Ford Expedition Maintenance and Repair

gheimur

I would take it to another dealer for an opinion however you may be black listed through their network, whatever. If that doesn't work, execute Lemon Law procedure. State that this problem is affecting your safe driving by having a bothersome vehicle. Also state that it is affecting the value of the car.

nvbanker

My rear end makes no noise whatsoever, after 16,000 miles, so that's total BS that you're being told. I can't believe the Zone Manager would do that. My dealer would never try that, so I agree - try a different dealer first.

gasguzzler007

Turn up the radio?? Now that was uncalled for. I would do everything in my power to straighten this out. First compose a letter to ford explaining the situation in writing and what the service manager told you. File complaints. They need to get to work on your car and stop screwing around. When you raise hell and they are on the verge of throwing you out tell them to raise up the volume if it bothers them. Sorry for your bad experiences at ford. Fortunally not all dealers are like that.

nvbanker

That's as bad as what I was told at a Buick dealer a few years ago when I asked them if they could get my Regal to quit stalling - the advisor said, "Sorry sir, Jesus doesn't work here".

txtaralynn

Take it to an ASE certified repair shop take a printed estimate and take it to the ford place. Or have it repaired but make sure they are ASE certified and shoot the bill over to Ford. You can also wait till it breaks down leaving you on the side of the road and call the ford dealership to go pick it up and fix it but only if its still under warranty of course. I used to sell cars youd be amazed at the stuff theyd fix when you threaten to sue. You can also take it to diffrent ford dealerships or service centers not just the one you bought it from. Diffrent managers and service techs have diffrent opinions on what needs to be fixed and what doesnt.

burned

I have a 03 EB Expedition. I bought last aug. and it has been in the shop about 10 times. After having numerous small problems fixed It now has what seems to be something wrong with the transmission. I have been to the dealer and first they said they could find nothing. Later they did say they had a special service code saying 2000-2003 ford trucks with this certain transmisson may experience a clunking or bumping when shifting from the 3-2 position. They said that although it is annoying no repair should be attempted and it will not impair the vehicles performance. I have addressed the dispute board which customer service recommended. NO HELP THERE!!! I can't believe I have a CLUNKING BUMPING $42,000.00 VEHICLE. I even drove 3 other vehicles with the service manager, identical to mine,and they did not do the same thing. He said that since I had contacted the dispute board it was out of their hands, even though he agreed with me that the other vehicles did not do the same thing. I am so frustrated. This was to be our last new vehicle for years to come, because we will soon have a teenager in his own car. Don't know wether to trade,even though we are upside down or to keep trying to get Ford to take responsibility for what seems to be a piece of crap. HELP!!!!!! Anyone have any advice????

nvbanker

Yes, very discouraging and will make you hate the truck, but if it's not that serious, well....that's just what I'd do. Then again, I rarely keep cars forever.

anthonysbmw

I am trying to add / check the R-134a in the A/C system in my 2001 Expedition ED with rear a/c. I can't find the low pressure value to check the system pressure / level of freon. I have found the high side right in front of the battery on the passenger side. Any idea where it is?

Thanks

cplkev

Just bought a 04' NBX and love it. But we have noticed a vibration in the steering wheel when traveling at speeds above 65MPH. Have taken it to the dealer twice. They have rebalanced the tires and each time it is a little better but not much. Has anyone else noticed this? I don't think a brand new vehicle with <3000 miles should have any noticable vibrations?

nvbanker

One of your tires is square. Rotate them front to back, I'll bet you notice a distinct difference, if it doesn't go away altogether. Then you just have to find which tire it is.

tourguide

I had EXACTLY this problem with the vibration in the steering wheel. I took mine back to the dealership and described the problem to them. They checked the balance on the tires because I thought I had actually lost a wheel weight, but that turned out to be OK.

They DID lower the tire pressure to 37 PSI, as the factory sent the Contitracs to the dealership with 47 PSI. This over-pressure was apparently causing problems as I have not experienced this problem again. Most of the time the truck is smooth as silk on the highway.

