That was probably a good move to get the extended warranty. I read in CR where the reliability for the 2002's was much worse than average. I have a 2003 EB 4WD V8 and I will probably do the same as you when the time comes. So far I have about 5500 problem free miles.
I recently bought an Eddie Bauer V8 with the upgraded "audiophile" (290 watt 6 disc) stereo and I am unhappy with the sound quality. (I had to put their term of "audiophile" in quotes because it would make any Krell or Mark Levinson fan cringe). There is nothing malfunctioning about the stereo; it's just not any good. Sounds like a "sizzle and boom" Radio Shack special.
Has anyone put in aftermarket speakers attached to this head unit and been happy with the results?
I really don't want to replace the head unit if possible.
Ok, I'm confused.......Heintz....I just got my Auto edition of the CR, and saw nothing but red dots and circles on the 2002 Mountaineer, so where is the "much worse than average" rating in the book. Not that I doubt you, this is what I hate about CR. They are about as consistent as the FBI looking for missing girls in veils and robes 15 miles from home for 9 months.......
Yeah Nav I thought the same thing. Where in the heck did they get these bad ratings from? Well, I got my CR auto 2003 issue last week and read through carefully and found something that finally brings light to this problem. It mentions that each item listed for reliability (engine, trans, electrical, power equipment etc.) is based on a point system. So more important items (i.e. engine and transmition) get more points than say exhaust system. This is so, because if a muffler fails, in most cases the vehicle is still driveable making this less of a nuisance than say a transmition failure, which may render you in need of a tow. So when on a first year vehicle you see half a red spot on the transmition area, that took away alot of "reliability points" for that vehicle. However that half red spot means that only 2-5% of new owners had a problem with their tranny. When you see a full red spot, especially on older vehicles, is quite remarkable seeing as how fewer than 2% of those vehicles have had trouble with that component. Here is a quote from Consumer Reports that explains what I just wrote.
"The reliability verdicts tell you at a glance which vehicles, by model and year, have an overall reliability record that's average or better than average. The verdicts are on a relative scale, compared with the average for that year, not on the problem-rate scale used for the trouble spots (see above). We give extra weight to critical components--engine, cooling, transmission, and driveline." Hope this clears up some confusion. I think what gets people so scared are those black dots. When in reality, yes they don't mean good things but is only means that 14.8% of owners reported problems with that component. For instance the engine in my 1999 Expedition is by CR ratings, supposed to be trash by now. However, at 77,000 miles it runs just fine without skipping a beat. So the CR information, while very helpful, does not directly determine the life of your vehicle.
The discussion is about Explorers, not Mountaineers. CR does rate the Explorer worse than average. After having a transfer case, a transmission, an alternator,and 2 sets of sway bar bushings replaced on mine in 26,000 miles, I might not disagree. Still love the truck, though. I might go shopping for the extended warranty when the time comes, too.
Sorry, I didn't mean to confuse anyone about putting my Expedition in my last post. It was only an example that came to the top of my head at the time. I guess I should have said that according to CR ratings the electrical system in my wife's 2000 Explorer should be shot. However at 40,000 miles we have yet to have any problems with it.
FWIW, shortly after buying my 2002 XLT (single CD/tape/radio) I added a PPI (Precision Power Industries) PCX 440 power amp (installed under the forward sub-floor storage space), and I also replaced the four stock (5" x 7") door speakers as follows: Rockford Fosgate speakers in the front doors; Eclipse speakers in the rear doors. I'm using the existing stock head unit (for reasons that should be obvious), and the sound is excellent with well mastered and recorded CDs, etc., but if the CD is lousy, this system is brutally revealing of every flaw. Also, the PPI amp uses MOSFETs (Metal Oxide Semiconductor, Field Effect Transistors) in the output stage, and these can have a non-linear, brittle and edgy sound at times, especially when cold, or until they've been burned-in. On the other hand, I personally won't spend a fortune on car audio gear, since the inside of a vehicle is actually a lousy space to expect high-end sound, but that said, my system sounds much better than the stock system. Another issue to consider is that at this time, the physical space in the dash of this vehicle is unfortunately only useful for Ford's stock head units, and it's NOT easily compatible with aftermarket head units without a lot of jury-rigging and diddling. Furthermore, it's my opinion that most any of the existing, affordable, aftermarket head units look simply ridiculous, gaudy, and juvenile. They are typically festooned with lots of stupid looking and ostentatious flashing lights, silly visual displays meant to impress pimple-faced hip-hop wannabe's, and other useless gimmicks.
so many car types. assuming you're asking about an explorer or mountaineer, it's green/yellow/red stuff consisting of ethylene glycol coolant with a silicone/silicate protective coating system (inorganic). an alternative is Sierra propylene glycol, which is still poisonous, but not teaspoon-level or one lick fatal to critters. all the fords use this standard formula, which is sold under the brands Prestone, Zerex, Peak, every house brand in the country, bulk at farm and fleet stores (bring your own container,) and almost always under five bucks a gallon in season, sometimes with rebate.
in short, just tell the man, "antifreeze for a Ford." it's basically been the same for over 30 years now, and not that much change from 1960, either. and if it's brown in color, you need to have your system pressure-flushed and refilled.. there's not much "anti-freeze" left in your antifreeze, and it's also full of corrosion from the engine and maybe the radiator... probably just the top atom on each surface, but it should really be checked annually and changed with a flush every two years.
