Back in an Explorer

[jplinville]

After owning a Jeep for the last year, and filing a Lemon Law claim, Jeep capitulated and decided to buy back my vehicle. I'm thankfful to be out of that POS.

Anyway, I'm now the second owner of a 2006 Explorer XLT with 57K miles on the clock...6cyl version. I've driven it off and on for years, but it was my mother's vehicle. My wife and I recently moved in with her to care for her, as her health has been sliding. I decided to purchase the vehicle from her, since she no longer drives.

I'm used to Ford trucks, owning a couple of the brick nosed versions. I've own two Ex's in the past, a 1996 and a 1998. Both were great, and the 98 is still in the family, giving my brother great amounts of enjoyment. I figured that since I know Ford, and the level of quality they're made with, it was a no brainer to purchase this one from mom. Got a great deal on it, too...$3500 due to a slightly bent tailgate from her backing into the garage pilar once.

Anyway, I have a list of things I want to change on this

Rims
Tires
LEDs
De-chrome
De-badge
Tone down the tan interior
Stereo
Speakers
Roof basket
Running boards

It's 100% mechanically, so nothing needs done there. She's always had it serviced by the dealer since buying it new...so there is a full maintenance record for it.

Anyway...You'll see me pop in occasionally to check in, ask questions, and get ideas.

 

[alawneh]

After owning a Jeep for the last year, and filing a Lemon Law claim, Jeep capitulated and decided to buy back my vehicle. I'm thankfful to be out of that POS.

Anyway, I'm now the second owner of a 2006 Explorer XLT with 57K miles on the clock...6cyl version. I've driven it off and on for years, but it was my mother's vehicle. My wife and I recently moved in with her to care for her, as her health has been sliding. I decided to purchase the vehicle from her, since she no longer drives.

I'm used to Ford trucks, owning a couple of the brick nosed versions. I've own two Ex's in the past, a 1996 and a 1998. Both were great, and the 98 is still in the family, giving my brother great amounts of enjoyment. I figured that since I know Ford, and the level of quality they're made with, it was a no brainer to purchase this one from mom. Got a great deal on it, too...$3500 due to a slightly bent tailgate from her backing into the garage pilar once.

Anyway, I have a list of things I want to change on this

Rims
Tires
LEDs
De-chrome
De-badge
Tone down the tan interior
Stereo
Speakers
Roof basket
Running boards

It's 100% mechanically, so nothing needs done there. She's always had it serviced by the dealer since buying it new...so there is a full maintenance record for it.

Anyway...You'll see me pop in occasionally to check in, ask questions, and get ideas.

Dear jplinville

You are more than welcome to this forum, we are waiting your questions .....

 

[MotorCityFats13]

I vote to move the De-badge to the top of the list best thing I ever did and it was basically free! cant believe I waited 2 years and looks so much more cleaner

 

[jplinville]

Stereo install is complete. Kenwood DDX375BT, Infinity Kappa front doors, Infinity Primus rear doors, prototype 10" powered sub currently sitting in 3rd row foot well, still looking for a mounting spot for it.

AVS window vents installed. I meant to order the in-channel type, but mistakenly ordered the type that sticks to the paint.

I've also added front seat covers. I went with a faux leather, which is actually a microfiber. It's dark leather brown, which accents the tan interior...giving me some ideas on painting a few select plastic pieces a darker color, giving it a different look. I'm still up in the air on the dash cover...the tan reflects back on the windshield affecting vision, so I want to do something, but still unsure what it is. I may wind up buying one of those carpet type covers and call it done

I've been looking at new wheels for it, and really like the American Racing Baja style, but am waiting for the need for new tires before I buy them. Whatever I do, it will be black rims.

I would like to locate a parcel cover for the back end. I know mine has the 3rd row seats, but those are always folded flat and won't be used. I'd like the cover for privacy reasons...same reason I want to tint the rear windows as dark as Ican get them. They already have a dark factory tint, but I"d like them to be nearly impossible to see through.

One issue I've had, is getting the backup camera to work. I have it powered, and the guidelines come on the screen, but no picture. Granted, it's one of the cheap cameras from Amazon, but it's not working as it should. I'm thinking the video cable is at fault, and will check that later.

I'd like to have a louder exhaust, but not sure how the 4.0 sounds through a different muffler. I still need to research it before I pull the trigger on it.

