I just drove a 2002...

[ExplorerEB96]

so now...

<The soccer mom thing is a phase.. remember the obsession back in the 60s with muscle cars? once the women realize they can't handle a vehicle this large, they will stop buying them and go back to their sluggish minivans >


Tell me ....what parts on a man does it take to "handle a vehicle this large"? Is it the ego or the .......... ah nevermind.... the bigger the ....... the fewer the braincells I guess.....

Karol
explorereb96@ford-trucks.net

 

[Stephen]

The Expedition is still a lot bigger.

 

[Paul Gagnon]

Re: so now...

Originally posted by ExplorerEB96
Tell me ....what parts on a man does it take to "handle a vehicle this large"? Is it the ego or the .......... ah nevermind.... the bigger the ....... the fewer the braincells I guess.....

If you ask me most minivans are bigger and harder to drive than my Explorer and the Explorer is FAR from a large vehicle.

 

[leebo]

I don't care how much everybody bashes them..I'd still take a 2002 anyday, but I woundn't trade in my 1994.

 

[bluethunder]

i think ill stick with my 96, i really dont like the idea of how much like a car the '02 is. but i really dont think all manufacturers are going that way, take the excursion...even though "soccer moms" may drive them does that mean they are carlike?? not at all....id take one- dana 50's, suspended by leafs at all corners, a v-10 or powerstroke diesel....that sounds a lot like a superduty with some extra seats in the back to me....just my take though

 

[FlyAU]

Well, I checked out the 2002 Explorer at the Atlanta Auto Show yesterday and I must say:

IT SUCKS!! :fire:

The interior looked like it was fabbed in a high school shop class...I was not in the least bit impressed.

Like I said, I can get a BMW for $32K.

 

[NoBoundaries]

I checked out the a 2002 EB the other day. Didn't get to drive one, but went to check it out. Well, that's all I have to say about that.

P.S. Ford needs to get a clue. If they are going to have a Limited model, they could at least add some amentities that you would find in some luxury vehicles. A Limited doesn't really fit me or my personality or needs, but they could have some things like GPS, On Star, and so on. They don't even have the center console computers anymore. Like I said, I'm not someone who needs these things (would be nice to have them), but Ford could have done a little better, in fact, they should have done better.

 

[kilroy]

What is it that makes minivan drivers forget how to drive? Put a good driver behind the wheel of a minivan, and they forget what a turn signal is, cant accelerate to get out of their own way, wait at green lights, drive under the speed limit( That one gets me the most), and worse of all they dont see you coming and pull right out in front of you when your doing 50 or so and your driving a big ass truck pulling an even bigger trailer behind you!

AHHHGGGG I hate minivans, they're ugly and get in your way. Now we'll have so called SUV minivans with the new Explorer making things even worse.

P.S. I live near a school where "soccer moms" tend to congregate in mornings and afternoons tying up traffic because they dont know how to drive these things.

The worst of them all are the ones that pull out in front of you while talking on the phone looking in the back seat adjusting the kids seat belts and drinking a cup of coffee all at the same time. And they live 2 yes 2 blocks from the freaking school!!!!

 

[Stephen]

You know Kilroy...I've heard the same thing said about SUV drivers more than once.

Fact is, nothing beats a minivan for hauling the average family around, nothing. SUVs are all well and good, but they dont do the job as well.

 

['96explorereddiebauer]

Stephen, you are so right. We have 6 people in our family so we really need a minivan. We got a Chrysler Town & Country back in '94. It rides smooth and comfy. When we need the room to store 4x8's, all we had to do is to take the seats out and it can fit perfectly. I admit, the seats are very heavy and very tough to take out.

The reason why I bought the Explorer is because I want something that is 4WD and has enough space for me to carry whenever I needed right away. Also, this is my personal vehicle. The van to for picking up my sis from school or taking her friends to the mall or the playground, etc.... So here's my $.02 about minivans.

 

[kilroy]

I remember when they made Station wagons that would carry a full 4 x 8 sheet WITHOUT removing seats! and they carried 9 passengers. At least if some schmuck was driving one of those you can at least see what is in front of them so you can pass them if you need to. I had put my old wagon up against many different minivans and not one of them could carry what I could, and those that tried to carry the same weight usually had their tires rubbing the wheel wells I would laugh my ass off at them as I drove by on my way while they were trying to figure out what to do with the extra weight.

 

[Paul Gagnon]

Originally posted by Stephen
Fact is, nothing beats a minivan for hauling the average family around, nothing. SUVs are all well and good, but they dont do the job as well.

