Would an 07 be a smart purchase?

[blackshadowed]

Hello everyone. A good family friend (father of the step kids, really awesome and honest guy, we all have a great relationship), is offering us his 2007 Expedition LTD with about 240k Miles for $2,000. He's the second owner and got it back in '13 with 59k on the engine.

He tells us that shocks were replaced within the last 2 years, and breaks and discs within the last month. The car needs rear tires, but the major things are: AC is not working and he hasn't checked on the culprit, and there is an unspecified power steering leak.

I know the car's value is a bit more than what he's asking from us, but he's doing us a favor as we are just getting back on our feet from being unemployed.

The question is, would an 07 Expedition with this high a mileage be a good buy, or would we be getting into a world of potential age related problems around the corner? I read around the forum and seems like the AC not working is a PITA to troubleshoot properly and could climb into the thousands of dollars in wrong part replacements, is this the case?

PS. This would be a second vehicle for us to use as the "Family car", since my other is a small Scion. We would be looking to keep it for 2, maybe 3 years until we can upgrade.

Thanks in advanced for your advice

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

'07 is, statistically, the least reliable year for 3rd gens, likely in part because it was the first year of the redesign. The truck in question also has 240k on the clock and there aren't a whole lot of 3rd gens around that seem to make it to 300k without major issues. That said, it's only $2k and the odds are in your favor that some Stop Leak will resolve the PS issue (that's been my experience with previous Ford SUVs anyway). At $2k, I'd be happy to get 2 years out of the vehicle without major issues. Anything beyond that would be a bonus.

 

[Shantheman73]

Hello everyone. A good family friend (father of the step kids, really awesome and honest guy, we all have a great relationship), is offering us his 2007 Expedition LTD with about 240k Miles for $2,000. He's the second owner and got it back in '13 with 59k on the engine.

He tells us that shocks were replaced within the last 2 years, and breaks and discs within the last month. The car needs rear tires, but the major things are: AC is not working and he hasn't checked on the culprit, and there is an unspecified power steering leak.

I know the car's value is a bit more than what he's asking from us, but he's doing us a favor as we are just getting back on our feet from being unemployed.

The question is, would an 07 Expedition with this high a mileage be a good buy, or would we be getting into a world of potential age related problems around the corner? I read around the forum and seems like the AC not working is a PITA to troubleshoot properly and could climb into the thousands of dollars in wrong part replacements, is this the case?

PS. This would be a second vehicle for us to use as the "Family car", since my other is a small Scion. We would be looking to keep it for 2, maybe 3 years until we can upgrade.

Thanks in advanced for your advice

I’ve got a 2007 with 199k and to be honest…if not for the neglect of the previous owner…it’s been a quality ride. (I also recently purchased a scion for my daily driver since gas prices are killing me and the Expy is more of the family vehicle and not needed for just commuting).

That being said…the parts I DID have to replace were expensive. Seems nothing is cheap when fixing a truck that’s capable of what an Expy can do.

The A/C system was one of them…to the tune of $1900. Even tires were $200 a piece. (Bridgestones)

If your plan is to drive it for a year or two and not worry about fixing every rattle or issue…then you should be fine. But should something major fail…there goes that 2k.

Honestly…you’re not going to find another $2k vehicle that you’d consider bulletproof. At least you can get all of the fam in the Expy and room to spare.


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[Boostedbus]

I look at it this way.... I’d feel a lot better hauling kids around in a Expedition (especially on highway trips) than in a Scion. Traffic is getting back to crazy again now that COVID is winding down and people are going back to work. You also have that distracted driving thing and I think some people just flat out forgot how to drive because of not driving for so long. I think this reason alone makes it a no-brainer. Good luck and enjoy your new ride!

