Fenrir
Member
- Joined
- April 15, 2016
- Messages
- 46
- Reaction score
- 30
- City, State
- Colorado
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2000 Ford Explorer Sport
Crazy chick from southern Colorado here, I've been lurking the forum off and on for a good while. Seems every time I Google-Foo a question about my Explorer this site comes up in the search results and skimming old threads has provided me more useful information than any other place the internet has to offer, so I decided it was about time I stopped being antisocial and got in on the action.
Most reliable vehicle I ever owned was an 81 Crown Vic, had an obscene number of miles on it when I finally gave up on keeping ahead of all the failing parts, still fired up and drove onto the trailer to meet it's demise though.
Kind of miss the lumbering beast taking up space in my driveway.
Thought about making this longer than it needs to be by regaling you all with horror stories of the two infuriating cars between that old Crown Vic and my current 2000 Explorer Sport, but I'll leave that out for now, such tales are for another time.
Before he gave it to me my dad said the transmission on the Explorer had been replaced about six months before he stopped driving it, and it sat about a year before I brought it home. Had a bad VSS I had replaced at the local dealership (lazy), and so far nothing else major, just the typical maintenance.
It's got some minor cosmetic issues and the console lid's cover is completely shot which is absolutely fantastic on the elbow, that lid is on the priority list at the moment. It rides a little rough and bounces like a jackrabbit when I go over the train tracks up the road, but I'm sure that can be remedied. Factory stereo doesn't light up anymore, and the front map lights only work if you smack the housing really hard, I discovered how to make the map lights come on while fighting with the rear view mirror, hand slipped, slammed the back of my hand into the housing and suddenly there was light. That rear view mirror assembly is horrible, big heavy mirror, with the little clip held on by two tiny pot metal pegs...
Nothing a big blob of JB Weld didn't fix lol I'd like to find a more permanent solution without replacing the whole thing, but my dad's favorite redneck engineering tool has worked thus far.
Eventually I'll get around to fixing the dents and dings, gotta put that Collision Tech education to use somewhere right? I never got a chance to work in the field due to a wreck that left my spine more like a half cooked noodle and less like a structural support, but I still enjoy plinking around at home from time to time.
It's got one little cluster of dents that appear to have come from inside the passenger door, haven't taken the interior panel off yet to investigate but I'd love to know how they got there.
I would very much like to replace the leaf springs at some point in the near future too. Why they chose to put such wimpy springs on such a potentially versatile vehicle is beyond me. Any tips, tricks, and sources for parts for that little adventure would be welcomed, when the time comes I'll post a thread about it in the appropriate section. I'd like to be able to use it to pull a camper without having to worry about the dreaded "Explorer Sag"
Long ago I swore I'd never own an Explorer but now that I have one I'm hooked, it gets amazing mileage, has done everything I've asked it to do, and is perfect for toting my dogs around, I love that I can fit an XL airline kennel sideways in the back without folding the seats down.
If you've made it this far thank you for sticking with me through my rambling introduction, you're awesome.
Looking forward to getting to know you all and learning new things to help maintain my love affair with this wonderful vehicle.
Most reliable vehicle I ever owned was an 81 Crown Vic, had an obscene number of miles on it when I finally gave up on keeping ahead of all the failing parts, still fired up and drove onto the trailer to meet it's demise though.
Kind of miss the lumbering beast taking up space in my driveway.Thought about making this longer than it needs to be by regaling you all with horror stories of the two infuriating cars between that old Crown Vic and my current 2000 Explorer Sport, but I'll leave that out for now, such tales are for another time.
Before he gave it to me my dad said the transmission on the Explorer had been replaced about six months before he stopped driving it, and it sat about a year before I brought it home. Had a bad VSS I had replaced at the local dealership (lazy), and so far nothing else major, just the typical maintenance.
It's got some minor cosmetic issues and the console lid's cover is completely shot which is absolutely fantastic on the elbow, that lid is on the priority list at the moment. It rides a little rough and bounces like a jackrabbit when I go over the train tracks up the road, but I'm sure that can be remedied. Factory stereo doesn't light up anymore, and the front map lights only work if you smack the housing really hard, I discovered how to make the map lights come on while fighting with the rear view mirror, hand slipped, slammed the back of my hand into the housing and suddenly there was light. That rear view mirror assembly is horrible, big heavy mirror, with the little clip held on by two tiny pot metal pegs...
Nothing a big blob of JB Weld didn't fix lol I'd like to find a more permanent solution without replacing the whole thing, but my dad's favorite redneck engineering tool has worked thus far. Eventually I'll get around to fixing the dents and dings, gotta put that Collision Tech education to use somewhere right? I never got a chance to work in the field due to a wreck that left my spine more like a half cooked noodle and less like a structural support, but I still enjoy plinking around at home from time to time.
It's got one little cluster of dents that appear to have come from inside the passenger door, haven't taken the interior panel off yet to investigate but I'd love to know how they got there.
I would very much like to replace the leaf springs at some point in the near future too. Why they chose to put such wimpy springs on such a potentially versatile vehicle is beyond me. Any tips, tricks, and sources for parts for that little adventure would be welcomed, when the time comes I'll post a thread about it in the appropriate section. I'd like to be able to use it to pull a camper without having to worry about the dreaded "Explorer Sag"
Long ago I swore I'd never own an Explorer but now that I have one I'm hooked, it gets amazing mileage, has done everything I've asked it to do, and is perfect for toting my dogs around, I love that I can fit an XL airline kennel sideways in the back without folding the seats down.
If you've made it this far thank you for sticking with me through my rambling introduction, you're awesome.
Looking forward to getting to know you all and learning new things to help maintain my love affair with this wonderful vehicle.