The post before mine must have gone up while I was typing (They are only 2 minutes apart). I meant that the prior poster was looking at Mountaineer ratings in CR and the post referring to bad ratings was about an Explorer, and while they are mechanically very similar they might have different ratings that come from the differences. Mine is an '02 Explorer, by the way.
Heintz1, one of those "Car Talk" guys did a rant about shopping for an AM/FM radio in the big box stores. He never did find one without 40 buttons and dials in a simple square or rectangular shape :-) I think you'd relate!
Heintz1- Your system sounds sweeeet. One I may have to consider in my 2002 as well...As you probably already know, you will love the PPI product line. I have had one in my Toyota truck since '96 and it still cranks out the tunes, but now maybe its time for the Explorer to adopt it!
I understood perfectly. After reading more thoroughly, I too figured out the code. My, they are relentless in their ratings, aren't they? I'm having a hard time figuring out how I would rate my 94 Explorer....108,000 miles, little A/C work once, brakes, tires, batteries gas & oil was all it needed until now, and the 4 wheel drive system has stopped working. Probably some solenoid somewhere. I would call it better than average. CR would probably call it a lemon.
Indeed, the new Explorer's forward sub-floor storage space is an outstanding location for a fine power amp.
Additional comments: 1) Especially on poorly recorded CDs, I can definitely hear what's been termed "digital 'ringing'" ("clock jitter" from the digital-to-analog convertor?) with the stock head unit, especially at higher volumes. However, such CDs can often sound better when copied (strictly for personal use) onto "black" CD-Rs, such as those made by Memorex; 2) If one uses a well designed power amp and quality aftermarket speakers, then consider being very cautious and conservative with the tone controls on the head unit. I find that my system often sounds best with the treble set to the middle position, and with the bass set to a more "rolled-off" position; the louder the volume, the more I roll-off the bass; the lower the volume, the more I will add bass, but no more than the middle position. Of course, tastes may vary, so "season to taste"; 3) In general, I think that car subwoofer installations are often vastly overpriced, and probably unnecessary for most mature, adult, and otherwise sane music lovers who simply want to enjoy fairly realistic sounding music while driving, without suffering brain damage, ear damage, rattles, loose bolts and screws, etc.; 4) When setting the "fader" (front vs. back speaker) controls, consider just how *realistic* you want your car audio sound to be. In general, when you're at a live performance you're sitting somewhere in FRONT of the performers, rather than in the middle of them, or behind them. So, try setting the fader all the way forward, which should more approximate a realistic, forward oriented "soundstage". Even when the fader is set fully forward, there is still some audio signal feeding the rear speakers, and this still contributes to the overall ambience, timber, spatial cues, and soundstaging that's heard from the FRONT seats. For similar reasons, when choosing aftermarket speakers, strongly consider placing "brighter" (i.e., more treble and upper midrange definition) and more luxurious and sonically accurate speakers in the front cabin, while placing speakers with more lower midrange and upper bass definition in the rear doors. But that said, AVOID front positioned speakers which suffer from excessive upper octave "sizzle" or "brightness". (A sure sign of having chosen such speakers is that you find yourself lunging for the volume control to turn down the volume out of a sense of listening fatigue, harshness and brittleness of sound, and excessive ringing and edginess).
digital ringing is probably a form of "multipath"... there have been zillions of ways people have used green markers, day-glo mats atop the CD, and the like to mask the extra reflected rays between the laser beam and the pickup beam. there have also been a bunch of barely-there A/D converters used in cheap decks, which can have inaccurate stepping between voltage levels.
I find that harsh CDs react well when copied to the older dark green 2X sony or 3m/imation CD-Rs, and the older blue verbatims are also good, if less "mellow." I laid in a real good stock of them at the time I found this out, and when I get a grating disk, smile because of my secret stash.
you could try green Sharpie around the edge of the CDs, that's the old saw. any CD-R with greenish dye should make some difference.
but basically, the theory is that the long IR waves that are scattered off the CD instead of cleanly reflected will eventually hit other tracks' pits and some will be bounced back to the pickup photodiode. just like the billiards-angled distorted FM waves around the entrance to the tunnel, between buildings downtown, etc. hitting your antenna at the same time as a prime wave does and causing multipath reception shattering.
if/when/if-ever the blue DVD becomes the prime music carrier medium, this problem will cease to exist, because the shorter wavelength and faster drop in power with distance of the blue lasers will basically take the reflected scatter-beams' power below the cutoff level for the detector photodiode. thus even if there was wild light spraying all over the disk, it would be a whisper at the end of the runway with jets taking off, and not noticeable at all.
I just got a 96 exporer xlt from my uncle... I baught it from him and I'm running into a problem... it has the 6 disc cd changer in it... but no matter what type of cd I put in, wether its brand new out of its case, or a freshly burned cd off my computer... it plays like the first 6 tracks and then says "NO CD" and I have to eject the casing and push it back in again... is there a way to fix this? thanx
Just purchased a new 03 Explorer XLT. Cloth interior. My question is - does this vehicle come standard with the cargo cover?