One thing I've noticed in the short time I've owned it (150 miles) is that the Expy has more "road feel" than other vehicles I've owned. Personally, I like this but I can see where some may not.

Other than some minor niggling things, I really like my 2004 EB.

-TG

nvbanker

The rack & pinion steering in these trucks gives you unsurpassed road feel. It takes some getting used to.

bkwormjean

did you ever get any answers to this? I have an 01 expedition doing the same thing and the service engine soon light stays on constant. Have had it hooked to the computer and several things done to the transmission but they can't figure it out. Of course I'm 4,000 miles over warranty.

cplkev

Thanks for the advice and info

misfire

98 Ford Expedition 4.6 liter engine. Get intermittant misfire
Some days it runs fine some days it does not and acts as if a spark plug wire has failed or fell off(I understand it does not have spark plug wires as such) I have cleaned the battery posts and cleaned the
injection air box with a recommended cleaner. Some days it also would not Idle at initial startup. Are these problems inter related or isolated? Appreciate any ideas or suggestions

nvbanker

Are you getting a Check Engine light?

bilsex

I just spent the 9th day with my 04 Sequoia," Oh what a feeling!"
It felt weird to not have the dealer replace 2 tires after the first week. Toyotas may cost more, but I'll make it up in the gas I save not driving to and from a Ford dealer.(Take your pick tried 3)Any way the best way to fix your 03 exp A series is to to buy a Sequoia. In my book, FORD QUALITY IS JOB NONE.

tourguide

It sounds like you have a coil pack starting to go bad. They are occasionally like that when they're on the edge, sometimes they'll work and sometimes not. Having the engine codes checked should help determine which coil is going out. Then have it replaced and you should be good to go.

nvbanker

You trying to make us feel badly, bilsex? We're happy for you. Enjoy your truck.

bilsex

Not trying to make anyone feel bad,I really wanted my ex to be with me for 5 to 7 years. Imagine my disappointment when on the second day of ownership I'm taking my parents for a ride, they're diggin' the leather seats, then my dad sees the steering wheel vibrating in my hands. Any way, I forgot to mention the two taillights half full o water, the leaking rear strut,and the side curtains improperly installed(see also #482).Best wishes to all, oh yeah, my sister has an 03 ex eb A and her only problem is the brake dust. Go figure!

nvbanker

Well, the folding rear seat is well worth the piddling problems you mentioned to me. Tires aren't the manufacturer's fault anyway. Your dealers may suck, but so do lots and lots of Toyota dealers. Their CSI is in the cellar by the way. Wait until you put some miles on that Sequoia, and the dealer tells you that you need the muffler bearings oiled, or your entire transmission could fall out! They do stuff like that all the time.

Like I said, the Sequoia is a great truck, and if 0 defects is your goal, you have the right truck. For me, a truck with some engineering, features and great looks are my personal preference, but then, I have had none of the issues you had.

jeff88

Man, I agonized over the sequioa v expedition for the potential of poor build quality as you experienced. What made me choose the expy was the stellar experience with our '95 explorer -- over 8 years and 128k miles. no major problems.

with the huge amount of money I saved over the sequioa and the much higher level of equipment, better ride, better handling, better safety equipment, seat air-conditioning for TX, better carrying capability and more practical storage conigurations, I beleive I made a wiser choice. The sequioa was nice, but not at all nicer over the road. If I still did a lot of off-roading as I did in my eplorer, then the toy might have been my chioce. It clearly wins on that side of the coin.

The three toy dealers were also much less straightforward in what they were attempting to charge me than either of the two fords dealers I approached. that experience made me concerned that the relationship with the dealer post-sale would be much more tenuous. basically, they were far less trustworthy when they spoke of things I knew to be untrue.

Having saved over 5 grand for a far better equipped ride, I am confident that re-investing in a far longer warranty package from ford over the standard term for either manufacturers will be wise. Will still be much further in the black and assured of maintenance and roadside coverage for my family. BTW, just completed a 3000 mile family trip and averaged 17.1 mpg in 80% highway, 20% city driving. it was 18 mpg on the highway en route to our destinations in our 4x4. (keep my tire pressure at the recommended 35 psi.)

