Buying an explorer. Which years are the most reliable? | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Buying an explorer. Which years are the most reliable?

SPORTTRAC'NIT

Member
Joined
September 21, 2010
Messages
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City, State
Auburn
Year, Model & Trim Level
99' Explorer XLT
I know some have transmission issues, but not sure which years. Any advice would be great, thanks.
 



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I know some have transmission issues, but not sure which years. Any advice would be great, thanks.

the 5r55e has a bad rep as i have read. me personally i have 215k miles on my original 5r55e and have no real problems other than the shift flares.
 






99-01 4 door w/5.0 V8. One of the most stable/rock solid Exploders ever made. Virtually unchanged year over year for a reason. The 2002 that replaced it was a disaster.
 






99-01 4 door w/5.0 V8. One of the most stable/rock solid Exploders ever made. Virtually unchanged year over year for a reason. The 2002 that replaced it was a disaster.

I agree,I have a 2000 with 177,000 on it and it runs great. Parts like hubs($195) and the crappy front drive shaft ($300) are fairly cheap and easy to replace and the driveshaft from Napa has a lifetime warranty on it.

The motor and transmission combo are almost bulletproof.:D
 






99-01 4 door w/5.0 V8. One of the most stable/rock solid Exploders ever made. Virtually unchanged year over year for a reason. The 2002 that replaced it was a disaster.

I agree,I have a 2000 with 177,000 on it and it runs great. Parts like hubs($195) and the crappy front drive shaft ($300) are fairly cheap and easy to replace and the driveshaft from Napa has a lifetime warranty on it.

The motor and transmission combo are almost bulletproof.:D

This is what makes me love my Mountaineer, The Mountaineers also had the same engine/trans bulletproofness these wonderful fellas are talking about.
 






I would buy a 99-01 V8 with 2WD if you can find one. I'm not a big fan of the AWD that use on the V8
 






98-01 5.0L V8, 2WD will give you the best combination of parts reliability, and performance. 2nd best would be the same years, same engine, with AWD. The AWD transfercase is VERY reliable, but it IS one more system, and A LOT more moving parts when you consider the front axle that goes along with it.

Ryan
 






i have a 00 4.0 SOHC ford explorer with 91k miles and runs great!!
 






I agree,I have a 2000 with 177,000 on it and it runs great. Parts like hubs($195) and the crappy front drive shaft ($300) are fairly cheap and easy to replace and the driveshaft from Napa has a lifetime warranty on it.

The motor and transmission combo are almost bulletproof.:D


...and start buying your Timken hubs from Rock Auto- $110! ;)
 












i have a 99 OHV 4x4 XLT with not one problem :) if you take care of it or get one that was taken care of you should be good
 






This thread could go on FOREVER with different members saying " I have a ______ Explorer _ _ _, with a ________ engine, and I have x..,000 Miles, and never had a problem...."

But the truth of the matter is this:

The 4.0L OHV is a good engine, but it had Headgasket issues, which caused overheating and that led to cracked head issues....

The 4.0L SOHC has timing chain reliability issues.....if they could perfect THAT problem, there wasn't anything else wrong with that motor....

And behind BOTH those motors were some variant of the A4LD/4R/5R in auto form, or a M5OD-R1 or the HD version....and we ALL know how well those hold up..... :rolleyes:

OR you could have the 5.0L V8 engine, with the 4R70W transmission.

Given the progression of the 5.0L, and the Explorers recieved the VERY LAST ONES, says it was as far advanced as Ford could have taken it, in OEM form....and the 4R70W is a VERY proven platform. In fact, Ford only upgraded a couple parts on the 4R70W since the last Explorer rolled off the assembly line almost 10 years ago!

The 2WD version of the 5.0L/4R70W is HANDS DOWN the most reliable drivetrain option for any Explorer from 1991-2010.

The 2nd most reliable is the AWD version of the same vehicle....Only because the BW4404 transfercase will never be as reliable as not having one in the first place....

Ryan
 






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