I don't see it as an accessory on the Ford website and I had one in my last 97 XLT (but it had leather.) I'm a little sketchy because the vehicle didn't have the owners manual and we paid extra for the cross rails but the were missing too and are now on order.
and let me tell you, with less than 1000 miles to got on my truck's original 3 yr./36,000 mile factory warranty, I bought the Ford Motor Company's 5 yr./100,000 mile, extended warranty, right then and there, to the tune of ~$1230.00. This particular warranty covers such things as engine, drive train, 4WD, electrical, AC, heating, etc
I've owned 3 Exploder variants. I really like the cars but I would never consider owning them without putting an OEM 100K extended warranty on them. My last one (a 1998 Mountaineer V8 AWD) had 60/100K/$50 Ford ExtraCare on it that I got over the internet from a Ford dealer in Iowa. I plan to do the same thing with the 2003 Mountaineer before it crosses 5,000 miles.
It pays to shop around. You can shave a couple hundred bucks off list price on the warranty. Your $1,230 warranty was probably this one?
Product ID: EC60100D50 Plan Type: Extra Care ESP ExtraCare 60 Month/100,000 Miles $50 Deductible for F150 4x4, Explorer or Mountaineer 4x4, Windstar AWD, Escape4x4 Description: Retail: $1,045.00
Under the glove box, wires and electric components are exposed. Seems to me, a piece of plastic should be there to prevent mud and dirt on passenger's shoes from getting in. But the dealer's service people said Ford just made it like that ... Cost cutting? How much that will save?
Got the truck for over 3 months with 3,500 miles on it now. Two weeks ago, the airbag light flashed then stayed on. Dealer changed the electric component - fixed. There was an annoying rattle came from front passenger side. It happened whenever the truck passed a pothole, and stayed. I noticed that it did not happen if someone sat on passenger seat, so I guess it either came from the seat or the floor area of the passenger. I've tried a lot things: move the seat, hit it, pull up the mat then put it back (that's why I noticed the exposed wires) ... but no help. Yesterday, I pull up the mat again and saw a label on the back side with a staple pin on it. May it's the pin hit the floor when the mat vibrated, I thought. This morning, I put a piece of tissue under the pin, it seems works! - no rattle on the way to office! I'll double check it on the way home. If I've really fixed it, is that amazing?
my 2000 looks like there should be a cover over the OBD-II connector, which is about the size of a walnut half and on the 2000 is directly under the steering wheel. but there isn't one. it doesn't ruffle my feathers much.
when I test drove the 2002 a while back, I don't remember noticing where the OBD was.
if your geegaw is at the edge of the carpet, way back and tucked up by the firewall and looking like a button on a black connector, it's your intertial shut-off switch. in case of hitting a pothole from Hell or something else, hard enough to possibly cause a fuel system leak, this will open up and prevent the pump from flowing the accident site with gasoline. the chance of that being munged by anybody other than a basketball player stretching out is real small.
I have 2003 Premier Mountaineer w/V8 it is 2 months and I am old closing in on 9k miles and twice in that time frame I have the same problem as you. In fact in happened today. The first time this happened I thought it was me... but it was not. It appears only when cold, or on first startup of the day. I will ask the dealer when I bring it in for the 10k service. Has your gotten any worse since your last post???
I too agree that the system is middling. Maybe it is because I have a Volvo S60 T5 with their AudioMax system that is phenomenal, so maybe my ears are skewed!
I also notice that the seats are showing creases (2002 EB) at an alarming rate.
The V8 sounds like a schoolbus at idle, very lumpy but when drivingis as smooth as butta. Quick too!
Overall, I find my 7 month old EB very well built and very nice to drive.
Many thanks to all those who posted in response to my question about upgrading the speakers in my Explorer.
Quick question, several of you mentioned adding an aftermarket amp and speakers to the factory head unit. Does the factory unit come with 4 channel line level outputs, or are you knocking down an amplified signal?
I've been very happy with Nakamichi amps (and Boston Acoustic speakers) in the past, but these don't have high level inputs.
Hi all, wonder if anyone can help me out. I was set on leasing a new Pathfinder, but those numbers aren't working for me (my dealer marked up every Pathy on his lot $1,895.00 as a "market adjustment"). I'm now considering used SUVs and have been looking at Explorers/Mountaineers. I looked at an 01' Lt green Mountaineer today at my local Ford dealership. It is AWD with the 5.0 & has 24.5K on the odometer. Otherwise, it looks pretty bare bones -- gray cloth, basic single cd/cassette, running boards, roof rack, power driver seat, and dimming rearview mirror, a lttle overhead console with an outside temp guage. Got Goodyear Eagle tires that are in decent shape but not new (original equip?). No tow package, a few nicks and scratches, minor carpet stains, and I did notice that the front hood edge doesn't quite come up even with the fender on the drivers side, but so far I've seen no evidence that it has had body work. Test drove it and it feels pretty tight, except I think I notice a slight pulsation during hard braking. The engine seems to run fine. Going to look at it & drive it again Mon. evening. Ran a Carfax and found that it went into service 11/20/00 and was leased to a corporation as a fleet vehicle. Salesman told me the dealership bought it at auction. Asked the salesman to check Ford service records, and he called me later on and said that a "new transmission" was installed by a Ford dealer somehwere in Michigan at 24,000 mis. I wonder about this, and assume that if this is correct, the leasing company must have had it repaired when they got it back from their customer. The salesman told me his dealership did no major work, only inspected it and cleaned it up.
