SCARY accident story and a couple questions

[willfield2]

wow got quite a story to tell so bear with me....I am dropping off a friend of mine who lives maybe 15 minutes from my house so I take the beltway (I live in DC area). I am driving about 60-65, nothing real dangerous but then I see a ridiculous amount of brake lights ahead of me (they were repaving 2 lanes of the 4 lane beltway) so I start to causually ease on the brakes. While doing this I notice that I am not getting the normal amount of decceleration that I normally get so I start to press the brake firmer. I keep pressing all the way to the floor but I am getting minimal resistance and have only been slowed to I'm guessing 50-55 mph. At this point I am kinda paniced so I start repumping the brake repeatidly all the way to the floor....to hardly any avail. Now I was going roughly 40 mph and I had maybe 7-8 car lengths till I slam the back of the car ahead of me. I try the brakes one last time to no avail so I quickly downshift into 1st gear (ouch...it's an automatic too) and slam on the emergancy brake while I vier off to the left shoulder (I was in fast lane when brakes went out)....I'm thinking this is my last resort to slamming the back of this guy. When I did it I start bouncing off the rev-limiter like crazy and I am starting to turn sideways....Luckily I was able to manuever the car to the shoulder(barely a shoulder, was about the size of a friggin bike path) w/o plowing the guy in front of me, I did however side-swipe the front-left of my car on the concrete barrier but I could have cared less because the car was stopped and I was safe.....I was real shaken up and I immediatley called a tow truck. I was towed to the local Merchants station, and they wanted to give me an estimate on the brakes and body work....I laughed and said just the brakes pal, no body work...I could care less how the paint looks. It was seriously one of the scariest moments of my life and I hope no one here EVER has to experience it. The brakes had barely any prior symptoms so I was puzzled. Two days later (today) I get an estimate for pretty much an entire new brake system. They said that the reason for the brake failure was a faulty brake master cylinder and worn down brake pads. There are also some other components that I am going to need to buy like rotors and brake lines...so I am pretty much going to need an entire new brake system. The estimate was $1739 parts and labour. HOLY CRAP thats a lot. I only have about 600 in my bank so I would have to put all my summer net wages into this brake repair. But on the other hand the friggin car is worth $2300. I could just as easy buy another crappy 91 explorer. I went home thinking this in mind and I told my mother that I would just buy another explorer and part-out the old one. Her response to me was "How about I buy you a new explorer, a 98 or something?" So something good actually came out of the incident...I am getting a new explorer! My question is what newer model years should I look for? Is the suspension better on 98+ models? Is it worth it performance-wise to go V8 rather than V6? I am pretty set on getting a Black, preferably eddie bauer. Keep in mind I have a spending stipend of 15 G's. Tell me what you think I should get?


Thanks for reading and for any responses!

-Will

 

[leenjen]

Originally posted by willfield2
Is it worth it performance-wise to go V8 rather than V6

i think the SOHC V-6 has almost as much hp as the V-8, but the OHC V-6 has more available mods and is more reliable. it's all a matter of preference. if you want to keep it stock and have more power than the OHC, but better gas mileage than the V-8, than the SOHC is for you. why not test drive a few, and see what you like.

good thing you're ok from the accident.

 

[ntrpriz]

You most likely will not get an essie bauer for 15G unless you luck out.

You wont be able to life a 98 or newes more than 2 inches due to the new front suspension.

I would go with the SOHC V6, its better than the V8, unless you want to tow aa lot.

Make sure its the SOHC and not the OHV. The SOHC has more horse power. To determine this, check the 8th digit in the VIN number. If its an E then its the SOHC.

Good Luck.

 

[RFR2212]

I'd say get a v-8 if possible....Lots more mods available for the motor than the V-6....As for suspension, a 98 or newer can easily be lifted more than 2 inches....the have the 3in body lift, as well as the Trailmaster and upcomming superlift 4in suspension lift. they're made for the ranger, but are easily adapted to the explorers.
Pete

 

[Robert]

Actually Trailmaster already has their 4" suspension lift kit out for the '98-'01 Explorers.

 

[ok89]

that lift is only for 4x4s right?

 

[espnfreak]

wow scary story, no brake failure. i would go with the v-8. you can get a boatload more power if you supercharge it. also with the v-8 you'll have not to worry about the cam problems with the sohc. with the v-8 you can tow more and get a little worse gas mileage. but its all worth it, i wish i went with an 8, but now i'm thinking about scrappin my car or droppin a 8 in mine

 

[n2knee]

SOHC V6 or the OHV V8 are both fine engines. The V8 is the unanimous choice for towing and the SOHC V6 for four-wheeling. Both engines are versatile--the v8 is also capable of being driven off-raod---the sohc v6 is also capable of towing some serious weight.

You mentioned that your budget is 15Gs. You may have diffuculty finding a '98 and up EB Explorer for that price especially a V8. But who knows until you try to search. I've noticed that the depreciation amount of the Explorer have been accelerated since the Crapstone fiasco, so another positive sign for you. Broaden your search. There are various places on the net where you can look for used vehicles within your budget. http:www.autobytel.com ; http://www.yahoo.com (classified adds) ; http://www.vehix.com.

As far as reliability issues are concerned, I cannot say the v8 is more reliable than the sohc v6. I don't have any facts to back-up this claim. I do know the ff facts though:

1.) The OHV 302 V8 has been around for a while now. It's been proven reliable. Lots of aftermarket performance goodies available for this engine. But it's not bulletproof. I have heard from blueovalnews.com that the 2000-2001 model year v8 have some issues.

2.) The v8's horsepower is almost identical to the sohc v6, but since the v8 displaces more ci it produces more torque.

3.) The soch v6 had a cam tensioner problem in the 97 model year (is this the correct model year?). It appears to have been fixed.

gotta get back to work now......

 

[Petech]

Go with a 1998+ explorer (for the better and slightly easier to modify suspension). Try to find a SOHC; they have a lot more power than the OHV although the OHV is easier to modify.