How old is too old?

[ExplorerTom]

It's no secret these 1st gens are getting up there in age. Some of the 1997 model year trucks will be turning 20 years old very soon. And with age comes issues- whether it be from parts wearing out or parts being impossible to find or who knows what......

And with age comes miles. Mine just rolled over 201,000 miles. I've never owned a vehicle with this many miles. I had a car once with 197,000 miles and it couldn't be trusted outside of the city for fear of breaking down.

My Expedition is pretty solid still aside from the odometer display not always working (I just removed it and soldered the back- may need to do it again), the front passenger door lock not always unlocking with the remote (the door rocker switch seems to get it to unlock), the rear wiper not working (plastic gears are stripped- needs a new motor), and some hail damage (just cosmetic) are the only real nagging things. The motor and trans seem to be working just fine. Rust isn't a concern- the trailing links have some but I could probably sell them to someone in the Rust Belt and they would be thrilled with their condition.

This is something I've been thinking about for awhile as I've neared the 200,000 mile mark. Are the age and mileage issues just all in my head? Or is it silly to hold onto this thing? Should I keep it for awhile? But at what point do you throw in the towel? I know there's several examples of these trucks (Expedition/F150/E-series) that have racked up tons of miles. I can handle most of the maintenance on my own- internal motor work and transmission rebuilds are beyond my skill set. And I really love not having a monthly payment. Even getting 12-14 mpg, it would take the cost of gas to be around $20/gal to break even with a $30,000 truck at 5 years and 5% that got 17 mpg (yes, I've done the math).

I've got a few ideas to spend some money on this thing to make it more enjoyable- nothing too crazy but the dollar amount does add up quickly. The question is: should I?

Anyone else wrestle with this with their older, high mileage Expeditions (or other vehicles)?

 

[1955moose]

Well if it's any help, early 4.6/5.4 engines have been known to go 350k and beyond. Transmission, well that's another story. If you change fluid every 30 k and don't tow or hot rod it? At least with your own vehicle, you kinda know what you have. Parts/ labor done. At this point, I'd say keep it, see how things go over next year. If anything major happens, then you can dump it. It's always tough making decisions on something that's part of the family. We get emotionally attached , just like our pets.


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[Mark Smith]

I just took possession of a 98 model w/150K on the clock.

approx. $2K spent in getting back up to ***** after sitting for about 2 years before I got it. seems to run just fine; solid enough to put my teenage daughter in since she walked away from a wreck this summer in our 05 Suburban. no more small cars for me! on your door lock problem, I just sprayed all the insides of the mech in the door with silicone spray and got it working again.

yep, we do get attached to our wheels. daughter named the Exp "Baloo" after the bear on "Jungle Book", so the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!
Mark

 

[1955moose]

I call mine the green giant! With the 20 inch wheels and lift, it is pretty imposing coming at you.


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[stamp11127]

By the title I thought you were asking about women........

Enlarge your skill set and parts availability will become the issue. I'm working on a VW Passat tdi that has 246000 on the clock. As long as I can afford and source parts for it she will keep going on down the road.

 

[1955moose]

My cutoff used to 50 with women, but that was when I was 40. These days 70 is ok as long as her lower ball joints don't creak!


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[ExplorerTom]

I think short of (major) engine or transmission issues, I'll keep driving it.

 

[1955moose]

I would. I like old things. Cars and trucks from 1940- 1954 are my faves!


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[tcwaltz]

Frankly I'm a little past the new car stage. Its nice to not to have to work on something to keep it running, but when I look at the cost of new vehicles its depressing. I probably could have found a better expedtion than the one I got and right now I have about 6500 in it, but overall its in good running order now. I suspect I may need to replace the transmission or have it rebuilt at some point since it has 249,000 miles on it and the PO was ok about maintenance. Mostly this was a highway vehicle. I've replaced so much stuff on it that is almost new. Swapping out the radio for one with all the bells and whistles with navigation. I have a 2015 Explorer XLT that is a really nice car. I say car because its really a car, front wheel drive not much about is is truck other than its look. However, while it drives great its had some fit and finish issues since day one.

For the Expy I got a long block from Promar engines. I highly recommend them and while the engine swap took me some time, I'd really have no issues doing another one. Especially knowing the things I know now. The good thing with these engines is there really isn't anything to do other than hook everything up. No timing, no points adjustments. Just plug everything back in, crank it to get some oil pressure then start it up.

 

[eluther3]

funny you should ask because I just asked myself the same question. The odometer on my 97 stopped working at 223,000 and that was about 3 years ago. Recently bought a boat, so I had to decide whether to replace it.

Took the car to a mechanic for a compression test and the motor is still strong, so I've decided to hold on to it. I've put in new plugs and coils and a new fuel pump. Will do a performance exhaust and MAF next and may have to do a transmission rebuild. However, at the end of the day, I'll spend about $3-5K, compared to $40-50K for a new truck, or $10K for a good used truck (which may come with it's own problem)