Yet another reason that FORDS are my least favorite...

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metallidart

metallidart

member me?
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(some quick background info lol) Although my first car was my 1972 Dart, that I kept for 17 years, I've owned quite a few cars. Built quite a few. I'm only 33, but I've owned more cars that years I've been alive. I grew up with tire smoke and the sound of a q-jet wanting to suck in the hood of a 72' Buick GS, and every car my dad got he had to take my brother and I out to see how well it would burn the tires. The year I graduated, I built a 455 Olds for my winter beater (yeah, talk about a project "snowballing"!). I've had plenty of mopars, some nissans, a few chebbies, oldsmobiles, you name it. Know thy enemy, I guess. In reality, all of the brands have some pros and cons, and my attention span is pretty short and my brain is like a sponge when it comes to cars. So I like to try them all.

My least favorite is Ford. I try to like them. My uncle works at the Ford plant in Louisville, KY so I even try for family sake. I owned a 95' Probe (called it my Anal Probe because it was a biiiig pain in the butt) that had problems so bad I'd have to pull over sometimes, unhook the battery to reset the computer, just to keep driving it. Dealer was supposed to fix it, but couldn't figure it out. Then I had a 95' Mustang, with a 3.8 V6. It was a cool car, ran good, good mileage with the 5spd, handled nice, and was just a cool little car. Until the head gaskets started to blow out. After the second time, I got rid of it. I had the heads cut flat, everything you are supposed to do I did. I'm guessing the block probably wasn't flat. After that, I had a late 80's Ranger with a 4cyl/5spd that couldn't get out of its own way. Not only that, but it wasn't made for someone with size 12 shoes, as I almost wrecked several times because my foot would get stuck in wiring/ductwork, etc.

Well, I tried again. My fiance' got a good deal on a 1997 Explorer Eddie Bauer AWD with a 5.0/auto and 73k miles. Leather, all the options. I know, and I try to explain to her, with a car that is 15 years old, you will have to replace stuff and do normal maintenence. It needed shocks, the front end links were broken, and the pass side exhaust manifold/header has a crack in it. It has new tires on it, and the only rust is from the running boards holding water and crap near the rear tires on both sides. I can weld and paint, easy fix. She ended up hating the gas mileage, so I got her a new Nissan Sentra and I've been driving the explorer.

So here goes. Due to unexpected financial difficulties, I still haven't been able to replace the things that were wrong with it when we got it. Well, that and I keep buying Dart Sport parts lol. Since we got it, the A/C quit working, I figured "it happens, not a big deal". My brother got me a Flowmaster for it, so it sounds awesome (other than the slight ticking from the manifold). After the muffler install, it did jump up to 15mpg city/24mpg highway, which I thought it was pretty goood.

One more note, I hate electrical problems. I just dont have the patience. One day a few months ago the headlight went out. Just the low beam, pass side. I figured I'd buy a new bulb, and it would be fine. Nope. So every day, I've had to deal with the stupid thing beeping and on the screen it says "check headlamps". I finally had the chance to mess with it yesterday. Did some searching around with my test light, and figured out what wires did what. Wasn't getting power to the bulb socket. Got online and downloaded a wiring diagram. Started tracing that wire every where, and checked all the fuses as I have done a few times before, just to be sure. So i did a google search for anyone else that has had this problem.

Sure enough, they have.

The stupid thing that tells you the headlights are out is the biggest problem for headlight problems! Located under the cupholders, the power goes thru that before it goes to the bulbs. Seems the circuit boards/solder gets brittle, loses connection, and you lose your headlights. New part....$80 friggin dollars!!! If you jump it, from what I read, it opens other problems up and as I mentioned, I hate electrical issues. Why in the hell would they put something like that in there? First off, most people don't need a car to tell them the headlight is out. You can notice it, when you are driving, parking, etc and it is dark out. Thankfully, for now, after messing with the plug a little, its working again. When it quits again, I'll take it all the way out and do some soldering.

