New Owner of a 2001 Explore Sport

[mrnecsteve]

I lucked out today. I picked up a "cherry" 2001 Explorer with 53800 mles on it.
Every thing about this SUV seems as though its only a couple years old. The paint ,the interior,the engine and compartment....everything !
I did notice a couple minor quirks while test driveing it....it steered a little "squirley" . After I made the deal (8100.00) I checked the tires.
One new front tire at 40 pounds of pressure,the other at 29...and the two
back ones at 20 pounds.Fixing that took care of the squirelyness! The drive home revealed another issue. A god awful rattle. Every minor bump, I heard this rattle ....coming from under the center console. Really annoying. I suspect it has something to do with the installation of the aftermarket Sony CD player. Judgeing from the rattle,Ive got to wonder if the installer left his screwdriver or SOMETHING under the console? I will find out tomorrow....hopefully. (Ive got to find out why the previous owner let this truck go?)
This vehicle is my third Explorer,and my second 2001 sport. I had to get another vehicle PDQ as my wife's Contour was ripped of and recovered (on its roof on monday) She picked it out ...and she likes it a lot. Maybe our luck has gotten better?

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum!

 

[1Aauto]

Welcome to the site

 

[Crutchfield Vlad]

Good luck with the new ride. Welcome to the forum. Hopefully the Sony deck is still in good shape.

 

[Govna47]

welcome to the site and good luck with your new truck!

 

[mrnecsteve]

Thanks for the welcomes. Ive been busy today. Fixed the rattle in the console. It turns out that the stereo is a Sonic...not a Sony....and the external plug in wires were dangleing onto the air duct. Easy fix .

I then started to work on a front suspension clunk. While going over bumps, i would hear a clunk on the passengers side. The rest of the trick is quiet, so the clunk stood out. The front end is still tight ,so it didnt make sense. I sat down on a stool with an aluminum head hammer and started tapping away and then I found it...the big clue as to why the previous owner probably dumped the truck. It had like new brakes on it,i noticed. Unfortunately, the installer FORGOT to put the caliper retaining bolts back in ....both bolts . What an idiot! I checked the other side ok. Tomorrow I will be checking the rear brakes.
Can you imagine how this could have turned out?