I'm seriously considering buying a good used Excursion and am wondering what kind of problems to look for in those with over 150,000 or so miles. Are there any known serious issues that are common when approaching the 200,000 mark?

 

What's it got for a motor? 2wd or 4wd?

 

...Welcome wreakhavoc, to Ford Truck Enthusiasts!

See you on the boards. ….

 

My first look is under the vehicle. Either 4 wd or 2,, I check for leaks and damage. Transmission,, engine rear main, oil lines fuel, brake fluid leakage shocks. You can do most of this just with a flashlight. Under the hood,, fan belt and coolant is a good indicator of has it been maintained. Also look for signs the oil has been changed. I bought one at 123,000 miles and it is a solid vehicle. After buying,, I changed air cleaner, fuel filter, oil and minor repairs. Next month I will change transmission fluid and transfer case. Following month pull and check brakes. (I had this done when I put the new tires on but I like to see for myself.) I have driven this vehicle 2500 miles since I bought it and it is very solid. One other thing look at the dual batteries,, mine had new batteries installed 6 months prior to sale. Hope this helps. I know there are many things you could do but these are good indicators. Of course inside seat etc inspection but those aren't the "make it go" stuff. Jim

 

I haven't decided on any particular one yet but it will be a V-10 or 7.3 diesel. Either 2WD or 4WD will be considered- I don't really need a 4WD but wouldn't mind having it. I plan on keeping it for a good while, not reselling or trading up in a year or two. The best deal I've come across so far is a 2000 4WD V-10 with 165,000 miles for less than $10K.

 

Thanks, this looks like a good informative board with good people.

 

I think you will get better mpg with the diesel. I get about 20 mpg on diesel at 65 on sustained interstate and about 17 combined hw city driving. But then I do feather foot and don't use the turbo much. Check closely on the gas version,, I think you will be around 12 mpg in town. Here diesel is about the same price as Reg. Granted it cost a bit more in maintenance but the engine will have good service life if properly maintained. I also was iffy on the 4wd and the one I bought has it. 99% on the highway and proably won't use it and more to maintain,, but I will insure it is working correctly. The diesel pulls my 4000+# boat easily on the highway at highway speeds. My 302 gas burner pickup would pull at 55 and feel like pouring gas on the highway. The diesel doesn't show much difference pulling the boat from normal without towing. It is a good solid engine. Jim

 

Where do you live? What are road conditions like at worst case?

Do you plan to tow? What is this going to be used for?

 

I hear tell that the 2wd version is not good in the snow. Might be wrong.

 

Austin,Texas. No snow here, maybe a few well-maintained dirt roads at worst. Won't be towing anything heavy, mainly just a work truck.

 

Then 2WD is going to be ok. Check out what you plan to tow and see if either the V8 or diesel option would work best for you.

 

wreakhavoc,

I sent you a pm with some info on my Excursion which might be for sale, I am located just south of you in Buda

Jason

 

I’m not an expert but a friend talked me into the 7.3 Diesel and I couldn’t be happier. He owns a landscaping company and has owned numerous F350s and Excursions. He said the v10 costs him more in gas and actually costs him more overall because although the Diesel is more expensive to maintain he’s never gotten more than 200k miles on a v10 and his F350 with the 7.3 Diesel now has over 500k miles. I live in FL and was told by everyone NOT to get the 4WD. Everyone said the 2WD was less problems and would get a little better fuel economy. Again, very happy with the decision.

 

Did they say why you have less problems? The ESOF hubs, transfer case and the front differential are potential problems is all. Not sure there is such a great difference. Unless you engage it daily, the transfer case just spins the shaft and the gears and the ESOF hubs take a little more maintenance but that seems to be about it as far as I can see.

Fuel mileage, I agree.

 

I started the post by clearly stating that I’m not an expert and since I’ve never owned the 4WD version all I can do is repeat what I’ve been told. When I bought mine I traveled several hours to a Ford dealership that (claimed to) specialized in heavy trucks because I could only find 3 with the 7.3 Diesels in the entire state of Florida and two of them were at this dealership. One was a 2WD and one was a 4WD with all else being comparable. My initial reaction was to go with the 4WD because I’d rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it. And being more expensive I thought the salesmen would agree but instead he gave me some story about how the 2WD transmission which came on mine was actually a better quality transmission than the 4WD option and how they cost almost the same to replace.

I figured the salesmen just had a buyer lined up for the 4WD so I called the guy that recommended the 7.3 and he said that on all the F350’s and Excursions he’d owned he had only bought one 4WD and that it was the only transmission he had ever had to replace… After complaining about the replacement cost he said pretty much the same thing as the sales guy, that he new lot of guys who had problems with their 4WD but none with the 2WD.

Of course I had a 4WD Jeep and I regularly beat the crap out of it by taking it places I wouldn’t even think of taking my Excursion, so maybe the 4WD owners are just rougher on their trucks???