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Ford Explorer Sport Trac - IV

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Comments

  • dovette2001dovette2001 Member Posts: 13
    I too, well, my husband did, i wasn't with him at the time, but he states that when he started up the ST, all the lights on the dash board came on, and some wouldn't go out, but there was NO power windows, radio, locks, turn signals, etc. so he drove it right home, i told ford about it, and they told me there wasn't anything thing they could do, unless they could duplicate it, which of course, it wouldn't do it for them,... so i' haven't a clue what it was, or what to watch out for, it's kind of scarry,... because i'm out on the road by myself ALOT, i've got 16,000 miles on it, and only got it 5-2-00,.... hmmmm,....
  • pjyoungpjyoung Member Posts: 885
    Does anyone know of a website that sells Ford Extended Service plans at a discount?
  • tractiontraction Member Posts: 141
    Here is a link....cheaper than the dealers plus you get to pay it off over 10 months with NO interest.

    http://www.fordcredit.com/esp/
  • zderfzderf Member Posts: 44
    It kinda looks like I may have the only 15 MPG'er. Or, everyone here is at peace with the relatively poor mileage for such an advanced engine (V-6 anyway) over the 'ole cast iron 5.0 V-8, or the old 4.0 cast iron V-6. Ummmmm.

    Gas here is at 1.84 - 1.97, and I'm glad I put so few miles on. WOW. I'd rather put those fuel dollars into the tank on my 427SC... seems to be more fun per gallon.

    Thanks to all for the feedback.

    Zderf
  • pjyoungpjyoung Member Posts: 885
    eom
  • zack1000zack1000 Member Posts: 84
    Zderf--

    No, you're not the only one with the 15mpg. Actually I average about 13-14mpg in mostly city driving. The only thing that seems to change the mileage slightly is not using the a/c. Other than that it remains constant.

    I've read posts from people who get mileage as high as 20mpg. I have no clue why there is such a wide variance.
  • jvsporttracjvsporttrac Member Posts: 1
    LOVE MY NEW SPORT TRAC
    BUT I AM GETTING A BEARING NOISE THAT GETS WORSE WITH A/C ON
    IT CAUSES A VIBRATION THAT I CAN FEEL WHEN THE A/C IS ON. I CAN FEEL IT THROUGH THE BRAKE PEDAL.
    IT IS A NOISE YOU WOULD HERE FROM AN BAD ALTERNATOR BEARING OR WATER PUMP BEARING.
    POSSIBLY A BELT TENSIONER OR PULLEY?
    HELP WITH ANY INFO!
  • wlukuswlukus Member Posts: 7
    It has been since June that I had my ST to the dealer to fix the gas cap rubbing problem and I'm still waiting for Ford to come up with solution.Can someone give me the name and phone #'s of the dealers that fixed your gas caps. I want to go to my local FoMoCo dealer with this info, make some calls, and hopefully get this problem fixed.
    ( ALSO TO GET THIS FIX ON FORDS SERIVCE BULLETIN OR AS A RECALL !!) The St have not been on Alldata.com recall or service bulletins lists yet.
  • wlukuswlukus Member Posts: 7
    I will take this info to my local dealer and see if this is what he did already or not. My gas cap was replaced back in June. The new ST's ( delivered 2 weeks ago ) at this dealer have the same problem. I'm hoping that FoMoCo does'nt just say " They all did that this year ! " Plan B is that I'm still looking for dealers name and phone #'s that have fixed this problem.
  • scotthawscotthaw Member Posts: 6
    Did the Yahoo Sport-trac group disappear?
  • silverst01silverst01 Member Posts: 2
    The original club got deleted for some reason, but someone started a new one a couple weeks ago. Here's the link: http://clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/explorersporttrac
  • fordnutfordnut Member Posts: 80
    wlukus,
    I just got back from a dealer here in FL. and of the eight sport tracs he had, none had the gas cap rub. I think Ford has fixed the problem, or the
    quality has gone up. Additionally, I think these
    ST's were built in the last 2-mths.
  • b24meb24me Member Posts: 2
    Many chips and scratches on door handle, and my running boards are chipping pretty bad. Does anyone know if Ford will replace the running board?
    Also, does the ac/heater in the back seat stay on constantly, or can it be turned off? I can't find the instructions for the rear seat controls anywhere in the manual?
  • b24meb24me Member Posts: 2
    Many chips and scratches on door handle, and my running boards are chipping pretty bad. Does anyone know if Ford will replace the running board?
    Also, does the ac/heater in the back seat stay on constantly, or can it be turned off? I can't find the instructions for the rear seat controls anywhere in the manual?
  • vlbartonvlbarton Member Posts: 1
    There is a 3-9 second valve rattle on initial starts when my ST has set overnight. The sound is the same as collapsed lifters quieting when they pump up. My dealer said this is a normal nose because the oil "may" drain out of the "cam cassettes" after a long period. This doesn't sound like a good design to me. I have 11,000 miles, I didn't notice it until about 8,000 miles.

