I'm thinking of downsizing from my '02 F150 to a newer V8 4x4 Explorer which would more than cover any light towing that I would do, and accommodate the family for road trips better. Does anyone here own a Explorer, or have owned one in the past? What was your experience like? I know there were some issues with the older gen Explorer. I'm looking at 2007 or newer...
I have been so pleased with the reliability of my F series, I'm hoping to get the same dependability from an Explorer.

Thanks! Merry Christmas!

 

pretty sure they dont have v8 explorers. v6 is the biggest you are going to get as far as i know

 

They definietly offer the 4.6L V8 as an option, there are several online for sale.

 

This is mine Forsale... with all of the options... just as a point of reference, the same model in a 2010 is 45k...


I ordered this vehicle new under a lease option in 2008 and purchased the lease out right in October and ordered a 2011 F150 which is expected to be in by end of January. The vehicle is adult owned and was
well maintained with supporting maintenance records. The vehicle has NEVER been in an accident or fender bender, rides like a luxury car and has many extras.

If anyone is interested please feel free to e-mail me at Rickgsx@Comcast.net or pass my e-mail along, I have a ton of pictures that I need to resize and will post later tomorrow. As far as location, the vehicle is located in Bucks County Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia.

Ford Explorer LIMITED edition 4x4 (not an Eddie Bauer)
Condition: Excellent,
Engine: 4.6 v8
Transmission: 6 speed automatic O/D
Color: Exterior Black Clearcoat - Interior Black Leather Luxury Buckets
Miles: Just turned 50k as Of 12/20/2010 - Miles were highway miles
Original MSRP: $39,515.00

Was never in an accident... Please feel free to run a Carfax if you'd like..

Government Safety Rating
- 5-Star Frontal Crash
- 5-Star Side Impact

Exterior
- Grille, 4-Bar (Chrome)
- Body Colored Bumpers, Wheel Lips
- Front Fog Lamps
- Running Boards (Chrome)
- Roof Rail and Crossbar (Chrome)
- Trailer Towing Package Class 3/4

Interior
- 10 Way Power, Leather Trim Heated Seats with 1/2 Memory
- 3rd Row Seating
- Dual Zone Climate Control A/c & Heat
- Auxiliary Rear Climate Control
- 6CD/MP3/USB/Sirus Satellite Audio System (Voice-Activated)
- Compass/Temp/Trip Computer
- Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel Crs/Tilt/Audio
- Sync Voice-Activated System
- Full Convenience Package
- Adjustable Pedals
- Reverse Sensing System
- Heated Left/Right Mirrors (Chrome)
- Onboard Navigation System
- Power Moonroof and Shade
- Automatic Headlights
- Woodgrain interior

Functional
- 4x4 Control Track System
- 4-wheel Independent Suspension
- 22.5 Gallon Fuel Tank
- Power Antilock Brakes
- Cargo Management System

Safety/Security
- Dual Front and Side Airbags
- Advancetrac System
- Safety Canopy - 2 rows
- Reverse Sensing System
- Adaptive Seatbelt System
- Adaptive Airbag Tether
- Child Seat Tether & Anchor
- Side Impact Door Beams
- Tire Pressure Monitoring System
- Remote Keyless Entry with Keypad

Extras
- Prestige Security Alarm System
- Prestige Remote Autostart (300 yard Booster). Which allows you to start the car while still keeping the alarm active
- Husky Duramat Cargo Protector
- Powertrain Warranty to 60k
- Roadside Assistance to 60k
- New State Inspection as of 9/2010
- New Tires 11/32 tread life
- New Brakes within a year
- Oil was changed every 3500 miles & tires rotated every 6k miles

Thank you and please feel free to pass this information along to anyone...

 

I have friends who have had both F150's and Explorers at the same time. What one of them did was decide to reduce the number of vehicles he had so he combined both to gather in the form of an 2011 F150 Crew Cab. It is the way to go a roomy four door cab as in the explorer, and the utility of a box F150 style, put a lockable hard cover on the box and your stuff can be locked up. You can have your cake and eat it too. If you want to live on the wild side the F150 Raptor is avoidable in the crew cab version

 

I wondered what happened to this, duplicate posting

 

I used to have a 1997 Explorer. I really liked it. Lots of room for people and anything you wanted to bring with. If I didn't use the bed of a pickup, I would buy one again. I don't have any experience with the newer ones but that is my take on the older ones.

 

I just traded in my '02 Ford Explorer XLT V6 4x2 for a '10 F150 Lariat so I am basically doing the opposite switch you are doing. I loved my Explorer but had a lot of random troubles with it. I will list below:

- Transmission went at 83,000 and was over 1k to repair
- Trunk window exploded and had to be replaced under warranty when closed at 75k miles
- Back right window broke (wouldn't roll up) and cost $200 to repair
- Roof rack had to be sanded and repainted black at 120k miles (probably why it is now stainless)
- Back panel on trunk peeled off halfway so it would hit the truck when going at high speeds. I Gorilla Glued it back on the car but it had a big hump that was noticeable
- Rear right wheel bearing went bad at $130k miles and the wheel almost fell off on an 8 hour road trip. $800+ plus $100 for a hotel that night and missing half a day of vacation (luckily that was it)
- Rear differential went bad and was going to need to be replaced soon at 135k miles (over $1k) and that's when I turned in the Explorer for the F150

I loved the Explorer- extremely practical to drive around town in terms of turning radius and holding 5 people. The seats can fold down and you can get fullsize couches inside the vehicle as well as many other things to haul around town. I towed boats to the lake quite often with the V6 and the car operated great. I also towed heavy trailers (3-5k pounds), U-Hauls, etc. and the truck did great. '02 was a first year model and I think it had more problems with the rest, but overall a good truck. This thing was driven into the ground with about 15k inbetween oil changes, didn't receive proper maintenance, etc. and the engine survived all of that with no real problems. Transmission seemed to be having trouble again but would recommend the vehicle knowing you're going to put 3+k into repairs.

My father just bought an '08 Explorer and the gas gets a lil' jumpy when the car first starts. Other than that, it has about 50k miles, he tows boats and trailers with the v6 and it's holding up great. Good luck.

 

I had an 08 explorer sport trac with the hard bed cover before I traded up to the f150 and I fricking loved it. The independent rear suspension was the bomb digity for me since I drive lots of gravel, washboards! Loved the auto 4x4 and kinda mad that the f150 doesnt have that as well. I put 43K on it when i had it without any problems at all, and I drove it hard, even pulled a few too heavy trailers. Only had the 4.0L v6 in mine, but it pulled a trailer with a 2009 and 2010 jet skis on it, not much hills around here, would be better with the v8 I would think, but it worked fine for me on the flatland. Pulled a header trailer with a John Deere 230 Header on it, frickin way to heavy for that explorer, she complained on the hills but got it up to speed and did fine on the flatland. If I had the extra money I would get a 2010 sport trac (last year they made them I think) fully loaded. They are sweet but I needed something with a little more towing and hauling capacity. Not to sure about the new style when they put them on a taurus frame, dont think they are as quite up the pulling challenge as the previous version, though I dont know much about the newer ones.