2017 XLT vs 2018 XLT

2017 vs 2018

  • 2017 XLT

    Votes: 5 33.3%
  • 2018 XLT

    Votes: 10 66.7%

  • Total voters
    15

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shane_th_ee

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I have a 2014 XLT that I love...

What would you do?
If I had a car I loved, I'd drive the wheels off it and watch my investment account get more zeros... If that's not an acceptable option here's what I wrote up in the Gen 3 forum discussing the cheap 2017 vs expensive 2018...

I bought a 2018 FX4 Max while my twin brother just replaced his wife's 2003 Limited with a lightly used 2017 SWB 4x2 Limited. I'll be in for about $30k more than him. Why'd we choose differently? Is there any one feature on the 2018s that's worth the $30k premium*? No. But there's a bunch of stuff that's worth a little bit more and which really would be nice to have. Add them all up and are they worth $30k? Depends on whether or not you have the $30k.

Or put another way, you can save $30k, but what do you have to give up? Locking rear differential, 2" of ground clearance, skid plates, 10speed transmission (we have a 6000lb GVWR travel trailer), 50 ft-lbs of torque, panoramic sunroof, tip and slide seats*, auto-cruise control with stop and start, transmission temperature monitor, terrain control system from the raptor, a nicer interior, a truck that doesn't already look dated (even if it doesn't look as "tough"), etc, etc.

Sure some of that can be remedied via aftermarket parts, but then you've got to source them and find time to install them (or pay even more money to have them installed) and maybe you just voided the warranty with that lift and, and, and, well, now you didn't really save the full $30k, you put yourself through a whole bunch of unnecessary hassles, and you still didn't get everything you wanted.

Additionally, we both ended up with Expeditions, but we were cross shopping very different vehicles. He was cross shopping 3rd and 4th gen Expeditions with the Armada as his dark horse candidate. I was cross shopping the Z71 Suburban**, the Yukon XL Denali and the new Discovery.

With this in mind, I strongly suspect the returning Expedition shoppers are going with the Gen 3 leftovers while the Gen 4 is poaching a bunch of people who would've otherwise

*Ok. Yes, the tip and slide seats are probably worth the $30k if you have more than 3 kids with two or more still in car seats/booster seats.
**6000lb towing capacity with the off road package? Really? And the skid plates are crap!
 
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gtncpa

gtncpa

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Lots of good info here.

A couple of points
  • My wife drives our Expi 90% of the time.
  • She loves our (her) 2014. She is glad it does not have Sync. She is a K.I.S.S. (keep it simple stupid) person and hates all the gizmos they have in the 2018
  • She HATES the face of the 2018+. She thinks it makes the new Expi look like a big fat Explorer.
  • 2018+ Expi's are all going to be $70K+. We don't want to spend that. The Sticker on the 2017 is $60K.
  • We have had our 2014 for almost 5 years and it only has 60K on the clock. It still has some good value. If we wait a couple of years the value of our 2014 will be very low and the cost of a new Expi will be really expensive.
  • If we trade the 2014 in for the 2017 the payment will be very reasonable. (because of the trade in value of the 2014 and the big discount on the 2017)
  • I tow my race car long distances 5-10 time a year. I think the Ecoboost engine will do a better job, especially up hills in the North East.
I have kept many of my vehicles (all Ford, Lincoln or Mercury) to 150K miles. Once they approach 125K expensive bad things happen. Transmission beining the biggest culprit.

I appreciate everyone's input.

Thx
 

dlcorbett

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Going off this forum and others, most of the problems with the 18s are with the higher trim electronic s, i havent seen one person with a xlt(fx4) model say a negative thing or an issue that popped on their truck. As for the engine, those must be for the f150s because i havent seen too many engine knock issues on the expy forums.

With that said, drive both and see which suits your needs. Shane said it best, are you gonna miss what you dont pay for? Thats why i waited, as much as i liked the 17, it was still a third gen truck that was 5 yrs too dated and too overpriced(at the time) no matter how good it was. Ppl complain about how the 18s looks less trucky(which is fair) but it looks modern and its far and away a better truck, more capable and utilitarian while being far more ppl friendly, with crossover mpg if you drive it right. The 17 will be the same as your 14 with a modern engine, and for that might as well get a fully loaded 15 for the same price and a few thousand miles.
 

dlcorbett

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Looking at your last post, it may be best to keep your 14. If your not getting that 17 for less than 50k, i wouldnt bother. I wouldnt bother with the 18 either, if she dont like the looks, itll be hars to appreciate other aspects of the truck 2(i feel that way). If she changed her mind, an 18 xlt 201 pkg without the sync interface but leather, and pretty well equipped can be had for 50k with negotiation.
 

shane_th_ee

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  • She loves our (her) 2014.
  • She HATES the face of the 2018+.
  • We have had our 2014 for almost 5 years and it only has 60K on the clock.
I have kept many of my vehicles (all Ford, Lincoln or Mercury) to 150K miles.
If it's got 60k after 5 years, you do 12k/year. 125k is another 5 years away. Make those payments you're considering, but make them to your investment account. That gives you a lot of money for repairs come 125k. If you keep it all they way to 150k, you can get another 2.5 years out of it. You'll have a happy wife AND 7.5 years worth of savings (+interest!!). The payments on that 2025 Expedition won't be any higher than the 2018, because you have a giant down payment due to the 7.5 years worth of saving. And if things go right, that 2025 will have an updated front end design that makes your wife happy...
 
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gtncpa

gtncpa

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If it's got 60k after 5 years, you do 12k/year. 125k is another 5 years away. Make those payments you're considering, but make them to your investment account. That gives you a lot of money for repairs come 125k. If you keep it all they way to 150k, you can get another 2.5 years out of it. You'll have a happy wife AND 7.5 years worth of savings (+interest!!). The payments on that 2025 Expedition won't be any higher than the 2018, because you have a giant down payment due to the 7.5 years worth of saving. And if things go right, that 2025 will have an updated front end design that makes your wife happy...

Spoken like a true financial advisor! I will definitely take your comments in to consideration when I make my decision. The next question is probably a new thread ... I never had an Expedition before. I seemed to have put more than my fair share of transmissions in Ford vehicles.
  • 1991 Taurus
  • 1998 Mercury Sable
  • 2002 Lincoln LS
  • 2008 Mercury Mountaineer
Everyone of these with the exception of the Lincoln had a little over 100K on them. How are the transmission in the 2014's?
 
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gtncpa

gtncpa

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Hey look, its another one of these threads...
The difference in this thread is the 2017 is New but priced like a used Expedition. If this was a year or so ago .... and the 2017's were on the lot (Near msrp) and the 18's were on the way shortly ... I would get an '18. The fact pattern here is different then the threads from 2017, but your point is well taken.
 

18-FX4-GUY

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Haven't had an Issue with My FX4 XLT other than stock headlights are weak coming out of my stock HID in my F-150. I solved it with LD bulbs and adjusting the cut off. towed my tyrex 4 to Utah just fine and got great mpg doing it was surprised. I slept in the back of it on a fold out cushion bed. Overall very happy with it. If you look at the f150ecoboost forums lots of timing chain issue in gen 1 and also bad build up on valves that the gen 2 has helped resolved with the twin injectors.
 

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