Shopping for 4th Gen, which 18, 19 or 2020?

[vertbird]

Guys,I'm new to the forum but thought this would be a good place to start. I'm looking at 4th gen Expeditions. It would have to be a used one but I'm concerned about all the cam phaser problems I read about. Are there year models that should be avoided or are 4th gens equal in reliability, specifically this cam phaser issue. Thanks!

 

[TheDoug]

From what has been posted here and other places I have read on this topic go with a 2020... but I believe you also need to look at the actual build date to see if it has the updated 4 bolt mega cap for the head/cam shaft. (Sorry I don't have the date off top of my head)

I have an 18 and had 2 sets of cam phasers so far, others here have had theirs replaced more than me.

 

[vertbird]

Great info, thanks TheDoug. Maybe someone will chime in with build dates or other ways to determine the change. Thank you!

 

[Maxine the Max]

From what has been posted here and other places I have read on this topic go with a 2020... but I believe you also need to look at the actual build date to see if it has the updated 4 bolt mega cap for the head/cam shaft. (Sorry I don't have the date off top of my head)

I have an 18 and had 2 sets of cam phasers so far, others here have had theirs replaced more than me.

Great info, thanks TheDoug. Maybe someone will chime in with build dates or other ways to determine the change. Thank you!

We just purchased a 19'. We intentionally avoided the 18' model year because of all the issues we read about. Our 19' was manufactured in September of 19' so it would be interesting to know if it had/has the updated part. It was a gold cpo at the dealership so hopefully everything was gone over carefully. I will add, sometimes reading all the negative posts can be overwhelming, or cause anxiety. Be sensible, I wasn't at first.

 

[Blackshirt5598]

Stay away from ‘18, period

 

[Jettix2]

We love our 18 Platinum Max but it's been a bucket of problems since we bought it last summer, I strongly advise you NOT to consider an 18.....I wish we'd just spent more $$ and bought a 21/22 at that time.

 

[apex96]

The updated heads I believe are a 2020 model year item and only August 20 beyond may have the updated heads.

This thread discusses the possible redesign of the 3.5 heads.

I've read about the cam issues in the 3.5, can these mechanical issues be resolved? The carfax shows this 2018 has been in the shop a couple of times.

www.expeditionforum.com

 

[Deadman]

My 2018 has been excellent.

 

[2018ExpyPlatinum]

Can't wait to watch this thread go down hill. I have an 18 with 40K and zero issues. I think I got a good one. I don't even know if I have the cam phaser issue. Even if I do, I'm not fixing it. That said, I think I would avoid an 18 due to a lot of guys on here having many issues. One thing I know, I will not keep it past it's 6 year/75K extended warranty. Like any vehicle, there are good ones and bad ones. I'd look for the newest model year with the lowest mileage that you can afford.

 

[Fastcar]

Guys,I'm new to the forum but thought this would be a good place to start. I'm looking at 4th gen Expeditions. It would have to be a used one but I'm concerned about all the cam phaser problems I read about. Are there year models that should be avoided or are 4th gens equal in reliability, specifically this cam phaser issue. Thanks!

Buy the newest one you can. A lot of the crap has been eliminated as each MY came out. Of course now the damn thing may burn up. It is always something.

 

[image98]

I have a fully loaded 2019 stealth and have been extremely pleased. The only issue that I have had is with the sunroof. It seems like covid build years have taken a hit in quality control and Ford has slowly removed options due to chip shortage.

 

[Fordman1976]

I have a 2019 Limited. No problems except cam phaser rattle. Can't get an appointment to get the recall done. It is a lease vehicle with only 35,000 miles. My three years are up. Trying to decide whether to buy or order a 2023 next month. Anyone have a similar circumstance?

 

[aggiegrad05]

My 18 has been great. It was one of the earliest ones built (February 2018) and has had a couple issues (cam phasers and a transmission problem), but they've all been sorted and I've been pleased in 4 years of ownership. I think most of the 18s floating around have had all the kinks worked out by now. And based on the sentiment of this forum, perhaps you can get them for a discount over their newer brethren.

Remember the 18s have a few features that were dropped from later MYs. I'm specifically thinking of a CD player, but I think they also lack the seatbelt airbags (which some folks don't like as they don't always play nice with carseats) and a couple other things I can't think of off the top of my head.