Hope you have a great experience with your new truck and wish all new vehicle buyers no stress over build quality issues.

wkohler

Expedition owner, I concur with bilsex. I agonized a great deal over whether to buy another suburban or try an expedition. I went with an early build expedition (July 02) and had many problems with it. Won't go into detail here, but sure you know what issues the early build expeditions had, and believe me, I had most every one of them. I had the chance to "unload" it and did. My intent was to go back to another suburban, but after a long discussion with the salesman (who was able to sell both ford and chevy products) and a long conversation with a "tech rep" who happened to be at the dealerhship that day, sprung for another expedition! I'm still not really sold on Ford, but I can honestly say that except for a faulty front passenger door switch that caused the "door ajar" light to stay on, this expedition has been trouble free and now has accumulated 38,000+ miles (and of course a tremendous amout of brake dust). By the way, the brake dust issue is dead with late model 04 and beyond expeditions. The ride and handling are superb (for an SUV). The advance-trac has worked flawlessly and most likely "saved the bacon" once or twice this past winter. I have learned not to rely on the "average fuel economy" display as I find it to be 1+ miles to the gallon on the high side. So I just simply subtract 1 mpg when using the display and find it to be fairly accurate. My mileage, using that method, is usually 16 mpg on the highway with speeds around 70 mph.

rockyjohn

Does your vehicle have advance trac? Ford bought back my 4 month old 2004 EB because of rear end problems. They did this without a fight. Ford knows they have a problem. Good luck.

tourguide

I have one of the last build 04s sitting in my garage. The research saga with this purchase started over a year ago and nearly drove my wife batty. I too grappled with Sequoia, or Expedition and in the end opted for the Expy. In the final analysis I think I got a much better equipped vehicle at the price point I bought at. I love the handling, safety features, and most everything about the vehicle. As others have noted the brake dust issue is a thing of the past for these newer vehicles. I have 200 miles on mine and there isn't eve a hint of dusting. When these pads finally go, I'll be going over to www.brakewarehouse.com and picking up a set of Kevlar pads. The dusting (as I've found out) comes from the pad material carbonizing at high temperatures. Pads made of Kevlar are highly heat resistant and therefore have little or no dusting. The new ceramics that Ford went to will dust, but the dust they throw off is grey. The old pads Ford used were less heat resistant and thus dusted a lot more.

Although price was the final swing for us, the straw that pushed the decision to Ford was the stories our neighbors told about Toyota's "customer service" and the problems they were having with a new mini-van order. These folks ordered a new van to be built so that the new van would arrive at about the same time the lease was up on their Volvo station wagon. The new car build was weeks and weeks overdue - Toyota's fault not the dealership. These folks naturally called Toyota because now they had a problem, and the reps they talked to on the phone were actually rude to them about it. It seems to be some butt kissing is in order when a person is spending north of 45K on a new vehicle, but Toyota didn't see it that way. I wonder how they'll get treated if there are problems down the road.

fx4

2003 Ford Expedition with 35,000+ miles. Old rear end whinning away. Dealer's tech took a ride with me and climbed underneath and said
rear end would be replaced under warranty becasue of the obvious noise and the fact the rear end was in the serial number range giving trouble. Even small dealership had done several already.

Post 686 (if I copied down the correct number), don't worry too much about the shaking. First, the new Exoedition's R&P steering is simply doing its job. Second run the heck out of the Contitrac TR OEMs and believe it or not the steering wheel shake will be gone. My 2003 had been parked in a field or non paved area for several months before delviery---the steering wheel shook like crazy for the first few miles. Now same old tires do not shake at all. Upgrade to another brand or go for some sort of tire warranty on the OEM TRs. Pretty terrible OEM tires. Tirerack.com guy claims new Firestone Destination is very smooth on the 2003-04 Expeditions, good buy, and you get most of the new Bridgestone tire technology. Anyone tried the Destination tire on Expedition?

