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Comments
Mechanic sprayed all over with wd40, no luck. Still squeaky. The part in the suspension that looks like splintered wood has a pad missing between two of the metal pieces and there is visible, albeit small, wear where it is metal to metal. He assured me this was not the squeaking and did not suggest that I replace that pad. What is that pad, and if it was there to begin with, shouldn't I replace it?
Also,
I get a decent klunk in the front end, that one might think is the bushing.
Mechanic said to have the dealer check the front differential for a crack. It occurs mostly when the wheels are turned, even slightly, and I go up or down a driveway to and from the street, like in a dip. He said to tell the dealer it happens when i go into reverse and let off the brake, because that's when he heard it.
One more:
I have had my truck since about 60,000. I have not kept up scheduled maint., but have had few problems, knock on wood. I have had one major tuneup a few months after i bought it, and a few oil changes, brakes twice, recall on tires and bushings. I think something with the trani.
To try and mend the err of my ways, what would be the most wise thing(s) to take care of have checked out first, keeping in mind that the truck runs beautifully and i drive it like i used to drive my little Porsche? Fast and Furious.
if you had a toyota the noise in the front would be 'normal'.
another possibility is the exhaust system has rusted out at one of the joints(happened to me).
jjo2003, I don't know what year your vehicle is, but I have a '98 that had a squeaky rear as well. I crawled under the vehicle several times, spraying WD40 on every joint, leaf spring, rubber bushing etc. but could not cure the squeak. This was driving me crazy, in a vehicle that I liked driving. I started analyzing, to determine where to look next. I live in a dry climate, so it was more prevalent when dry, In the rain, it did not squeak, nor did it happen just after a car wash. This made it obvious that it was the exterior. Finally, I made the discovery when stepping up on the rear bumper to put a bike on the roof rack. The plastic cover on the top of the rear bumper rubs against the body just below the tailights! Stand behind the vehicle, in front of the tailight, notice where the gray plastic cover from the bumper, curves under the body directly below the tailight. Spray some lube on this point, and go for a test drive. Bet the squeak is gone! Now, for a permanent solution. Go to your local Home Depot, and visit the garden center. Find the plastic molding that you use on the top edge of steel landscaping border. Buy a foot, or see if they will just give you a scrap piece. Cut about 3" and work over the edge of the body panel just below the tailight, so that the molding provides a insulator between the plastic and metal. Problem solved! If this is not applicable to your vehicle, just look for any area where plastic and metal rub together.
.
As for my overdrive suggestion, I still believe it is correct to leave the OD off unless on the open road or highway. Owner's manuals, like many publications, are for the lowest common denominator, thus assuming you know nothing about how things work. Any driving enthusiast will tell you that it is better for an engine and transmission to rev, than to lug. You would never throw a manual trans into overdrive at 40 mph, yet thats what your auto does when you let off the gas. Convenience has it's trade offs, and one is more wear and tear if you just let shift up and down all the time.
the "door ajar" idiot light won't go off after startup, and the interior lights also stay on unless
I turn them off manually. There's no door ajar, and re-slamming doors (and tailgate glass) doesn't fix it. Next couple of startups, everything is fine, and then a day or two later the problem recurs. There are no push-button switches visible on the doors or door frames to
play with. Has anyone else experienced this and found a fix?
Other than this issue the vehicle has been pretty good so far. Problems have been minor and mostly electrical - the front and rear wiper issues, and sideview mirror switch.
BTW - I get about 15.5 mpg in mostly city driving. driving
#1895 of 1926 Re: More Problems by bbieraugel Jun 05, 2003 (3:23 pm)
To: Esbesb;
Try taking a look at the Chevrolet Blazer/Trailblazer message boards to see how they feel about their trucks...I owned a 99 Blazer LT for just 3 years before DUMPING it off to buy a 2002 Explorer. You can't imagine how terrible this SUV was from everything from the tires on up to the roof rack. No kidding, I replaced oil cooler lines, fuel sending units, on board computers, door latches, pinion seals, intake manifold gaskets, ball joints, you name it. This in only 45,000 miles. Please do not consider the GM product
broken cruise control switch (fixed)
tires out of balance (fixed)
vibration during acceleration
and a thumping coming from the rear end when I acclerate normally from a stop or a from a low speed.
