BD's 2000 Explorer Limited

2000 Explorer Limited

-Picked her up (10/13/2010)
-140,093 miles when I test drove it
-5.0 V8, AWD
-Pearl White
-Dark grey leather interior

My dream explorer basically, no more old ones, no more sports, I finally have an Explorer that I love everything about!

I absolutely love the limited, its got:
-Seats w/ headrests
-Memory power seats
-Heated/Puddle mirrors
-Better mirror without all the buttons, just the slider
-Painted to match bumpers and grille
-Woodgrain radio bezel
-Digital HVAC controls
-And its got the homelink visor with a nifty little voice recorder that I will probably never use LOL

And alot more, but im just in awe over its nice features compared to my previous rides. They even recently (In the past few months) had a brand new hitch installed and the trailer harness all wired up.

I dont have any set plans for this one yet, I do have hopes and dreams though, and im stoked about the V8 that has so many options.

Dream list:
-Torque Monster headers
-Custom Tune
-LED tails (Something custom maybe, I just need to study up on resistors and whatnot)
-BMW projectors in a blacked out housing

It does have a few problems that id like some help with, (Fixed all, besides this one)
1. The blower only works when its on all the way high, (Same thing in my grandam, but it was the blower motor resistor then everything worked great) is that a common problem on the digital HVACs?


"For sure" plans include:
-New rims, id like to get a nice 5-spoke set of 20's with a beefy tire
-Paint job in the spring, black
-Some interior accents (Id like todo another metallic blue color like I did in my grandam)

He was asking 3400$ in the ad, but I talked him and his wife down to 2900$ because I was pointing all the little problems out that I mentioned above.

I didnt get a chance to really take any pictures, as it was raining, and almost dark by the time I got home.

I was bored on the way home so I took some random "driving" pictures

My friend was driving my Grand Am in front of me, I have a Avic-F700BT in there that will also be going into the Explorer, he was using the GPS to get us back home

I was extremely happy also, I was averaging 16.2 MPG driving with a decently heavy foot getting the feel for the V8 I was controlling

Edit- 1/21/11
New parts!

Hubs
Tie rod ends
Lower ball joints
Upper ball joints (Control arms)
Tires: Firestone Destination A/T's 255/70/R16's
Brake Pads

Soon:
Slotted (And drilled maybe) Rotors
Better pads
New shocks
Leafs
Shackles
Amsoil (In everything!)
Rebuilding tranny (And possibly a valve body kit)

 

[BrianDye]

150$ each is way outta my budget man! I am cracking this money out of my trans fund!

(If I was worried that my trans was going to get worse, or give out, trust me, that would be top on my list) but its looking like when taxes come around, so does a new tranny

 

[Joe Dirt]

and they would last the life of your Explorer,

The whole Explorer, or just the rear bumper?

SensaTrac on Snowball, 18k on them. Rode rough compared to the Reflex.

Reflex- Shamrock and Wedgie. 3,500 and 9,500 respectfully. Wedgie had them put on prior to me buying, so that was total mileage. I like the topheavy valving better.

 

[BrianDye]

Well I have the Reflexes in my cart on RA, only 160$ shipped, which isnt too bad. I am probably gonna let my bank account rest for a couple weeks though, shes been drained lately

 

[CDW6212R]

Well I have the Reflexes in my cart on RA, only 160$ shipped, which isnt too bad. I am probably gonna let my bank account rest for a couple weeks though, shes been drained lately

LOL, that's a drop in the bucket, my CC's are melting hot. Browse this page of comics for sale or sold recently:
Find the ASM 14 in NM, that's a 9.4 grade, you can see in it the corner of each book.

http://www.comiclink.com/items.asp?id=3884&FROM=&TO=&pg=3






Here's a direct link to that, I won it in auction last Tuesday. This is my old hobby, and now a retirement fund. The Stock market is too volatile these days.
http://www.comiclink.com/itemdetail.asp?back=/items.asp?id=3884&FROM=&TO=&pg=3&id=869373
I've been sending my old raw books to get graded, and sell. I've sold one of my AF 15's(1st Spider-Man) for $10,800. Everything is going up.

 

[BrianDye]

JESUS!

I was happy buying iPads and reselling them for a 100-250$ profit...goodness I dont even want to waste my time anymore :

 

[CDW6212R]

I needed a change last year, and the weather was not being nice with Summer hitting in early May. Now that I'm back to being out of money, back to car stuff.

