Explorer Sport Questions

[Toast.]

One month left on my 2010 Rav lease and im very close to buying a sport and have a few questions.


1) Trying to figure out if its better to buy maintenance package if one is offered?
Looks like maintenance schedule for 45k lease would include:
5 Oil changes every 7500-10000k
2 cabin filters every 20k
1 air filter @ 30k
Any ideas on pricing for dealer to perform these services?

2) Does 2nd row seats (bench or captain) slide back and forth? I will have two baby seats and once a week an adult would have to sit in back or middle of 2nd row - trying to figure if i need captains chairs or deal with moving baby seat to center, 3rd row or if person can squeeze in middle of 2 baby seats?

3) In 2nd row, there seems to be a "dip" where you feet lay and to exit you have to lift them over a foot well - does that make it difficult for kids or grandma to enter exit?

4) What gas are you running - looks like 89 will due?

5) Since i've asked so many questions - do iPhones and sync play along nicely?

Thanks!

 

[broken strut]

1. I have the maintenance package and it's well worth it. Even my breaks are covered.

2. Only the passenger side rear seat slides. I would suggest the captain chairs.

3. No

4. I'm running the highest Octane I can get 91-93, High performance engine needs a good clean fuel. I know some others are running regular gas and say it's not causing a difference. I think it will in the long run.

5. I have an android phone and it works great with MFT. Fully functional. If you search iPhone here it will show that some are happy and others are having some difficulty with text messages being read.

 

[NEWPORTNJ]

If you are leasing why pay for the extra coverage. When the chances of you needing brake pads are slim to non, and gas wise if the manual say reg so its reg gas, and yes iphone wrong well some owners have had little issue's . But all i say is if you have no need for the maney you are willing to throw away let me know and i will pick it up and pay my car with it.. Good luck.

 

[77rednecktruck]

1. I have the maintenance package and it's well worth it. Even my breaks are covered.

2. Only the passenger side rear seat slides. I would suggest the captain chairs.

3. No

4. I'm running the highest Octane I can get 91-93, High performance engine needs a good clean fuel. I know some others are running regular gas and say it's not causing a difference. I think it will in the long run.

5. I have an android phone and it works great with MFT. Fully functional. If you search iPhone here it will show that some are happy and others are having some difficulty with text messages being read.

I agree with everything except #4. 87 octane gas is not more dirty than 91 or 93, it just burns faster.

 

[77rednecktruck]

If you are leasing why pay for the extra coverage. When the chances of you needing brake pads are slim to non, and gas wise if the manual say reg so its reg gas, and yes iphone wrong well some owners have had little issue's . But all i say is if you have no need for the maney you are willing to throw away let me know and i will pick it up and pay my car with it.. Good luck.

the OP is leasing the rav 4 and looks like buying the sport.

I don't like maintenance plans either, the parts and fluids they cover all all available cheaper at the parts stores.

 

[Bwells430]

I agree with everything except #4. 87 octane gas is not more dirty than 91 or 93, it just burns faster.

87 doesn't burn faster. Octane rating has to do with how much pressure it can endure without pre detonation.

As far as gas, the manual says 87 for the sport, but specifically says for higher performance, use a higher octane gas. The reason is any car in the modern era can use 87 because the engines have knock sensors. When knock is detected the computer turns back the performance of the engine to prevent damage. 87 or 93, most drivers wont notice a difference. If you have a heavy foot, 93 is the way to go for best performance.

In short, your driving style will determine what gas you use. I have a heavy foot so I use 93.

 

[steve04KU]

I plan on using 89 octane in mine. I haven't had to fill up yet, still 1/2 tank since I drove off from the dealer last weekend.

 

[broken strut]

87 doesn't burn faster. Octane rating has to do with how much pressure it can endure without pre detonation.

As far as gas, the manual says 87 for the sport, but specifically says for higher performance, use a higher octane gas. The reason is any car in the modern era can use 87 because the engines have knock sensors. When knock is detected the computer turns back the performance of the engine to prevent damage. 87 or 93, most drivers wont notice a difference. If you have a heavy foot, 93 is the way to go for best performance.

In short, your driving style will determine what gas you use. I have a heavy foot so I use 93.

Yup

 

[Toast.]