NVBanker hangin' in there?

yodey

15,000 miles and 3 rear ends. I guess it comes free with every oil change now. I have had 2 replace one at 1500 miles and one at 14,000 now with just over 15,000 miles I have the same problems with the vibration when turning and now a smell of propane gas while driving. This happened in the past on my Chrysler truck and they said right away that the smell only comes from a reat axle buring up. Ford dealership said they never heard of the this before. It happens more on long drives then short drives so when I took to the dealer they did not smell it of course. I think it is now time to file for lemon law. I am tired of taking in for replacements the only good thing is the dealership has been co operative in repairs so far but not what I expect out of $40K vehicle.

yodey

What is the secret ? as you can see by my last post 704. I am to the point of returning it for lemon.

nvbanker

Of course, fx4! BUT, I won't ever buy a Firestone tire again, I don't care what it's on. IMO, their treatment of the Firestone/Explorer mess was unconscionable, and fairly typical of Japanese companies, who deny and stonewall even better than American companies do. Add to that the fact that most of the Firestone Steeltex tires have been coming apart, damaging the trucks they are mounted on, and have finally been recalled. I have -0- confidence in Firestone/Bridgestone and won't roll them for anyone. Destination? How about hell!

jeff88

with the assessment of firestone tires. Would never consider a bridgestone./firestone again. My experience with dunlop tires over the past 5-6 years has been really good from a price/performance ratio. when the contis on our expy go, am going to check dunlops 1st. our '95 explorer had firestones to 40k, michelin ltx to 80k then dunlops to 128k with a ton of tread left. they ran quieter, road better, handled equally and lasted longer than the michelins, which were much better than the 'stones.

to me, tire maintenance is the key to both long life & safety. I keep mine at 1 lb over recommended psi and check every 2 weeks. tires are rotated every 5000 miles and aligned if needed.

nvbanker

Unfortunately for Firestone, I was around to remember the 70's, when Firestone put out their now famous "500" tire, that had a tread separation, one tire at a time every year or so, and although Firestone would replacement them (pro-rata) with an equally poor tire each time they failed, the reputation was just reinforced over this Wilderness thing. They just don't care.

mwikle

Keep in mind that "Firestone" is GONE it is just a brand ... nothing else. They are all Bridgestone (japanese owned) tires now ... albeit made is USA often. No way they have separate R&D in that corporation ... would cost wayyy too much and no consumer-facing reason to do so.

That said; we had 500's' on a marshmellow-sprung mid 70's Mercury Montego (ugh!). I would not brand-preferentially buy a Firestone brand tire (like, say, a michelin)...there would have to be a reason other than price alone (usually there are lots of similar priced choices for a vehicle anyway)

nvbanker

I can't see where Bridgestone has changed a thing over at Firestone from my experience.

fx4

Sorry to bring up Firestone. Ha!

We had an early in the year 77 T/B during fall of 76 strike. It had the Firestone 500 tires and silver paint and a bad transmission. Take your pick as to which was the worst. However overall the 77 T/B gave us good value and very high miles at time kids were young, money tight. Vehicle looked great after old Torino Elite, etc. of that era. Dealers and others offered to buy 77 T/B at full sticker price just to have one during the strike.

Looking at new 2004 Expedition NBX due to deals on interest rate, rebates. Looking at NBX with 2nd center seat deleted (2nd row Captain Chairs something) at a lovely MSRP price of $530. Two tacky armrests added for the $530. No credit for 2nd row center seat delete part. Outside 2nd row seats same. Anyway the NBX model feels "lighter" , less load
on steering wheel than 2003 FX4. Better, less huge truck feel in 2004 NBX. Any insights as to why? New 4R75W with larger torque converter. Wondering about basic spring rate change from 2003 FX4 to 2004 NBX, possible power steering change for 2004? Tires same Conti TR. Feel when driving is different and does not seem to be accounted for by center seat (20% part) delete in the 2004 NBX.

tourguide

I can't comment on the seating changes for the 03-04 NBX, but I can tell you that the steering ratio changed from the 03 to 04. The 03s had (if I am remembing this right) something like a 17:1 steering ratio which is a bit unforgiving and somewhat unnerving at highway speeds. The 04s went to a 20:1 ratio which means you have to crank the wheel a bit more in around town driving, but highway speeds feel much more comfortable.