 

[BrianDye]

So im having a problem still with my fogs. They work fine, but when I hit bigger bumps, they'll shut off. (So naturally first though, RELAY!) By shutting off, I mean loosing all power, the green light on the button wasnt lit either.

Yesterday I took my intake tube off, to acess the lower relay box, I couldnt find online what relay was for what, so I just guess and checked until I found it. I took it apart, it honestly looks brand new still. So I sealed it all up, and used some silicon to waterproof it.

Worked great but now its still shutting off when I hit bumps.

My wiper fluid pump hasnt been working for the front. The rear suirts, and wipes, and the front just wipes. No fluid. So I tried tapping on it with a small hammer, nothing. Then the rear wasnt working I noticed.

I knocked on the relay box (Since both the front/rear washer relays are in this) and the rear started working, and the front was barely working. (It worked fine until the first snowstorm. Then it barely squirts the bottom of the windshield)

Then I tapped again, no fluid. So im thinking that I have a bad relay box, what can I use to clean this thing? The connections are pretty corroded, but all the relays seem fine.

I dont wanna drop 50$ on 5 new relays and have the same problems.

 

[CDW6212R]

The relays are all alike, the two sizes in the whole truck. Swap them around when you hunt relay issues. I'd find a reason to go through a salvage yard, pick up a few spare relays and fuses.

I have electrical issues with my 91 Lincoln, which I think are in the dash.

Try to use electrical contact cleaner, and a little dielectric grease. Look at each prong carefully, for an odd color. Those may be best to discard, but clean the connectors as much as you can. That should help a lot.

 

[BrianDye]

So far so good! I went to AZ and got a red can of electrical connections cleaner, and sprayed the hell out of the relay box with the relays out, then sprayed the relays and scrubbed it all down. So far everythings working great!

I got fed up with not having front washer fluid so I was sure the motor was dying (Checked lines, fuses, etc) everything was great. So I went to AZ again, bought a 25$ new washer pump, spend a good hour out in the snow and 20* weather putting it on (Along with cleaning the relays/box), turned the key, pressed the washer button...SAME THING!

It ended up being the piece that wraps through the hole where the line splits, pretty hard to see but I found there was a nice gash in the line. So I undid EVERYTHING, took the new motor back, put the old one back on, got new line, and BAM! It was nice driving tonight having the ability to clean my windshield

I also got my Retro HIDs in the mail today!! Im debating on putting them on tonight or not...I have to work tomorrow so the only way they'd be on before saturday is if class is cancelled tomorrow.

 

[CDW6212R]

I was going to tell you that the one motor does both washers, it just spins backwards for one end. It had to be a leak or the wiring. At least you got it done. Stay inside for a while.

 

[BrianDye]

Yea, I knew it was one motor, thats what was confusing me, the rear worked, and the fronts BARELY worked, so all I was thinking is that since the rear squirter moves with the wiper, it must not need much pressure which is why its still working.

 

[BrianDye]

Wow, I got home yesterday and busted ass to get my new HID's in. I cant even begin to explain how amazing they are! Theyre 5000k, and so bright its ridiculous! They look like halogens on the road, but still have a hint of color (Which I like) if your looking at my housings.

They are so terribly aimed that I wasnt about to take any pictures, but DAMNIT I can SEE!

Here are some teaser pics of my eBay HIDs, absolutely awful. (6000k)
Sometimes turning them on, they'd look like this:

And other times (80%) like this:

Needless to say, the drivers side has been pointless for the last week. Im almost 90% that it was the ballasts though, the drivers side one was crackling like sizzling bacon when I turned them on at home, and it smelled awful.

Anywho, I also serviced my first '11 Explorer last night at work

 

[BrianDye]

I got my 5.0 mustang replica emblem, and my 2 iPod docks in the mail the other day.

The circular one fits EXACTLY how I wanted it, fills the big cupholder amazingly, but naturally it wont work with my Pioneer iPod cable The small dock does work but isnt gonna fit how I wanted it to.

I have some pics on my phone, but cant find my phone at the moment, so ill post up later. Im not too bummed that the circle dock didnt work, because the ipod wasnt "aimed" right, of that makes sense. (Its angle made it hard to see, needed to be angled back alot more).

 

[BrianDye]

I just dont get it. Lets start here. Its a blizzard outside, literally a blizzard. 50MPH wind gusts, if not more, 2-3" of snow per hour, and +10' drifts.

