Help please!!!!!!

[Maginley]

ok heres all the details i have a 99 xlt with the 4.0L sohc. its been in the shop for awhile getting the timing chain and tensioners and guides replaced. i know they are known for going so i wanted it fixed at the first sign of it starting to go (plastic guides broke and i found them in the bottom of my oil pan). now to the current issue. my mechanic called this morning and said there is a proplem with the gears in the back of the engine. what gears is he refering to? i have no clue what these could be. i drove it just fine before i dropped it off. i just wanted it fixed before winter as a precaution. if something like this was wrong, wouldnt i not have been able to drive it? so now im torn up because he says im gonna need a new engine at like 4000$ and labor for all this around 3000$ my parents dont wanna pay this so they wanna scrap it. i love my ex its a great vehical. i found a replace ment engine on ebay for around 650$ with 120k miles (i only have 89k now) also i have a friend that still has his 4.0l after a 5.0 swap but mores wrong with it so im thinking ill just take the parts off that. please post in this with any helpful input all is appreciated i really wanna save this explorer i dont wanna get stuck have to drive a civic

 

[Maginley]

quick update it was the balancer shaft gears were pitted. he told me my best option would be to have him put in a brand new jasper engine. parts and labor total will be 4100$ i think its a great idead considering the trans has only 88k and all the diffs and wheel hubs and suspension compontants i replaced last year so have a new engine with 0 miles would almost be like have a new car! the body was just rust patched in a few areas and touch up painted and i was working on a new custom interior. having all this in mind along with the fact that i dont drive alot and far at all i feel i could get another 8-10 years out of it before i get a new car and make this an offroad machine. anyone agree?

 

[budwich]

I think that you are caught in between a rock and a hard place. I suspect that you will find that your vehicle (ie. 99 ex) isn't worth much more than $4k with everything working so dropping in $4k just gets you to its basically value (if that). Truck would have to be in great condition (ie. no rust, no accidents, etc) to probably warrant spending that much on it... my 2 cents.... hopefully some else will jump in about the "pitted diagnosis" etc.

 

[koda2000]

i wouldn't put that much money into a SOHC V6 vehicle. no way a '99 SOHC Explorer is worth any where near $4100 in my part of the country (even with a new engine) but i understand it if you love your truck. i have an old van that i bought new in '91. this year it's ABS system crapped out for the 4th time and Chrysler says they can't get the parts to fix it any more. my only option is to convert it to regular power brakes, at a cost of $300+ for 20 year old salvage yard parts. with all the other stuff it needs (4 tires, struts, shocks, brake rotors (just to name the major things) it's time to let her go. i'll miss that old van. it still runs great and the 3rd transmission is hanging in there. i'm just resisting calling the scrap metal guy to come and get her...

 

[xpolice-explorer]

i'm just resisting calling the scrap metal guy to come and get her...

Don't call someone. if it's driveable, drive it over the scales yourself, you'll get more $$$ for it. no middleman.


If you have acess to another motor and some knowlege, bring it home and rebuild it yourself. With the money saved you can buy a little beater to drive through the winter.

 

[obie]

Rebuilding engines is fun! Lots of work and a good bit of money in tools, parts, and machine shop costs, but it's well worth it.

Or you could get the Jasper engine, those are pretty damn good and will last a looooong time. Don't listen to the people who say the Ex isn't worth it. It's worth to you is more important. But, then again, I'm the idiot who's gonna spend 15k just to restore and camo paint my Ex and probably another 15k for all my wants

 

[ponkotsu]

Its a tough call. As they say, "the devil you know is better than the devil you don't. If you put that $4k into another used vehicle, you might end up with thousands in repairs in that also. If you think the truck is sound, maybe you should fix it. I'd definitely try to get it done cheaper though.

 

[marragtop]

One of the questions is... how much do you already owe the shop for the work they have done to date? If you do go with a new motor, Jasper is a good choice.

 

[Maginley]

update

thanks for all the input jasper engine was ordered yesterday going for it. my dad decided it would be the best choice to do it instead of junking it because he doesnt wanna make me have to part with my first car like that. i guess he realized its also a matter of pride to me and the feeling of community to be one of those kids with a ford suv modded to the way i want. im really looking forward to having her back with the new engine. the only way id stop driving this is if i save up for an sti and keep this and turn it into an offroad monster
thanks again for the input guys

 

[Souljacker]

The good news is that with the jasper engine you won't have to worry about that timing tensioner again.

People put these dollar values on objects and that's fine, but there's something to be said for the bond between a person and their vehicle. When you find that car that just fits, you know it's a special relationship and that vehicle will never leave you sitting. It will limp along as long as it possibly can until it can't give any more, because it knows you will never let it get to that point. Whoever said cars are just objects hasn't met their ford explorer match yet.

 

[adu1982]

the ex is starting to grow on me, but my car will always be my mom's handed down chrysler concorde....hated that car in the beginning but loved it shortly after i got it..... too bad it got totaled, framed bent so there was no point to save it ... and all i got was a lousy 2500 ..... paid for the exploder though.......:JP:

To be hones i'm still looking at sales for concorde/lhs or even 300. Whenever i'll have some 2-3k i'm gonna get one under 150k for keeps .. and this is 9 months later . I think i departed from my totaled plymouth neon ( which i bought new, first new car too) very fast .... it was nice, new, but just a car..... like my avalon just a daily driver....


......and here i'm ranting on .......wife loved it more, she still says is best car she drove....so far

 

[Maginley]

engine finally came in today cant wait to have it purring again

 

[obie]

Just remember to follow the break-in procedure and then run some high quality synthetic in it, like Valvoline or Amsoil and it should last you for a very long time. See if you can get some pictures before and after the engine gets put in too.

 

[Maginley]

Crap I should have went down the the shop and taken pictures. I wanna paint the valve covers and intake plenum ford blue like the kind of Metallic blue just because i want it looking clean. Maybe even bread steel hoses and a nice clean engine bay paint scheme. I love this truck and I want it to be really clean and good looking