Haven't talked price yet, but the dealership has it stickered at $18,950. Their web site shows it at $20,950 so they must have marked it down recently.
I'm not too enthusiastic about the fact the tranny has been replaced (with a rebuilt one I assume). Plus the vehicle is a tad rough around the edges. However, if I can get it for a good price and buy an extended warranty, I might take a chance. Edmunds TMV retail is about $17,200 and TMV private party is about $15,800 (In "average" condition -- I don't think this vehicle qualifies for "clean.")
Any suggestions on what offer I should make?. I was thinking $16,500, take it or leave it, and see what happens. I dunno, I'm tempted to start a lower but don't want to make a ridiculous offer. Also, any suggestions on what extended warranty to purchase?
imho: vehicle was a rental. gy eagles shouldn't be on the vehicle. has 4 wheel disks: they all should be done at the same time. how much money are you willing to put in to still consider it a good purchase. if you want a 'pathy' email some other dealers to get a ballpark. just realized the 2001 was the previous generation style. i had a '97 v8-awd explorer, traded it in with 50k, brakes were still smooth, firestone wilderness still had plenty of tread on them.
2024 Ford F-150 STX, 2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
Makes sense that it was a rental. Your right that I could probably look around for a Pathfinder, but right now the savings of buying used is attactive. Problem is that I consistently drive 18-19K a year, which makes leasing less economical. I've concluded that purchasing a new Pathfinder, etc., even for a good price, will be flat out too expensive for me.
you can get a used pathy for about the same price as that mountaineer. I woould probably shy away from this one because of the Tranny. I have seen 02 awd explorers for about 22k. I would look for one of them.
I don't think I'll buy that Mountaineer, although I get the strong feeling that the dealership really wants to get rid of it. I sure am glad for these Edmunds forums, which taught me to ask the dealership to check service records. The only way I would consider buying it is if I got it for very low price & then I could spend 1K or so for a Ford ESP.
I found a V8 '01 Explorer across town that I'm going to look at this week. There are a heck of a lot of Explorers/Mountaineers for sale in my area, so it seems like a buyer's market, esp. with gas prices going up. I'm scouting around for 02s as well, although most that I have found are V6 and have the third-row seat, which I really don't need.
I haven't ruled out buying a used Pathy or 4Runner. I bought the CR Annual Auto Issue and their reliabity ratings of Explorer/Mountaineers are pretty low compared to the Japanese makes, although it appears the low numbers are probably due to a host of minor issues typical of domestic makes.
Geez, so many of the problems with domestic cars are fit & finish and quality control issues. I wonder why they can't get their act together.
tougher transmission and (through the 01 models) the engine has got over 30 years of experience on it... started as the Boss Mustang 302... and all the flakies and creepy underdesigned parts were weeded out by the mid-70s.
you do want to periodically check the transfer case on any 4WD... I came up with a fair amount of grey in mine last week in the fluid, and shotgunned the TC and the diffs as a result. fluids are cheap.
I was going to post this in the Ford woes discussion, but I think there are more 2002 owners here. My Explorer is coming up on a year old and on Monday goes in for a 15k checkup. I've noticed the belt cuts into the plastic trim on the pillar pretty good. Anybody else have this problem? thanks in advance.
I have had this problem only once on my V8 2002 Mountaineer. The engine misfired and died when in idle at a traffic light. It is related to another problem. The engine "misses" when under slight acceleration. Examples are pressing the accelerator slightly to maintain speed (45 mph and 70 mph) going uphill. Yesterday, it was dramatic as I was trying to maintain 70 mph going up a mountain. The engine died for a moment and than surged with a strong jolt. This happen twice. I have been to the dealer three times. New plugs and "rubber boots" over the plugs did not help. I tried 93 octane gas and still have the problem. Any comments???
Just wondering if anybody out there has problems with their rear wiper. I have a 2000 XLS and the rear wiper won't go on most of the time. Ford said that there is something with the motor and opening the back hatch. Does any one have a fix for it and have you ever had one apart?
Just wondering if anybody else has this problem. Not sure what to do about it.
wiper motors have a couple switches with them. in the case of the ford exploder motors, the limit switches don't reverse or stop the motor, they appear in my wiring book to trigger a control circuit in the GEM module that does this.
but the switches still have to be in the right place for the wiper to work.
I have had success in lifting the wiper blade out of its "lock" plastic piece, so it hangs loose. that is called the "service" position. do your errands, and put it back in the clip afterwards... you only have to lift it like the motor turns it away from the lock a little bit to clear the plastic lock for either movement. this appears to shake the wiper shaft to where it clicks the switch right.
I have not disassembled one... but it appears the motor floats in a rubber bushing through the tailgate, and is fixed by a bracket inside the tailgate. watch it as it sweeps, the motor seems to wobble. I strongly suspect you can grab the base of the wiper arm and "wobble" the motor up or left a tad bit on its bracket to reposition it and make a more permanent fix. this is NOT guaranteed, I don't have a body manual to see how this schtick is put together.
after a service by dealer, a lot of wipers skip all over and leave a unwashed gap on the window. to fix that, bend the wiper arm thin section by hand a little bit for more bend (towards the window) until there is enough pressure to work the blade correctly against the glass again. in my truck, the blade barely tucks under the edge of the glass at that point.
these wipers are a little tweaky and finicky, but once I got my factory motor replaced after two months, and hinked with my arm a little, I have had only a couple times when I'd flip the switch and nothing happened. one bump on the road, and it would work again. so it's really close to being right at this point.
