This consignment lot was my favorite spot to hunt for cars. Unfortunately, they are no longer in business.
I came very late to the SUV game, and I was actually one of those guys that thought that SUVs were over the top and superfluous. “Most families’ needs can be accommodated by a minivan.” I’m sure that you’ve heard that argument before. I’d put almost twenty years of minivan driving before this. Actually the minivan is a better choice if all you are going to carry is passengers and cargo. But if you need to tow, or want, 4WD, then the SUV begins to make more sense.
Of course, lots of buyers just like the rough and ready image of an SUV, and couldn’t see themselves in a minivan. But that’s not why I bought my Explorer. I bought it for my daughter to use for her craft business; so she could carry her stuff to events without having to use my truck. I figured that it was time for her to learn how to manage her business on her own.
It didn’t exactly turn out that way.
All cleaned up, I polished the headlights and the chrome bumper. Putting the turn signals above the headlights was a “different” approach.
This Explorer XLT 2WD was very well used, but also was very clean, and had a thick stack of documents detailing a long history of repairs and maintenance. It had belonged to an owner who held onto their vehicles for a long time but always kept in good shape. It wasn’t a run down beater, and the interior was likewise very clean. The rear seats looked like new, the front passenger seat only had a few cracks, but the driver’s seat was pretty worn. It had those awful nylon stretch seat covers on the front, but the structure of the seats was still intact.
I liked the alloy wheels.
It had lots of miles; a bit over 230,000 miles at this time. It was equipped with a 5.0 V8, the same engine that was used in the Mustang GT. These Explorers had an updated torsion bar front suspension, along with four wheel disc brakes and ABS.
Someone helped themselves to the wheel center cap, both V8 call-outs, and the Ford Oval. All were replaced by wrecking yard finds.
I started the engine and was impressed by how smoothly it idled; a sign that the engine was in good shape and in good tune. The transmission, brakes, steering worked very well. It was equipped with leather seats and full power assists.
The body was in good shape, the Cadet Blue paint had just been polished out and looked better than presentable. There was only a scrape on the right rear door. It had a carrier hitch and trailer brake set up, along with a big auto transmission cooler. Obviously, this had been somebody’s tow vehicle.
The left side had no body damage.
Among the listed repairs was a transmission rebuild at around 160K; not that recent, but better than never. It also had new front lower control arms, rear brakes and axle bearings, a/c compressor and more. I was also very impressed because there were no oil leaks.
Based on how it ran and its service history, I decided that buying it was a safe bet.
I liked the dash design. I had to replace a lot of burned-out bulbs in the dash, but what an improvement that made! Photo from the web.
Not my Explorer’s interior, but it looked like this except for a few cracks in my seat. Photo from the web.
The backseat was tight for three, but it was flexible with the split seat. Photo from the web.
Plenty of space back here. Photo from the web.
This is my favorite station wagon ad. Gotta love Country Squires.
I grew up with station wagons, liked them, and frankly to me this was just a wagon.
A great mill, 215 hp, 288 Ft/lbs of torque. All with a fantastic exhaust note! Photo from the web.
I will admit that I liked driving it. The 5.0 V8 was a delight. The engine was equipped with factory tubular headers that funneled through a single exhaust, but it had the most beautiful gurgle. Early Explorers were famous for flipping over; the blowout-prone Firestone tires and low recommended pressures contributed to that problem. The higher center of gravity and early suspension, twin beam axles, were also an issue. Explorers were also quite narrow since they were based on the small Ranger truck. I enjoyed driving it, but always kept a leash on it. It never felt as planted and solid as my F150.
Gas mileage was not its forte. I would check fuel economy regularly; freeway mileage was 17 mpg. at 65-70 mph. Less than I was getting from my F150, but the Explorer was comfortable for four with plenty of luggage space. I used this SUV as a daily driver and drove it on vacation trips to Clear Lake, Indio, and on several trips to Southern California.
Ouch!
I did some paint touch ups, especially to the scraped up right side door. First I rubbed the area out with compound, then painted the scratches with touch up paint. Finally, I polished and waxed the entire area, and it became a lot more difficult to see the damage. Then I replaced all the emblems that had been stolen as well as one wheel center cap. Those items were sourced from my local Pick and Pull. The seat belts were so worn, with over 200,000 miles, but I found a better set with less than half the mileage. Bought at the same source; it was my one stop shop. Plenty of dead Explorers to choose from!
The touch up wasn’t perfect, but the damage blended into the overall appearance of the vehicle. I think that these Explorers just look “right.”
I repainted these faded gray panels.
But there were other problems that eventually cropped up.
My daughter had driven the Explorer for a time. Unfortunately, one time it died on her, coming to a stop on a freeway off-ramp. By the time I arrived, it restarted fine. After, it pulled that dying trick one more time and she refused to drive it. However, it quit doing that over the next few years that I drove it.