I was told by the dealer that they didn't hear the thumping (of course) and I was also informed that the vibration I felt was normal for the 4.0 OHV engine. However, the thumping is still there and I think it's gotta be either slack in the drive shaft, the carrier barring, or the rear end. I got an extended bumper to bumper warranty, so if anything goes wrong in the next 3 years or 36k miles (right now it has 32,800 on it) I don't pay for a dime to fix it. I posted this same issue in the Ford Explorer/Mercury Mountaineer, and Exploring the Explorer forums, and thought I'd post it here as well. Any ideas? Also, so far I've only been averaging about 16-17 mpg, that thats city and highway combined. I expect it to get 16 around town, but on the highway I thought it was rated at 20 or 21? Other than that, love it so far. Major upgrade over what I had before!
-Replace front ball joints
-seals on the transfer case
-CV joints
-throttle body
and last but not least--a rack& pinion steering rack.
This truck has never been off-road and is used mainly on interstates--lightly loaded--driving at 70MPH.
I have to say, the ball joints and steering rack really surprised me; I've never owned a car that has had these go bad in 60K miles of driving.
My question is, is this a QC problem with the OEM part maker or are these items just not designed to handle the application.
Thanks for any help.
Had the throttle body replaced at 45k. Check Edmunds for a recall. I believe there was a recall for the northern states on the throttle body about 3-4 years ago. It only covered the V6 Explorers.
Now I have another problem with my Explorer. During low speeds and turning, I get a whining and vibrating in the steering column. When I speed up, it goes away. I'm not sure if it is in the wheels or the steering column. I had the rack replaced recently and all seem fine. Not sure if it could be the power steering pump or maybe a belt. Any thoughts?
I'll call my mechanic tomorrow to set up an appointment.
Awwwww, some visits to the shop are better then others.
Seems that I had to beat harder than expected to remove the balancer bolt but everything pulled apart ok. Gently pushed in the new seal using the center bolt waiting to feel the slightest resistance when it bottomed out. Then I heard the adaptor go clunk. Seal pushed all the way through and dropped because there is no retaining lip in the cover. The procedure never mentioned anything about that.
Ground half the head off a good size nail so it was a half moon shape. Fished in, was able to snag the seal and pull it out without damage. This time let the plastic dust shield on the balancer set the depth of the seal. Do the final tighten on the bolt and of course the crank turns a little. Suddenly it hits a hard stop. Now the crank only turns about 100 degrees in either direction like I'm hitting a stuck valve(s). So now I'll have to pull a valve or the timing cover to see what is happening. Good thing I got that extra timing cover gasket. No good deed goes unpunished. Should mention that the engine hadn't been started in a while.
if you're not getting clicking on turns, and the boots aren't torn, I wouldn't mess with the CV joints. there might be steering issues that you are feeling, check the drive belt and PS resivoir fluid as above... if nasty looking, use the suck-dry, refill, run a minute and turn lock-to-lock gently method of running two or three quarts of the right PS fluid for your truck through the PS resivoir.
you might also try changing plugs, I suspect you're past the point where I would have done my second plug change. I don't like any idle mumble when I'm in reverse, on crushed rock, and turning to fit in a parking spot at the exercise joint, and that sort of feels like the steering and or drive is rough. I don't like idle issues with a trailer on, so I've already dumped the factory double-platinums at about 24,000... and might change the current ones out again next spring.
I'm overdoing it, granted, but you're probably ready.
As far as the pinging, I also have that "problem". I've been told it is a characteristic of th 5.0 L V8 engine. Some people refer to it as piston slap. Hasn't hurt the performance of the vehicle but it does make some noise during accleration.
Got a call while they were working on it saying they found the rear differential seals leaking and would replace them under the ESP warranty and that the front brakes were gones and new pads/rotors were needed.
I knew I was close on the brakes so they got the ok.
