Should I keep her?

[Texpedition]

I've been a part-time lurker here for a little while and this is my first post. But I've got a question for anyone interested in voicing an opinion. Here's the background;

I have a '98 Blue 2 wheel drive Eddie Bauer with 287,000+ miles on it. It's been a great truck and I still love driving her. I am a realtor so I have to maintain a bit of a positive image, but I don't worry too much about that. With that many miles on her, she's beginning to show a few wrinkles. I need new tires, the front end needs alignment, needs new shocks, has an oil leak, a few nicks in the paint and a few chips in the windshield. The interior is straight with some wear on the driver's side seat - a hole where I get in and out - and the standard cracks in the leather seat on the passenger side. The driver's side speaker doesn't work and that is a wiring problem, I think. The sub-woofer is out and the leather wrap on the steering wheel could really stand to be replaced. Carpet is excellent except for the spot I step on to get into the truck each time. I will need to replace the heater coil if I am going to keep it; it get's mighty cold without a heater.

So, do I try to keep her, spend the money to repair and replace, invest in some new wheels and tires and maybe a paint job (thinking about something nice and shiny) to hang on for a couple more years or do I move on up to a used Lincoln Navigator that has a lot fewer miles on it? I will spend the same amount over time either way.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[SOLISIMO]

Well you also have to take into consideration that something else will go wrong ontop of the listed problems. The positive is that since the truck is yours you know how you drive it and what problems it has, unlike getting into a used one blind.

 

[walnuts4x4]

as SOL said depends on what you want... fix something you know the history on or get new payments and possibly have unknown issues with the other option

 

[m1gunner]

as SOL said depends on what you want... fix something you know the history on or get new payments and possibly have unknown issues with the other option

these are great trucks . Bottom line is you know what you have into it & you have an idea what you have to still put into it. The miles are high but id stay with it. Unless you need out. Mine has taken care of me from day one. And I know alot of people who get rid of their rigs and they end up in a junk yard ,or worse .. In the hands of someone who abuses it. you could turn it into a prerunner ! there is always options. but it comes down to what you really want to do.. I'd keep it. Because its a Ford.. And its an expy....just my two cents

 

[Texpedition]

All good points! I do know her. She's been good to me and I still like driving her. I know that other stuff can start to go wrong and engine and transmission replacements are expensive. I can buy a 2000 Navigator with 75000 miles on it for less than $7900, sell mine for cash and be in a very nice truck. But I can also do lots of stuff to my Expy for $6000.

I have sold or traded in cars in the past that I wish I still had. A '73 Mustang, a '65 Baracuda and an '87 Cougar top the list. So, I'm scratching my head...could this be another one I wish I still had.

 

[Remo]

I wouldn't put the money into wheels and a paint job/interior. Most of the other (important) stuff could easily be fixed on a budget--especially if you do the work--and the truck will last you much longer, I'm sure.

If you really want it to be like new, though, I would sell it and buy something else. It's not like its something rare...That's just my financial perspective, though.

 

[zets101]

I found myself in a similar dilemma but for different reasons. I was thinking of switching to a fuel efficient car, specifically a ford focus with a manual transmission. But I found myself sticking with the expy because I came to the same conclusions sol mentioned. 1) its paid for. 2) I know what I have (problems, its reliability, how its been treated) 3) Its been great to me so far (Highway mileage has even been a lot better than I expected, I average 18 mpg when I'm not tooling around 30mph town areas)

I'm going to have to sink money in mine too. I have to replace (more specifically drill them out and retap) the exhaust manifold bolts and I also need a front end alignment. I gave it a lot of thought and I would have to drive a lot of miles WITHOUT something going wrong on a focus for that investment to pay for itself.

 

[Texpedition]

Yeah, it's hard to think about sinking a couple of grand into a truck that's only worth $1500. But...fix the oil leak, the heater core...the truck still looks great in and out. I have to do something about new tires but got 60k out of the last set of Michelines. Don't have to buy new wheels but could hop it up a little bit.

I don't know but I thank you guys for helping me think about it. If something else pops into your mind, I'd like to hear it.