I have also noticed this on my Explorer and think that the cheap soft plastic they use is ridiculous on a vehicle this price. My previous Nissan Pathfinder had much better interior material quality but unless a lot of us complain to Ford about this problem I suspect very little will be done and even if the dealer agrees to replace this area it will still be a problem in another year unless they upgrade the material!
the cargo area plastic would also be replaced or covered with the I/O carpet they use. no scratches, no label color rubbed off on the plastic, easy on the cargo. one of these days I may just get energetic, order some from national parts, and do mine. that goes double for the inside of the hatchback lid on the explorer.
Oddly enough I have had 3 Explorers and none of them have had the rear wiper motor problem. Both of the 2000's however, have needed rear wiper arm adjustments to get it to swipe the whole glass. My Expedition is the one that has the tailgate glass wiper motor problem. And just like you said above, if you take it out of the holder and let it dangle then it will work. I haven't tried this idea yet, but when the weather finally acts like spring I may. Do you think if I just cut about 1/4-1/2 an inch off of that support that stays on the wiper arm that it would solve the problem? I'm thinking that the wiper may not lie perfectly horizontal, but it wont be off that much. Plus it may allow the wiper to come down far enough to reach its contact. What do you think? Does this sound logical?
well, it might, but then if you have issues you have to replace an OEM wiper arm with an OEM wiper arm. I'm gonna have to file off 3/32 inch of magnet pole piece on a 1925 speaker to make new coils fit on an Atwater Kent horn speaker, and there ain't no new parts if I screw up. sometimes life isn't fair.
the ideal situation is angels come down overnight and fix all these goofy things.
the reality is some guy named Herb gets 'em at the dealers.
I personallly think it's just another case of group "A" gets the memo to not bend the brackets on installation of the wiper motors because the wipers appear to wobble when they work, and group "B" gets the memo to not bend the wiper arms on installation because it works the motor too hard, and thus we have an issue because two separate engineering teams worked on this.
the Shade Tree Mechanics School says do what works, and don't do what breaks things. bend your wiper arm in a little bit at a time until it sweeps everything cleanly. there is a REAL FINE LINE between this point and the wiper catching on the bottom of the hatch glass and not moving... or potentially bending the motor bracket to where we see the wiper not start up.
the alternative is to break the goldarn glass out so it never gets dirty, but some folks want to keep the rain out. I tell ya, sometimes you find folks who don't want to be hung with a NEW rope... what a bunch of (&*%&%$&%($&*.........
but you gotta find the happy medium point that some designer's tech found when they sent the prototypes to the brass to play with.
Just wanted to pass on my discovery. . . Had a ridiculously loud wind whistle coming from the front of my 03 Mountaineer. Dealer could find nothing wrong with any seals. Finally, I duct taped everything that could possibly be making noise: windshield seal, side windows, front license plate bracket, windshield wipers, and removed the antenna. Unbelievably, the noise was coming from the antenna! Dealer is looking for a better antenna, but if push comes to shove, I will buy a better one myself. I think a telescoping one that can be pushed down below roof height might do it. I was ready to get rid of this car with 3000 miles on it because of the noise, now I just drive without the antenna and listen to CDs. Also, put a piece of foil in the empty antenna hole or it will whistle like you're blowing on a beer bottle!! I don't know how Ford could let something like this happen!!!!!
I don't know why yours does this.... We've had ours for 2 years and 20,000 miles, and haven't noticed the whistle..... Ford should, however, scrap the rod and put it in the side rear window like my Navigator, where it belongs in this day and age anyway.....
I currently own the 2002 Explorer Limited 4dr. in Midnight Black and would like to know from anybody that owns the 2003 Explorer 4dr. I was at the dealership today for oil change service and noticed a 2003 Explorer Limited on the showroom floor. While taking a closer look, I noticed that that the instrument cluster on this '03 Limited model has a newer/cleaner/less cheap look than what is in the '02 model. Do the 2003 Explorer owners know if this is a new change for all 2003 Explorer 4dr models (XLS,XLT,EB,Limited) or is it a special look just for the '03 Limited model.
I would like to replace my instrument cluster with the one I saw in the '03 Limited model because the one thing I didn't like on my 02 was the cheap look of the instrument cluster
I was able to pull the cluster out of my 90 ranger to put new bulbs in... don't know if the 2002/03 exploders have the same kind of flexibility. if not, you're easily into a thousand dollars worth of labor, plus maybe a thousand or so for a cluster... I'd say cheap was an earned virtue, myself.
by the way, why in Hades do you have to disassemble so much to replace dash cluster bulbs? it's outrageous! in my 1961 buick and my mid-60s mopars, all I had to do was contort myself to where a circus wouldn't take me, and I could just reach up and twist open the sockets and relamp in a half hour.
what a rip. but having to pull the dash apart to get the cluster, and then change it, would be evil. myself, I would banish those thoughts and take a soothing nap.....
