New Member Question: 2001 FST 4X4

[13rannon]

Hi,

I am a new member who has a question about the 2001 Ford Sport Trac. I have came across a 2001 Sport Trac w/125,000 miles on craigslist. It is a 4X4 model with hard cover, moon roof, bed extender, very nice/clean interior, good tires, front end redone @80,000 miles, good maintenance, and three transmission flushes. The price is $7300.00, my KBB private party search comes up around $6500.00.

My question to you is how high maintenance is the 2001 Sport Trac 4X4 and with good care should it see over 200,000 miles? What parts could or should be looked at before buying with 125,000 miles on them?

Also if you have any advise as to how I should go about inspecting or having the vehicle inspected before buying it would greatly be appreciated.

The owner says he gets about 18 city/27 highway. Is that a realistic estimate or far from what you guys get?

I have had a 1992 Ford Ranger 2X4 and a 2000 Dodge 2500 4X4. I loved my Ford Ranger and it was my first truck ever. The Dodge gave me nothing but problems and I did not have it for long.

What I am looking for is a good used truck with plenty of space for myself, my wife, and our two young boys ages 2 and 4. I'd like to stay as close as I can to $6500 so you can imagine my choices are very limited. I don't have much money to keep up with costly repairs. Should I continue pursuing a Ford Sport Trac or does it sound like I am on the wrong tracks?

Any and all advise is welcome and I thank you in advance for your replies.

Thank You,

13rannon

 

[Sams01XplrSprt]

do u got pics of the sport trac

 

[13rannon]

 

[rmcalis]

The mpg stated would be exceptional, most STs get around 16 mpg city and 20 mpg highway. I would ask for some type of substantiation for the mileage stated. Also, I would ask for any maintenance records to back up the claims of the repairs made.

 

[John_Rock]

Yeah, I doubt that MPG is correct especially if it's a 4x4 model. The Explorer IFS 4x4 front end is a live axle that spins always and drags down the mileage.

 

[a351fan]

I have a 01 4x4 also and love it. I take good care of it and have put 31" tall tires on it and get on avg 15 mpg. The worst mpg I have gotten is 13 when towing and the best was 19 on the highway at 55 with the stock tires. The only issue I have had with mine is the windows in the rear don't always want to go down.

 

[13rannon]

How many miles do you guys have on your trucks?

With 124,000 on this one do you guys see anything big coming it's way?

Asking your opinions, I don't expect any of you to be able to look into the future.

BTW, I've got a new price @ $7000.00

 

[Sams01XplrSprt]

welcome i got 92,329 miles on my 01 sport 4x2 its not a sport trac just a 2 door sport.

nice sport trac u got there 13rannon

here r pics of my sport but they are hella hella old.

www.cardomain.com/id/sams01xplrsprt

 

[13rannon]

It's not mine yet. I'm still trying to convince myself to get it.

Have you ever had any problems with yours at 92k?

 

[jutgin]

You should worry about the tranny with this mileage...

 

[13rannon]

You should worry about the tranny with this mileage...

Eek, ya I have been thinking about that. I test drove it last night. It shifted into gear real smooth. He has double layer rubber in the cab. It sounds like you are driving a Prius down the road.

From park to drive it was smooth and take off and shifting you couldn't even tell. The only thing I was iffy about and I don't know if this is with all Sport Tracs, but it seemed like it took long to get up to road speed. I mean unless you fed it a good amount of gas.

Maybe I'm just use to 4 banger mini cars.

 

[Clusterpup]

Eek, ya I have been thinking about that. I test drove it last night. It shifted into gear real smooth. He has double layer rubber in the cab. It sounds like you are driving a Prius down the road.

From park to drive it was smooth and take off and shifting you couldn't even tell. The only thing I was iffy about and I don't know if this is with all Sport Tracs, but it seemed like it took long to get up to road speed. I mean unless you fed it a good amount of gas.

Maybe I'm just use to 4 banger mini cars.

Yeah you would want to take into account that the tranny may need to be rebuilt before you get to 200k thats for sure.

My truck is for my family to. I have a 2 and a 4 year old as well.

 

[N2FORD]

I can't believe the guy can claim that kind of gas mileage in hilly east TN. Mine gets 14-18 and less when I am pulling a trailer. Find one on another lot or come drive mine and test drive it to see how they compare. I work in west Knox.

 

[13rannon]

Are you selling yours? Have you had any problems with your 2001 4x4?

 

[N2FORD]

If the money was right it might be for sale. Mine has 78k on it with no problems. I put balljoints in it a few months ago. If you want to pursue mine PM me.

 

[brianjwilson]

Mileage is closer to 15-19mpg.
The transmission should be alright for a while, but to help keep it healthy it is a good idea to install a bigger transmission cooler. The most common early problem with the tranny is a slip "shift flare" between the 2-3 shift.
The sport trac can be pretty sluggish, but it has more to do with gearing. I'm betting that the one you drove has 3.73 gears in the axle. They are slow like that, I've driven a few. Mine came stock with 4.10's and it was much better.
Figure out what has been replaced up front. Upper/lower balljoints are common issues, so are outer tie-rod ends. Sway bar bushings and end links wear out often also. None of those things are a big deal if you work on it yourself.
Another common issue is the timing chain tensioner on the 4.0L SOHC. Listen for any timing chain rattle, especially when the engine is cold.

 

[13rannon]

Thanks for the info Brian.

Can the tensioner be adjusted externally? Or is it an inside job?

 

[John_Rock]

I think a lot of people that buy the older Sport Tracs sometimes end up with one that the owner realized the tranny was going out and dumped it at a dealership to get something else.

These transmissions will fail if they have been abused and not serviced. And daily driving in city traffic in hot weather is abuse. If the truck has mostly highway miles then its not an abused transmission.

Try to find out from the seller what kind of driving did the truck mostly do? City daily driving? or Highway?

My truck is over 9 years old with 90k+ miles. I need to do the transmission valvebody rebuild and replace the solenoids to fix the 2-3 flare. But, she still runs even with these problems. I have had a transmission temperature gauge on my truck for sometime. Mine tranny gets abused offroad.

Click the following link for a history of my truck...
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?&threadid=95827

 

[13rannon]

He lives in Powell and works at UT. He told me when I met him the first time that most of the miles were highway mileage.

Nice truck.

 

[John_Rock]

He lives in Powell and works at UT. He told me when I met him the first time that most of the miles were highway mileage.

Do you mean he lives in Page, Arizona and works in Utah? I assume this since Lake Powell is at Page, Arizona which is very close to the border of Utah. Nice place. I just watched a Bikini destination show last night on tv where they filmed and photographed the girls in and around Lake Powell.