Then it started this weird thing where it would spontaneously unlock the doors after I walked away. One time they cycled on and off until it ran down the battery. It was strange, and I found out that it was not an isolated problem to my vehicle. I solved it by installing a battery cut-off switch; I would pop the hood, lock the doors, then open the hood and disconnect the battery. Close the hood, and now it would stay locked. An inelegant solution, but it worked, and usually I was the one driving it.
It seemed a bit strange to me how I began to really like the Explorer. I fussed over it, touching up and repainting panels. I cleaned it up and detailed it. I wasn’t going to spend a lot of money to redo the front seat bottoms, but I did take off those awful nylon seat covers!
It was kind of a beater but it was obvious that I cared about it. I could see why SUVs had become so popular. The Explorer was big enough to be quite useful, without feeling like an oversized truck.
One memorable event was when we returned from our summer vacation and passed by the spot where I had parked the Explorer. It was gone! There was some broken glass in the street. I called the PD and made a stolen vehicle report, just to cover my liability.
A week later I got a call that the cops had found my truck. The officer told me that if I could get there before the tow arrived, he would release it to me. It was late and I wasn’t at home, so I headed to the tow yard the next morning, as soon as it opened.
The tow company charged me for the recovery and one day of storage! It hadn’t even been there for a full 24 hrs., but I couldn’t convince them to just charge me for the tow. Luckily it hadn’t been wrecked or used in the commission of another crime. It seems that the thief used it to drive to a construction job since I found a few tools, PVC elbows, and HVAC ducting in the load area. He had also bought another stock Ford radio, and left it behind!
I had to replace the driver’s window and the ignition switch. It took quite a while to clean out the broken glass. My Explorer did not have a chip key, and it was probably the only vehicle in that neighborhood that didn’t have a theft prevention device. Since it was a low-value old vehicle, I didn’t carry theft or full coverage insurance on it.
Between the tow/storage bill and the post robbery repairs, it all ended up costing me over 500 dollars.
Hopefully, this would discourage another thief! I preferred to look at the cracked seats, instead of a cheap seat cover.
I replaced maintenance items like shock absorbers and tires. Occasionally I’d hear a strange little squeal when I accelerated away from a stop light. I thought it was getting to be the time to replace the serpentine belt and tensioner. I ordered one from Rock Auto and figured that I would get around to it… eventually.
So the end came when we were en route to Southern California for a family crisis/situation. I chose the high desert route to San Bernadino through Pearl Blossom. Suddenly I heard an awful squealing sound from under the hood. The engine continued to run and I found a safe place to pull over.
This was during the high point of the Pandemic. Triple A responded, but the driver refused to let us ride with the tow truck for the next 70 miles. There were three of us, and the Explorer was going to Riverside without us!
My daughter arranged for an Uber and I had the Explorer dropped on a side street at my BIL’s new housing subdivision. He’s not a wrenching kind of guy, and I certainly didn’t want to drip any oil or make a mess in his spotless new driveway. Besides, this was a family crisis kind of visit about my MIL’s health, not a time to wrench on my truck. However, I was pretty sure that it was the serpentine belt and idler tensioner.
I checked to see how much it would cost to have it towed home, and that was prohibitive. I considered renting a trailer and driving down and fetching it myself with my truck. I decided against that plan because I was concerned that my truck’s transmission was getting iffy. I didn’t want to risk ending up with two broken down vehicles far away from home.
On the plus side, we managed to rent a 2021 Mustang GT convertible for the trip home. That Coyote engine is a beast! Though I drove home in a “sane and responsible” manner.
I did some research and found a “junk car” buying business close to Riverside, and they offered me 700 hundred dollars for the Explorer, sight unseen. I arranged a pick update and drove back to Riverside with the pink slip. I was satisfied with the transaction. Shortly after we returned home we bought the Flex.
Still, the experience was not a waste. I got to experience a V8 powered SUV, and owning this Explorer did not completely quench my curiosity. So SUVs were still roaming around in the back of my mind.
Related CC reading:
Curbside Classic: 2001 Ford Explorer – Farewell To The Nineties
COAL: 1998 Ford Explorer XLT V8 – Rollin’ In My 5.0…
CC Capsule: 1993-94 Ford Explorer – How Did It Escape Cash For Clunkers?
“Triple A responded, but the driver refused to let us ride with the tow truck for the next 70 miles.”
For years they stopped doing that and I don’t know if they ever changed it back.
All I know is I ended buying a new car in 2022 because I was stressed out about being left stranded alone (again!) and will be getting some other roadside assistance when Mazda’s term runs out.
Truck junked because it needed a $70 belt tensioner. And people complain they have no money.
There is something to be said for experiencing a really popular vehicle. Even if you get an old, high-mile example, you can often see why they were so popular when they were new. I have never owned or spent time around an Explorer of this generation, and you have given me a little insight into the good things about this much-maligned vehicle.
