I fought a 30+ mph head/cross wind for FOUR FREAKIN DAYS of towing from Indiana to Arizona...1800 miles of WIND really took its toll on mpgs! ...the wind really whips thru Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico!!!

I had tanks over 10mpg but the damage was done with the 1800 miles I fought the wind for the overall mpg average you see above...it sucked for sure...

On flat land I can easily get 10...but throw in serious winds or serious grades like I climbed in the Sandia's and Rockies...well you get what I got...

Plus I don't 'streeeeetch' my mpgs...I report what I get...no need to 'streeeeeetch' it is what it is...

All in all...we had a 2.5 week family vacation for well under what we could have flown someplace and stayed in a hotel and ate out each meal for!...plus the family memories made in the truck while pulling to the spots can NOT be ignored...

joe.

 

Not advisable! EPA will fine your pants off for improper burial of rubber and ferrous material and heaven help you if any oil leaks out! Plus, if any of the neighborhood kids get hurt playing on it, you can count on a phone call from a billboard attorney. Another suggestion would be to install a 6' lift kit on it and make a swing set out of it.

This has been partially address by the advice to use the tow hooks. HOWEVER, you'll have to remove the engine and cut holes in the dash, firewall and grill and possibly install several pairs of pulleys for the reins. Or, you can do the fair weather mod and just remove the windshield.

A remarkable piece of insight . . . . . .

As if my smart alec remarks aren't thoughtless enough . . . .

 

[quote=vjstangelo;6312193]

Sure it may cost $160 to fill the tank, but isn't the tank about 30 gallons? My sol'n will be to fill up at 1/2 tank and not be shocked.

quote]

It's actually a 44 gallon tank!!! Approx $200 to fill up out here at least.

I just put 33 gallons in (1/4 left) and it was $155 and that was my first big fill up. From now on I am going to remember to fill up before half a tank so it doesnt scare the crap out of me again!

my X is a daily driver but it always has 5-6 people in it so its worth it. I am going to try and get a Fusion or Accord when its just me and the 4 kids for to and from school but until then the X is what I drive!!!

 

One of my customers told me one day after I got the Ex. "I guess I need to reduce my carbon footprint somemore so you can continue to drive that truck" He said it in fun. But He does ride his bike to work.
Another very liberal customer told me that "a lot of dinosaurs had to die for me to be able to drive that truck." I told him he could tell me more about what I am doing when he gets rid of his Hemi pick up, Jeep Cherokee and the convertible that his lawyer wife drives less than a block to work every day. She also comes back to the house 3-4 times as they are doing renovations on the million plus dollar house.
Needless to say I do not do work for them anymore.

 

At $5.11/gall (Translated from 1.35/L here in Canada), i am happy to own my X. It is a Toy. Nothing more. I have the 2 small cars for commuting. The X gets driven once a week if that. And at over $225.00 to fill, that is a good thing. I have only put about a 1/4 tank in the X about 4 times since i bought it in Dec...

Sure, it's allot. But for me, i knew what i was getting into. It's not that much different now with higher gas prices, other than an increase in cost every few weeks.

NOW.... WHAT DOES concern me is how much it is going to cost me to heat my home this winter.... THAT MIGHT force me to sell the X.

 

Well if I remember right my 1985 TOYOTA Extra cab 4x4 truck had a solid front axle. I do not think they changed until late 80's early 90"s. Rode like a road wagon too. My X rides alot better than the TOYOTA ever did. But, the Toyota did get 32 MPG with the 22R engine and 5 speed tranny. It did not do too well pulling anything with more than 2 people.

 

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Not relevant - the vehicle you describe was marketed as a TRUCK. That's the point. Sure, trucks clear into recent years, many of them, especially 4wd's, did have, as you point out, "solid" front axles. Chances or, most buyers of that vehicle KNEW what they wanted, and KNEW the limitations of trucks.

But remember, much of the EX's market was to the soccer mom "let's do lunch" types. My suspicion is many who bought EX's just thought it was a "neat" thing to do, when a mini van or similar vehicle would have the same (or more) seating capacity. The way FORD set up the spring rates on our EX's suggests to me they were going after the "soccer mom" market big time.

Yeah..it does gripe me that we couldn't get gas EX's with more transmission speeds - those of us who are stuck witn 3.73's REALLY wish we had a closer ratio tranny with more gears.

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Again - nothing like the "tack on the gas pedal" idea for improving gas (or diesel) mileage !