 

[mnachreiner86]

If you know the history of the vehicle and he’s had it for that long and taken care of it I’d say that’s a great deal. Any reliable running vehicle is worth that. The mileage wouldn’t scare me for the money, mine has 213k now and runs like a new one. Even incredibly high mileage the biggest common problems are phaser issues and if you are mechanical the job can be done relatively cheaply and by yourself. The expensive unknown is the ac repair. Question is how badly do you need it? Is it something you can get by without? Do you have little ones that NEED it on hot days that you are hauling? If it’s not a deal breaker then absolutely. Additionally if you have a good relationship with him maybe offer to troubleshoot the AC first so you might have an idea of what you would be getting in to?


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[Aspen03]

2k is a fairly price for most any working vehicle of that age and mileage. The one thing you've got going for you is you know the owner and their character. If it had been a huge problem vehicle it likely you'd have previously heard about it in passing comments. People rarely fail to mention thier issues when given even the slightest chance in a conversation. My experience anyway.

The lack of AC as a family hauler would be a near deal breaker for me however. It's a large space and takes a decent amount of air movement to cool down with windows down. Depending on the age of the kids and where you live. It can get extremely hot easily and if anyone is in a booster or car seat it's already like lying on a blanket fresh out of the dryer when you've been parked on a sunny day, slow moving traffic will exacerbate this issue even with 6 windows that can open. Unless it's something incredibly simple expect the AC to be several hundred dollars at a minimum and worst case as already mentioned as much as you're paying for the vehicle. We have 4 kids and speak from experience on not having AC in a vehicle. Its happened once, for a span of about a month in my life. If I have to get a second job to fix my ac, I will. The wrath and attitude of hot children is like nothing else and if anything will make drives miserable.

 

[JExpedition07]

For 2 grand you really can’t go wrong

 

[JamaicaJoe]

Listen to the engine for any death rattles in the valve train or misfiring. If you can nurse the drivetrain along for another 4 or 5 years, then investing in tires and AC might be worth it

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[blackshadowed]

Thanks for all the sensible responses. We know the vehicle well since he bought it when he and the wife were still together. The priority here is the kids, and since 2 of them are his and we have a 2 year old, we all feel safer in the expedition. We had a Rav4 that got totaled by some idiot 2 weeks ago and left us just with my '16 Scion, but that's definitely not a family car specially for road trips.

So I guess I'll be a permanent member of this group. No offense, but I hope not to have to reply on you guys too much!

 

[Motorcity muscle]

Have a '07 myself, small issue's, keep the oil changed and use motorcraft. When you get into the A/C let us know we, can figure it out, retired refrigeration guy.

 

[Trainmaster]

Use Motorcraft oil filters. They have a check valve that will greatly reduce timing chain guide wear. Any car with 240,000 miles will need parts from time to time. There's also an ongoing possibility that the thing may die at that advanced age. But at the price, as has been said, you can't go wrong, especially since it's a second vehicle from which absolute reliability isn't required.

Hopefully you can do your own work because repair labor adds up quickly.

I'd look over the brake lines and undercarriage for serious rust and go for it it all else looks good.

 

[vincentrose]

It is a good price, however, just keep in mind, it was 2005-2008 models that had the 2 piece spark plugs were notorious for breaking apart if you tried to remove them especially on a engine with that many miles. I'd ask if the spark plugs had ever been replaced before, but if they are the original ones, then watch out. The spark plugs would almost certainly break apart if you tried to replace them, requiring a special removal tool finish removing them, even then, there's no guarantee that this tool will work, so the only thing that would be left would be to remove the cylinder heads.

 

[07navi]

If any break after the soaking procedures they can be extracted with the latest tools. Pulling a head is very rare for that.

 

[Dustin Gebhardt]

My '07 had a power-steering leak and AC issues. I discovered that the top few rows of the radiator are the cooling section for the power steering fluid. I could see the top of the passenger side of the radiator had an oily stain from the PS fluid (ATF fluid). I purchased a oil cooler that would fit next to the auxiliary trans cooler and hooked up news PS lines to it. I also added an inline filter. It hasn't leaked in the past 3 years.