Speaking of pulling the trigger, I mounted a modified Glock duty holster to the side of the console that holds my 1911 while I'm driving. It's right by my knee and easy to reach. I travel alot and like having it within arm's reach. After having one pulled on me and my wife a few years ago while driving on I-70, we don't travel unprotected. I also have a lock box that I need to mount in the cabin area, for those states that require I use it while driving through.

I'd like to get my hands on a used bull bar for the Explorer. I'm too cheap to buy new, so used is the route I'm taking.

I have a spare chrome trim piece from the tailgate that I swapped out. I'm going to try using matte black vinyl to cover it and see how it looks. If all goes well, I'll pull the grill and surrounding trim to do the same to them.

I found a pair of smoked headlights that I like...clear in the front and smoked on the sides, but the $179 for the pair is a bit steep at the moment, so I'll put that near the end of the list until funds make themselves available.

I've had no luck in finding black body cladding...apparently charcoal was the most popular choice. I'm thinking of painting the cladding a matte black, to round out the look I'm after.

If anyone has an opinion on a roof basket, let me know. I'd like a longer basket to fully utilize the length of the factory rails.

I'll post photos of this soon...and use this thread as my build and progress thread.

 

[jplinville]

Yesterday began the process of wrapping the rear deck chrome trim piece with matte black vinyl. When I replaced the rear tailgate a month and a half ago, I retained the chrome piece, along with Ford emblem, for this...practice. I tried three different times, each one as bad as the last, before I ran out of material. I'm bringing in a pro, a friend of mine, to show me where I went wrong so that I can do this properly.

I also began debadging the tailgate. It looks much cleaner now.

I've been doing some serious thinking lately, about removing the 3rd row seats and replacing with decking, then adding a long drawer to keep things secure. I am a gun enthusiast, and transport my firearms legally across state lines for hunting trips and the like, and would like to add an additional level of security by adding the drawer with a hidden locking mechanism. Sure, the back windows are are tinted dark, but I worry about security, especially of my firearms during transport. I don't want the drawer system to be too tall, as I still want to have room for my dogs, or for my wife to use when she goes shopping. Ithought about bringing the drawer all the way out to the end of the rear compartent, but that would cover the storage area for the jack and such, so it will have to be a little bit short to keep that area accessible.

Now that I'm living in a more metropolitan area with higher crime, I decided that stock fastners weren't going to keep my stereo upgrades as secure as I'd like them to be, so I swapped the screws that hold the doors and door speakers in place with security screws that normal theives won't have the bits for. I did the same for the subwoofer that I installed in the 3rd row footwell...fastned it with security screws. Even the stereo was installed with them. I know that they have the same job as a lock...keeping honest people honest, but I don't trust the yahoos around here.

My neighbor's Jeep was hit last week...too the point they even stole his rims and tires, right off the Jeep in his driveway! He didn't have wheel locks in place, so that's on him, in my book. You don't leave it out in the open without being locked up, it's going to get hit. When I do my rims, they'll have the wheel locks...even the spare that I'll eventually move to a yet to be purchased roof rack.

I'll work to remove the rest of the badges later in the week. My buddy is coming over next weekend to help me with the tailgate piece, and I'll hopefully have a single piece large enough to cover the grill pieces.

I still haven't found cladding in black in any JY around me. So, painting it will be the future mod. I've had great luck with the Krylon Fusion in the past, and will use it again on the Explorer's cladding, as well as a few key interior pieces.

 

[DiGiornoRisingCrust]

Do you mind telling me what seat covers you got? I've been looking for some for my '07 EB, but I can't find any that don't look cheap and don't contrast the tan interior.

 

[07EddyB]

Stereo install is complete. Kenwood DDX375BT, Infinity Kappa front doors, Infinity Primus rear doors, prototype 10" powered sub currently sitting in 3rd row foot well, still looking for a mounting spot for it.

I've also added front seat covers. I went with a faux leather, which is actually a microfiber. It's dark leather brown, which accents the tan interior

So - I apologize for cutting everything else out - sounds like you are doing great things to the Ex - but this is selfish focus.
How is the glare on the stereo before and after the darker seat covers? I've put a JVC in mine (damn the difference Kenwood and JVC are the same company now) and my Camel EB interior with near white seat inserts make the stereo all but unusable when the sun hits the passenger seat. From the drivers seat, you are looking directly at the passenger seat insert when you look at the radio. I have put a matte touch screen protector on the radio but the results, while better, were not great. How's the glare on your new radio?

 

[MotorCityFats13]

I know on my pioneer if i get glare I tilt the screen