I thought I remembered that from your window sticker. For that kind of money, one would be far better off purchasing an ESP powertrain warranty. If I'm not mistaken, they could wait until 60K when the retail powertrain warranty runs out and then add another 100K+ of ESP powertrain for a lot less than $3K.
It always sucks when there are "known issues" with things, but there are only a few options:
1. acknowledge issues and not purchase
2. lease and return prior to warranty expiration
3. purchase vehicle/maintain it/reserve for emergencies
4. hedge their risk by purchasing an ESP.
Waiting around and hoping for a company/manufacturer to do the right thing isn't really an option...
You are absolutely correct. You have to be accountable and responsible in this day and age. There is no free lunch.
My advice to anyone about to purchase (not lease) a 4wd explorer is to do their homework regarding the transfer case/PTU. This is a nonservicable part that needs to be serviced by the wary consumer, in my opinion, unless Ford has changed their design.
It should be drained and filled every 20k miles (max), in my opinion. Find a mechanic that will do this job for you, if the Ford dealership says that it does not need to be serviced.
Specifically ask your technician about the PTU case when doing routine oil changes- and signs of boiling out/oil leaks.
Find an oil with a high temperature rating.
If you see heavy oil drops on your garage floor, then act immediately before the bearings lose lubrication and the PTU explodes. The oil is already boiling out of the unit, sticking to the undercarriage of your car, then dripping down on the floor. It will be thick. It will smell awful. You are on borrowed time, and may be too late already. Check youtube if you are curious about what happens if you let your guard down - it is well documented!
Why does this happen? Good luck on finding the answer on that one.
Rotate your tires every 7k miles, or you may strain this unit.
And I would change the transmission fluid at 60k miles.
Or you can just repair the parts as they fail, using the Ford fluid interval recommendations. One may expect to incur a total PTU repair with every tire change if one were to go this route, from my personal experience.
The above is just my opinion, of course. Good luck!