I know, it probably isn't as bad as I am making it out to be. But I've had late 90's Stratuses go almost 200k miles with barely any problems, my Nissans always seem to go forever. The GMs that I've owned have their own issues, but I seem to always have bad luck with Fords. Tell me if I'm just bitching too much...
 
metallidart said:
But I've had late 90's Stratuses go almost 200k miles with barely any problems, my Nissans always seem to go forever. The GMs that I've owned have their own issues, but I seem to always have bad luck with Fords. Tell me if I'm just bitching too much...
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and I had a '66 mustang that had over a half million miles on it when I traded it off (should have kept it- it still had another 500k in it I bet lol).

Like people, there's good and bad ones in every village:D
 
I've seen a ton of bad Fords, but I've seen a ton of bad everything else too.
My 75 F250 with a 60's 390 has been the best, most reliable truck I've ever owned.
 
I have a 2003 Focus that runs like a champ with 200,000 on it. I've changed the timing belt and done regular maintenance on it.
 
All brands of vehicles have their PIA problems. Take the Nissan V6, they are on at least their fourth update on the timing chain issues. My buddy has a 2005 Nissan Quest and at 50K plus or minus miles it developed the timing chain knock. How about a $2800 fix?

The run away Toyotas.

Ford had chronic problems with many of the 3.8s they put in the rear wheel drive vehicles. I have owned several Ford Probes with the 4 cylinder engines with auto trannys and all of them were good cars. Never had a V6.

I have had endless problems with the later Mopar fwd cars. The 2.7 is noted for its problems.

GM has issues with their intake on the 3800 Series II engines and on some of their 3100s.

There isn't any of the modern cars that don't have issues of some type. More electronic equipment and emissions has to bring more problems. Welcome to the new and not improved world of working on vehicles.
 
I definitely agree with all of you guys on this. I guess I just haven't had the best luck with that brand in particular. Its not so much even luck, with the Explorer. It seems like it is a really good vehicle, especially after I fix the little problems it has. I think I was just really irritated at the "headlamp warning module" idea. My grandfather won't own another truck other than Fords, and I know there is a good reason there are so many Mustang racers. I don't think I've had so many small, annoying things go wrong with a car! My biggest complaint is working on my daily driver, period haha. I'd rather be working on the Dart Sport.
 
I'll tell ya what. I'm on my third Ranger. Even though the last one failed a cam sensor, I'd still buy a Ford pu over a &*&^%@#()*_@+()#$+)&(^*^%@#)E&@+)ing GM of any sort.

It REALLY ticks me off that Ford is discontinuing the Ranger, and Mopar the Dakota series. I think this is flawed thinking brought about by skewed results due to the poor economy. In this part of the country, there are lots of them.

After the experience with my Mom's car, a 95 olds, I'll never ever ever have another GM of any description.
 
My daily driver is a 2006 Ford Fusion 2.3 4-banger. I only have 55k miles on it, but I can tell you it's been a VERY reliable car. This is the first Ford I ever owned.
 
67Dart273 said:
I'll tell ya what. I'm on my third Ranger. Even though the last one failed a cam sensor, I'd still buy a Ford pu over a &*&^%@#()*_@+()#$+)&(^*^%@#)E&@+)ing GM of any sort.

It REALLY ticks me off that Ford is discontinuing the Ranger, and Mopar the Dakota series. I think this is flawed thinking brought about by skewed results due to the poor economy. In this part of the country, there are lots of them.

After the experience with my Mom's car, a 95 olds, I'll never ever ever have another GM of any description.
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Is it a 3800 Series II?
 
Bitchin to much....what do you expect from a 15 year old vehicle?
 
