2003 FORD EXPLORER good option?

MYMYTPAJ,
I am not an expert on Explorers, but I think you will find it a far different animal to the aussie Falcon.

Developed for the US market with V6 (not inline) and V8 engines, the chassis and suspension is not the same.
You would pick up one cheap though as they are now a bit of an orphan.
Cheers

They are not called EXPLODERs for no reason.

G'day all, I have only heard of them as a "Ford Exploder" as well as they give trouble as they get older, check with your mechanic or RAC club - if it's not a Toyota it's not worth buying! You get what you pay for - if you don't pay much, you dont get much, they are always a lot cheaper. regards, dingo

They were called "Exploders" because of the Firestone tyre blowout issue. After Ford ditched Firestone, there were no more problems.... it's not really that hard to switch tyre brands. That one problem was only with the previous shape Explorer too (prior to 2001. They are a pretty good car, inexpensive, roomy in all 3 rows and pretty reliable and comfortable to drive. The re-design for 2001? 2002? Gave awesome improvements including IRS, which not only makes it more comfortable, but it's the main reason there is so much legroom in the 3rd row, and fold flat seats, which the solid axle didn't allow for. My only quarrel with the Explorer is you cannot shift the transfer case to a true 2wd, which means it uses a bit more fuel than it needs to on the road (AWD), But it does have AWD, 4x4 Hi, and 4x4 Lo. I recommend just taking one for a drive and seeing if YOU like it.

Some one will correct me if I'm wrong but dont you have to take the engine out to replace the timing chain as its at the back of the block. Believe they are also rather thirsty.

We were previous Exploder owners, the following problem that none of which Ford was interested in fixing even though they were recalls in the US.
Ford said that the Australia car was a different car the only difference being that the steering wheel was on the right hand side.
The following problem was in 10 months the car had 50,000 klm on the clock at the start and 85,000 we we got rid of it.
1 Broken timing chain $3600
2 Problems with mixer body $600
3 Climate control running hot and cold $3,200 to fix a $30 valve, dash had to come out.
4 Tyres because two tyres had been changed before the recall they would not replace them,
5 Total cost of repairs nearly $8,000 plus lost $6,000 on the value of the car when sold.
Ford was not interested in any of the problems.
So after buying Fords for a fleet we ran but after the Exploder Ford no more.
Don't buy an Exploder
Regards
Ted

if you dont mind spending about $4k to do a head gasket in them go for it! LOL

Thanks to all you concerned folks,, in particular Ted,, I think that was precisely what i was digging for,, I appreciate all your time & comments,, thank you.

I was always intrigued at the way they sat on the road - low at the back, unladen. Don't recall seeing one loaded up; would not have been a good look. Ford seemed to overlook some design basics with that one.

John.