Travis' 94 - The Culmination! | Page 4 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Travis' 94 - The Culmination!

Thanks for checking out my thread!

I've owned about a dozen 1st & 2nd gen Explorers over the last 8 years. I've done Dana 44's on a 1st gen, coilovers on a 2nd gen, uniball uppers, leveling kits, lift kits, fabricated a handful of front ends, shock hoops, bedcages, the list goes on and on. For my latest truck, I began my search towards the end of last summer & actually started out looking for a 2nd gen, (I really like the ones with the AC in the center console). Thankfully this truck was not needed as a daily driver, so I was able to take my time. I happen to stumble across this extremely clean 1st gen that reminded me so much of my favorite Explorer, which was also a white 94 with black wheels. I could not pass this truck up. Here in Southern California, these trucks are getting very, very tough to come by, and this was one of the cleanest 1st gens I have ever seen. Here are the specs:

1994 XLT
218,000 miles without a rear main leak, signs of a power steering leak, mostly clean oil pan & block, clean rear end & under carriage
4x4 - A4LD - Pushbutton 4x4 - Stock auto hubs
3.73 Limited Slip
Full power seats with lumbar & bolsters
A small additional lower exterior trim piece that seems to not be too common
31x10.50R15 Toyo AT knock offs on Pro Comp Series 51 steelies
Kenwood Deck with a pyle (o' ****) sub in the stock location


I'm 9 months behind on making this thread, and I have done A TON with this truck, so stay tuned for a lot of catching up!!!

Current pic
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Here are the photos from day 1 (October 13, 2019)
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Had the tires balanced and an alignment & made a quick run up into the mountains. I’m really happy with where it’s at right now. The suspension is very comfortable on the highway, but still firm enough to whip around corners. I can feel the progression in the rear shocks & already notice a big difference in its tendency to want to kick up the rear end on big bumps. It’s incredibly smooth & quiet in the dirt. I’ve eliminated almost every rattle & vibration in the interior, even on very choppy washboard roads. It’s just about time to start making some trips again! I did pick up a piece of 2x4 steel, so stay tuned for a custom bumper/spare tire carrier build.
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Looks great. You have any rubbing with those tires on the back of the front fenders? I trimmed mine off, then rolled the edges and touched it up with some spray paint. Luckily, our white is easy to match.

I couldn't get anything finished by yesterday. Daughter's Ranger blew the pressure line of the power steering and I still need to fix that. I am just getting over a three day tension headache. I get them from time to time due to a old neck injury. Only way to break the cycle is to knock myself out for 24 hours.
 






Yeah, definitely having some rubbing issues! Here’s last weekend’s trip. Full recap coming soon.
 






FST used to take their Trophy Truck to Plaster City for testing. That's also where they rolled the thing big time...

 












Here’s some pics of the rear bumper. It’s still a work in progress. I’ll be adding a recessed license plate mount, and probably a jack and fuel can mount, maybe a shovel. The tire hanging off the back is a 33x10.50R15.
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Very cool. We try to do the Mojave Road every few years. We take five days and spend a lot of time exploring the surrounding area. Last time we ran it it snowed for a day and part of that night up near Rock Spring. It was cold, but still a great time. Its good to see you out with your son enjoying the outdoors. Next time we go we are planning on spending two full days in the middle section of the trail as we already did that on both ends. Usually start on the east end near the Colorado River. Never lock the front hubs, but its a very good time.
 






Should probably throw in a few pics of some of the other updates. I revised my second front shock. The Fox's were too short, I knew it when I installed them, and yeah, I ripped them off the truck! So here is version 2.0 with Nissan Titan rear shocks. These have helped immensly & work almost as good as the Raptor shocks on the rear. Also did rotors and fresh set of locking hubs.

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With the Trasharoo, you are now officially a overlander.

Can you still use that front tow mount with the shock hoop right there? Most tow companies will not tow a vehicle if they can't use the OEM mounting points.
 






Yeah the Trasharoo put me over the top, I just can’t figure out why they drive so damn slow!

I honestly had no idea about those tow locations. Can’t say I’ve had a vehicle towed by a company more than 2 or 3 times in 20+ years, so I think my odds are pretty good.
 






Lucky, seems like I have mine towed home every 4-5 years. AAA to the rescue
 






Lucky, seems like I have mine towed home every 4-5 years. AAA to the rescue
Never said I didn’t get towed, lol! Just plenty of friends with flat bed trailers.
 












Damn, all that money spent on the 3/4 doors and all I needed was some lattice ! ! !

Great video, thanks for sharing. . .

Paul
 


















Overdue for some updates!
Had an awesome time over spring break with my son traveling almost 1500 miles through Arizona.
 



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That's cool. Could you post the locations of where you camped on the water. Funny how you have to go to a land-locked state to camp on water.
 






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