I also had some on-and-off AC issues. I discovered that the temperature sensor located in the evaporator/heater core box was faulty. I used a cheap resistor to jump out the sensor and the AC has been great ever since (although it will freeze up on very long drives, so I have to turn it off for a few moments to let it thaw). The temperature sensor is fairly cheap, but requires that I pull apart the dash to get to.

 

[Robert Phillips]

Have the same Exp 07 EL and I have 270K now. I am not getting rid of it anytime soon. Sounds like a good deal

 

[Modelcarguy]

I’ve owned an ‘08 for 7 years now, and have just reached 192k on the clock. Still looks brand new (but I put in a lot of effort and $$ to keep it that way) given that a 2021 replacement is now north of 75k I can spend a few $$ to keep it that way.

my biggest ticket repairs have been the passenger side exhaust manifold (for some reason the castings on that side are inferior, and one rear hub. (You don’t repair the hub, you replace the whole darn thing)

that said, we love our truck. And with a good maintenance schedule and frequent washings it should be good to go for another 200k at least…

 

[CaptOchs]

He's a family friend and trying to help you guys out that's great. l would ask him to take it to a shop and get a quote to fix the power steering leak. If the rack is leaking, that could be expensive and it might not be a great deal after-all. Maybe the shop can also look at anything else that might need to be fixed coming up. Knowing the person is a huge advantage in your favor.

My 2003 had a leaking power steering lines and a few other things going on with it. It was like $2k to fix. I ended up giving it away to my brother-in-law after showing him the repairs needed. He had them done and it's been a great truck ever since.

In your case, maybe it's a $2k repair and you can talk him down to $1k based off the repairs and mileage.

 

[rjdelp7]

My AC cost $936 and it included a new compressor. The condenser goes bad and line, by the passenger front tire. Funny thing was, the same year, it had a power steering leak. It was line running along the frame, to the pump. It rotted out, right where it was touching. I found one at the junk yard. Someone must of replaced it, because it was like new. I was $3 plus a quart of some Mercon V fluid. Two tires(not recommended with a 4wd) will be $250-300. Offer him $1600.

 

[TDBDLB]

Rule #39 - Never, never, never buy/sell vehicle with friend or family.

 

[donsmrs]

Hello everyone. A good family friend (father of the step kids, really awesome and honest guy, we all have a great relationship), is offering us his 2007 Expedition LTD with about 240k Miles for $2,000. He's the second owner and got it back in '13 with 59k on the engine.

He tells us that shocks were replaced within the last 2 years, and breaks and discs within the last month. The car needs rear tires, but the major things are: AC is not working and he hasn't checked on the culprit, and there is an unspecified power steering leak.

I know the car's value is a bit more than what he's asking from us, but he's doing us a favor as we are just getting back on our feet from being unemployed.

The question is, would an 07 Expedition with this high a mileage be a good buy, or would we be getting into a world of potential age related problems around the corner? I read around the forum and seems like the AC not working is a PITA to troubleshoot properly and could climb into the thousands of dollars in wrong part replacements, is this the case?

PS. This would be a second vehicle for us to use as the "Family car", since my other is a small Scion. We would be looking to keep it for 2, maybe 3 years until we can upgrade.

Thanks in advanced for your advice

Hard to tell. We bought our 2007 Expy Eddie Bauer 2WD from a dealer in 2010 with 23,000 miles, as a leased turn-in. Compared to our 2000 Expy Eddie Bauer 2wd, the 2007 was a dream, not a nightmare. (The 2,000 ate at the dinner table with us). On the 2007, we did all the routine maintenances on schedule and it just performed 10x better than the 2000 model ever did. I sold it last fall because of a rumble that the mechanic we have used for 20 years, said was likely coming from the engine. I didn't want to risk putting $10,000. or so into a new engine plus labor. And I promptly bought a 2014 Expy LTD with 63,000 miles on it, last October. My old Expy is running like a champ, engine seems to be holding up well, for the new owner, so who knows?