You know what Stephen that is a load of marketing bull! When most of us on here were growing up vans were for plumbers or carpenters or other tradesman just like trucks were and passenger vans were for picking you up for Sunday school. If you needed to have more than 6 people in the car you got a station wagon. Most families would be better off with a station wagon. Unfortunately the negative stereotypes around station wagons caused sales to drop and manufacturers to stop producing them. I'd buy a station wagon before a minivan no doubt about it. Vans are cramped, uncomfortable, inefficiant, unstable and ugly. As far as SUVs, what most people really want are 4wd station wagons, they just don't want to admit it because it isn't "cool". It's too bad because it is ruining the trucks for those of us who really want trucks not 4wd station wagons.

 

[Stephen]

Paul, my basis for my statement is as follows. I agree with you about Station Wagons, but I was really talking about SUVs vs Minivans

"Fact is, nothing beats a minivan for hauling the average family around, nothing. SUVs are all well and good, but they dont do the job as well."

Heres why I say Minivans are better family movers than SUVs.

-On the whole they ride and drive more like cars.

-They are safer in emergency maneuvers

-They are cheaper to drive (gas, insurance)

-They have more interior mobility than SUVs. Most all Minivans now have a quad captains chair setup and a perfectly flat floorpan that allows movement inside the vehicle that is not possible in an SUV. I know I appreciated this in our Aerostar when my son or the dog would need something, my wife could just get up and move back there to them on a road trip.

-They have easier entry egress for kids. Sliding doors baby, they are a lot reasier to hustle kids and stuff in and out of than normal opening doors.

-You get more passenger capacity for the size. Think about it, you can hold 7 people in an average Explorer sized minivan. Now thats not so much an issue as it was before the rear seats. The rear seats are another example of how the new Explorer is meant to do Minivan duty. To get that capacity in an SUV before you had to move to a much larger vehicle.

-They're really cheaper to buy.

Thats basically why I give the nod to the minivan in family hauling.

 

['96explorereddiebauer]

Stephan has some good points about minivans. The sliding doors are good. They (minivan companies) even offer power sliding doors now, DaimlerChrysler even went a step further by offering power liftgate. From the insurance standpoint, my Explorer is actually cheaper than my mom's '94 Town & Country. I don't know why, our records are clean so I might have to disagree with you on that one.

Paul, I guess it's just a matter of personal taste. Station wagons are good and may carry more than 6 people, but in the current market, there isn't really a station wagon that would carry more than 5 people comfortably. The minivans are now mainstreamed and they improve every year. They now drive like a car and handles like a car now.

Take the Honda Odyssey, for example, with it's independent 4-wheel suspension system, it really helps the van to handle competantly through curves.

Now, I'm not trying to side with SUV's or minivans here. I love my Explorer but I have to give some credits to minivans, they do carry 7 people comfortably and they have a huge cargo area when you take the seats out. The only SUV that can be compared to in cargo space is the Excursion, I believe. Again, I'm not trying to pick fights.

 

[Paul Gagnon]

I am EXTREMELY dissapointed

I have yet to find a minivan that I am comfortable driving. For that matter I find that full size vans are cramped. Minivans have a very high centre of gravity and with the steering axle in an almost cab over configuration it makes vans have twitchy handling. But enough about minivans.

Anyway... on to my rant:

I just got back from the Calgary Auto Show. I am extremely dissapointed in the new Explorer. The quality of materials is very poor. The interior has some of the worst fit and finish that I saw of all makes and models there. I felt that the Kia Sportage had better quality materials and switches than the new Explorer. Als o the new Explorer has a very boring and ugly interior design. It kinda reminds me of a late 80's Toyota. The quality and fit and finish of the new Explorer is several levels below the previous version and in fact way below what it was in the rest of the entire model lineup of Fords at the car show. It looks nice on the outside but the interior does nothing for me, or for Ford's reputation. The fit and finish on the Escape was much better. If it came down to it, I'll keep my '92 thank you very much!!

 

[Stephen]

I agree 100% about the new Explorer Paul.

 

[FlyAU]

I have the same feelings about the '02 Explorer, Paul...The Sport Trac & Sports have much better fit & finish inside, IMO.

I've decided that when it comes time to replace the Explorer (little brother's almost at "that age..."), I'm going to look at the Sport Trac, VW Jetta GLX, and the Nissan Maxima SE. I sat in a Maxi at the ATL show and was astounded at how much room there was inside. I also like the layout of the ****pit (er, dash...excuse me). The armrest has two height settings, which I thought was the neatest thing (sounds stupid, huh?).

 

[drmoore71]

what about the 911, matt?

 

[Dre]

see? that's what bugged me. I got to sit in an Explorer and a few other automobiles at the Chicago Auto Show but couldn't get into any of the 911's on display. All were locked, damn!!! and nobody to even ask,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,

Chicago Auto Show was a big dissapointment for me. Looks like Detroit is the main one now and the rest of the crowd gets all the bits and pieces that fall off.


later,

 

[Kris Guilbeaux]

2002 Moutaineer

I dont like it one bit. From the Looks of the IRS it will never have a lift. I am Not sure if this had been said yet but the axle shafts go through the Frame. I did not even Bother driving the 2002.