 

[Benji-Man]

Am I the only one that wants to see pictures of her?

 

[sgtowing]

I know I'm in the minority but with that many miles and having to put that money in to her, I think I would go with another one. If you get another one, you get to see what else is out there and what you can and can't do. That in itself is half the fun. Just be carefull and do your homework. Just my $.02

 

[Texpedition]

Worth every penny!

Pics coming tomorrow.

 

[gixxerjim]

Used market

IMHO
Right now I think the used market is deflated due to the high unemployment and concern about fuel prices and jobs in this country. I just bought a 160k mile 99 EB 4x4 with Leather auto everything 290W stereo in mint condition from the original owner with all service records for a very low price off ebay. The dealership followed up with a clean bill of health on her too. For what your repairs will cost you I think you can dial back the odometer and improve the condition of your vehicle quite a bit for maybe $1500 additional cost if you are patient and look for the right one.
Good luck whatever decision you make.

 

[Texpedition]

Thanks for that. I wouldn't even hesitate to pick up another ride if this one hadn't been so good and I hadn't wished I had kept other cars in the past. No need to buy someone else's problems either, and that's what you get sometimes with a used car.

 

[zets101]

The used large SUV market may be deflated but the rest of the auto market is inflated. Especially economy cars. That is how I ended up with my expy, it was $800 and the beat up 90s economy cars around here they wanted $2000-$3000 for rust buckets.

 

[Texpedition]

Here's a few pics to show you what she looks like. I gave her a bath today but didn't detail her. I spent some more time with her after I took the pics.

Comments please.

 

[SourMashII]

It seems to be a decent ride, but where you mentioned you're a realtor and have the image to uphold...

I would flush and find a Navi.


True story, single mom realtor here played her money card close to the vest, and had a 5 year old Taurus. Leather, Sunroof, ICE cold AC... Her main focus was high $commercial and investment stuff. When she would go to pick up clients at the airport,a dn they saw the Tauri, they would take a rental.

Traded it on a used 5 series(even had a marked title, made it cheaper) to "maintain" the image, less mpg, smaller overall car, and never had to deal with the predujism again.

You can throw $-7 grand at the Expy and have it "new" all over again, but.. you are still gonna be in the first gen body stule, and it won't look as professional.

Throwing 7k at an EB? or other classics? that would be different, but as much as I enjoy mine, it is not nor will it be a classic. Not in the same calibre as some of the vehicles you have flushed and mentioned regret.

 

[Texpedition]

Clydesdale, thanks for the story. Very relevant.

Maintaining an image is part of my concern. Plus, I don't really like the idea of a breakdown with clients in the car.

Funny that edmunds.com and kbb.com both think that my EB is worth $5,000. I'd love to find someone willing to plop down $5k or even $4k. I think she's only worth aboiut $1500 tops, especially needing tires, heater core, some paint and leather work inside. I'm thinking of a "for sale" sign in the window. Navigators around here are looking better and better.

 

[jacks3am]

Clydesdale, thanks for the story. Very relevant.

Maintaining an image is part of my concern. Plus, I don't really like the idea of a breakdown with clients in the car.

Funny that edmunds.com and kbb.com both think that my EB is worth $5,000. I'd love to find someone willing to plop down $5k or even $4k. I think she's only worth aboiut $1500 tops, especially needing tires, heater core, some paint and leather work inside. I'm thinking of a "for sale" sign in the window. Navigators around here are looking better and better.

Navigator, for sure. 4v 5.4 and a better ride, better styling, why not.

 

[Rebecca]

Just an FYI if you didn't already know, the heater core replacement is extremely labor intensive. The part itself is reasonably priced (about $100 if I remember correctly) but it was 9 or 10 hours of labor which is standard for this repair on gen 1 Expeditions. In addition to flushing/refilling your coolant, your air conditioning system will need to be purged and recharged as well. I just had to do mine in December. My apologies if you were already well aware of that...

 

[f150dave2002]

I'd say find a good used one. I just upgraded my wife from her 2001 A4 to 2007 Expy Eddie Bauer for $25k including a Ford Warranty for 3 years/36k miles...