enough doom and gloom, lets hear some high mileage, reliable 5th gen. stories.

[dsantil]

I got my 15' Limited in Nov 18' and absolutely love it! After driving an 04' XLT since 07'! Talk about an upgrade for me!!

 

[Halwg]

I'm wondering how many of you put high mileage on your Explorers? When I was working as a consultant, I would consistently put 35,000 to 40,000 miles a year on my company Explorers. They were turned over every 2 - 3 years at that time and would have 80,000 to 100,000 miles on the odometer.

Now that I no longer do all that traveling, I have a 2016, that just turned 3 years old on Tuesday, and it just turned over 38,000 miles. So I'm now driving in 3 years what I used to drive in 1.

 

[RhinoQuartz]

Here are a few related threads you may be interested in:

How many miles does your Explorer have?

Highest Mileage 5th Generation Explorer

 

[Flying68]

2012 Limited 4WD, ~145k miles. Replaced shocks and struts, strut mounts twice, and broke a transmission mount doggone bolt.
Did plugs at 100k, all scheduled maintenance, but nothing extra. Replaced each set of pads and turned front rotors.
Other little things include getting tailgate repaired after a hit and run in a parking lot, front bumper and left headlight replaced after someone pulled out in front of me. And replaced most of the major computer modules after being hit by lightning.
Only other current issue is my steering gear makes a loud clunking noise every now and then.

 

[RhinoQuartz]

Did the lightning damage any modules or did you replace them in case they might have been?

 

[Flying68]

Did the lightning damage any modules or did you replace them in case they might have been?

It was in the shop for 2 months while they methodically tested and retested as they replaced modules 1 by 1. Each of them took several days to come in and several were special order. This was all per insurance orders. I was driving when it happened. Hit the antenna.

 

[RhinoQuartz]

It was in the shop for 2 months while they methodically tested and retested as they replaced modules 1 by 1. Each of them took several days to come in and several were special order. This was all per insurance orders. I was driving when it happened. Hit the antenna.

Brutal. I assume insurance covered it? How is it going now?

 

[Flying68]

Brutal. I assume insurance covered it? How is it going now?

Yes, insurance covered it, all $16k of parts and labor (invoiced cost, insurance pays a lower rate than the billed rates on both parts and labor). That was just over 3 years and 70k miles ago, so I guess it is just fine.

 

[RhinoQuartz]

Yes, insurance covered it, all $16k of parts and labor (invoiced cost, insurance pays a lower rate than the billed rates on both parts and labor). That was just over 3 years and 70k miles ago, so I guess it is just fine.

Glad to hear it's holding up! If you can, post some pictures!

 

[gdruss]

I personally love my new Explorer so far, granted its only got like 7,000 miles on it so far. lol. I have been reading these forums since I bought it, I'm actually glad I did not find these forums before hand or I would not have even looked at them.
I do understand that people are only going to post problems on these pages, there are countless owners on these forums with nothing but good stories of high mileage, and great reliability.

I would love to hear some of these stories...... How many miles on your 2011-2018 Explorers? What engine? POSITIVE REPLIES ONLY PLEASE!!!!!!

I have a 2014 XLT 3.5 4x4 with 140k on the clock. Other than routine scheduled maintenance the only issue I had was the left rear hub failed at 69k. I had Ford ESP, so that was covered under warranty. I have used Motorcraft oil and filters since I bought it. Never had the water leaks and it runs great. Lots of hwy miles including big snow storms in the mtns. It's my 2nd car now. I bought a 2018 F150 SuperCrew 4x4 last September.

 

[Mbrooks420]

No problem at all. I realize it should be understood seeing as how it was posted here but occasionally it helps to be more specific. It's not the first time it has been done.

Peter

I’m assuming he searched the forums using the “new posts” feature like I do, and doesn’t just hang out in the forum for his model.

Seeing high mileage and no major repairs is a nice change. I’d like a modern SUV, but I can’t ever see myself buying one new.

 

[KatVA]

Got a 2011 Limited in 2016. Has 164357 miles, I’ve put 41k miles in the few years I’ve had it. It was a corporate vehicle & all maintenance completed by the dealership they bought it from & where I bought it from. We have only had to do oil changes, brakes last year & need new tires soon.

