Should I trade my 2nd gen for 1st gen?

[RobWilJas]

I've got a 97 Mountaineer 5.0 AWD, it's a good vehicle but I've always liked the look of the first gens better, and I don't like the AWD. We recently sold our car and bought a suburban, so now my wife is commuting 40 miles a day in the Mountaineer. It gets about 14-15mpg for her commute. The Mounty has about 112k miles and runs good. It does have the typical cracked manifold and the steering rack leaks fluid pretty good. Also the guy I got it from had lost control in the snow and slid sideways into something and damaged the rear passenger door, so he replaced it with another color door and did a bad job trying to paint it. It also has a dent in the front fender but it's not bad.

So anyway I found a 94 Explorer that a guy seems interested in trading. It looks to be in good shape and shows 87k on the clock, which I'm sure is 187k. It's an automatic and 4wd. Only problems with it is the power locks aren't working and he said the CEL comes on sometimes and goes off by itself. So would this be a good trade? How's the reliability of the first gens? Should it do a little better on gas mileage for my wifes commute? Thanks everyone.

Here's a couple pics of mine:


and the 94 I'm looking at:

 

[Jason94sport]

so now my wife is commuting 40 miles a day in the Mountaineer.

No. I'd sell it & get something more gas friendly.
The auto trans in a 1st gen sucks. So does the engine when your coming from a V8.
It's not going to be much better on gas. And it's going to ride worse given the different suspension.
I love 1st gens, but you have to weigh the factors.

 

[Varsity]

I don't think you'll be seeing too much of a difference in gas mileage between the two, if any. But when trading or buying with someone, there's always those little problems that could sprout up that may make you think twice about the purchase. Kinda risky, but if you're up for it, do it!

BTW, that is one nice looking '94.

 

[FIND]

I'd get a car, you already have a vehicle large enough to haul things.

If you trade, you are trading into a vehicle that may come with hidden problems, might get better gas mileage, probably not though, and is honestly worth less if you want to get something different in the future.

 

[RobWilJas]

Thanks guys. You've pretty much said what I was already thinking. My only problem with getting a car is it has to be a big car because I'm 6'6" tall and need to be able to drive it too. Also I have a bad back and it's hard to get into something low to the ground. A full size car would work though.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Crown Vic. 18 city, 25 hwy. Good mileage for a full size car.

 

[RobWilJas]

Crown Vic. 18 city, 25 hwy. Good mileage for a full size car.

That's exactly what I've been looking at lol. I'm just inpatient and this guy was interested in trading lol. I guess I'll just sell the Mounty.

Thanks again everyone.

 

[FIND]

Bonneville, 30 highway, I am 6'2 and of very large build, and I have oodles of room in them

 

[2TimingTom]

3 words: Lincoln. Town. Car.

It's like the Crown Vic, but more comfortable.

 

[Spdrcer34]

There is NO REASON to trade straight across a 2nd Gen AWD 5.0L for a 1st Gen V6...The Mileage is almost the same, with the V8 getting a better 'average' mileage than the V6. And the reliability of the 1st Gen's Transmissions are nowhere near that of the 4R70W.

Ryan

 

[Kamel]

guess it's up to you really. expect to get anywhere from 16-22mpg on the explorer highway (mine gets 16, but i hear others get better and mine got 18 when i first got it).

As far as vehicles go, the first gen is very reliable in my experience, so long as you haven't found one that's been driven like it was stolen. Unfortunately, that's a tough find for these cars. Seems as though the demographic for explorers are the type that tend to treat their car poorly, or just push it to its very limit in abilities which is fine but not if you're looking for dependability.

From my research and understanding, the crown vic has some exceptional reliability. Being that it's a long running series of cars and is used a lot commercially, a lot of the 'bugs' have been ironed out, and many common issues are known with the car. Another thing to consider with the crown vic is if it is a surplused vehicle (police car, security car, etc) and if it's an interceptor model. Both of these may have been rode hard and put up wet, so I would take great caution getting either. The best crown vic to buy would be one from an old person somewhere (very popular car with the old people) who didn't have a police car complex.

I honestly wouldn't go for a crown vic if you're looking for fuel efficiency. There are plenty of full sized vehicles which are more practical and more fuel efficient. I'm having trouble coming up with a specific recommendation, but I would recommend exploring all of your options first. If you like a powerful full size vehicle made by ford though, i completely understand. after all, my new vehicle is a ford fiesta and ford can credit 100% of the sale to the reliability of my 1st gen explorer.

final note, especially when it comes to purchasing a new vehicle, please consider the impact your purchase has on the economy. if we as americans want to rise up again as the greatest country on earth, we're gonna have to stop buying so many foreign products.