I'm driving a 2002, 4WD, V8 XLT with towing package, limited slip rear diff, etc. She has ~38,000 miles on her so far, and within the past 4 months, my preferred Ford service ctr. has diagnosed a total of three (consecutive) slow leaks in the transfer case, with the latest leak having been detected today. (Thank God I bought the Ford 100,000 mile extended warranty before the original warranty expired.) At this point, I've told this Ford service ctr. that I think Ford Motor Company owes me a brand new transfer case, and the service director is going to contact FoMoCo to see what they're prepared to do for me. I've also told them that under the circumstances, I don't think I should have to pay the $50.00 deductable with the Ford extended warranty to have my transfer case replaced with a new one.
For those of you who may be contemplating the purchase of a new Explorer/MTNR, I don't (yet) think you should be spooked by this story, because it seems my vehicle's transfer case is the exception rather than the rule. However, I would recommend that you have your dealer carefully inspect the entire drive train every time the vehicle is in for a *3000* mile oil change.
What I'm wondering about this evening is whether there might be something wrong with my truck's rear drive shaft, perhaps such as a hard-to-easily-detect imbalance that might be causing excessive vibration or stress on the transfer case seals?
I need some help with my 2002 Explorer. At about 30 - 40 mph and 1,000 - 1,400 rpm, the engine appears to skip (the dealer called it skipping after their test drive). It's like driving a 5 speed at 30 mph in 5th gear...almost a bucking. I took it to the dealer who promptly changed the transmission. When I left the dealer, the condition was better, but still there. After a few hundred miles, the condition was just as bad as it was before the new tranny. So, I wrote a nice letter to Ford and the dealer complaining. I was told to bring the car back in. This time, the dealer said the tranny felt like it was going from 3rd to 5th...missing 4th. They told me that a computer controls the shifting and there is nothing that can be done about it. They couldn't answer me when I asked why they replaced the first tranny.
Does anyone else have this problem and/or know of a fix?
I think some accountant decided that they needed to use .02 ounces of sealant less in assembly, and that's the issue... either that or a batch of sorta-gaskets. to shake the hardware loose, you'd likely have a couple of holes bit through your tongue by now from the body shaking.
unless you kissed a rock with the transfer case. that has been known to happen.
Can someone please help me understand how the 4 wheel drive auto system works? Can it be put in 2 wheel drive or is it always in 4 auto? And how does this affect the mpg it gets? Just trying to see if the Explorer is right for me.
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I recently bought an Eddie Bauer V8 with the upgraded "audiophile" (290 watt 6 disc) stereo and I am unhappy with the sound quality. (I had to put their term of "audiophile" in quotes because it would make any Krell or Mark Levinson fan cringe). There is nothing malfunctioning about the stereo; it's just not any good. Sounds like a "sizzle and boom" Radio Shack special.
Has anyone put in aftermarket speakers attached to this head unit and been happy with the results?
I really don't want to replace the head unit if possible.
"The reliability verdicts tell you at a glance which vehicles, by model and year, have an overall reliability record that's average or better than average. The verdicts are on a relative scale, compared with the average for that year, not on the problem-rate scale used for the trouble spots (see above). We give extra weight to critical components--engine, cooling, transmission, and driveline."
Hope this clears up some confusion. I think what gets people so scared are those black dots. When in reality, yes they don't mean good things but is only means that 14.8% of owners reported problems with that component. For instance the engine in my 1999 Expedition is by CR ratings, supposed to be trash by now. However, at 77,000 miles it runs just fine without skipping a beat. So the CR information, while very helpful, does not directly determine the life of your vehicle.
After having a transfer case, a transmission, an alternator,and 2 sets of sway bar bushings replaced on mine in 26,000 miles, I might not disagree.
Still love the truck, though.
I might go shopping for the extended warranty when the time comes, too.
Steve, Host
in short, just tell the man, "antifreeze for a Ford." it's basically been the same for over 30 years now, and not that much change from 1960, either. and if it's brown in color, you need to have your system pressure-flushed and refilled.. there's not much "anti-freeze" left in your antifreeze, and it's also full of corrosion from the engine and maybe the radiator... probably just the top atom on each surface, but it should really be checked annually and changed with a flush every two years.
I meant that the prior poster was looking at Mountaineer ratings in CR and the post referring to bad ratings was about an Explorer, and while they are mechanically very similar they might have different ratings that come from the differences.
Mine is an '02 Explorer, by the way.
Heintz1, one of those "Car Talk" guys did a rant about shopping for an AM/FM radio in the big box stores. He never did find one without 40 buttons and dials in a simple square or rectangular shape :-) I think you'd relate!
Steve, Host
Additional comments: 1) Especially on poorly recorded CDs, I can definitely hear what's been termed "digital 'ringing'" ("clock jitter" from the digital-to-analog convertor?) with the stock head unit, especially at higher volumes. However, such CDs can often sound better when copied (strictly for personal use) onto "black" CD-Rs, such as those made by Memorex; 2) If one uses a well designed power amp and quality aftermarket speakers, then consider being very cautious and conservative with the tone controls on the head unit. I find that my system often sounds best with the treble set to the middle position, and with the bass set to a more "rolled-off" position; the louder the volume, the more I roll-off the bass; the lower the volume, the more I will add bass, but no more than the middle position. Of course, tastes may vary, so "season to taste"; 3) In general, I think that car subwoofer installations are often vastly overpriced, and probably unnecessary for most mature, adult, and otherwise sane music lovers who simply want to enjoy fairly realistic sounding music while driving, without suffering brain damage, ear damage, rattles, loose bolts and screws, etc.; 4) When setting the "fader" (front vs. back speaker) controls, consider just how *realistic* you want your car audio sound to be. In general, when you're at a live performance you're sitting somewhere in FRONT of the performers, rather than in the middle of them, or behind them. So, try setting the fader all the way forward, which should more approximate a realistic, forward oriented "soundstage". Even when the fader is set fully forward, there is still some audio signal feeding the rear speakers, and this still contributes to the overall ambience, timber, spatial cues, and soundstaging that's heard from the FRONT seats. For similar reasons, when choosing aftermarket speakers, strongly consider placing "brighter" (i.e., more treble and upper midrange definition) and more luxurious and sonically accurate speakers in the front cabin, while placing speakers with more lower midrange and upper bass definition in the rear doors. But that said, AVOID front positioned speakers which suffer from excessive upper octave "sizzle" or "brightness". (A sure sign of having chosen such speakers is that you find yourself lunging for the volume control to turn down the volume out of a sense of listening fatigue, harshness and brittleness of sound, and excessive ringing and edginess).
