What to look for when buying a gen 1 expy

[luther]

So many choices

Hello,
New to the site and have a few questions.
I currently own a 1980 Bronco and am considering a 1st gen expy, or a 96 bronco as a replacement.

My concerns are fuel milage, specifically if I run 32" BFG's (which I have currently).
So far from what Ive read most folks are geting between 13 & 15 avg. As this would be my DD fuel costs are a deciding factor.
Yes I understand that all my choices are in the "truck" catagory and expect milage to suit, just trying to be sure Ill be improving MPG over my current ride.

Any recomendations will help.

 

[Ex0r]

I've got a 97 EXPY with 270,000 miles on it and i'm getting about 13.8 mpg according to my over head display.

 

[eihcirbikes17]

DO NOT WASH ENGINE BAY!!!!!!!!!!! The rust on the inside bottom of doors is a big one. When washing, power wash in there and leave doors open to dry to prevent further damage. My rear wiper stopped working which seems to be a common problem. I get a little water in my fogs if I've been playing around in some puddles. I have to pull the bulbs and put a couple moisture catchers in. Also be careful with the stock subwoofer in the EB's, blew mine in 20 minutes of owning the car -___-

 

[bnegaard]

Problem areas

I bought mine used about t 1/2 years ago and immediately went through it and made the following repairs:
1- Upper and lower ball joints-if the front tires squat out at the bottom (a w appearance from the front) your ball joints are shot. Not a difficult repair and not all that expensive-my experience with Ford trucks over the years is that you get no more than 100k out of them.
2- Tie Rods- if you can turn your steering more than about 1/2" without the tires moving you probably need tie rods-a good check is to get underneath and see if you can rotate the tie rods by hand-pretty much if they rotate at all(wheels straight ahead) they are done-they should be tight. Again not an expensive fix-do it with the ball joints and then take it to Firestone or the like and get a lifetime alignment-then whenever you mess with it they will re-align for free (Worked for me)
3- If you have an early Expy and the transmission was not replaced under warranty I would be suspect. They were famous for going out-I am sure someone knows more than I do about this issue.
4- Rear wiper-that setup sucks. I bought a new arm from Rockauto.com and bolted it down-has worked so far but you need to check it, A LOT. If it is not storing correctly-make sure you adjust it. The motor is not that expensive so Its not a deal breaker.
5- I put new EGR valves all the way around. I do this when I buy a sued car with more than 100k. Its worth the investment-you will save gas and trouble later-Bosch has rebates on these all the time.
6- There are minor trim problems but you can sort them out without too much effort. The one that kills me is the dang overdrive button trim. It was gone when I bought it. I replaced it but it fell off again. I think I will hot glue it on next time.
7- About the mileage-I get around 14 or so and not a whole lot better on the highway. Bigger tires will reduce this (anything that adds weight to the drivetrain will lower your mileage). The best advice I can give on this is keep the tires as close to stock as you can and dont put much on it in the way of roof rack or outside add ones. These will all affect your mileage. I have a Jetta TDI that gets about 550miles to a tank. I left a Yakima Rack on for a couple of tanks and reduced my mileage to under 500 a tank. Essentially 10% or so. You may not notice that you went from 14.3 to 13.2 or may think it was just the way you drove but that adds up over time. At $4 per gallon you are losing 40 cents per gallon or $$$$ per tank.
8- I agree the plugs are the worst I have ever seen. Ford engineering...
9-I lost the transfer case at 115k. Not sure why it went but it was pretty spectacular. Lots of crunching and debris. It did not clunk or have problems shifting. A few noises on the highway a couple miles before it went.
10-Go through the braking system. Usually the fronts need attention. Rears do less work and usually last longer. The parts are not expensive and are worth the effort for a trouble free car.
11- Don't forget the basics-fluid changes, belts and hoses. I just assume that the previous owner didnt do much and change most of it.
12- Tires-I usually put new tires on cars I buy. If the tires have tread but are more than 5 years old (especially here in Texas) they get hard and dont have good grip in the rain and snow.
13-Not much rust problem here in Texas. In fact if you live up north you might look down here for one, fly in and drive it back. Heck the paint on my 1997 still look like its 3-4 years old. Even if the engine is shot you could pull it home and put in a new one-its easier than repairing a rust bucket.
That's about it. That may sound like a lot but other than the transfer case and new tires, it was just bringing it back to specs. The same stuff I would do on most 100k cars.

 

[VexedEX]

I'm going to get this started upper and lower balljoints
lets keep this rolling

I agree... Brand new! I would also say double check windows... I didn't notice at first because driver side rolls down ok sometimes but not all the time. Regulator going I'm sure! Back window didn't work at all but I wasn't bothered by that because it would never get used.

 

[joneskt]

I just replaced all the tie rods and pitman arm, and installed an Energy Suspension Master Kit. Almost done replacing all the emmisions related parts such as EGR valve, PCV valve, IAC valve, O2 sensors, cleaning MAF sensor and throttle body, and seafoaming. Truck Drives better than new, just need to get a new set of shocks next.

2000 Expedition XLT, 5.4L, 4x4, stock height, flowmaster 40 series, K&N CAI, Jet MAF, 165k miles.

 

[shadow460]

Here's what I've had go wrong on my 1998 Expedition:
Alternator (happened on my 1998 F-150 too)
Battery/cable ends (also replaced on my F-150)
Lost/loose hub bolts on the driver's side
Broken/worn front stabilizer links
Blown shaft seal on AC compressor
Noticeable whine from torque converter
Oil filter hoses leaking
License plate clips missing
Ball joints worn (happened on my 1998 F-150 as well)
Leaking rear main oil seal (also happened on my 1998 F-150)

Some of this stuff is easy to spot by the potential buyer, some isn't. Crawl under the vehicle and look for oil leaks, check the condition and level of all the fluids, and check the condition of the tires. If the tires are worn, you may need to have the suspension worked on. If either the oil or coolant is low or milky brown, walk away, period. If you want A/C and the vehicle you're looking at blows hot air from it, keep in mind the compressor seal is $500 to $700 to have fixed and is not fixable by the home mechanic. If you don't care to pay that much and want something with A/C, walk away.

Happy hunting, and I hope ya'll find an Expedition you can enjoy like I did.

 

[dankspeed]

Timing chain

About a year after having mine I heard a weird ticking noise coming from the engine. It's different from the ticking noise valves makes. It turned out to be my timing chain tensioner. fortunately my dad's buddy id a ford tech and does side work and saved me some money. But if going to look at one lift the hood and listen to make sure the engine isn't making any unusual ticking.

 

[Blanco]

The awful gas mileage

What should be typical?

 

[Blanco]

make sure it has the better of the two transmissions the 4r100, I forget the door code for it.

What makes this one better than the other un-named one?