    Has anyone else had experience with this? Any recommendations? I asked Ford with no response yet.
  • wlukuswlukus Member Posts: 7
    I took a copy of the Sport Trac Frequently Asked Questions ( thanks RJKUNKLE ! ) to my local FoMoCo dealer. After the service manager stated that he is still waiting for a repair from Ford, I handed him the copy. He asked me where I got this information from as he called the parts department to order one over night. I was told that the regional Ford rep did not have this info yet and that all ST that this dealer sold had this problem. The power of the internet is great !! Thank to all for the help. I'm getting a free oil change from the dealership for providing them with this info.
  • robertc5robertc5 Member Posts: 18
    I had a similar situation at the Ford dealer where I got my Sport Trac. I have provided them with several pieces of information obtained from this site. At first I thought they were just being dishonest - they knew but didn't want to admit it. I now get a different feeling. They now ask me if I have heard anything new, and have asked for information on how to get to this website (as well as others). Kind of scary when the consumer knows more about the product then the guys selling or servicing it!It looks like we have to protect and inform each other, because Ford (or any other auto maker for that matter)can't be counted on to be looking out for our best interests.
  • drew_bdrew_b Member Posts: 2
    Need info for obtaining hard cover. Local parts dept quoted price of +-$1100.00. Any other dealers that will disount this?

    Thanks.

    Hopefully this makes it to the sport trac topic not the dodge one as did before.
  • fordsporttracfordsporttrac Member Posts: 300
    Jan 2001 Consumer Reports says they will review the ST in the next few months.
  • fordnutfordnut Member Posts: 80
    Can someone post how to track my ST online.
    It was built late last week and I would like to
    track its shipment to FL.
  • greg2828greg2828 Member Posts: 2
    Just Received my Director Chairs for FORD and it looks great.
  • johnston21johnston21 Member Posts: 1
    Traveling along at 68MPH, when at 193 Miles on the Odometer the Front Drive Shaft Seal went defective. Caused the Front Drive Shaft to seize, loud grinding noise present.

    Dealer replaced Front Drive Shaft complete with U-Joints, and new fluid in Transfer-Case Assembly. Claims that the Transfer-Case Unit is OK, and the grinding noise was the U-Joints slipping. Have asked them to de-greese the undercarriage, and do an extensive road-test (overnight, highway, etc).

