Buying a 1997 Ford Explorer

When you get down to individual examples, all bets are off. We can make broad sugestions based on the model in question, but as for the *one* you're looking at, no dice. The standard rules apply: do your homework, and take it to a mechanic you trust. What is "fair condition"?

Bill Funk Change "g" to "a"

Not necessarily.

That's fascinating.

-- Lady Chatterly

"Bartlo listed a bot, but not finely woven, hand-crafted socks? I'd be insulted if I were you." -- Dan Baldwin

Sam..if it were me, I'd stay far far away from an old explorer like that one. TOO many miles on it. The Heater/AC plastic blend door assembly is due to fail soon. The transmissions are garbage in them, not really any good past 150,000 miles. (some ARE don't get me wrong, but you don't know ALL the service history of that vehicle.)

I own a 2004 explorer, only because I wanted warranty, and (hopefully) no major repair bills for 3 years. I personally would stay clear of a used one though.

Ken

Well, personally the ONLY reason I would consider an Explorer with that many miles would be if it were D I R T cheap, and / or if I personally knew it's history (and it was clean).

Other than that, there are just too many Explorer's around that age for sale, and since they are so plentiful, they are inexpensive. You should easily be able to find an excellent condition 96/97 with reasonable miles for not much money.

As far as the one you are considering goes, it's impossible to say over the internet if it's worth considering or not. Maybe it had a trans or engine rebuild already... maybe not. Maybe it was meticulously maintained. but maybe it wasn't!

Explorers can and do run well over 200k, so it's not out of the question that you could buy that one and drive it for a while, but it's a crap-shoot at best!

I don't know what they are asking, but for reference, I just sold one of my

96's last month.

96 XLT AWD, Leather seats, V8, 84k, rear air, CD changer, relatively new Michelins... I sold it to a private party for $5,300.00

I agree with Big Bill. But with these caveats. This truck has been USED! Over 20,000 miles a year. Ask for maintenance records if you can get them. Get a mechanic to give it a stem to stern check up. If the seller gripes, walk away. There are a LOT of Explorers looking for good homes, with all of this phony litigation from U-Haul, etc. If you can get a CARFAX, pay for the monthly subscription and look it up.

EB Explorers are great. I had one until the insurance totalled it out (it was still drivable) I still have an Explorer for my boat puller. I hope your proposed purchase turns out well.

Regards,

Richard

Big Bill wrote:

183K miles on a 8 year old car sounds like a lot. I would stay away, especially if it has the SOHC V6 engine, as this was the first year it was introduced and there were a lot of issues with them.