Got the car back, brakes felt nice and firm, steering felt lighter and smooth--started down the interstate, hit a small bump at 60 mph and the steeering wheel started shake like crazy. Slowed to 50 and it stopped; hit another small bump at speed and the same shaking--never have seen this before.
Turned around went back to the dealer, gave them the details and they came back in 40 minutes and said everything was tight on the steering gear and front end, but air was in the brake system--say what? I asked the young lady how air in the brakes would affect the steering and she didn't have any answers.
I'm thinking since they replaced the rack and probably added new fliud, that there was air in the power steering line--does this make sense?
Anyway, got the car back and the problem was resolved.
I think I'm all done with Fords; even with the warranty, the time involved getting all this stuff fixed has been significant. If I hadn't paid for the ESP I'd be out about $2K in repairs. Everytime I bring this vehicle in, some other defect is found--and they haven't even touched the engine or tranny yet.
My warranty is up in February and I will be looking at Pilots.
The key thing is that everything is working fine now and it was covered by warranty.
YOu may want to check your Warranty Gold warranty. I know some people on the "Warranty" board have been complaining that WG is not paying claims right now since their adminstrator went belly up. Not sure if they settled the situation yet but it was not looking good for policy holders.
the ford side my family walked away from years and now the Jaguar side
1 they fix nothing correct
2 you get you car back dirty
3 they say well come back and we will get it correct like i have the time
4 they do not sell at good price anymore and the dealership is to be sold soon because of thier failing system
bye bye bye bye bye
I am extremely frustrated with my 2000 Eddie Bauer Explorer. Maybe I'm being too sensitive, but this car sucks.
I bought the car new in late 1999. It now has 85K miles on it. Here's what's wrong:
-It consistently over heats in 95 degree weather or hotter. Below 95, it's fine. One dealer told me it is operating according to spec. That cost me $120. Another dealer replaced the thermostat for $250. It still over heats.
-CD player over heats after ~4 hours on the road. I get a warning light (I used to anyway, see below) and the CD player would stop playing.
-Display burned out on the radio. Now I can't see the clock, the radio station, volume settings, CD player overheat warning, etc. Can't fix it. Have to buy a new radio. $350.
-Thermostat failed the first year I had the car. About 5K miles past warrantee, so I had to pay to replace it. Thermostat replacement in first bullet point is the second thermostat the car has had.
-Rear wiper has failed and been replaced twice. This and the tires are the only thing covered by warrantee.
-Yes, there's the tire fiasco, but I won't [non-permissible content removed] too loudly, at least they bought me new tires on that one.
-The A/C does not work. Evidently a leaky seal. Of course you can't get a new seal, you have to replace the whole compressor for $800.
-ABS warning light is constantly on. According to the owners manual, I no longer have ABS. Fortunately, I drove for years before ABS, so I'm not too worried.
-Driver's side power lock motor fails 1/3 of the time. Enough so that I can't trust the keyless lock. I have to watch the driver's side lock.
The ride is too stiff, but I blame myself for not noticing that in the test drives. I compare that to the Tahoe and my old Toyota 4x4 basic truck.
So, any thoughts? Am I too sensitive? Do I have a bad vehicle? Perhaps I shouldn't have been one of the first to buy a new model year. Is GM (Chevy/GMC) any better?
I am looking to replace this car, but I'm not sure which way to go. I want some extra room as I have added two kids to my space requirements. I want reliabilty and a comfortable car and ride. I drive in the snow a lot, sometimes in pretty severe conditions, so I want a good meaty car that can handle the mountains and difficult driving conditions. I don't think the imports fit this bill, my confidence is gone with Ford, what do people think of Chevy/GMC?
Based on my own experience, the only cars that I truly did not have ANY problem with were my 1989 Toyota 4runner and my 1993 Toyota MR2 Turbo. So... good luck with your next decision. (I currently own a 02 Explorer XLT and a 92 Mercedes 300CE)
Anybody - Since I will have to live with the Explorer for a while (I don't quite have the cash to replace it now), any suggestions on getting all of these issues fixed? Should I just buck up, pay the money and realize I have a lousy car or do I have any recourse with Ford. They have not been helpful to date. Do people think all of these failures are normal?
Good luck.