    Due to pick it up this weekend when I return home from business.
  • bjohn1225bjohn1225 Member Posts: 16
    Not sure if this is a problem for many of you, but the ST comes standard with the only side cargo racks which alone can't be used for much. The cross racks (which run from one side to the other)are a $189 option. The cross racks are what is needed to attach any kind of ski/bike/luggage carrier to the top. I thought I could add a good quality ski rack for less than $100, but now looks like it will be close to $300. I believe the cross racks used to be standard on Explorers, but are now another pricy option. Anyone know of any other less expensive aftermarket options for ski rack?
  • ksfalkksfalk Member Posts: 2
    Just bought a Sports-Trac yesterday. The Tonneau cover was one of the deciding factors over a 4dr Explorer. We couldn't find a manual transmission, convenience package and Tonneau. Best we could find in Southern California was manual, convenience and cage. We went to purchase the cover but was quoted $1400. 230% over MSRP. I guess somebody saw some of the comments here about the cover being worth more then they were charging. Can anybody find a better deal? I'd like to know.
  • ksfalkksfalk Member Posts: 2
    Just called Ford. They are standing by what the dealer quoted. $1400 for a Tonneau cover. My advice... order what you want, wait the 6-8 weeks and pay MSRP. Don't wait for deals.
    Or look for something else.
  • njdevilsrnnjdevilsrn Member Posts: 185
    Was watching CNN Headline News yesterday afternoon. On comes a story about the bad weather in the midwest (Chicago area?) and how driving was treacherous. How is the story punctuated? With video of a white Sport-Trac sitting on its side in a ditch.

    Just goes to show you, 4WD and All Terrain Tires cannot stop physics and human stupidity.
  • robertc5robertc5 Member Posts: 18
  • robertc5robertc5 Member Posts: 18
    This may be old news to many Sport Trac owners, but there are other choices beyond the Ford cover. The cover from Ford is a very good design and a great deal at$590. It isn't such a great deal at $1400. If you go the the Leer website, in their new product section they have a cover designed for the Sport Trac. The photo shows one on a red ST (just like mine!). It looks great! Pricing is around $700. I have a soft cover from Ford at this time (hard cover not available when I ordered). I plan on looking seriously at the Leer cover. It is styled to pick up the hood design, installs w/o drilling and is supposed to remove easily. Just some other options.
  • melvin7melvin7 Member Posts: 32
    what the hell happened to this site? it does not work at all like it used to
  • fordsporttracfordsporttrac Member Posts: 300
    Its the new crappy look and new crappy feel with lousy fonts especially the compose font which must be a 8 point its so small. We also lost our category marker check boxes and it appears Edmunds lost its respect for different screen resolutions 800x600 and 1024x768. The "Pickups" topic screen is too wide and causes double spaces between subjects. It also causes the counters to be unreadable. Although trying to find your topics in the other catagory screens is no picnic either. They're so squeezed together is a pain in the $%&#.

    My guess is the developer uses Microsoft IE and has probably never looked at his/her own work using Netscape. I have to stop now, this font is giving me a headach.

    WOW! I thought it couldn't get worse! Is that what Edmunds thinks a better spell check is? Well maybe the developer doesn't use IE cuz they think Microsoft is 2 words. Doesn't anyone test before they deploy anymore? Jezz, bring back the old interface.

    DOUBLE WOW! Seems if you take too long to compose your message you get logged out (without knowing it) and your message gets trashed. I'm starting to think Ford's Customer Service department brought Edmunds.
  • trackurioustrackurious Member Posts: 1
    I went to a Ford dealership and priced an ST yesterday. They tried to sell me a manual cranny silver ST (after market moon roof [$1000], bed extended [$175]) for $25,000 drive out. Is this a good price? Although, they claim the manual is the standard transmission, this is the first the dealer has seen on their lot, and I'd really like to make the purchase without having to special order an ST. I have reservations because the price seems high for a car that I cannot even get many options for! (I'm not a big fan of the basic cloth dark charcoal interior-the only one available with a manual cranny in Silver. I can't even get power seats, or rear climate control.) Any advice? I've priced Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book, and it seems I could get a fully optioned ST minus leather interior for a little bit more than what the dealer was offering. Was I getting fleeced or what?
  • briuhlbriuhl Member Posts: 4
    Hey everyone! Check out this website -www.mysporttrac.com - for the answers to many of your questions. Most of us use that site, and there are many more posts on more subjects than there are here. One of the ST owners put it together, and did a fantastic job of it, too!
  • rolnickrolnick Member Posts: 1
    I just recently purchased a 01 ST and I have been having the same problem especially when I let it sit overnight or for a period of time. When I try accelerating it starts to make a rattling noise from my valve shaft. If anyone knows why this is happening because I sure would like to know.
  • explorer2drexplorer2dr Member Posts: 1
    I purchased Dec 1999 a 2000 Ford Explorer 2DR Sport with an MSRP of $28,735 & after discounts an adjusted MSRP of $26,785. The Explorer options totaled $8,215. My final purchase price ended up at $22,750. I attempted to trade at same dealer for a 2001 XLT 4DR and they offered $14,500 trade-in. A 50% depreciation value from MRSP for a vehicle with 11k miles. CarMax offered $15,500. So be warned the SUV is not going to hold its value. I have purchased my last FORD and FORD related product.
  • tractiontraction Member Posts: 141
    According to Kelly Blue Book, the Retail price of your Explorer is $20,300 and the trade-in value is $17,360. The dealer will always try to low ball you at first. Sell it on your own if you want the most money out of it.
  • lapointerlapointer Member Posts: 18
    Exclusive Report
    Ford to extend warranty on Explorer, Mountaineer