I was leaning toward maintenance package so that dealer will have records that all the maintenance was done. I don't like taking chances toward end of lease where dealer might ding me for not sticking with schedule. On my audi and toyota it was cheaper to buy the maintenance package then to pay for the services. I also think that in a big heavy vehicle like the explorer brakes will go out before 3 yrs/45k.

My octane thoughts are to use the lowest octane that wont ping for your driving.

 

[FordService]

I was leaning toward maintenance package so that dealer will have records that all the maintenance was done. I don't like taking chances toward end of lease where dealer might ding me for not sticking with schedule. On my audi and toyota it was cheaper to buy the maintenance package then to pay for the services. I also think that in a big heavy vehicle like the explorer brakes will go out before 3 yrs/45k.

My octane thoughts are to use the lowest octane that wont ping for your driving.

Hi Toast.,

If you're still considering a maintenance plan, I encourage you to check out: http://owner.ford.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Owner/Page/ESPPremMaintDetail. You can also contact our Extended Service Plan group at 877-794-6434 for more information.

Crystal

 

[Dr Plastic]

Maintenance plans are nothing more than a money maker for the dealer and are worthless to the buyer. Unless you plan on keeping the Ex past the standard OEM Ford warranty that is. But on a lease do not waste your money. You only need to keep receipts for all services and parts/oil you buy. I have never had a problem producing receipts for the work I do myself. The dealer cannot hold this against you at the end of the lease. If they do and or deny warranty repair because you did not have the dealer service your truck then they are in violation of Federal law...more specifically the Magnusson-Moss warranty act. They only push the sale of this kind of stuff like oil system flushes and other snake oil stuff because it is a serious money maker for the dealership and does absolutely nothing for you or your truck other than giving you a false sense of security.

 

[Riley]

There is no way you're getting an adult between the baby seats in the second row. Get the buckets, they both slide back and forth and recline a bit more it seems.

 

[sciond]

There is no way you're getting an adult between the baby seats in the second row. Get the buckets, they both slide back and forth and recline a bit more it seems.

can't even really get a small kid in there either....why I got the buckets

 

[tazcubed]

One month left on my 2010 Rav lease and im very close to buying a sport and have a few questions.


1) Trying to figure out if its better to buy maintenance package if one is offered?
Looks like maintenance schedule for 45k lease would include:
5 Oil changes every 7500-10000k
2 cabin filters every 20k
1 air filter @ 30k
Any ideas on pricing for dealer to perform these services?

2) Does 2nd row seats (bench or captain) slide back and forth? I will have two baby seats and once a week an adult would have to sit in back or middle of 2nd row - trying to figure if i need captains chairs or deal with moving baby seat to center, 3rd row or if person can squeeze in middle of 2 baby seats?

3) In 2nd row, there seems to be a "dip" where you feet lay and to exit you have to lift them over a foot well - does that make it difficult for kids or grandma to enter exit?

4) What gas are you running - looks like 89 will due?

5) Since i've asked so many questions - do iPhones and sync play along nicely?

Thanks!

Answers to 2:
Depending on whether you're dealing with front facing or rear facing child seats you may want to do a trial fitting prior to purchase - any dealership should accommodate. With a full size rear facing child/booster seat, there's little room to get a child into the seat so watch the child's head. That said, it's an issue for about a year, then with forward seating it's easier. Under your circumstances, someone else has suggested buckets. You may be able to do okay if you can get away with minimum booster seats depending upon state law but that's also a personal preference.

Answer to 3:
Entry exit is tall for most younger kids - they'll have to climb up to get in. Same probably applies to grandma - unless she's tall.

Answer to 4:
89 works, but I prefer to safeguard the turbos with 91 minimum (despite knock sensors). That, plus the cost differential isn't as bad if you're already thinking of mid-grade as a starting point.

Answer to 5:
Sort of. Bluetooth connectivity isn't the greatest for media but works well enough for phone calls. Note that the text messaging function doesn't work and I believe a Ford rep has mentioned this in another thread in the past week or so. I've had some connection issues on occasion, where bluetooth connectivity drops for some reason then reconnects. I'm unsure if it's a Ford issue or an Apple issue or a bluetooth issue. I wish there was connectivity from the front usb jack to the rear seat monitors to play movies, but there isn't. Also note there has been some issues which have caused MFT to freeze with unrecognizable character strings embedded within data (music/videos or something else). Haven't had the same problem since the latest upgrade to SYNC software. In the end, I'm looking to get out of my iPhone 5 brick - not liking it overall.

