I do not follow this thread too much, but, my wife is wanting an EXP'Y.

I have decided to purchase a used model. I have been looking anywhere from a 98 to an 05.

I have a 98 F-150 with a 4.6 and love it.

I want to know what I should look for or try to stay away from.

Praise it, bash it, I don't care. I just want my money to be spent wisely. I myself would rather just have a 4 door F-150, but, the women normally get the last word, RIGHT?

LOL

Let it fly!

 

Personally, I'd search for a really clean 98 - 02. They seem to hold up much better then the redesigned Expy's. We have an 04 NBX Expy, that has been in/out of the dealer's service department since new. The only saving grace on this truck has been the extended warranty. But on the plus side, it sure drives nice.

Good luck finding one to make her happy.

 

I agree. 2000 is a good year IMO. Don't get one with load leveling suspension unless it has been replaced recently. Have the tranny checked as well.

 

We bought my wife a used 2004 Eddie Bauer back in July with 32,xxx miles on it. We just rolled 36,000 this weekend coming back from my parents house. Truck rides great and is very comfortable. Has the DVD player in it which is great for the kids (4 yr old and 18 month old). The only complaint I have with it is the 4.6. I told her when she was looking at it that it would be a dog going up into the mountains around here. The 4.6 just isn't enough motor in my opinion. If you can find one with a 5.4 in it, get it. Love the truck, just hate the motor.

Chris

 

Yea, I'm definitely looking for the 5.4. I have a 4.6 in my 2wd F-150 and it does good, but, is sluggish in the hills. I think the 5.4 will be better for the weight of the EXPY.

Good to hear nothing too scary as of yet. LOL

Thank's

 

Be prepared to use some gas! But if you're coming from Deutchland, you're used to spending alot on gas. We love our 2005 and haven't had any serious issues with it. We have had to replace all 4 axle seals though. I would personally look for an 05.

 

Gas seems to be kind of hit and miss with us. My wife averages about 15-15.5 mpg for her daily driving. I was averaging 18.5 mph (according to the computer) for our 550 mile trip which took 8 hrs 20 minutes to my parents house. This went anywhere from 1,300' to 7,800' in elevation.

Chris

 

Yea, fuel mileage really doesn't bother me too much. Don't get me wrong, I want to make sure I get all I can out of the vehicle I get, but, that is the price you pay for having the more room in the vehicle.

Your not kidding about prices for fuel over here. It takes the bigger part of 100 EURO to fill my tank. That equals out to about 140$ with the way the dollar is now.

Thanks everyone and keep the posts coming. I have a little time before I actually buy, so, I want to learn as much as I can.

 

I have an '06 and it been pretty good to me. I've had it just over a year. I got it with just under 20k.

If you want the power to pull that beast around I would reccomend the '05 becaus I believe that's the year they went with the 24 valve 5.4. Don't get me wrong, I think the 4.6 is a great motor but I personally like my vehicle to have a bit of get up and go.

I get horrible fuel economy, but I don't drive in a economical manner. Fortunately I don't drive it that often (it's got about 26k right now) so the price if fuel doesn't hurt so much.

My past two trucks were regular cab short beds, so this Expy feels like a huge behemoth. I'm considering doing something with the suspension to make it "feel" more nimble.

 

I love our 05.

 

I got it used w/ 28Kmiles. Had a few minor things to fix - plastic switch, the rear ac blend door. No major mechanical problems at all. Very reliable, very comfortable and nice to drive.

With the stock 4.6 and tranny, i found it was kinda dawgy to drive on the highway especially if you had to get up and go. I have added the following - Troyer 93 Performance tune on Xcal2, AF1 cold air intake, dual FAL e-fans. Hoping to add an underdrive pulley set.

With these mods it moves very nicely and has nice power. MPG is about 14 in town in winter, 16ish on hwy. In summer, about 15.5 in town, 17.5 - 19 hywy. Hoping the UD pulleys will add 1-2 mpg and about 10-15 hp.

FYI - I like the look and the raised stance of the pre-2003 models. Look more like a truck. the 2003+ seems to be redesigned for ladies. However, of greater interest to me was the folding 3rd row seat. In the pre 03's, the rear seat folds but occupies the entire wayback. In the 03+, the rear seat folds flat into the bed, making a very spacious rear cargo area in a jiffy. Fold the 2nd row seats down and you have a downright big cube back there.

Also, the 3rd row seats are very comfortable to sit in. Not jammed in there.

All in all I really like the 03. Plan on keeping it a while, especially with all the troubleshooting help available at this board.

The 4.6 isn't a bad motor at all, just needs a little tweeking.

 

1998- Look out for the leaky head gaskets on the 4six. Also things like leaky oil lines and axle seals. Just about the only realy issue I have with my truck

 

130k on my '98 and I love it. The only things I've had to replace so far are the IAC and heater core. It has a small exhaust manifold leak on the passenger side, but until it gets worse I'm leaving it as is. I haven't really had any complaints with the 4.6, but all I tow is a 16' carhauler w/ 3 atv's (@ 3500 lbs.).

Once my youngest gets out of day-care next May ($400 a month ), I'll probably look for a newer Expy...'05 up.

 

The worst thing about the '98 to '02 Expy's are the spark plugs that "pop" out and take the coil packs with them. Not an inexpensive fix. I would stay with the '04 and up used models. Probably the '05 and up are better since you have the 24 valve motors.

And the brakes on these things cost a bunch to fix too. Ford says the rotors cannot be turned and have to be replaced each time you do the brakes...every 20,000 miles or so. People have trouble with warping, etc. I replaced my pads at 20,000 (didn't touch the rotors) and now have about 40,000 miles. I've had no trouble with pulsating or warped rotors, but plan to upgrade in the near future.

Also, my son's '00 is on his third tranny. Once he upgraded the internals he has had no further problems.

 

From my post name you can figure that I already have one. In the North East almost every 1 in 10 SUV's that I see is a 97-99 Ford Expedition of some type.
I have the 4.6Ltr and that engine was put in these trucks by some very optimistic engineers at Ford. If you look up the horse power specifications for these engines you can't believe that something this weak sucks so much gas.
A few things that help me out was removing the restrictive air filter, and exhaust system and installing aftermarket systems. I made what has been described as a "cold air intake" by removing the filter "bong" and installing a low restriction filter. I removed all of my "cat-back" system and added a Flow-Master Muffler, and 2.5" stainless steel channeling.
I know that really helped this unit over the OEM that had came with the truck. I had added an aftermarket supercharger as a test. Very good initial results, but my SC had internal problems not related to the engine. The system was recently removed the system for service and will reinstall it possibly in the spring. Supercharging the 4.6 Ltr. really wakes up the system;hopefully without damaging the transmission.
The dealer sold me the truck with a bum E4OD transmission which was replaced with an upgraded "Jet-Trans" replacement.
Good Luck