I've never had any luck with Fords. My first was a '68 F100, wore the hood hinges out working on it. Swapped it for a '70 Challenger, been driving Mopars every since.......until recently. Bought a clean low mileage '95 Ranger for the wife to fart around town in. After 5 trips to the trans shop, idle problems, A/C problems, it's for sale. I have twice my asking price invested in fixing the little POS, and good riddance.

My brother's a Ford man, he has hell with 'em, but still swears they're the best. Well, whatever.

Company bought me a new '08 F450 deisel service truck. First engine blew up at 4200 miles, second engine blew up around 35,000 miles. In less than 100,000 miles, the turbo seals blew twice, the injectors screwed up and hydro'd the motor, blew the tops out of the pistons so there's engine #3, after that something in a fuel tank disentigrated requiring the ENTIRE fuel sytem to be replaced. The exhuast filter was constantly requiring service, LR wheel brgs took a dump, the radiator tanks blew twice, the truck had electrical problems that would cause no starts and reduced power,{limp mode} the gauges would go batshit. In all it was in the shop 19 times, company finally got rid of it.

Overall, not much impressed with MoFoCo.
 
I had a ton of vehicals over the years. Had a 2000 Chevy 1500 short bed short cab that was a great little truck and got rid of it before things were going to start breaking. Traded that for a Tahoe limited that turned out being a pile of chit. Traded that for a 2006 silverado Vortec Max that looked nice but spent more time at the dealership than on the road. Finally after looking far and wide for a Cummins that had the options I wanted, found a 05 4wd 2500 cummins with next to no miles. It was my first personally owned diesel and I would never buy another gas motored truck. After a compound turbo upgrade, hipo tranny and all kinds of little mods, I have a low 12 second truck on 35's that gets 20-23 mpg. Best truck I've ever owned. Like some members said, there are turds of all makes and models it just depends on what day it was built.
 
67Dart273 said:
It REALLY ticks me off that Ford is discontinuing the Ranger, and Mopar the Dakota series. I think this is flawed thinking brought about by skewed results due to the poor economy. In this part of the country, there are lots of them.
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I saw a Ford Focus pickup model, no ****! There were about 6 in the back lot of a Ford dealership here in Long Beach, CA. Wonder what happened to that idea, a sub compact truck, ala Rampage? Perfect high mileage and enough room to take a few bushes to the dump or a engine block across town? Im still looking for a Diesel VW truck, my sisters old diesel VW rabbit got 50 mpg but couldnt go faster that 65... perfect for my 44 mile commute!
 
Ford Owners Psalm

The Ford is my auto, I shall not want
It leadeth me in the path a ridicule for it's namesake
It soreth my soul
It guideth me to the parts counter
Yea, though I ride through vallies, I am towed up hills
My rods and my engine discomfort
me I fear much evil
I anointeth my tires with patches,
My radiator runneth over.
Surely if this thing follows me all the days of my life I shall dwell in the bug house forever.


btw, I have a 94 Ford E150 Chateau Club Wagon, with a 5.8L (351) in it. Well over 200,000 miles and still running like a top. Only repairs to it since 1994 were to replace the idler pulley twice, and the windshield wiper/turn signal stalk once.

I still believe that how a vehicle is maintained, and used from the day it is purchased new matters in the performance of that vehicle later in it's useful life.

Also, I still maintain that all car makers (ALL of them) produce a number of lemons every year.
 
95teetee said:
and I had a '66 mustang that had over a half million miles on it when I traded it off (should have kept it- it still had another 500k in it I bet lol).

Like people, there's good and bad ones in every village:D
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I agree. I've had good luck with Ford. My 74 F-100 is one I wish I had kept. My 94 F-150 had close to 300,000 miles on it when i sold it. And my current back and forth to work truck is a 97 Ranger. I do agree, the 4 banger is gutless. But you can't kill the darn things. I know scores of people who drive Rangers with well over 100,000 miles, and I know of one that has over 200,000 on it and it's given him no problems at all.
 