I find that harsh CDs react well when copied to the older dark green 2X sony or 3m/imation CD-Rs, and the older blue verbatims are also good, if less "mellow." I laid in a real good stock of them at the time I found this out, and when I get a grating disk, smile because of my secret stash.
you could try green Sharpie around the edge of the CDs, that's the old saw. any CD-R with greenish dye should make some difference.
but basically, the theory is that the long IR waves that are scattered off the CD instead of cleanly reflected will eventually hit other tracks' pits and some will be bounced back to the pickup photodiode. just like the billiards-angled distorted FM waves around the entrance to the tunnel, between buildings downtown, etc. hitting your antenna at the same time as a prime wave does and causing multipath reception shattering.
if/when/if-ever the blue DVD becomes the prime music carrier medium, this problem will cease to exist, because the shorter wavelength and faster drop in power with distance of the blue lasers will basically take the reflected scatter-beams' power below the cutoff level for the detector photodiode. thus even if there was wild light spraying all over the disk, it would be a whisper at the end of the runway with jets taking off, and not noticeable at all.
I don't see it as an accessory on the Ford website and I had one in my last 97 XLT (but it had leather.) I'm a little sketchy because the vehicle didn't have the owners manual and we paid extra for the cross rails but the were missing too and are now on order.
I would think the cargo cover would be standard.
Thanks!
I've owned 3 Exploder variants. I really like the cars but I would never consider owning them without putting an OEM 100K extended warranty on them. My last one (a 1998 Mountaineer V8 AWD) had 60/100K/$50 Ford ExtraCare on it that I got over the internet from a Ford dealer in Iowa. I plan to do the same thing with the 2003 Mountaineer before it crosses 5,000 miles.
It pays to shop around. You can shave a couple hundred bucks off list price on the warranty. Your $1,230 warranty was probably this one?
http://www.fordwarrantycentral.com/
Product ID: EC60100D50 Plan Type: Extra Care
ESP ExtraCare 60 Month/100,000 Miles $50 Deductible for F150 4x4, Explorer or Mountaineer 4x4, Windstar AWD, Escape4x4
Description:
Retail: $1,045.00
Got the truck for over 3 months with 3,500 miles on it now. Two weeks ago, the airbag light flashed then stayed on. Dealer changed the electric component - fixed. There was an annoying rattle came from front passenger side. It happened whenever the truck passed a pothole, and stayed. I noticed that it did not happen if someone sat on passenger seat, so I guess it either came from the seat or the floor area of the passenger. I've tried a lot things: move the seat, hit it, pull up the mat then put it back (that's why I noticed the exposed wires) ... but no help. Yesterday, I pull up the mat again and saw a label on the back side with a staple pin on it. May it's the pin hit the floor when the mat vibrated, I thought. This morning, I put a piece of tissue under the pin, it seems works! - no rattle on the way to office! I'll double check it on the way home. If I've really fixed it, is that amazing?
All thing considered, I still love the truck.
when I test drove the 2002 a while back, I don't remember noticing where the OBD was.
if your geegaw is at the edge of the carpet, way back and tucked up by the firewall and looking like a button on a black connector, it's your intertial shut-off switch. in case of hitting a pothole from Hell or something else, hard enough to possibly cause a fuel system leak, this will open up and prevent the pump from flowing the accident site with gasoline. the chance of that being munged by anybody other than a basketball player stretching out is real small.
I also notice that the seats are showing creases (2002 EB) at an alarming rate.
The V8 sounds like a schoolbus at idle, very lumpy but when drivingis as smooth as butta. Quick too!
Overall, I find my 7 month old EB very well built and very nice to drive.
Quick question, several of you mentioned adding an aftermarket amp and speakers to the factory head unit. Does the factory unit come with 4 channel line level outputs, or are you knocking down an amplified signal?
I've been very happy with Nakamichi amps (and Boston Acoustic speakers) in the past, but these don't have high level inputs.
Haven't talked price yet, but the dealership has it stickered at $18,950. Their web site shows it at $20,950 so they must have marked it down recently.
I'm not too enthusiastic about the fact the tranny has been replaced (with a rebuilt one I assume). Plus the vehicle is a tad rough around the edges. However, if I can get it for a good price and buy an extended warranty, I might take a chance. Edmunds TMV retail is about $17,200 and TMV private party is about $15,800 (In "average" condition -- I don't think this vehicle qualifies for "clean.")