I am not very pleased with the Conti-tracks myself. On a 40K+ vehicle I would have thought a little higher quality was in order. This fall I'm going to replace these things with Nokian Vatiivas. Then life will be good in the Expy.

nvbanker

the Continentals are a low mileage tire. They deteriorate quickly - long before the tread is gone.

fx4

Thanks tourguide and nvbanker.

One of my Cont. TRs seems to have developed a fairly severe "radial pull" around 30.000 that I know was not in it earlier. Alignment checks have revealed nothing at all after an early very minor toe-in correction. The tire is on the rear and really should be in the scrap heap. I noticed my spare is the Cont SUV instead of the
slightly different Cont TR OEM on the ground. I thought mine might be from something the dealers guys might have done until saw that some new 2004 4wd Expedition inventory had same TRs on ground and the Cont SUV model as the spare. ???

It is hard for me to say that Cont TR is a low mileage tire. Mine are at 37,500 plus and just yesterday a manager at a large Ford dealership said they did not need to be replaced for him to sell my unit on his front row retail. Lots of tread left at least assuming the carcass holds up. Similarly, last week I saw a set of Cont. SUV on 2003 2wd Expedition that had some usable tread left after 54,000 miles.

Love to find some Ford website for specs on steering ratio for 2003 Expedition versus 2004 Expedition per post 712 above. My 2003 FX4 is just plain hard, annoying to steer, especially after some time behind the wheel.

nvbanker

The reason I formed that opinion was due to my experience with my Continental tires on my first Navigator. They made it to about 30,000 miles - tread looked like new, but two of them had the same problem you have, fx4, the radial pull. I put the first one under the truck and put the spare down. Then the second one started to do it, and before I could deal with it, another one just started leaking through the sidewall, no puncture - just a perforation through the wall. I got the message, and replaced them all. But not with Contis.

tourguide

For what it's worth - I read that somewhere on the Internet in a professional review. I wish for the life of my I could remember where, but I just cannot. I did try some searching to see if I could turn it up, but it escapes me. I read so much in the year I spent researching before this purchase it all started to blend together. I do remember specifically reading it somewhere and it stuck with me about the ratios because I was running into lots of rehashed 03 reviews as the two model years are so similar and I was looking for differences. Sorry I can't remember better where it came from. Maybe your local dealer service department could help (if they're sharp)?

nvbanker

Personally, I like the way the 03 steers just fine.

gheimur

Has anyone experienced the EZ enter seat option
not working every once in a while. It generally
works 99% of the time , but about 1 or twice a
week it doesn't move forward when inserting the
ignition key. A manual adjustment is necessary
and the EZ enter adjustment is always set to on
in the message center.

fx4

How 'bout them rebates. She thinks I my have lost it, but sometimes it is hard to beat their deal to get another one off the lot with the 05s
soon to be in production. Lots of new Expedition inventory on the dealer lots from August to November 2003 production dates.
 
In the early going, not crazy about 20.1 steering ratio for 2004 Expedition. Harder to park in tight places. New ratio perhaps a bit more comfortable, safer at speed on interstate. But, takes away benefit of crisp R&P for high skill drivers. Maybe 20.1 safer for less experienced drivers? 18.1 or 19.1 might have have been better choices.

New 4R75W behind 5.4L seems to be dramatic improvement over 4R70W and 5.4L. 4R75W seems to change down correctly, shows true performance ability of 5.4L which is substantial even in 2V version. Excellent hill climbing, etc. Looking forward to towing performance.

