OK, So What Do You DISLIKE About The 5th Gen? | Page 4 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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OK, So What Do You DISLIKE About The 5th Gen?

My only complaint in my short 5k miles ownership is the rattling and that hood prop rod is a JOKE!! I couldn't believe it.! My '94 and '07 camrys even have it and they cost less than half what I paid for this SUV. This is is my first ford vehicle. My family has always been toyota and honda fans. I really hope this turns out to be a great truck or they will make my life miserable. :rofl:

Of all the things to get wound up about geez.....
 



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mabupa - I understand your issue about having the hood prop rod on the Explorer, but I can tell you that I wish I had one now on my Buick. The two hydraulic props on the Buick have lost their ability to hold up the hood so I have to use a broom handle or some other object to hold the hood up. A prop rod will always work so I guess I appreciate the simpler design on the Explorer.
 






Lol!! I guess it's a good thing that my only complaint is this.!! I'm hoping it'll stay that way.

Good luck! Mine has been a terrific vehicle.
 






Are you kidding me

What don't you like????

Gas tank size.
Cubby holes.
Head lights.
Rear hatch speed.
HVAC buttons on steering wheel.
MFT (which I think kicks GM's ass)

Really - is that the list?

Ford hit it out of the park. This SUV now competes directly with the "luxury" brands: Mercedes, Acura, et-al. That's a great achievement.

This car company has taken the hard medicine and come back to fight today's battles in a very very tough business. The company that sold the Model T and Edsel has upped their game, and they didn't drop their load on the US taxpayer. I'm personally proud to own the 2014 Explorer and my 2013 F150.

The company that invented the SUV has another class leading winner in its stable. The 5th gen Explorer is a quintessentially American tour de force in style, size, strength and versatility. The fact that its built south side Chicago is an apparent impossibility, but Ford pulled that off also. Amazing.
 






I actually prefer the hood prop over those hydraulic ones.. for one its atleast half a pound lighter. So, I am glad Ford saved that bit of weight and gave us the hood prop instead of some fancy hydraulic spring loaded pretensioned support pistons on either end. My reasoning is simple, I open that hood maybe once every 6months give or take a few months.. dont need to pay for that minor convenience by lugging more weight.. as it is it weighs like a tank..
If only they allowed us to disassemble those rear seats. ofcourse, you can argue that those reinforcements would add to weight..

I am also ok with the gas tank size.. again, no need to lug a heavy fuel tank.. weight reduction

But I love those headlights.. especially automatic high beams.. and the spread of light in the road ahead of my vehicle is the best I have ever seen in an automobile

I guess they cant please everyone
 






for one its atleast half a pound lighter. So, I am glad Ford saved that bit of weight

Too funny...weight savings on a mini-van!
 






One other issue I noticed last week - I was driving and wanted my wife to enter an address in the GPS. It wouldn't let her do it because the vehicle was in motion. There is a sensor there for the passenger side air-bag, why can't they allow the screen commands to be used if there is someone sitting there who is more than likely the one doing it? We haven't had the thing long enough to know for sure how to maneuver through the voice commands.
 






Inglewood, i know that you are aware that most safety regulation come from the government. Know if i'm carrying something heavy and place it on the passenger seat that will simulate some one and give access to the gps while driving then some one get into an accident and here goes these lawyers who are like vultures to sue ford...! Now you can buy a gadget that will make the car think that you are not driving and can use the gps. Their is a thread about that here...! Think safety safety safety...!
 






One other issue I noticed last week - I was driving and wanted my wife to enter an address in the GPS. It wouldn't let her do it because the vehicle was in motion. There is a sensor there for the passenger side air-bag, why can't they allow the screen commands to be used if there is someone sitting there who is more than likely the one doing it? We haven't had the thing long enough to know for sure how to maneuver through the voice commands.
As you are aware, voice commands can be used to input info for navigation and other things. It even helps you with suggestions. It wouldn't take
a lot of time to just practice voice commands for functions you think you may use at some time. That is the best way to familiarize yourself with the system.
Enjoy your new Sport.:thumbsup:

Peter
 






The 2nd row seat space is tight for a vehicle this size. The 2nd row seats are only adjustable with bucket seat which I don't have. There is hardly enough room for a rear facing child seat without moving the front row seats forward!
 






The piece of plastic that runs underneath the front bumper, I am always bumping into the side of it with something like a curb and knocking the end out. Also the cowl behind it that feeds air to the tranny in the tow package, it is always filling with sand when driving on the beach, and a pain to get back in right after an oil change. One dream I had that would never come true would be a removable third row with cover in its place. You would have tons of storage for trips.
 






I am also ok with the gas tank size.. again, no need to lug a heavy fuel tank.. weight reduction
Fuel tank size won't affect mpg lol, even if they increased only 4 gallons that would add only about 24lbs with the weight of gas... oh damn we just lost 5 mpg :D . Amazing how a suv this large and wide and that space beneath has a fuel tank only 2 gallons larger than our 13' Fusion lol.

I didn't really think of the headlights before but yeh, I'm not sure if it's poor projectors or what, has anyone swapped in a brighter kit?... go drive competitors like the GC and you'll see how much nicer and better their lights are. Not that the the Explorers is bad, it's fine, till you drive something else and realize the difference.
 






