buying an 05 with 146000 miles, reliability?

[kornwagon]

Hello everyone, I found this site browsing the net. I am thinking about getting a 2005 expedition xlt, it has 146000 miles. I test drove it and even brought it home to jack it up and inspect the under side. Well its completelly dry, no leaks. It runs like a champ, tranny shifts like it should and the fluid is still a bright red color. The front tires on the inside are cupping and the steering rack has some play in it so Im suspecting it needs to be adjusted or replaced.
Other than that it appears to be in excellent shape. Im not very familiar with fords, is this high mileage for an expedition or will it go a long way yet. Oh I almost forgot to mention it has the 5.4 v8 engine and is a 4x4. Thanks

 

[02Expedition]

i have an 02 w/ 85K..great truck no issues...i know that doesn't answer your question, but it is my .02 cents

 

[GAINMOB]

yes its high mileage...based on the yearly average for driving...but you can chalk that up to distant driving...hopefully...it still has life in it just make sure the maintenance was kept up on it before driving cuz there shouldve been at least 6 scheduled maintenance to take of things

 

[cdherman]

My thought is that with those sorts of miles in 6 years, someone was putting a ton of highway miles on it. Those are easy miles -- if they were off roading, it would look more beat up. My personal logic is that it might make sense to buy that sort of vehicle if the price is right, you are willing to deal with some maintainance issues and lastly, do not plan to drive it 25k a year yourself.

If you are going to drive lots of miles, then I would get one with less miles.

I bought an 04 Expy 4x4 EB with 163k miles last year. It now has 165k I use it for bad weather and towing a horse trailer a few miles. I knew up front that I would put 2-3k/year on the vehicle, so I was not going to kill it quick.

I WISH I had held out for a XLT. I am afraid the air suspension is a hassle waiting to happen. But the EB already was set up for towing. In retrospect, I think it would have been easier to retrofit the XLT with the heavy duty tranny cooler and radiator, rather than have the issues with the air suspension hanging over my head.

Generally, I wish I had avoided the EB. It has all manner of do-dads that I worry will give me all manner of trouble. (sun roof, rear power seats etc etc)

That being said, I have been able to fix the one failed door lock solenoid myself. Its throwing no codes, starts and runs great. It has a front and rear end leak that I may try to fix when I have the front end appart fixing the ball joints. But none of the issues ever caused it to fail me when I needed it.

The 05 has better engine than the 04. Also, 05 get far fewer reports of complaints and breakdowns than the 03s. 04 and 06 are kind of in the middle. I found this info on some site that track complaints. It was amazing how much better the O5 was than the 03, but also notable that the 06 was worse than the 05....

What are they asking for it?

 

[kornwagon]

They are asking $11000 for it.

 

[kornwagon]

Let me ask this, is there any good extended warrantys out there that are worth a darn or are they scams.

 

[cdherman]

They are asking $11000 for it.

With the price of gas what it is and Spring arriving, I would pass on that deal. But maybe local prices are higher in your neck of the woods....

As for extended warranties. Doubt you'll find one for that sort of vehicle...

 

[hertfordnc]

They are asking $11000 for it.

Did you buy it?

That price seems a bit high. We just bought our 2001 XLT after a pretty thorough search or our local area (Norfolk, VA)

We paid $6K, 120,000 miles, a few scratches and some obvious wear.

In our search we found good deals at all price points.

2004 with 120K miles, perfect condition for $9K

2003 with 120K miles for $8200 (dealer was a crook so we moved on)

2006 gets you into the next generation engine, that was not important to us.

Where are you? I think in our market you could find one with a few less miles.

I don't think the math is right for extended warranties but it depends how you manage your money.

On one Expy we almost bought they offered an engine and trans protection for $50 per month for the life of the loan. The plan was only good for 36,000 miles.

So i'd pay $2400 total? If i thought the truck was likely to have $2400 failure in the next 36,000 miles I would not buy it in the first place.

That's how i judge protection plans. What's is the total and what are the odds?

 

[ELVATO]

If it's the 3V engine, then you'd also need to make sure the spark plugs have already been changed. If not, you may be in for a world of hurt come plug change (they're supposed to be changed at 100k). The 3V have the plug seperation issue where some (or all) of the plug break apart at high milage.

I'd factor that into the cost of the vehicle. Prices I've heard others quote is around 300-400 for the change, plus 50 for every broken plug. Oviously, I'd ask around you area to see what prices are in your neck of the woods.

 

[cupojoe]

Bought my 04' Expedition with 42,000 miles

Bought my '04 Expedition last fall. Its an NBX model that you don't see very often. Had 42,000 on the odometer (7k per year average) and paid $14000 out the door. Mint condition and I couldn't be more pleased. Long term reliability I can't say but as far as the price goes I would say to be patient and keep looking and you will find a real deal. (I looked for over a year). With gas prices going up big SUV prices will start to drop. When you do find one be ready to buy because the screamin deals get bought pretty quick.