Need some honest advice!

[bubb]

I've got a 99 Sport. My insurance is due, along with the X's payment. There is a loud clunk when it downshifts from 2nd to 1st, and the lifters continue to clatter even after the "Penzoil moly job" and after repeated Gunk brand doeses of moly in the oil. Does it sound like an expensive problem to fix? From what I've read, the automatic trannys are expensive pieces of crap. Should I get rid of it? Are the Explorers just too expensive to keep up?

I have an opportunity to trade the X and walk away with a 99 Escort ZX2, but I love the biggness, protection, and manliness of the Explorer.

What would you do in my situation?

 

[paul99explorer]

I have a '99 sport as well, but I (having dealt with my share of Ford automatic tranny problems) purchased a 5 spd. It has some problems of its own, of course, but it seems to do ok. As for your "loud clunk" problem, I would have someone check it out. It may not be anything too bad. Possibly a u-joint? I would have some old mechanic guy drive it and tell you. They like that stuff, anyway. As for the noisy lifters, mine does the same thing and it only has 65,000 miles on it. It did that when I bought it with 40,000 miles on it, too. I've just begun to research this, but there appears to be a few different threads in this forum dealing with it. I would stick the the x, though, unless you plan to (gulp) trade for a foreign car. The japanese really know how to build em for dependability. I wouldn't suggest trading it for a little baby Ford. It will prolly just have a different set of problems. (my $.02 worth, anyway)

 

[Mbrooks420]

The clunk could possibly be a dry slip yoke. I'd try greasing that first. I feel your pain, Explorers can be very expensive, and make you just want to throw in the towel. I wouldn't rebuild the tranny, if it came down to it. I'd trade it in if that were the case.

 

[1993xlt]

I have a 2000 ZX2 with a little over 70,000 miles and have had no problems at all. The only thing I have done is replace the tires once, nothing else on the car has been replaced (not even the brakes).

 

[exp999]

The clunk sound you hear may be the slip yoke. All it needs is grease. Search for slip yoke on the forum.

 

[X~FACTOR]

Explorer to Escort? I don't know. Seems like a bad move to me. I would get atleast another truck (dare I say, import?) even if you have to pay a little more per month. You'd be glad you did.