2011 Expedtion
 

I brought home a 2011 Expedition 4WD XLT Premium on 1/25 that I had ordered on 12/3. The XLT Premium replaces the Eddie Bauer as Ford discontinued its relationship with Eddie Bauer this year. So the line up is now XL, XLT, XLT Premium, Limited, and King Ranch. You can get an EL in any model. An XLT becomes a Premium with the 201A package or better. I ordered mine with the 202A package. It had everything I wanted except the skid plates that are only available on fleet orders. The 203A adds the nav package and sun roof, neither of which I wanted for $2K more. I did not get the EL or 20 inch wheels or anything beyond the 202A & 4WD. The 2011 replaces my 2000 Expedition 4WD Eddie Bauer that I also bought new. I basically bought the same truck eleven years later. I installed a skid plate over the fuel tank on the 2000 after I bought it so maybe I’ll do the same on the 2011. The internet price I negotiated on the 2011 was good and there was a $3K rebate. Adjusted for inflation, I got more car for about 10% less money with the 2011 over the 2000.

I only have 80 miles on the 2011 and have only glanced at the owners manual so my observations are limited at this point. I like the ride and handling on the 2011 better than the 2000 even though I think the ride on the 2000 was better than most cars I’ve driven. The independent suspension on the third generation Expeditions is very nice. I like the electronics on 2011 with the 202A package. They’re helpful but not to the point of being distracting. The safety features including air bags all around, back up camera and trailer anti-sway are a big improvement. The stock 18-inch wheels give it a nice ride and handling. A major improvement on the 2011 over my first generation 2000 is the brakes. The 2000 is woefully under-braked and I have run out of brakes in a high/hot towing situation. It has always been harder to stop even when the pads and rotors are new. The 2011 has significantly more brake surface area and is easy to stop in comparison.

I expect to get at least 10% better gas mileage with the 2011’s six-speed transmission. It shifts differently than the 2000’s four speed and will take some getting used to. I like the 2011’s 2H position in addition to the 4A, 4H & 4L. The 2000s did not have a 2H position. That should save some gas too.

I do most of my own car work. I don’t like the 2011's sealed transmission (i.e. no dip stick) and the permanent in-tank fuel filter. I changed the transmission fluid & screen every 30K on the 2000 and never had a problem. Same for the fuel filter. I’ve changed the fuel filter 7 times and on 2 of those I dumped mud from the filter. Not sure how I’m going to do that on an in-tank filter. I’m used to changing fluid on the sealed transmission on my 2005 Explorer and it’s no where near as easy to do as it is on the 2000 Expedition. I drove the 2011 home from the dealer in the rain and noticed a lot of water under the hood when I got it home. I washed it yesterday and got a lot more water in the engine compartment – on anything near the left and right sides of the hood. In my 8 Fords (and several other makes) this is the first time I’ve seen this. The hood appears to be installed well, so maybe the design is poor. I’ll check with Ford, but if it’s a design issue I will work up my own cure with weather seals. With the amount of water I saw it would just be a matter of time until I had problems. The welding on the roof at the back corners near where it joins the tailgate is poor. The paint has already cracked on both corners at those welds and I would expect to see rust there shortly. There are a few flaws in the paint and some of the interior was dirty from installation but all in all it looks pretty good. Quality is better at Ford, but it still has room for improvement. Sticker shows it was built on 1/4/11 right after the holiday shut-down period, so I’m hoping it’s not the ultimate “Monday” car.

I’m keeping the 2000. It’s only had one major repair in 213K miles and that was replacing a cracked intake manifold this month. It uses oil as you would expect at 213K, but other than cosmetics that’s the only thing wrong with it. I’ll drive it until it's dead.

That’s all for now. I’ll post more as I add miles to the 2011 and (maybe) read the owners manual.

That would be 2011 "Expedition"

I wonder if my new 11 explorer will have the in tank fuel filter also. what about my 07 expedition, i don't think it has a dip stick on trany, but i think you can change the fuel filter. i need to get both done tomarrow as it just turned 60000 miles yesterday and the trany is acting up. i think ford recomends 100,000 on the trany service but i don't know for sure!:-huh

3rd Gen Expedition transmission service
 

All the sealed transmissions have long service intervals in the owners manuals. My 2005 Explorer has a 150K mile service interval. Too bad it had $1000 in problems at 75K that I probably could have avoided if I'd been servicing at my usual 30K intervals. I was going to wait to 100K as the dealers have been recommending but the transmission didn't make it. Your service guide shows your transmission should be serviced at 150K. I would service it at least twice that often. It also shows the fuel filter should be changed every 30K so the 2007 filter can be changed. http://www.motorcraftservice.com/pub.../07frdmg1e.pdf I don't know about the 2011 Explorers.

2011 Expedition XLTP 4WD
2000 Expedition EB 4WD
2005 Explorer XLT 4WD
2005 Explorer XLT

2011 Expedition - cup holders
 

I know this is a bit whiney, but the third row cup holders in the 2011 Expedition are useless unless you're standing still. Who makes a cup holder with a opening that's a quarter of the circumference all the way down to the bottom of the cup holder? When you take a 90 degree corner with something in that cup holder it falls out. One of my kids experienced that with a full cup of iced tea this evening. It went everywhere. Not his fault and not my fault for the speed I took the curve. The design is just plain lousy. I guess the new car had to get baptized sometime, but there's nothing like spending an hour cleaning up southern style sweet tea from every surface in the third row. So beware. Third row cup holders in 2011 Expeditions are for looks only. Don't put anything with liquid in them and take a corner over about 2 mph. Don't know if anyone from Ford ever reads these posts, but what knucklehead designed those things?

oh thats so weird, maybe there is something that will lock the cup...

FYI the transmission does have a dipstick. There is a screw in plug on the right side of the transmission case where the dipstick tube use to be. Unscrew the plug from the case and the dipstick is inside. Remove the dipstick from the plug and check the fluid with the engine running. That is also the location to add fluid. You need either a pump or a hose and small funnel.