Any suggestions on what offer I should make?. I was thinking $16,500, take it or leave it, and see what happens. I dunno, I'm tempted to start a lower but don't want to make a ridiculous offer. Also, any suggestions on what extended warranty to purchase?
Thanks for any help
just realized the 2001 was the previous generation style. i had a '97 v8-awd explorer, traded it in with 50k, brakes were still smooth, firestone wilderness still had plenty of tread on them.
I found a V8 '01 Explorer across town that I'm going to look at this week. There are a heck of a lot of Explorers/Mountaineers for sale in my area, so it seems like a buyer's market, esp. with gas prices going up. I'm scouting around for 02s as well, although most that I have found are V6 and have the third-row seat, which I really don't need.
I haven't ruled out buying a used Pathy or 4Runner. I bought the CR Annual Auto Issue and their reliabity ratings of Explorer/Mountaineers are pretty low compared to the Japanese makes, although it appears the low numbers are probably due to a host of minor issues typical of domestic makes.
Geez, so many of the problems with domestic cars are fit & finish and quality control issues. I wonder why they can't get their act together.
you do want to periodically check the transfer case on any 4WD... I came up with a fair amount of grey in mine last week in the fluid, and shotgunned the TC and the diffs as a result. fluids are cheap.
It is related to another problem. The engine "misses" when under slight acceleration. Examples are pressing the accelerator slightly to maintain speed (45 mph and 70 mph) going uphill. Yesterday, it was dramatic as I was trying to maintain 70 mph going up a mountain. The engine died for a moment and than surged with a strong jolt. This happen twice. I have been to the dealer three times. New plugs and "rubber boots" over the plugs did not help.
I tried 93 octane gas and still have the problem.
Any comments???
Just wondering if anybody else has this problem. Not sure what to do about it.
but the switches still have to be in the right place for the wiper to work.
I have had success in lifting the wiper blade out of its "lock" plastic piece, so it hangs loose. that is called the "service" position. do your errands, and put it back in the clip afterwards... you only have to lift it like the motor turns it away from the lock a little bit to clear the plastic lock for either movement. this appears to shake the wiper shaft to where it clicks the switch right.
I have not disassembled one... but it appears the motor floats in a rubber bushing through the tailgate, and is fixed by a bracket inside the tailgate. watch it as it sweeps, the motor seems to wobble. I strongly suspect you can grab the base of the wiper arm and "wobble" the motor up or left a tad bit on its bracket to reposition it and make a more permanent fix. this is NOT guaranteed, I don't have a body manual to see how this schtick is put together.
after a service by dealer, a lot of wipers skip all over and leave a unwashed gap on the window. to fix that, bend the wiper arm thin section by hand a little bit for more bend (towards the window) until there is enough pressure to work the blade correctly against the glass again. in my truck, the blade barely tucks under the edge of the glass at that point.
these wipers are a little tweaky and finicky, but once I got my factory motor replaced after two months, and hinked with my arm a little, I have had only a couple times when I'd flip the switch and nothing happened. one bump on the road, and it would work again. so it's really close to being right at this point.
the ideal situation is angels come down overnight and fix all these goofy things.
the reality is some guy named Herb gets 'em at the dealers.
I personallly think it's just another case of group "A" gets the memo to not bend the brackets on installation of the wiper motors because the wipers appear to wobble when they work, and group "B" gets the memo to not bend the wiper arms on installation because it works the motor too hard, and thus we have an issue because two separate engineering teams worked on this.
the Shade Tree Mechanics School says do what works, and don't do what breaks things. bend your wiper arm in a little bit at a time until it sweeps everything cleanly. there is a REAL FINE LINE between this point and the wiper catching on the bottom of the hatch glass and not moving... or potentially bending the motor bracket to where we see the wiper not start up.
the alternative is to break the goldarn glass out so it never gets dirty, but some folks want to keep the rain out. I tell ya, sometimes you find folks who don't want to be hung with a NEW rope... what a bunch of (&*%&%$&%($&*.........
but you gotta find the happy medium point that some designer's tech found when they sent the prototypes to the brass to play with.
I would like to replace my instrument cluster with the one I saw in the '03 Limited model because the one thing I didn't like on my 02 was the cheap look of the instrument cluster
by the way, why in Hades do you have to disassemble so much to replace dash cluster bulbs? it's outrageous! in my 1961 buick and my mid-60s mopars, all I had to do was contort myself to where a circus wouldn't take me, and I could just reach up and twist open the sockets and relamp in a half hour.
what a rip. but having to pull the dash apart to get the cluster, and then change it, would be evil. myself, I would banish those thoughts and take a soothing nap.....
For those of you who may be contemplating the purchase of a new Explorer/MTNR, I don't (yet) think you should be spooked by this story, because it seems my vehicle's transfer case is the exception rather than the rule. However, I would recommend that you have your dealer carefully inspect the entire drive train every time the vehicle is in for a *3000* mile oil change.
What I'm wondering about this evening is whether there might be something wrong with my truck's rear drive shaft, perhaps such as a hard-to-easily-detect imbalance that might be causing excessive vibration or stress on the transfer case seals?
Does anyone else have this problem and/or know of a fix?
unless you kissed a rock with the transfer case. that has been known to happen.
I suspect a takedown or a rebuilt will fix it.