 

I noticed the following in your sig line:

My project for the next ummmmm 15 yrs!!!!
2000 D Green X 4X4 LTD V10.....
- TT mirror swap- Billet Gas door

I am also looking at replacing the paddle-type mirrors in my Ex with telescoping type. The present ones have motor, heat, turn indicators. From Ford the prices I'm getting are $650 - $750 U.S. I noticed a pair at Ford Accessories with heat and motors for $350 U.S. Which type did you replace and what was the reason for your choice. ~$700 seems like a whole lot.

Anyone else who has made the switch please chime in also. Thanks. Vince

 

I paid a whopping $100 for my set. I bought it off a fellow FTE'r. It was a straight replacement with power and heat (No turn signal). I then dressed them up with chrome covers PL'd (Glued) right on (3M tape just doesn't hold). They originally came (I think) from eBay. While there is a bit of a shake when driving (was fixed with inserting foam in behind the glass), i really do not notice it. Beats paying $600++

 

If you have a problem with solid front axles with leaf springs, buy a 4x2 Excursion or swap in a 05+ front suspension from a SuperDuty.

 

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I dont recall stating I was having a problem with my solid front axle EX. Seems to work fine. Perhaps you meant to communicate that I would rather have an IFS, and if that is what you meant, you are right.

There are IFS four wheel drive vehicles, but to my knowledge, Ford never made an EX equipped that way. To my knowledge, all EX's used a "solid" front axle. I believe the "solid" front axle assembly for the 4wd Ford truck line is made by Dana, not by Ford, and I am NOT aware that consumers are having problems with them - they seem to stand up fairly well.

And as far as two-wheel drive vehicles go, I am unclear how you got the idea I could use a 2wd vehicle on the sorry excuses for cow trails I have to transit to get from my ranch to the graded dirt roads that turn into slime when it rains. Let me explain something. Here in northern Arizona, people buy four wheel drive vehicles because they NEED that feature. Not all the time, not some of the time - in fact, only rarely. I probably dont drive in four wheel drive more than, oh, say, combined, quarter of a mile a year - maybe a few dozen feet each time. But that is the difference between a long dangerous walk in severe weather, and staying inside my EX.

I also dont know where you got the idea I have the money to engage in major reconstruction of my EX. Sure, if I had LOTS and LOTS of money, I'd go buy a later model 1 ton Ford product, which DOES have IFS, and have a shop who knows what they are doing, and knows how to make all the gizmos "talk" to each other, I'd "swap out" the entire front end.

 

I am pretty sure the later model 1 ton trucks still have a solid axle under the front end. Real heavy duty trucks will always have one, unless you buy a chevy 1 ton, but then again I said real trucks. Ford went to coil springs instead of leaf springs I think in 05. Still a solid axle though.

 

Mine is a daily driver, And will continue to be.

It's just me and the wife for the most part along with 2000lbs of stereo. And I just smile when I see the horror in other peoples eyes when I pull up to the pump.

Why do you ask?

I've been rear ended by a car doing 50+mph, I have had someone pull out in front of me and I t-boned them totaling their car, I've also had a 40lb rock thrown off a construction site and hit the a-pillar at 70+ mph

3 Damn good reasons I don't and won't drive a small car.


Hell I'll still use diesel fuel for weed control here and there

 

Buy a Suburban

I'll tell you about my brother-in-law who just got up around 100K miles with his - needed all new bushings, ball-joints, torsion bars, and a bunch of other stuff because it was just beaten to HELL.

And he doesn't tow, doesn't haul heavy loads, doesn't beat on it, nothing.

I know doing ball joints or wheel bearings in the X can be expensive, but at least they handle a beating.

Which is why it's a solid axle.

Did you look under it when you bought it?

 

You missed my point. Your recollection was that most mfg's gave up on solid front axles in the 30's and that FoMoCo was backward and used the primitive system. You also seem to do alot of bragging on your Toyota Rav4 and Toyota in general lately. My point was Toyota used the "primitive" solid axles up through the late 80's. The X was marketed probably as much to the soccer mom as much as the Toyota Rav 4 was marketed to the trailer towing people. I understand your point that it makes more sense to YOU that YOU should have a Toyota Rav 4, but I know soccer moms that haul 5 or 6 kids from their house that is 3 or 4 miles up a gravel roads that get bad in rain and snow. Also if your definition of NEED is because you will NEED it for only a quarter mile a year. So you NEED a 4WD so you won't be inconvienced maybe a few days a year. If that is as good of an excuse you could come up with then I would have to say a 2WD would probably suit you. If it is just a few feet get a run for it.