    published: 01 December 2000
    Robert Lane
    date of revision:

    Ford Motor Company has decided to extend the warranty on 1997-2000 Ford Explorer and Mercury Mountaineer models produced at their St. Louis assembly plant that are equipped with the 4.0L SOHC engine. The free extended warranty also applies to 2001 Explorer Sport and Sport Trac models with the 4.0L SOHC engine as well.

    The extended warranty will only cover the engines camshaft, timing chain tensioner and lower intake manifold gasket for six (6) years of 72,000 miles. If the vehicle already has 72,000 miles than the warranty will be extended to 01 April 2001.

    Ford will also authorize dealers to replace all three parts should a vehicle come into the service department for any one of the problems.

    If you would like to contribute or comment about this article, please contact robert lane or comment about it on our message board

    BlueOvalNews.com



    This all pertains to problems with the 4.ol engines with noises like yours.
  • oct_exoct_ex Member Posts: 3
    I have read earlier posts indicating that some individuals have had no problems with leaks.
    I have returned mine to the dealer twice to solve leak problems. Leakage occurs while sitting idle in rain and when I hand wash the vehicle. The dealers feedback to me is that they do not guarantee the covers not to leak. I explained that several persons on this board and my neighbor have reported no leaks in their covers. His response was, well I guess you got one that leaks!

    Do others have similar leakage problems?
  • plaaaaaneplaaaaane Member Posts: 32
    Went to the dealer today with all intentions of buying a Ranger super/styleside. Saw the Sport Trac for the first time.

    Its the only vehicle without rebates or special financing. Sales dude sez they are hot- thats why. I was thinking.. both dealers have over 20 on their lot. Thats not hot to me. No haggle had price from 78$ to $350 off MSRP.

    Rangers and Explorers $2K off MSRP.

    With the economy tanking and these things building up, anyone think the true sales price will be coming down?
    Dave
  • texeredtexered Member Posts: 5
    I don't know where you live, but I was at the Long Beach Convention Center a few months ago. They had a Sport tram on display. As I was looking at it the sales guy says that he is the fleet manager and he will sell any sport tram for $200 over invoice. I don't remember the name of the dealership, but if you are in the area, I could probably dig up the salesman's name and dealership.

    Personally with all the bad press explorers have gotten lately, I doubt they are hot sellers.
  • zack1000zack1000 Member Posts: 84
    plaaane---

    I suggest you check around at other dealers. While there might not be any rebates on Sport Trac you should be able to do a lot better than $350 off of MSRP. That's ridiculous. Tell that dealership if they won't haggle then you're going to hit the road.
  • plaaaaaneplaaaaane Member Posts: 32
    Thanks for the info. Im in Tampa FL so CA is too far away unfortunately.

