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Looking to buy 1999 Ford explore need your advice!!

Post number 20 has been selected as best answered.

Smit789

New Member
Joined
March 8, 2022
Messages
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City, State
New York
Year, Model & Trim Level
f150
Hello guys
Thanks for creating this awesome forum and meeting wonderful people here. I am looking to get a 1999 Ford explore or anything similar but I'm really interested in this one, unfortunately this car has salvage title and I am looking to the community to check if there is anything else I should be looking out for while doing my inspection day, and I will purchase the car report to see damage and other details.

Some things that I will be looking out for during my inspection today:

noises in the engine
check transmission for slips jolts etc
verify all electrics / features / lights,
coolant or oil leaks
They are asking for the price of $3,500 and it has 130000 miles with a Salvage Title.

If you guys have any suggestions on what to look at.
thanks
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$3500 with a salvage title? That’s too much money for an X without a 5.0. To me that’s $1500-$2000. The salvage title kills it.
 






I personally wouldn’t pay that for an explorer with a salvage title. I assume it’s the SOHC w/ 5R55E.

Listen for the cam chain death rattle. Tell him you want to start it stone cold. Rattle is usually worse on cold start and at low idle.

130k is where a lot of the 5R55Es start to give up the ghost. Not all, but some. Mine started to give me troubles at 125-130, and for a long time you’d find Ex’s in the junk yard with 120-150k…bc of a blown trans. A good test drive, Highway speed if possible. Check trans fluid level, color, smell.

Looks clean, but also looks like the front was repaired…front end collision resulted in the salvage title?

Check the area around the plastic thermostat housing for leaking coolant

It’s also the age and mileage where the original suspension is totally shot and rotting out. Check it out and listen. If it looks original or is noisy, negotiate appropriately.

Find some dirt and throw it into 4H/4L and make sure the transfer case is solid.

Edit: then again, it’s California. That place is expensive as all hell
 






aound advice from c420 since its a cali rig rust in doglegs shouldnt be an issue, check the sohc and 5r as he said thats the biggest issue on these make sure no staryup rattle make sure you start it cold not a warm start a cold start check for RMS weeping

even in cali i think there ar ebetter deals imo, i cone across clean title ones for 3k heck theres a 96 LTD V8 awd fully loaded 80k miles iirc in whittier right now
 






@Smit789 You've got the right ideas thus far, and heed what @C420sailor said - he's got good advice. The drivetrain is the most important, and even at such low mileage, it's still 23 years old.

Don't overlook the small stuff: check for interior functions and cycle through all the A/C vent positions, make sure any interior features you want or need, work correctly. Absolutely, positively, check ALL the door handles and latches inside and out, all the power locks, window motors, and the hatch and hatch glass release, hood cable connection, etc. Familiarize yourself with every single quirk this truck has, because once it is yours, the problems are all yours too.

Check the differential breather hoses and transmission breather hose. They're probably all broken off, but look for the nubs where they're supposed to connect. If you don't know what these are, search it up, you can find 'em. If yours are missing, either replace them now, or don't drive through water.

As far as $3500 being a decent price, that depends on your opinion and your budget. My Sport was a salvage claim because of the bumper covers only; these trucks don't keep their value, so it doesn't take much to total out the insurance. Definitely test drive it, and drive it like you're going to always drive it; if you baby it on the test drive, issues might show up after you buy that you hadn't noticed in the test.
 






You're in NY and it's a CA car? So little rust (unless it got flooded). Could make it contingent on having a mechanic check it out. With the salvage title, would be good to know how it got that salvage title! All the good advice previously given here is a great idea. And any documentation/service records would tell you about previous maintenance - which makes all the difference for these SOHC engines and their transmissions.
 






Out west, that price would be way too high cause a rust free car is as common as finding someone wearing a leather jacket in a biker bar. If everything is in very good shape and the car doesn't need any work, it would probably be a good buy in the northeast.
 






console arm rest is broken

Is it 4wd?

I wouldn't give $3500 for it that is for sure, I would instead look for a 5.0 explorer without the S title
Maybe $1800-2500 max if it checks out
Tires are good, trans fluid is bright pink and no burnt smell, oil is good, and there is no rust or huge patches of bondo
Make sure it was not in a flood, make sure it has its complete exhaust (the cat converters were not hacked out and patched back together)
 






@Smit789 For comparison, I paid $3500 for a loaded 2000 Limited at 216k in near-perfect condition (except for the dash lights, and as I later found out, spark plugs, wires and coil pack) with minimal rust (east coast, surface rust is a given).
 






Ditto what others posted. The $3500 is too much for a SOHC V6 unless the engine has documentation of being rebuilt or otherwise with very new timing chain parts(all of them). The trans can be reliable if it was well cared for, many people fail on things like that(so they die at 100-150k miles).

My 99 I reconstructed from my prior reconstructed 93 Limited. When I rebuild the trans and do the SOHC timing parts, then I might ask $2500 for mine(because of the salvaged title), more if I have it repainted again. But the $3500 price is too high, much too high without some special attributes(new engine and trans etc).
 






Seems like all used cars trucks are priced high

I've been seeing lots of explorers being pulled out of the mothballs repaired and put back on the road
$3500 seems high but in this day and age .....
 












The salvage title should be a reduction in both value and price. The same goes for the SOHC 4.0 engine, those are less reliable than similar aged engines. I'd reduce the value and price of those a lot, more than the book values which don't account for real world knowledge of the differences.
 






The salvage title should be a reduction in both value and price. The same goes for the SOHC 4.0 engine, those are less reliable than similar aged engines. I'd reduce the value and price of those a lot, more than the book values which don't account for real world knowledge of the differences.
Couldn't have put it better myself. Even with the beloved sock 🧦 motor

I really need to open a shop that does nothing but single overhead can timing chains and guides

If only people would just do maintenance and not beat the crap out of their car
I think these engines would have a better name
 






Now what if you found a explorer with a new engine and a pre-oleer installed would you buy lol
Just kidding

I think I take my pre order for granted I have not heard a rattle yet:)
 












Hey Guys, I really appreciate everyone's concerned on the Salvage vehicle, that really make me twice, I decided to do my due diligence before spending so much money, I bought the car report for this vehicle from this site Detailed Vehicle History Report For any Vehicle - 100% Accurate, (which is CHEAP), there's an auction records for this vehicle saying
Primary DamageFront End
but when you look at the pictures there seems to be no serious damage, the bumper is falling a little and other than that I see nothing to be worried about, what do you guys think? The car was sold for $750😅

Here is the car report: Get Instant Vehicle History Report

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FWIW, this is going back a ways....I recall vehicles that if you smacked the front end hard enough, it would crack/dislocate the transmission housing. Not sure that applies here, but alignment/fit of drivetrain and body panels would show dislocation from impact unless replaced.
 






oh this is an ohv! my take is still that for 3500 seems steep. imo have someone go look at it to see if its a good candidate imo, since there may very well be hidden damage you cant see.
 



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That car has been in more than one accident. The salvage title looks to be from the front bumper cover. A tire made contact with it. Previous owner did what I would have, take the check for a total loss and use that money to buy something else. I wouldn't give more than $2,500 for it and many of us think that amount is pretty generous.
Edit to add: the bumper cover wasn't replaced. I'd inspect how they repaired it. There is a scratch below the passenger headlight, same scratch is in the auction photos.
 






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