General Explorer Questions & Advice

[rollingmenace]

My girlfriend is in the market for a explorer were looking at the 95-01 range
the plans are doing a solid axle swap in it to make it more offroad worthy.. ive done swaps before in rangers and bronco2 and my current ride is a 92bronco with a sas...
On to the explorer questions... and possibly advice
were looking at two different options here the 4.0 4x4 and i found a killer deal on a relitively low mile 97 5.0 Awd
#1 can somebody explain the whole Awd system in a nutshell and will it be capable and reliable especially since i plan on sas and wheeling the truck
#2 Do the Awd explorers have a low range for off roading
#3 what are my t case options if i wanted a selectable t case to swap the awd out
#4 should we just hold out for a selectable t case in a 4.0 truck to best suit our needs and future plans

I know these are noob questions but im just looking for some general info to help me out here Thanks Zach

 

[Electrohacker]

the AWD Borg Warner 4404 is a full time 4wd case that has NO selection and provides 35% front and 65% rear power

these CAN and HAVE been swapped for the selectable Borg Warner 4406 MANUAL transfer cases and there are many write ups.

you can however put whatever you want under the truck, it just means you get to figure it out


OH and 96-97 the explorers read speed off a sensor on the transfer case available in the 96-98 F150
after 98 on the F150 and after 97 on the explorer the speed was read from the ABS sensors
so basically if you want to swap it's easier to use a transfer case that matched with a sensor already installed, there are however write up's on how to add your own sensor
and the reason you dont want the electric shift is because the electric module causes a clearance issue with the gas tank

I have not done this yet, but I have a 98 4406 in my garage waiting which I got off ebay WITH WARRANTY for $450 (probably a higher price but it was EXACTLY what I wanted and had a warranty)

the 5.0's are probably the MOST reliable explorers simply because they are over engineered, they have F150 engines an transmissions in a smaller truck

you will find a lot of people on here with 5.0's AND I AM one of those with OVER 200,000 miles and they still run strong and get near factory mileage


BTW make sure to make a full write up as I plan on doing this exact same thing only I dont have all the tooling, parts, or funds just yet... I just have a truck, an axle, and a transfer case

 

[techieman33]

Get the v8, and swap in a 4406 you'll be much happier in the end. That will make you about as bullet proof as you can get in an explorer.

 

[rollingmenace]

cool guys thanks for the advice... thats what i was looking for ive been kinda searching and finding all kinds about the swap.. heres a few more Q's for you all

#1 i found a 97 explorer awd 5.0 it has 147,000 on the clock it runs great interior and body os nice.. only porblem is the ignition has been pucnhed out in an attempt to steal this truck.. He wants $1200 for it it seems to be a good deal to me what do you think is it worth it

#2 if i do pick this up i plan on just swapping the entire column over thanks to the govt cfc program theres tons of the explorers in the junk yard here and i can get a column for one cheep.. will any second gen explorer colummn work or will i need one for the 5.0 truck

 

[Electrohacker]

they should all be the same, I would try and get one from a 95-97 just in case, but any non PADS should be compatible

while you're in there look up the multifunction switch rebuild thread

 

[my pos mounty]

If its just the ignition switch, why do the whole column?

Thats a damn good price for a 5.0, at least around my area. The prices on these trucks seem to vary quite a bit depending on what area of the country you are in from what I have seen.

Theres been a ton of BW4406 swaps done with write-ups on here. I have read (and saved) 6 of them as I plan to do this mod as soon as $$$ allows. Looks fairly straight foward.

 

[rollingmenace]

turns out its just the switch they ended up canabalizing it for another explorer wich is good its only a 25 dollar fix... im gunna go up and look at it tomorrow and see how much there willing to deal with me on it... i allready found a jeep dana30 off a cherokee to swap in there and new wheels and tires off same vehicle all for 150 bux.. and dont flame on the 30 its gunna be in my girls rig and it wont see to much extreme wheelin and tires in the 33" range. i feel that the axle would be great for what its used for.. and find a eb44 with a set of tires and wheels for that much lol you may not even find housing for 150.. and if it needs bigger axles in future its getting 60's lol

 

[Electrohacker]

actually I can get whole alxes, brakes, springs and all for $170

 

[rollingmenace]

when your talking whole axles are you talking early bronco 44's... or just axles in general i basicly am getting a dana 30 all the arms steering linkage complete hub to hub with four aftermarket aluminum wheels with newer 235 tires for the 150 i may even take the cherokee coil buckets as well.. if you can find eb 44's for 170 apiece ill have my brother drive up from ohio and buy everyone you can find they go in excess of 250+ here and thats if you can find a complete one

 

[Electrohacker]

they sell all axles for the same price, it's in detroit and htey have no idea what they have

I got a 85 wagoneer axle dana 44

I havent seen any solid axle broncos go through their yards

I DID see a F350 with a dana 60, but I cant guarantee the $170 price as they might know thats a heavy duty axle, lol

also it took me some talking to get that price which I still feel robbed because the springs were not useable, but the brakes look rebuildable

the place is called parts galore, OH and they dont allow jacks or torches, so bring a generator and a saws-all