    About the recent problems... is the Sport Trac prone to roll or not? Any place I can research that?
  • tomsrtomsr Member Posts: 325
    Here in San Diego there are lot's of ads in the paper for Sportracs for under $20k and not just one or two.Of course they are 5 speed manuals
    which nobody wants in a heavy traffic area such as SoCal.Also I agree about depreciation,it is
    awful.The only way to be comfortable with the
    situation is buy a 2 year old car with low mileage
    and get an insurance policy against breakdown.
  • pribcopribco Member Posts: 3
    Got Sporty Trac in Sept--love!!

    We keep our vehicle a long time-1986 Bronco II has 125,000 miles and going strong.

    Question--what is opinian off Ford extended warranty if we expect to keep The Trac for at least the 7 years and 100,000 miles???

    Thanks
  • tennisprotennispro Member Posts: 3
    Well, I was all set to order my lovely red, fully loaded Sport Trac this coming weekend UNTIL I READ ALL OF Y'ALL'S MESSAGES!! Very few encouraging words. I made a list of everything that went wrong that each of you wrote about and it covered 2 pages!! I'm now thinking about waiting until the 2002 models arrive, hoping that Ford will have gotten the design problems ironed out by then. In addition, I'm hoping I can avoid the Death Tires and get Michelin instead. I currently drive an immaculate 1995 Mustang GT with 110,000 miles that has been virtually trouble-free since Day One. Am I crazy to even be thinking about throwing away great handling and better gas mileage (Mustang) for a troubled SUV that Ford is now having a hard time selling???? The only problem is that I've test driven 2 ST's and I absolutely LOVE them!!!!

    Any encouraging words for me that will get me to the dealer as scheduled this coming Saturday, Jan. 13th?? I REALLY, REALLY want to make this deal (I'm getting it at invoice and with an excellent finance rate), but the accountant in me is whispering "what are you thinking???")... Help, help!!
  • rbstern1rbstern1 Member Posts: 11
    Never let the accountant in you buy a car...you'll always wind up in a Honda because it's so practical.

    Seriously, I've had my Sport Trac for four months. I have not had any problems. And I know plenty of other owners who haven't. None of the issues that I've heard of are uncorrectable design flaws. Most are nuisance problems that the factory has either quickly fixed on the production line, or that the dealers can handle.

    If you come over to www.mysporttrac.com, we've got lists of common problems to look for when taking delivery of a Sport Trac. If you know what to look for, you can get a Sport Trac without the typical issues, or have the dealer correct anything before you even take delivery.

    I've met very few people who have major issues.

    Ford and the dealers have been great about standng behind the vehicle and servicing customers well.

    I feel it's a solidly made vehicle (and I come from having owned a long line of reliable Hondas).

    Good luck.
  • smckinneysmckinney Member Posts: 2
    I've had a Sport Trac since August. It's red with everything. I have had a couple of minor problems, but all were quickly corrected by the dealer. Overall it is a great vehicle. It won't give you the gas mileage of a Honda or even a Mustang, but it's not the same kind of vehicle. I love the vehicle and very happy that I have it. Look over the vehicle you are considering buying. Any problems should be obvious. My moon roof did leak because the drain hoses weren't connected. That was a quick fix by the dealer. Buy and enjoy.
  • dmichdmich Member Posts: 11
    Tennis pro, could you tell me what interest rate you were quoted and the name and location of your dealer. Thanks
  • tennisprotennispro Member Posts: 3
    I went through my credit union and got 7.99% financing with a promise that if the rates drop as a result of the recent actions by the Fed, I will get an even lower rate when I take delivery of my ST. I am wary of going through the internet to obtain financing (call me old-fashioned) and I like having my car payment deducted from my paycheck every two weeks automatically. I will purchase my ST from Bankston Ford in Frisco, TX if I go through with it. I called my sales person today and told him I won't order it unless I can have different tires put on. I don't think he's talking to me anymore...I've been quite demanding through the negotiation process as accountants tend to be. We'll see what happens. Should I hold out for the different tires or let it go and pray Firestone finally figured out how to keep treads from separating?
  • dmichdmich Member Posts: 11
    Tennis Pro, Thanks for the info. I will probably wait until they get rid of the Firestone tires and put Michelin tires on.
This discussion has been closed.