Hi,

Lately I have been having a lot of problems with my 1996 4wd XLT Explorer. My parents bought it new and recently gave it to me. Ok...

The first big probem is that some times it just will not start. I went out to my car one day to go get something and it would not start. My dad thought that it was the battery so he hooked some jumper cables up to his truck. That did not work right away, but it did start. That was last Tuesday. Then it was fine up until today. My dad asked me to move it because he was plowing our driveway and it would not start again. This time jumping it did not start it. My dad's guessing it's the starter or starter wires because after he knocked on it a couple of times with a crow bar it started again. He's not for sure though so that's why I'm asking. When I turn the key it just clicks once (I think it's electrical). It's probably the starter right?

Is the starter in the 96 Explorers a problem because this is the second one that my dad has to put on with in a year and a half?

Another problem that we've been having since we bought it is the thermostat. For some reason or another it keeps failing. The gage keeps flucuating, sometimes saying that the engine is over heated. This is our fourth or fith one. Is this a common problem?

One last thing... I was wondering how often fly-wheels fail. Ours did last summer so we had to pull the engine (not fun) and replace it. This has been a really great car up until a year or two ago and I don't want to have to get a new one right now. I like driving it and I've also lifted it a bit (3" body), added bigger tires (31" BFG All T's), and added a safari rack so it really looks good. I would just hate to have the starter or fly-wheel break while I'm out of town or in the middle of no where.

Thank you for your time.


-Tom

 

Tom, do you have an aftermaket radio in it? with amps? and did you wire it up to be on without key? if so,your amps may be draining your battery..or sitting b'sing with your friends with the tunes cranking can kill a battery real qwik....also look at the cables, are they cracked,frayed or insulation missing? that can cause a no start real qwik too...

 

WE had this problem once too and was a bad cable(it was corroded inside the terminal to cable connection.when u bumped the started it would jar it enough to get connection....had a starter replaced before we figured it out...oh well....

 

...Welcome to Ford Truck Enthusiasts!

We are happy you have chosen the best source for Fords!

Enjoy FTE....and
JOIN CLUB FTE -SUPPORT THE FORUMS!
…..See you on the boards.

 

It has the stock radio... I have not done much other than the things that I mentioned as of right now.

Anyway, that's what my dad's thinking (the starter or cables). He said that it's not acting like a dead battery. The voltage is a little low, but it's not that far off he said. I'll let him know what you said and hopefully we will get working on it sometime soon.

Thanks for the help...


-Tom

 

Either starter solenoid or bad wire... I'd replace wires first (cheaper) then the starter... I'd either buy Ford Motorcraft as new, or a reman, with a lifetime warranty... if it is the starter and it fails again, it's free (minus your labor to put it in) Don't skimp on the wires either...

Just my 2 cents

 

IE cooling system... I'd see if it's your sending unit or if the engine is really as hot as the gauge says... It is possible to get a couple of bad T-Stats in a row... but I would look at getting (or borrowing) one of those infared temp readers, and have it do a read when the gauge says it's overheating... point the dot right on the block, and see what reading you get... cheap way to know if your radiator is failing...

One thing too, that is cheap, get a replacement Rad Cap... they fail, and it is cheap insurance to protect boilover... and overheating...

 

It's not over heating at all. Once the thermostat is replaced the problem stops. It fails about every one to two years.


-Tom

 

if you knocked the starter with a crow bar then definitely replace it. if it didnt start at all, then you hit it, and immediately after that it started, then obviously you have a bad starter. i had the exact same problem with my old 92, hit it with a hammer quite hard, after the 5th total time of doing this, it didnt work anymore and i had to replace it. no problems after that.

i would just replace the starter and while doing that, replace the cables going to the battery and solenoid. you can even replace the solenoid too, its only a couple of bucks. its all DIY.

 

Ok... thanks. I'll be sure to tell my dad that.

Thanks for the help,


-Tom