 

[RobWilJas]

Thanks everyone for your responses. I'm going to pass on the Explorer. I was already strongly considering a Crown Victoria and I think I'm going to try to find one. They seem to be priced pretty good around here. I know I definitely don't want an ex cop car or taxi though so I don't want a P71, I want an LX. I'm also looking at Caprices and my wife likes the Dodge Intrepid but I haven't researched those yet. Like I said I'm just impatient to get something so I was considering it lol. Thanks for talking me out of it.

 

[Jason94sport]

3 words: Lincoln. Town. Car.

Had a 88. Thing was a tank. I literally ran into a brick wall, & it dented the bumper. Had no brakes one night at all, hence the brick wall. All my friends would abuse the thing. Hoped curbs like they were not there. Kept asking for more. Sold it to a friend & used that $ as partial for my 1st B2.

 

[mr cribb]

Thanks everyone for your responses. I'm going to pass on the Explorer. I was already strongly considering a Crown Victoria and I think I'm going to try to find one. They seem to be priced pretty good around here. I know I definitely don't want an ex cop car or taxi though so I don't want a P71, I want an LX. I'm also looking at Caprices and my wife likes the Dodge Intrepid but I haven't researched those yet. Like I said I'm just impatient to get something so I was considering it lol. Thanks for talking me out of it.

Dodge Intrepid WAS a good car when it first came out. They were larger (95-98) than the newest ones (99-04 <--?). The later models that had the 2.7 v6 was straight crap... If you ever thought the 1st gen explorer auto trans had issues... the dodge 2.7 v6 ran away with the title of the worst issues. The oil pumps in the engine randomly fail resulting in complete engine rebuild/ replacement. I know of a few too many people that had the Intrepid engine issue. Dodge didn't catch on the problem until 03, finally resolving the problem in 06 (I think). I read a big article on it because I had a Chrysler 300 w/ the 2.7 v6, had no issues with it, but the car was an 09 model. I googled 2.7 v6 reliability before buying the Chrysler 300 to get my info.

The first gen Intrepid had the 3.3 or 3.5 DOHC v6. I haven't heard of many issues with either of these engines, the cars are usually still running very well, and are pretty cheap to acquire. My parents had 96 w/ 3.3 and it was a really good car minus my mom complaining about the 4 doors (she's a 2 door car person). My dad got it because he is 6'1" and has long legs therefore was a comfy ride for him. They sold it in 98 (w/ 36k) to a lady that wrecked her 95 Intrepid, and she's still driving it to this day.

To sum it up the newer Intrepid would be almost a waste of your time as far as reliability goes, but that's only my opinion.

 

[HeavyFoot]

40 miles a day isn't bad...

I'd keep the Mounty, fix the issues and switch to manual 4x4 transfer case.. gas mileage will easily equal a first gen then. The AWD system robs power and economy big time.

My dad's Mounty has 190k on with zero issues other than needing the TC replaced at 150k.

 

[FIND]

40 miles a day isn't bad...

I'd keep the Mounty, fix the issues and switch to manual 4x4 transfer case.. gas mileage will easily equal a first gen then. The AWD system robs power and economy big time.

My dad's Mounty has 190k on with zero issues other than needing the TC replaced at 150k.

If one removes the AWD transfer case, one must also switch front ends from the AWD diff to one that can engage or disengage the axles, otherwise you are not gaining anything.

 

[Jason94sport]

To sum it up the newer Intrepid would be almost a waste of your time as far as reliability goes, but that's only my opinion.

The 3.5L HO ones were ok. Same drivetrain from the 300M. I had a 300M for a few years & didn't have 1 problem with it.

 

[RobWilJas]

40 miles a day isn't bad...

I'd keep the Mounty, fix the issues and switch to manual 4x4 transfer case.. gas mileage will easily equal a first gen then. The AWD system robs power and economy big time.

My dad's Mounty has 190k on with zero issues other than needing the TC replaced at 150k.

I have nowhere that I can do that kind of a project. Also on my 97 the speed sensor is in the T/C rather than the rear end, so I would have to swap out the rear end for one that has the speed sensor in order to have a working speedometer. I just don't want to get into that.

If one removes the AWD transfer case, one must also switch front ends from the AWD diff to one that can engage or disengage the axles, otherwise you are not gaining anything.

The AWD uses the same front end as the 4x4's. After 96 I believe it was they stopped putting in an axle disconnect. Even though the front axle will still be turning, disconnecting it at the T/C does help a little with milage. My biggest complaint and my wifes as well is that the AWD makes the front end feel heavy. It doesn't steer nearly as easy as it could if the front axle were disengaged.

 

[RobWilJas]

Thanks guys with the info on the intrepids. If I got one it would probably be from the early to mid 90's.

 

[BrianDye]

I say Crown Vic too! Get an 03+ though, they got rid of the Poopy steering system, and got a rack/pinion. They also moved the shocks to the outside of the frame that year and i believe went from dual tube, to mono tube.

Or better yet, get a Marauder