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I had complete confidence in the vehicle to get me through whatever road conditions were in front of me.
Unless you are looking to do some serious off-roading the MM AWD system will fill the bill.
BTW - have 23K miles on the vehicle after a year and a half. Total problems that require a dealer trip - 0. This vehicle puts Lexus reliablity to shame.
and that was with the awful >= KILLER TIRES! <= tm that came on it standard at the time. I've kept the memory as my "limit" point, and with the General 660s I got in the Customer Satisfaction tire swap, I have better control.
the AWD in the 2000 has been stable and consistent. I only feel it going into action on dry loose roadbed like gravel. the 2003 and up top system, offering AWD with on-demand locked gearboxes for 4WD, is what I would really have liked to have on my truck, just in case I had to crawl out through a flooded road with a forest fire behind me.
get over there before all the parking lots get bladed and sanded and test it. you'll like it.
Available in the following vehicles...
* 2004 Lincoln Aviator
* 2004 Lincoln Navigator
* 2005 Ford Explorer
* 2005 Ford Expedition
* 2005 Mercury Mountaineer
http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=17044&ma- ke_id=trust
For those that have driven both engines, what do you think about the noise from the 2 engines??
Not that the V6 is a bad setup. It did a very respectable job of pulling our boat/trailer this summer which weighs about 5500 lbs (dry) - yes, we were pushing the limit a bit. But the engine noise drove me nuts! Looking forward to the V8!!
The V6 does very well overall. The computer does a good job of keeping the transmission at the heart of the powerband (3000 RPM), for most situations. And it's usually around that level (and above) that you might hear the enginer working harder. It's a raspy voice, but NOT as bad as the Freestars raspiness which sounds like farm machinery on power demand.
But during cruising, you should be under 2000RPM and at that point it's quieter and non-intrusive overall. The only issue that dissapoints me about this engine is the gas milage could be just as equal as that of the V8 version, mainly because it needs to work THAT much harder, to attain the speed you require, that a V8 will effortly give you without the drama. SO personally, I always recommend the V8 version because of that.
Sidenote: There are times that maybe the smaller engine might be quieter, depending upon the vehicle, and it's needs/requirements. One example would be the Mustang, whereas the GT V8 is tuned for it's sports car nature, and the V6 is tuned for much quieter refined (to a certain degree) sound. And this is something that happens in other vehicles as well.
And another thought.... I don't know about you, but even on my friends Saturn (and you know they are somewhat noisy) I never really hear the engine since the A/C is blasting (I'm in FL) and the radio is on. So I guess this is a reason why to some, it's not that much of an issue since they have other noisier that drown it out.
hit it again and the horn beeps. i just did it from the kitchen; at least 15-20 feet away and through a metal door. that short beep on the second push, is nothing compared to a saab. it chirps like a flock of birds.
I got an earlybird offer from the dealership that originally leased the vehicle to me. I went in and have negotiated a fair offer which includes them picking up the remainder of my lease payments in return for leasing another explorer xlt.
They are telling me that ford no longer leases vehicles under the old program which was called a red carpet lease. now they are using the term red carpet option. They say that the terminology is changed because of insurance reasons. This way they are not on the insurance as a primary owner of the vehicle for liability purposes. I understand this. what I want to know is that it sounds like i am buying the vehicle, not leasing it. they say that this is technically true. that i am paying 38months of a low payment and a large balloon payment at the end. They say that if i dont want to pay the balloon that they will take back the car and i can walk away with no penalty. is this true. do you know about this program. can you explain it to me. they say that this is actually a better program for me than a lease because i can trade the vehicle in to any dealer instead of being locked into a ford.
please respond asap as this offer is only good through friday, december 19th, 2003.
Hope this helped
ls8: Funny you should mention being uncomfortable. I found all of my 3 Mountaineers to be extremely comfy, and when I bought my current Navigator, I couldn't get comfortable in it either! But my Mountaineer was still extremely comfortable in the position the memory seat was set for. Finally, in an effort to duplicate the seating position of the Mountaineer, I took a tape measure, and measured the distance from the headrest to the top of the wheel, the seat back to the bottom of the wheel, and the seat front to the bottom of the wheel, then replicated those dimiensions exactly on the Navigator, and set the seat memory there. Voila! Comfort was installed, not been a problem since. I don't know if that would help you in your case, but I do know what you mean. I think there were just too many variables for me to find my "sweet spot".
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Might as well stop living.
"look6phd" - see if you can find a dealer willing to go to bat for you for an after warranty claim. Good luck!