Im taking it easy in my neighborhood, doing like 10-15 at most, because its halfassed plowed. Most of it blew right back onto the road. I pull up to a stop sign, stop, and turn right, took the corner wider than usual since there was like a 4' drift pile, and I kind of slid a bit. Get home, and not 10 minutes later, someones pounding on the door. My mom opened the door, and its the "Neighborhood Manager" and hes yelling saying WHO DRIVES THAT VEHICLE! My moms like Who the hell are you coming to my house at 11 at night in a blizzard screaming at me? He says his name (Like an arsehole), and continues to repeat himself saying who drives that vehicle (Talking about my Explorer), My mom says Its none of your buisness, why do you want to know? He goes on to say that it was seen last night at 4am doing 40-50mph, and drifting all through the neighborhood. Then says that he just watched me fly around the corner fishtailing it and whipping into my driveway.

Mind you, there is 2' if not more in my driveway, so I angled myself right on, and pulled in and out a few times, slowly. (To make some tracks, since its pointless to try to shovel).

He claims hes gonna call the police and put a stop to this tomorrow, so im very curious to see what happens, because every word that came out of his mouth besides his name, was BS.

It pisses me off because I see vehicles up and down my roads ALL day long like its a dragstrip. (Theres a Grand Am around the corner who has roasted his tires the last 2 times he left during the day and was probably doing 60 by the end of the street). Im that person who cares enough to turn my music down, stop at all the signs, wave to people, take it slow, 20 when its clear), and im getting accused of flying through, fishtailling, and being wreckless.


/endrant.

 

[Sbyrne97]

ha this is why I love living in the middle of nowhere, I have neighbors but they do dumber stuff than me no one complains. ATV's and lawnmowers driving up the street, and huge trucks.
gotta love virginia

sorry bout your problem bro, the police won't do anything they need proof. Theres no proof but that guys word. Which won't hold up to anything

 

[BrianDye]

I honestly think he was drunk, and/or cracked out. The next day I passed him a few times and he didnt even look at me or anything.
But anywho, I woke up this morning thinking TCASE AND DIFF FLUID CHANGE!

Not really sure why, but I feel the urge to change the fluid really bad. Ive heard nothing but wonders about Amsoil, so thats whats going in. I cant wait to see whats in there, its gotta be bad. Im gonna try todo them tomorrow if I can get a garage to get to, otherwise....(^*&$*&#^%$

 

[CDW6212R]

Yes, don't worry about the police from that guy, just yourself and property.

The TC is simple to change the fluid on. Just climb under with a long ratchet and 3/8" drive with a pan. Pull the fill and drain plug, and in a minute put the drain plug back in. It takes a couple of quarts at most, of Mercon V like the trans.

Buy a parts store fluid pump too if you haven't yet. Those make putting fluid in the diff, TC etc, very convenient.

 

[Sbyrne97]

are you going to use RTV as a gasket? Or actually buy a gasket for the diff.

If you use RTV make sure you let it sit for at least 15 mins before pouring in your diff fluid, the oil will permeate the seal if put in too soon, It might not pour out but you will have a better seal if you wait half hour or so to let the RTV dry

And go inside the bolt holes

Rule of thumb is for it to come out the sides a little then wait till that is nice and dry, you should be able to touch it without it smearing. Then pour in your oil. And if your got a LS then you have to buy 4 oz of friction modifier from ford or another local parts store. I used ford though, might as well stay with the original, only problem is that stuff aint cheap.

 

[BrianDye]

are you going to use RTV as a gasket? Or actually buy a gasket for the diff.

If you use RTV make sure you let it sit for at least 15 mins before pouring in your diff fluid, the oil will permeate the seal if put in too soon, It might not pour out but you will have a better seal if you wait half hour or so to let the RTV dry

And go inside the bolt holes

Rule of thumb is for it to come out the sides a little then wait till that is nice and dry, you should be able to touch it without it smearing. Then pour in your oil. And if your got a LS then you have to buy 4 oz of friction modifier from ford or another local parts store. I used ford though, might as well stay with the original, only problem is that stuff aint cheap.

Yea I was planning on RTV, but how do I know I I have a limited slip?

 

[Glen4X4]

Yea I was planning on RTV, but how do I know I I have a limited slip?

....look at your axle code on your door and then on the home page of the forum click on explorer specs and click axle and match it, then you will know if you have ls or not...