New to the forum, and new to my '95 Explorer

[flowers]

Hello all. I'm flowers from kentucky. I'm new to your forum but I've been a forum junkie for years now.

Yes, I'm female. Yes, I've just purchased a loaded '95 explorer with 92000 miles at what I consider a steal. And I'm in love with it.

It's a fixer-uper but the problem is, I'm not a mechanic. Now, show me some directions and I can do just about anything within reason. The deal was, I live on a farm, I have more dogs than kids and enough kids to drive me crazy so I needed something with room and 4x4 power. My family has been a ford family for years but my little '93 escort can't haul 2 kids, groceries, 5 50lb bags of dogfood, ect.

Then I went car shopping for something within reasonable price range. And I ended up with a luxury SUV. HA!

Well, at least a 95 Ford Explorer Limited loaded with goodies and leather is luxury to me.

So to make an already long story a little shorter, I have a few problems with my baby, I'm in love with it, and I want to learn more about it mechanically because I COULD be mechanically inclined I've just never tried.

I enjoy good stories and good advice and Viola'! Here I am.

[cybergasm]

Welcome to the board Flowers. ahh you said your having a few problems with your X but ya did'nt say what they were
Then maybe we can get ya going in the right direction as how to repair it
Yeah if your looking for good stories then place is chock full of them.
Just hit up the search function you'll find em.

Dave

[Dan Whitaker]

Welcome aboard. If you can't find the answers here you won't find them at all.

There is also a ladies fourm (Explorer Babes) in the Everything Under The Sun forum to talk about us men about

[flowers]

Originally Posted by cybergasm

ahh you said your having a few problems with your X but ya did'nt say what they were

Well, I have a rust problem. Something I was told wouldn't go away but something that's not effecting the frame, so I went ahead with the purchase. Around here Explorers are plentiful, especially in the salvage lots, so the rust problem is something I'm going to be tackling later in the year when I have more fundage to play with. I was told it's due to salt from salt trucks never being washed off up north. It's effecting the back end only, there are a few serious problems this is causing with the suspension but I'm under warranty and the suspension work will be paid for.

My smallest yet most pressing problem is the power windows. None of them work and when the buttons are pressed, the motors aren't even making noise. I was told this is probably a relay problem but I've heard it can be worse. I know nothing about the relay, not even where to find it but I guess that's what a manual is for. I wish there were some way to see if it's actually the relay instead of taking it to the garage, getting a new one for $300, and then they tell me it's not the relay and pricing me much much more to fix it plus having to pay for a relay that may have not needed replaced.

That's how they roll around here, they may know it's not problem A but fix problem A anyway then charge you for problem A and B.

I had this happen with a little Neon I owned while in college. I had a relay replaced when the problem was in the head! Hey, I know nothing about cars. So I was charged for both. They see a chick walk in the door and dollar signs sprout before their eyes. I couldn't afford it then I most definitely can't afford it now (single mother and all).

So some things are under warranty, and some things aren't. I'm glad the really expensive stuff is warranty but minor things that aren't still run way over $500 dollars when it could have been fixed for $200.

Those are my problems.

[Dan Whitaker]

The window problem could be your window lock switch on the drivers door. Mine has been acting up at times.

Try rocking it back & forth & see if this fixes your problem.

[flowers]

Well, a good hearted manly-man friend of mine just replaced two relays and that's not the problem.



So I guess now we're looking at the big money. I tried rocking the lock back and forth to no avail. Those windows just aren't coming down. I have an appointment with the local ford dealership to look it over and perhaps tell me the diagnosis. Wow, just the thought of ford is scary, I've heard horror stories about the prices they charge but I'm just not comfortable taking it anywhere else.

What kills me is that EVERY other feature works fine. Better than fine actually. No problem with the keyless entry, no problem with power locks, wipers, radio, cd player, back window wiper or anything else. I'm thinking a mouse must have crawled in there and chewed some wires. This truck sat for almost ten years with minimal use. It's totally perfect aside from the window problem.

I just hope it's something that can be found quickly and taken care of with minimal stress. I mean, it CAN'T be four motors out all at once on a truck that looks like it just drove off the showroom floor (interiorwise). But then again, it is over ten years old.

[cybergasm]

Do any of the other windows go up/down when push the button on the other 3 doors???

[gsx220]

did you check fuses and so on maybe take the door panel off and make sure everything is plugged in

[chrisis]

as gsx220 said check all fuses first and then open all 4 door panels and make sure that everything is plugged. i just can't see all 4 window motors going bad at ones.

i suggest starting learning your car right away and we all going to be here for more advices if needed.
stay away from ford before is too late.

[flowers]

LOL, yes before it is too late. There's good news and bad news. The same kindly hearted manly-man has been poking and prodding all night and squeezed the hose attached to the door filled with wires from the body and VIOLA! the windows started working. Upon further inspection, the wire to the windows is completely severed and squeezing the line just shoved it back into it's hole in that cylinder thingy (so mechanical ain't I). So the door will have to be removed and that wire somehow re-attached.

Well, this saves a trip to ford but us bumpkins out here de-taching doors in the middle of the night is making me really squeemish. Lets all pray to the god of beautiful explorers that he knows what he's doing.

Edit: Okay, we figured out it was a huge wiring harness so we didn't have to take off the door. We reconnected the wire very easily, slipped the big rubber glove back on, and now the windows are working just like brand new! Whew, I have to say thanks for the moral support. I would have had that baby in a ford dealership come wednesday if I hadn't been talked down and I would have spent a load of money where I really didn't have to spend a dime.

Okay, crisis averted!