Getting used to 2nd row captains chairs. Anyone seen a "hot" aftermarket console that would be good for 2nd row in Expedition. Maybe an in an out model of some kind. Got manual third row which allows seats to be rasied easily from aisle between 2nd row captain chairs. Third row power still major cool for most.

Finally, skipped limited-slip rear this time. Previous FX4 with l.s. seemed to hop sideways backing in 4wd in wet grass,etc. Same rear end hop in parking garage sharp turns in 2wd setting. Limited slip great straight ahead off slick boat ramps, but pain turning. Any comments on this one?

tbooth2

I had a severe vibration problem that couldn't be corrected because the tires were always being blamed for the problem by not one, not two, but three different dealerships. Please look for feathering on your front tires....if you have that, it's time to look at other reasons for your vibration problems. After Ford refused to execute any further repairs, I had no recourse but to file a lemon law claim and Ford eventually bought my Expedition back. The experience was bad enough that I changed brands....too bad - such nice amenities and comfort - except when in motion over 50 MPH. Hope they've corrected these anomalies in the 04's and that things are even better for the 05's. Like I said, not always the tires, even though the Contis are cheap for the manufacturer and of mediocre quality for the customer at best.

jeff88

Personally, haven't noticed that the expy is hard to park because of steering. Size, well it's harder than my sedan for sure. Have found that I'm more careful in lining up the truck for parking but am mostly concerned with size v ratio. Was actually impressed with it durng test drives along with being impressed with the sequoia for manueverability in tight spaces. The turning circle on the expy is tight considering it's size -- I think it's around 38'. We have a short turn space in our driveway and the expy wheels right around. Haven't noticed that the ratio was an inhibitor in any way.

mark7

My 2003 Expedition has done the same thing approx. 9 times. It just goes into advance trac mode which wont allow me to brake( actually the vehicle shudders as I try to stop vehicle) and on top of that the vehicle seems to accelerate all at the same time. Almost got broadsided because I couldn't stop the darn thing. The problem normally occurs after making a turn from stopped position, once it engaes it usually will take a quarter to half mile to get it out of the advance trac mode. I can't get it out by any means that I have tried- it just finally stops "What a relief" Filed complaint with NHTSA and will have phone meeting with them on July 6Th! Did you get resolution with your complaint? Sure would like to know befor my hearing.

cplkev

Does anyone out there have any experence (good or bad) towing with the 5.4? If so what's the trailer weight and how does it perform?

nvbanker

I have towed fairly extensively with the 5.4 with exceptional results. I've never run out of pedal, or power. However, the heaviest thing I have towed was an El Camino on a trailer. I have towed over Baker Grade in California though, which is 21 miles long and a radiator buster - especially at 124 degrees which is normal for July.

rockyjohn

I filed the complaint and a week later Ford took back my car voluntarily. I got a replacement without the advance trac and it's great. Good Luck.

ebpena

I am curious. I own a 2004 Exp with 16000 miles. I just finished a 2500 mile to Florida and I noticed that the rear-end makes noise under accleration. Once I am on cruise-control the noise goes away. Is this the same problem you are encountering?

mwikle

I have a 2003 Expedition Eddie Bauer with all the "toys" on it...

The navigation radio appears to malfunction due to overheating. It was replaced for this concern once (but it has not been consistently hot & sunny since the repair until now); it is now showing the same symptoms again.

The GPS will not "lock" (i.e. the compass go from red to yellow to white) and place the vehicle correctly on the map. Apparently, after cooling off, it works again. The navigation CD after ejection & face of the unit feel quite warm when I observe the problem.

The unit even has a fan on the housing (hidden in dashboard space) to cool it sort of like a computer (it is a computer!).

Apparently most Dealer repair shops don't diagnose these things too carefully --- just swap them out with a reconditioned unit. Are the nav radios failure prone or problematic?... comments/performace/experiences anyone???(especially folks in hot states!)

Vehicle Navigation Radio (VNR) is made by Visteon for Ford. The built-in self test shows OK.

I checked the TSBs at motorcraft.com & nothing was there.

Comments anyone?