 

[alexk]

I don't have a sport but I can answer a few of your questions since I leased an Explorer and work for ford...

For the maintenance plan, if your the type to go to the dealer for service anyway just go with the maintenance plan. You are basically pre paying all your maintenance up front at a discounted rate (I bought it for mine). If your doing 45,000 miles you may also want to consider the ford first day loaner coverage since it actually extends your warranty out to 45,000 miles as well as guarantees you a loaner car when you go in for service, I did a 20,000 mile a year lease and ill probably do 25,000 a year so I skipped that because ill need an extended warranty.

The second row 40 seat will slide on the bench, on buckets both slide. If your going to have 2 car seats the buckets are probably the better option. That's really personal opinion though, I would suggest bringing both car seats with you when shopping and see what you like better.

For the gas, the demo models I have had always had premium in them because that's what the owner of the dealership likes. We always put regular in them when we fill up for the customer and most customers do just put regular in them. Personally I don't notice a difference.

With the iPhone, mine works great with the sync system for calling, messaging isn't supported. The one problem I have is with Bluetooth audio, it always says no Bluetooth device found sync is trying to connect but by the end of her saying that my phone is connected and the music is streaming.

 

[Toast.]

Thank you all for the great feedback this info is much more valuable then the countless videos and reviews which i've read.

1) I can't get a price for maintenance without VIN, but I would reason it's cheaper to do it outside of dealer.

2) I'm surprised that I may have 'space' issues with the explorer since it's a full size SUV. Unfortunately the maxi cosi seat is on the larger side which even with bucket seats seems like it will be a tight fit. I am let down that Ford didn't fully plan out 2nd and 3rd row seating. Lack of arm rests in buckets, difficult access to 3rd row with bench seats and lack of usable middle seat- very disappointing.

4) Dont really care about gas - the .10 cents difference between grades doesnt make much difference but from the data I'm seeing, granted it may be early, it does not look like the ex sport will deliver avg of 18mpg.

5) Not sure what my verdict is on SYNC, unfortunately I have come to rely on my phone and its interface with the vehicle. I've seen that improvements have been made with the updates but I expect more refinement from a vehicle costing >40k.

Answers to 2:
Depending on whether you're dealing with front facing or rear facing child seats you may want to do a trial fitting prior to purchase - any dealership should accommodate. With a full size rear facing child/booster seat, there's little room to get a child into the seat so watch the child's head. That said, it's an issue for about a year, then with forward seating it's easier. Under your circumstances, someone else has suggested buckets. You may be able to do okay if you can get away with minimum booster seats depending upon state law but that's also a personal preference.

Answer to 3:
Entry exit is tall for most younger kids - they'll have to climb up to get in. Same probably applies to grandma - unless she's tall.

Answer to 4:
89 works, but I prefer to safeguard the turbos with 91 minimum (despite knock sensors). That, plus the cost differential isn't as bad if you're already thinking of mid-grade as a starting point.

Answer to 5:
Sort of. Bluetooth connectivity isn't the greatest for media but works well enough for phone calls. Note that the text messaging function doesn't work and I believe a Ford rep has mentioned this in another thread in the past week or so. I've had some connection issues on occasion, where bluetooth connectivity drops for some reason then reconnects. I'm unsure if it's a Ford issue or an Apple issue or a bluetooth issue. I wish there was connectivity from the front usb jack to the rear seat monitors to play movies, but there isn't. Also note there has been some issues which have caused MFT to freeze with unrecognizable character strings embedded within data (music/videos or something else). Haven't had the same problem since the latest upgrade to SYNC software. In the end, I'm looking to get out of my iPhone 5 brick - not liking it overall.

 

[WiEx]

1) I can't get a price for maintenance without VIN, but I would reason it's cheaper to do it outside of dealer.

Try here for maintenance plan prices. I don't guarantee that Flood is the cheapest, but they are very competitive on ESPs. http://www.floodfordesp.com/premium_maintenance.php

You could also just use a VIN off any Sport sticker that is available on a dealer site.