Have done a ton of Ford's.Love the pushrod stuff,big blocks espeicially.Don't trust the early mod stuff ,like the simple stuff.
 
Owned a fair few Ford trucks, love em, had great luck with them. No doubt they have built some questionable cars over the years but who hasnt? Big fan of the old FE 390's, and the unkillable 300 i6's. Ran an 80s F150, with that 300, well over 300k, she was gettin pretty loose by then but still fired up every morning. Was a bear crossing the road at a bad time that finally did that truck in.
 
My current daily driver is my 1992 Ford Ranger 3.0 V6. I bought the truck with only 15,000 miles on it back in December of 1994 when I was just a little E2 nothing in the Navy. Hell, I traded in my 87 Olds 442 for it. Now, almost 18 years later, the truck has 173,000 miles on it. The only real breakdowns it has had (knock on wood) was the rear main seal and the front pump seal blew on me, within a couple days of each other, when I was moving cross-country from Washington State to Illinois. I also had to replace the ECM twice in the last year. First time I went the cheap route and bought one from the salvage yard. When that one took a dump a month ago, I bought a reman from a parts store. She still looks pretty decent for a 20 year old truck, but she's starting to show her age. But she's a good little girl that has gotten me all over this country and has rarely let me down. Hell, I used to drive back and forth between San Francisco and San Diego all the time, and she would bury the needle in the San Joaquin valley. It was funny the first time I saw a CHiPS car in my rearview mirror and looked down and saw I was hitting close to 90. The cop just blew past me like I was sitting still, in an early 90s Mustang 5.0 to boot. And, to top it off, while I was in San Francisco we never went over the Golden Gate Bridge, but we did manage to go under it. That was fun!:cheers:
 
Sell parts,for a living.Sell a ton of ECM's for pre OBD-2 Rangers,nothing unusual.
 
Before life came into focus I had a 2005 ford Escape ran good for a while until the plugs caused the computer to fry out. They have tsb's on the problem but would not warranty it. That was my last Ford.
 
I think the antifreeze from a leaky heater core is what did my first one in. Personally I think that's a design flaw to put the ECM within reach of something that has the capability to leak liquid all over it. But if it only happens once every 15 years or so, I can live with that. Course, God only knows what I'll have to pay for another heater core, let alone an ECM, 15 years from now.
 
redlined said:
Company bought me a new '08 F450 deisel service truck. First engine blew up at 4200 miles, second engine blew up around 35,000 miles. In less than 100,000 miles, the turbo seals blew twice, the injectors screwed up and hydro'd the motor, blew the tops out of the pistons so there's engine #3, after that something in a fuel tank disentigrated requiring the ENTIRE fuel sytem to be replaced. The exhuast filter was constantly requiring service, LR wheel brgs took a dump, the radiator tanks blew twice, the truck had electrical problems that would cause no starts and reduced power,{limp mode} the gauges would go batshit. In all it was in the shop 19 times, company finally got rid of it.

Overall, not much impressed with MoFoCo.
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Probably the 6.0L, right? They're known for all those problems. Once they're fixed properly, they're a good engine.
 
inkjunkie said:
Bitchin to much....what do you expect from a 15 year old vehicle?
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My 92 Olds last 19 years, had a 3.3 v6 that ad more kick then the 3.5 v6 Pontiac G6 ...throttle by wire stinks, reving the engine in neutral you hear the lag, its a good 1/2 second behind my left foot and I swear it doesn't go WOT every time I ask it to while driving

That 92 Olds had a 3 sppedauto trans- no OD and expect for the torque converter lock up solenoid that my trans shop replaced for $150, never needed service and the engine just needed a water pump and idler pully

All I did was change the oil every 3-4,000 miles and spark plugs and wires every 30,--40,000 miles and the sensors..which that one that goes by the damper ?

The car rusted out, 180,000 miles on it and I'm passing V6 SUVs daily..thing would had killed me if I crashed it but luckily never did
 
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