This is the 3rd Explorer I’ve owned, last 1 was a 2004 with over 360k miles-We knew we were driving on borrowed time.

Love my Explorer with all its bells & whistles

 

[ValBurton59]

Well guys, my 2013 Ford Explorer XLT v6 has 339,000 miles on it. My husband used it for 5 years to drive for Uber and Lyft. He returned it to me when it had 326,000 miles last year. He bought a Toyota Camry Hybrid for his work. We are the original owner of our Explorer. When I bought it husband told me to drive it till the wheels fall off! That is what I am trying to do. Fortunately for me my Explorer is running like a champ even with almost 340,000 miles. We have kept up with all the services and only use Mobil 1 Synthetic oil in the engine. This car has also been in 3 accidents. I do keep my checking for new Explorers because that will definitely be my next vehicle. When I was younger I was a total Mustang Geek. Owned many of them including a 1973 Mach 1 and a 1982 GT when it first hit the market. If you love your Explorer take care of it and it will take care of you.

 

[xartic]

Well guys, my 2013 Ford Explorer XLT v6 has 339,000 miles on it. My husband used it for 5 years to drive for Uber and Lyft. He returned it to me when it had 326,000 miles last year. He bought a Toyota Camry Hybrid for his work. We are the original owner of our Explorer. When I bought it husband told me to drive it till the wheels fall off! That is what I am trying to do. Fortunately for me my Explorer is running like a champ even with almost 340,000 miles. We have kept up with all the services and only use Mobil 1 Synthetic oil in the engine. This car has also been in 3 accidents. I do keep my checking for new Explorers because that will definitely be my next vehicle. When I was younger I was a total Mustang Geek. Owned many of them including a 1973 Mach 1 and a 1982 GT when it first hit the market. If you love your Explorer take care of it and it will take care of you.

I know you posted to a dated thread, but holy crap 340K miles!? Has there ever been a timing chain or water pump replaced in it?

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Val.
That's quite an accomplishment. May I suggest that you also post this in Highest Mileage 5th Generation Explorer

Peter

 

[onestout]

99% of people don't post happy stories on the internet, it just doesn't make for good reading, same with the news stations. The doom and gloom that you hear on the internet usually is about a 1% failure rate in the real world, and that is a real number from data.

 

[JD4H]

I know you posted to a dated thread, but holy crap 340K miles!? Has there ever been a timing chain or water pump replaced in it?

Wow, I was curious about folks getting high miles out of their explorers, 340k is amazing. I bought a 2012 last year (V6) with 90k and have already put another 50k on it, drove it all around the country and 2 hours to and from work each day. I had the PTU completely resealed and new strut mounts but aside from that it’s been incredibly smooth, quiet and reliable. I’m actually a bit surprised by how much driving I’ve done and it’s very near new still. I had a heart attack the first rain when the front foot wells filled with water. Realized I need to blow out the sun roof drains, they were stuffed with pine needles and debris. Took 5 minutes. Overall I will keep on top of maintenance and try to get to 300k.

 

[TwoEcho27]

Changed spark plugs and ignition coils about 10k ago. Still running smoothly. PIU here.

 

[94Eddie]

Wow, I was curious about folks getting high miles out of their explorers, 340k is amazing. I bought a 2012 last year (V6) with 90k and have already put another 50k on it, drove it all around the country and 2 hours to and from work each day. I had the PTU completely resealed and new strut mounts but aside from that it’s been incredibly smooth, quiet and reliable. I’m actually a bit surprised by how much driving I’ve done and it’s very near new still. I had a heart attack the first rain when the front foot wells filled with water. Realized I need to blow out the sun roof drains, they were stuffed with pine needles and debris. Took 5 minutes. Overall I will keep on top of maintenance and try to get to 300k.

If you plan to drive it until the wheels fall aff you might want to think about doing a pre-emptive water pump change before 175k miles or sooner. While you are doing this changing the guides, chains and oil pump should be considered. If the water pump fails in these engines then it can dump the coolant into the crank case in just a few seconds. This will destroy the engine and lead to a $6k-$8k repair bill.