probs since
break pads and rotors
egr valve- twice (only takes about 2 min to change)
regular oil chages
the 4x4 doesnt work- waiting to order the control module for it
haven't touched the trans yet- thanking of flushing it, the t-case and front and rear diffs next

has been a great truck so far

 

Thanks for the input so far.

So through the VIN i find it is a 04'. 78,000+ miles, 4x4, Eddie Bauer, V8.

I find through Ford warranty it had transmission solenoid problem in the first year. Dealer cleaned and added additive to fluid. Later changed a bad speed sensor for ABS. And last reported was a bad fan resistor changed out for the fan speed control. Are there 'shift kits' out there to beef the tranny up?

My intended use is Wifey's daily driver. We live on a dirt road so the independent suspension would be welcome. We have four kids up to 6 yrs old. Short trips to school, groceries and appointments. I have an Excursion for towing/hauling duties.

Others have said the Explorer is a decent vehicle, not a great one. If I can pick this up for $11k would it be a good deal in your eyes? Would you pull the trigger?

 

Just off the top of my head without doing any research, that sounds kind of high to me. But I could be wrong.

 

It seems a little high to me.

Back in late October I picked up an '02 Limited 4.6L, with 76k off craigslist for $6500. It needed some work, such as rear springs, rear struts (one had a whole), rear bearings, the infamous 4x4 control module and the idler pulley and a new belt. All in all, total cost was ~$1500. Other than that stuff which is pretty common on the '02's, it's in very good shape, even has a nice brush guard.

 

Here locally there are very few v8's and only the second Eddie Bauer I've found. Most are dealer owned 4.0L 2wd, for about the same price with some 4wd for up to $14k. Some private 4.0L 4wd will run around $10k. Kelly Blue Book for my zip 92508 shows, $13,300, 12,600, and 11,800.

Car won't be available to look at until the 28th so still doing the research. Okay with the idea but hesitant with the bad tranny, hubs and 4wd control comments. Anyone with more personal experiences are welcome. Would you buy it for your wife to rely on for the next 10-15 years?

 

Thanks for every one's input. We spent about 3 1/2 hours checking it out and getting the smog done. Even the shop technician seemed surprised when he looked at the history and said, "It's been really well taken care of." So with a documented history and a prior tranny flush, we sealed the deal. Wifey drove home with a big smile on her face. MPG on the way home was 22, better than expected.

Thanks again everyone for your time and inputs.

 

Good luck with that thing. I have had an 02 since 04 and it only only has 60k on it. I am starting to think I need to replace it soon. I am a Ford guy so I will probably get an 07 or newer Explorer. I have to investigate and make sure they improved the trans when they switched to the 3-valve motor. I did replace my Ranger with a Hemi Ram though, so I am also a Mopar guy now.

At 40k, we had the shift solenoids changed. It was shifting weird and the torque converter was buzzing and didn't lock as soon as it should. It is now shifting weird again and it seems to take a while before the converter locks. The converter thing might be normal though in the cold weather. It might just wait until the trans temps get higher before it locks. I have never liked how high of an rpm it shifts at when at light throttle. It is good for performance, but sucks for mileage. It hangs the gears all the way to 3.5k at under 25% throttle.

Anyway, the problem it has right now is that it has a really delayed shift when you accelerate and then let off. It works great at WOT and shifts fine. However, if you get on it a little and say you go up to about 4000 rpm and then level off on the throttle, it will stay there for several seconds before it will finally upshift. That bugs the hell out of me. A couple times when put in Reverse, it didn't do anything and then when a little bit of throttle was applied it clunked and then jerked backwards. You also can't move the selector straight from N to P. It always stops at R and then you can move it over to P.

I have had the passenger side window mechanism break and I had to replace that. The rear driver's side is now busted. I also had to replace the driver's side window switch.

My Dad has an 03 with the broken hatch.

Oh, mine keeps slipping the alignment and when I just tried to straighten it out again yesterday I stripped the damn thing out. Now I have to get a new hinge for it. I was just using a driver, not a ratchet so I don't know how I tightened it enough to strip it!

I might replace it with an SS Trailblazer instead!