.....I didn't really think of the headlights before but yeh, I'm not sure if it's poor projectors or what, has anyone swapped in a brighter kit?... go drive competitors like the GC and you'll see how much nicer and better their lights are. Not that the the Explorers is bad, it's fine, till you drive something else and realize the difference.
Go to the 'Modified' forum and there are many post on installing HID kits in particular.

Peter
 






I rented a 2014 Fusion Titanium last week and was impressed with it.
A few things I noticed and was surprised:

All 4 window switches are automatic up and down
Automatic electric parking brake (would give the Ex more footroom)
physical buttons for interior lights (on, off, door)
The center console controls also had matte finish and the buttons were slightly raised making it easier to use.

I would have thought the Explorer Limited would be the top of the line equipped car for Ford, but it looks like more convenience is going into the Fusions...

Mine is a 2013, so maybe some of these things are in the 2014 Limited, but I have not heard of them.

I actually want to replace my two rear window switches with automatic, it was very nice feature, that I thought wasn't done for safety reasons...
 






I rented a 2014 Fusion Titanium last week and was impressed with it.
A few things I noticed and was surprised:

All 4 window switches are automatic up and down
Automatic electric parking brake (would give the Ex more footroom)
physical buttons for interior lights (on, off, door)
The center console controls also had matte finish and the buttons were slightly raised making it easier to use.

I would have thought the Explorer Limited would be the top of the line equipped car for Ford, but it looks like more convenience is going into the Fusions...

Mine is a 2013, so maybe some of these things are in the 2014 Limited, but I have not heard of them.

I actually want to replace my two rear window switches with automatic, it was very nice feature, that I thought wasn't done for safety reasons...
Those might be some of the changes coming with the 2015 Explorer which I understand will be a 'refreshed' model.

Peter
 






Too funny...weight savings on a mini-van!

Not funny

That is how engineers do it 12 oz here, 8 oz there, 10 oz some where else... It all adds up.

Do not make fun of a lot of hard working engineers every where trying to save millions or billions gallons of fuel a few ounces at a time.
 






Not funny

That is how engineers do it 12 oz here, 8 oz there, 10 oz some where else... It all adds up.

Do not make fun of a lot of hard working engineers every where trying to save millions or billions gallons of fuel a few ounces at a time.
That is 100% correct. A little here and a little there. An aluminum hood, donut spare, no gas cap, etc.

Peter
 






I find it amusing that some are griping about mpg. Really? You didn't research the vehicle you were buying? You didn't understand to take those numbers and subtract 4-5 mpg whether it be city or highway to give you real world mpg? The least you could do is hit www.edmunds.com.

The MFT is excellent. The problem is that the engineers are not good at dumbing down the system for the masses. Although my 14 Sport wont come til Dec 24, I have a 12 Focus Titanium that has a very user friendly MFT which is just about identical to the Ex.

Good luck looking for your cubbies. Try posting signs on telephone poles to help find them. :)
 



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A couple BIG gripes

2013 Expl Sport owner

1- heater cannot be controlled separately (I.e., turned off)

Why is this bad? Say it is a sunny warm day, 75 degrees, so I set my climate to 70 degrees and air kicks on keeping the cabin at 70, nice right? So fast forward a few hours and the outside temp is now 65. What "should happen"? Nothing... (Since it is cooler out than the climate setting of 70, no air kicks on, right. Duh) But... The heater kicks on "thinking" I was my cabin temp at 70. NO! Other vehicles, as well as my home, have separate air/heat controls. As a result, I have my heater kicking on in the he summer, spring, anytime because you cannot turn the heater off!!!! Could you imagine setting your home ac to 70 then that night the house drops to 65 and y heater kicks on?? Apparently Ford thinks you shouldn't control whether you want climate control for "AC" OR " heat" I-N-D-E-P-E-N-A-N-T-L-Y

Ford should have separate controls for cabin temp settings. First, you choose what you want, heat or air, then set your climate temp. Just like it is crazy for the AC to kick on in the winter because the cabin temp went a few degrees above your temp setting, it's crazy for heater kick on in the summer due to cabin temp dropping a few degree below your setting. This one really chaps my arse.

Solution ? Disable your entire climate system on a $49k vehicle by setting both,left and right cabin settings to "LOW". Which makes you air and heat manual and you have to turn off once you are cooled off (or warm for those cold weather folks). I like to turn on the vent and let fresh cold outside air blast in but it won't let you do that either cuz they eliminated the outside vents for the hot stale engine air that accumulates to be able to vent out. So instead, that hot engine air blast you every time you start the vehicle. W T F ? Like I always say when passengers have to deal with that, it's like drinking a hot glass of water after a long run in 80 degree heat.

2- the NAV

I feel like Larry Darrel & Darrel are inside my NAV pulling levers. I finally gave up and push my phone and ask Siri (Siri went from the classroom down by the boiler room to the Advanced Placement class) can't believe a technology exists to make her look smart.

As a sales person living in sunny San Diego, I'm in my car all day getting directions (NAV) and trying to stay "cool" with my "ford" climate control. It's a comical sight, trust me, and a daily one.

I would have not purchased this vehicle had I known. I guess it's the old " ya don't know what ya don't know to ask". Sorry .... Just shooting straight here.
 






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