If ever one of these could tempt me, a 2WD V8 example like yours might be the best bet.
You found nearly the perfect old car — someone took good care of it where it counted. And 17 on the highway with a 5.0 V8 sounds mighty good to me.
Glad you enjoyed it ! .
A little bit too much truck for me but I rarely tow .
I was going to mention you could cheaply upgrade to a factory CD player (get the single, not the changer as they choke and eat your CD’s) .
Also good to hear it got 17MPG out of a V-ate, that’s pretty good and I bet could have been improved with some simple maintenance things .
Too bad the daughter didn’t like it .
On to the next jalopy ! .
-Nate
(Pick-A-Part lover since the 1970’s)
I was not aware that the second-generation Explorer didn’t have the chip key. My understanding was that Ford and GM were pretty early to the theft-deterrent game with their VATS and PASSlock systems, respectively, and especially on volume cars like the Explorer. Who knew?
This isn’t aimed at you, but it’s unfair for people to judge the merits of an SUV or crossover in 2024 on these early efforts. The first- and second-gen Explorer were very much a modified Ranger, with a solid rear axle. Other contemporary SUVs, like the XJ Cherokee and ZJ Grand Cherokee and even the Discovery/Discovery 2 and P38 Range Rover, had solid front axles, too. They had tall floors and you sat rather upright. There was more room than a contemporary sedan, but a same-era wagon (like Ford’s own Taurus or Sable) would have had them beat. Speaking of the Taurus, if you expected to be able to drive a second-gen Explorer like a Taurus Wagon, you might be disabused of that notion the hard way. The one *unique* they had going for them was sure-footed all-weather traction when equipped with 4WD or AWD. At the time, the wagons tended to be exclusively FWD or RWD, and the ones that had 4WD/AWD were pretty small.
Whereas modern SUVs and especially crossovers genuinely blend aspects of their functionality much better. Other than a higher price, there’s really not much detriment in buying, say, a CR-V instead of an Accord, and if you needed one car that could do everything, the CR-V would be the way to go. And never mind that a modern CR-V probably has more interior space than a second-gen Explorer, or a Blazer or 4Runner from that era. The car-based SUV with an occasional-use AWD system is probably more what most people needed, anyway. Even the Explorer itself went unibody and didn’t look back (but thankfully did revert to a longitude engine layout in 2020).
Also, 17 MPG highway isn’t terrible on an SUV from this era with a 5.0-liter V8. My own fleet SUV–which is a FoMoCo car of sorts–only gets 19 MPG highway (on premium!), though it has a 5,600 curb weight all on its own, and has a hybrid unibody/separate-frame construction. (Can you guess what it is?)
Another good experience. Once again being in California is amazing from the rust perspective. This generation of Explorer was one of those vehicles that was everywhere, then 95% of them disappeared at the same time and now they’re quite rare.
LOL, another Ford with electrical gremlins. My 2004 Focus started to show electrical gremlins around the age of 5 years. Always seemed to be associated with the days and weeks after it rained. Interior beeps, flashing lights on the dash, and remote doors and trunk not being remote. Once a good dry spell it stopped. Fortunately not a lot of rain here compared to elsewhere. Sounds like something getting wet but interior no issue and the engine compartment was always dry. Just two days ago the car threw several different beeps at me, ignition off, and me getting out.
POlenty of new parts it might last ok Ford here wiped Explorers from the books no new parts available locally but Explorers are almost free
17 mpg from a v8 suv is pretty good. I had a 2002 Blazer with a 4.3 v6 that was lucky to get 14 mpg highway. GM should be ashamed to have made such a fuel inefficient vehicle.
The door lock thing seems to cross manufacturer boundaries. Had a 92 cutlass supreme and the exact same thing happened. Then one day I heard a sizzling noise coming from under the back “dash”. Upon removing it discovered the source to be a silver box with TRW stamped on it. Unplugged the module and that solved the issue-door locks worked fine. Never did figure out any functions that quit working after that was disconnected.
About the chip key, I think that it was added during the production run. I had to supply my VIN to get the proper lock cylinder replacement. My ’96 Mustang has a chip key. I was surprised by how much I ended up liking this Explorer. It was just the right size, had that great V8 engine, and was generally fun to drive. It was very easy to bond with. While I have a full size truck, I liked how I could load and unload the cargo area through the rear doors, and with the rear hatch open I could easily unload from the rear. Unlike my pick up where I have to lean over the open tailgate, or more often, climb up into the bed. Hard on my back sometimes.
I chose a Flex over another Explorer, or Expedition. I haven’t been too fond of the FWD models, though I like the latest RWD model. I have a kind of arbitrary minimum highway mileage requirement of 20 mpg. on long trips, for all my vehicles. My truck and my Navigator can just squeak by with careful driving.