New member 2016 Xlt Explorer 3.5L naturally Aspirated

[SecurityRich]

Hello, folks; I purchased this Explorer as sort of a toy. I put in a leveling kit and 1” wheel spacers. I’m starting to look into other possible upgrades, i.e. Locking diffs and a low range transfer, & bigger tires. Maybe this makes no sense due to much greater risks of drive train breakage, but I’m just starting to investigate what can be done and what the consequences are. I purchased the vehicle used in November 2021 with 67k miles. Looking forward to what’s available on the forum.

 

[BKennedy]

Welcome to the forum. I moved your thread to a sub forum where it will get more views.

The search function works very well here. Give it a shot. You will probably get answers to most, if not all of your questions.

In my opinion, you won't get much more off road performance out of this vehicle. It's just not designed to be modified in that direction. What type of off road driving are you wanting to do with it?

I know there are differences of opinion about that, but also vastly different views on what "off roading" means. When you start by posting about locking diffs and low range transfer cases, I think you would be much better off selling that one and getting a older Ranger based Explorer, 1991-2000, or go a different direction and look into a newer Bronco. Don't think those types of aftermarket components are available for your Explorer.

 

[The D]

I’m with BKennedy on this, the 5th gen Exploder isn’t a real hardcore off-roader. It will do a bit better than most people think but if you’re anticipating trying to follow a Rubicon or Gelandewagen you’re going to be disappointed. A small lift, if possible, and better wheels/tires suited for the terrain you’re driving through is probably the extent of effective mods.

Alrhough, if you want to burn through a pile of money you could try to engineer a set of portal axles for this chassis. That would be awesome