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i traded in a dodge durango, purchased a ford explorer, and now three weeks later, i'm driving a taurus (rental).
you might want to reconsider.
Well, at least you stuck with Ford!
tidester, host
thanks
The #4 spark plug had misfired again. Upon close inspection of the mechanic (different one than where I used to go), he discovered that the plug wasn't fouled by oil, but rather by gas or antifreeze. It was only a matter of time before it did it again. I probably would've just had a blown head gasket or it could've been warped heads, or onto another laundry list of other problems. Also the transmission had begun to slip frequently and had started to grind when downshifting to go up a hill. I have to say I will miss it, especially when I start going to the gas pump more often, however my explorer had never gotten very good mileage, usually 13/17. The R/T is rated at 12/17.
I've enjoyed sharing experiences with you guys over the past couple of years and I will continue to check in once in a while. Hope everyone else is doing well!
This makes me think that the switch might be bad since either the faint light is supposed to be on all the time on both buttons, or off all the time. right now they don't match. I went to a junk yard and picked up a switch and replaced it but it didn't change anything. I am running out of ideas. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Walt
Thanks
While waiting for a response to my initial posting, I continued researching the name of the warranty. I found it via a GREAT website . . . www.carbuyingtips.com
Jeff Ostroff has tons of info on his site. I ended up emailing him my question because I didn't see it already posted on his site. He responded w/in 30 min!
It is also called the Secret Warranty (Hmmm, "secret" because they don't want YOU to know about it) or a Goodwill Adjustment. When I called to make the appointment to take my 2002 Explorer in, before I told them anything, I asked if they were aware of any problems with the ABS. I was told they were and it was a speed sensor problem on the rear wheels. I asked if that would be taken care of because they were aware of it, despite the fact my warranty ran out only 30 days prior (go figure!). The immediate answer was, "No. Anything after warranty is not covered." I said, "Even if the manufacturer is aware of the problem they won't cover it?" I told him I had read about the Secret Warranty and Goodwill Adjustment and wondered if this would apply in my situation. Only at that point, he said he would have to contact Ford to see what they say. He asked if I had my car serviced there regularly. I do. He said they would want to know that, too.
I made my appointment to drop it off the next morning. In the meantime, I researched Technical Service Bulletins for this problem and found 2 which listed the problem codes, too. They only had the car 40 minutes and I received a call. The problem is exactly as they had said the previous day - rear wheel speed sensor. I asked if he could tell me what codes showed up as a result of my ABS light coming on. He said it wasn't really a code and he continued to explain the charges (same guy I had talked to the day before) it would be $153 parts & labor. He made no mention of the Goodwill Adj or Secret Warranty, so I asked him again about that and reminded him he said he was going to call Ford. He said he had a call into them and was waiting to hear back from them. I asked how it would work if they decided to cover - he said they will pay UP TO 80%. I told him to go ahead with the work - it needed to be fixed regardless.
About 3 hours later, he called back and said Ford will be paying 80%, leaving me w/ about $30 + we had an oil change. Hmmm, good thing I asked, huh? When my husband went to pick it up, he was told at the cash register $21 and change. Apparently, the girl did not see the 2nd sheet showing the $30. She took it to another guy, he showed her, she came back to the register and said, "We are only going to charge you for the oil change because I missed charging you for the other work." or something to that degree. WOW, way to go customer service at the Ford dealership!!!! I was very pleased they acted that way, of course; however, when I looked at the receipt that had the explanation of the problem - low and behold, there were the exact same codes as were on the TSB that I had asked them about when he told me there weren't really any codes. HMMM.
IT PAYS TO DO YOUR HOMEWORK!
The Secret Warranty: (AKA) After Warranty Assistance (AWA)
The real secret, besides the age of and miles on your car, often boils down to your relationship with your dealer or service writer. I used it in the mid-90's for an out of warranty head gasket repair on my Plymouth and got most of the repair paid.
You may be interested in this older thread:
driftracer, "Secret Warranties" #2, 4 Jun 2004 10:17 am
Steve, Host
No major repairs. Minor repairs: (1) water pump, 75K; (2) heater relay switch, 105K
Three weeks ago, my Explorer had check engine light come on. Multiple error codes from all different components that could not be read using EEC-IV hub under the hood, but manually extracted with self-test mode off utilizing blinking "check engine" light -- long story short... replaced ECU with remanufactured Ford computer and no problems with ECU or electrical system since (runs better than when new).
Now, one week later yellow ABS warning light on intermittently (ABS light comes on when cranked, then off, then on when in motion - i.e. no software issue) only in late afternoon and never in morning and may go 4-5 days with no ABS light on at all. I have checked fuses, connections, grounds, master cylinder fluid level -- all normal.
Checked ABS codes at a trusted mechanic shop: only one code (63) ABS Pump/Motor Failure, not wheel speed sensor as I suspected.
Question:
Is this possible or even probable? Could it be a bad relay? I do not want to spend $1000 to replace ABS Pump/Motor assembly on a vehicle worth $1500, and, if necessary, I will probably continue to drive it without ABS working and forego the expense. Please help me with this...
No one other than mechanic replacing ECU has performed any work on this vehicle and, to my knowledge, it has not had any energy surge (i.e. lightning). I'm clueless regarding why this has happened.
Thanks
I was told it wasn't the instrument cluster, but a faulty sensor, which was replaced. The dealership said they were using the wrong diagnostic equipment to test my vehicle???
For me, the problem was the camshaft position sensor. It tells the computer how to coordinate the fuel injection, since that is all computer controlled.
I would bet that will be the solution for you.
I had the same problem with my 93 SHO. Turned out to be a bad camshaft position sensor. If it doesn't work properly, the computer can't determine how to coordinate the fuel injection on startup.
I am in the process of trying to pick up a used ('97 or '98) Mountaineer. My father suggested I look at the Explorer instead since the Montaineer is AWD and the Explorer is 4x2 / 4x4 and the weather is rarely that bad around here (western Oregon). Dad said AWD has a lot of unnecessary parts moving all the time so they would be more prone to wear, whereas the 4x2 / 4x4 Explorer would be in 4x2 most of the time cutting down on wear and tear. What do you guys think? Is Dad right? God I hope not!
Thanks for sharring any info
Scott
the dealer did 'go to bat' for you. awa is a judgment call.
i have been buying and servicing at the same dealership for quite a while.
if they screwed up and i really should have owed them more money, i would have paid it. after re reading your posts, i can see that you may feel this was not unusual, but i think it was. sorry if i was accusatory in my post.
Please help!!!
J.D.
Thanks for any info you can provide
Scott
Does anyone have an idea what could be causing this situation?
When the water splashes on the belt it may cause it to slip until it drys off a bit.
Anyone know why only 1 speed of the fan would work? Is there a separate fuse or belt or actually 2 fans? It's a 1996, 120K miles and has been pretty good for me.
Thanks.
E.D.
E.D.
alphabo