thinking of buying

[john bardunias]

thinking about buying a 2003 explorer trac. don't know much about them, have had decent luck with fords ad the v6. wondering what i should beware of. any info will be appreciated.

its a 2003 good condition, one leaf spring shackle needs to be replaced, seller taking care of it.

i can pick it up for about $3500.

 

[Johnny O]

Main weak spot is the transmission. If it has been flushed every 30,000 miles as per the manual it will be less troublesome but hardly anyone knows to do that. Of course on an '03 it may have been rebuilt already.

Look for rust around the radiator support and the bottom door seams.

Ball joints and front wheel bearings tend to be short-lived especially on 4wd models but they all do that.

On '01-'-05 Gen 1 models the shocks were junk even when new so unless they've been replaced already you will be much happier with new ones.

Otherwise they're anvils and will run forever with normal maintenance and fluid changes. Best thing to do when buying a used one is to change ALL the fluids. Oil, coolant, tranny, t-case, axles, everything.

 

[swshawaii]

Good info Johnny, but don't know where you came up with the 30k interval for the 5R55E. Every scheduled maintenance guide I've seen says a ridiculous 150k.

 

[Vic Sorlie]

I see you live in NY. As the car you're looking at is prolly from that region I'd recommend you spend a little money for a PPI - and have a look at underside yourself while it's on the lift. The road salt will have wreaked havoc. Search this forum for body mount replacement; the ones on this Trac are probably toast unless they've been replaced. +1 on JohnnyO's comment on transmission. I'm on my third Trac (Gen1, Gen2 V6, Gen2 V8) and consider regular trans fluid changes essential to avoid expensive surprises.

 

[ZoNiE]

Funny, I have never replaced the shocks in my '01 and at 130K it still seems to be OK. May have something to do with being an Arizona truck. I've owned it since nearly new.



I do plan on replacing them soon...