I am sniffing out a replacement for a 1993 4x4 Explorer (160K) that has gone offroad steadily since purchase. I am very, very happy with the old girl; less space then I'd like, so the replacement will be bigger, but no catastrophic failures that got me stuck below the high tide mark, or elsewhere on the beach. (I surfcast, that's the off-road stuff for me.) I got to 130K before needing to spend significant money, on the front locking hubs, and that's fine. ALAS: when I look at the lower control arms on the Explorer and Expedition, I cringe. I can just see one of those arms snapping after one rock too many at Montauk Point, or some other beach decorated with protruding rocks. So, the question: What happens when you snap a control arm? Is the vehicle still drivable? My local Ford guy has a great service department (Ramp Ford, Long Island NY) but the only thing he sells that looks good right now is an F-150 (it's on the short list, but it's a lot more money and gas then I need to spend.) Are we agreed that the IFS-fitted versions are not really competent once you're off road?
I have a 03 MM Premier, before that a 98 MM. I am familiar with the "Outerbeach" I live on Long Island as well. In the summer I was on the outer beach... Smith Pt beach to as far as the inlet, "Great Gun". I drive fast and rough on the beach!! Never had a problem what-so-ever. I was on the beach EVERY weekend. I drove from the surfline up to the dunes,bouncing, airborn etc...I also went up to Rocky PT. and Middle Island and did some real off-roading. As far as the lower control arms...I cant say whether I hit a rock or not, But all is still just like the day I drove it from the showroom
need to get Ant14 in here.
Figure invoice on a $36k truck is going to be approx $33k or so, you might be able to hit $30k, but $27k, nah, I really doubt it.
U-Haul rejects Explorers (USA Today)
Steve, Host
"The bottom line is, if you don't overload the vehicle and you've got the proper tires with the appropriate ratings and they are properly inflated and you drive with common sense, you really shouldn't have any problems."
I guess I just don't get it, I've owned 1 of each generation of Explorer, I found all to be very wonderful vehicles (had a 1994 and 1997). The 2004 I just bought is wonderful, so much improved, Ford did a darn good job addressing a lot of the problems that the prev generations had. I'm impressed and glad I stuck with Ford.
a lower, wider, longer tow vehicle will generically improve the survivability of any towing mishap, because you would expect the tow to break off before flipping the tow vehicle in case of a major issue.
that said, I don't expect anybody who maintains their vehicle and uses it within range to have any trouble, even with the high-hat trailers U-Haul used to provide until the early 1980s (and the first chapter-11 I was aware of.) present stuff is lower and less likely to provide an issue than some of the rigs I used to pull moving from one city to another on a just-out-of-college type budget.
no, I think they're on an atomic-powered risk-avoidance kick. if you rent, as always, do your own vehicle or trailer check before hooking up and signing the acceptance sheet. if you've got creaky tires, dinged or dark lights, or silly-looking running gear, talk gently but firmly with the representative. that's the best way to insure you have a solid experience, not a sordid one.
for most people in many places, U-Haul is about the only choice they have in rent here, leave there. if any of this concerns you, investigate other options.
personally, just because they've got their nose in the air, my response this morning is of the "yo' MOMMA" variety. but make your own evaluation, I have used their trailers behind several vehicles (not on my exploder or the previous ranger,) and nobody died and nobody tried in those experiences. they just have too many lawyers on staff right now.
as I understand the case in question from the news report I have seen, it's another case of suing everybody in sight because a couple renters had => KILLER TIRES! <= tm peel apart on 'em, and one carful flipped over. U-Haul is caught up in the sewer backwash of those crummy tires.
the CEO who presided over the cleanup for the tiremaker has announced his retirement, BTW, at 59. I expect the superhuman effort he put forth pretty well wore him out, and he needs some time to smell the roses and do fun things. I will remain charitable this early in the new year and not name the company yet again, as they have not created any new scandal since he started "kickin' and takin' " around the company. the guy retiring took over after the homeboys from across the sea denied in the face of their own engineer testifying before congress that they had inconsistent manufacturing and insufficient material in the tire lines sold for explorers for the design load.
anybody who stuck their chest out and said, "I am too good to have trouble," and kept those lousy things instead of getting them replaced, put a gaff in the sidewalls and call for a flatbed tow to the tire store now. meanwhile, if you need a trailer to get the furniture or projection TV home from the mall, call the locally-owned rental joints first.
I would expect that the noise level would be proportional to the RPMs if it was the transfer case, and proportional to the highway speed if it was the front diff.
any sort of a U-joint could also be a villain. this means the half-shafts to the front wheels could also be at issue. if there is a torn or leaking boot on either wheel, the chances become very good indeed that this is the issue. there should be a change in the noise characteristics on turning towards the bad half-shaft to aid diagnosis.
you are right to suspect tire wear as causing a difference in noise, and also right to suspect it will change characteristics on different roads. since you didn't get that, tires are less likely. internal inconsistencies could still cause tire noise, and doing a front-to-back rotation would be the last chance to pin it on tires, if you are so inclined.