Okay we are seriously considering trading in our 2003 Buick Rendezvous for a 2007 Ford Explorer - any comments out there? We have 53,000 miles on our Rendezvous and would just like something newer with 4 wheel drive.

I personally would not buy an Explorer because of the rollover risk and the serious injuries that result - unless they have made dramatic improvements (haven't been paying too much attention to car safety ratings lately as not in the market)

cj/

Love my explorer. Hubby was talking about trading but I really do not want to. I love it and feel very comfortable when driving it. We did have a problem with the rear end which was common in the year that ours was built but they replaced the whole thing and paid 80% of the bill, and gave us a warranty on the work even though my truck was no longer under warranty.

HTH,
Darlene

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Sell crazy some place else, we are all stocked up here.

don't know about the explorer but we have a Ford F150 and we wouldn't buy Ford again

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Proud to say I haven't shopped at a Wal-Mart since Sept 2003

We have a 2004 explorer and I love ours. We also have 2 other cars. I always love driving the explorer great for those big shopping trips or hauling the boys around with all their gear. We also use ours to pull our boat in the summer.

My dh's 1996 Explorer is still going strong!

We have an Expedition, and LOVE it. It is a little bit bigger than the Explorer, and it is on a truck chasis. If you can afford a little bit bigger, I would do the Expedition instead of the Explorer. Plus, it has a bigger engine, and it has towing capacity if you ever need to tow anything.

We have an Expedition as well.. I love my Expedition!! I will say that if your looking for something to hold it's value.. look at a 4 runner.. or anything toyota or honda for all that matters

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Too many people spend money they haven't earned to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like. - Will Rogers

We have a 1994 Explorer that is still running very well. It has a little rust near the gas tank door, but otherwise looks great. We have 3 Fords right now. The Explorer, a 1997 Escort and a 2006 Ford 500. We gave our dd our 1998 Escort a couple years ago, too. I have never had trouble with any of them.

I personally wouldnt buy an explorer because they depreciate so much in value, not saying its not a good truck but if you end up not liking it you might lose a lot of money.

See www.consumeraffairs.com.

Ford is having a problem with truck engines spitting out spark plugs which results in high repair costs.

As is normal for Ford, customers are being denied reimbursement. Ford is now finally fixing millions of vehicles for problems involving electrical fires.

Stay away from Ford. They might just be gone before your warranty expires.

We also have a 96 one that still runs, but do bear in mind that this is because we mostly use two much smaller cars, and reserve this one for anything off-road. I've also got a friend who's great with cars, and has been a lot of help. Also, it'd be worth next to nothing on a trade in. I realise DH chose an SUV because he'd been in an accident in a Saturn (he was fine, but shaken), but it's not a car I'd choose now. If you can consider fuel efficiency when buying a vehicle, do, it'll make running it a lot cheaper.

I had no problem getting the problem fixed on my expedition.. I didn't do it the first year and they sent me another letter reminding me to get it done..

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Too many people spend money they haven't earned to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like. - Will Rogers

Look into buying a Jeep product. We have bought within the last year and we looked at the Expedition, Chevy Blazer, etc. And settled on a Jeep Cherokee. Granted it is used, but it was our OPINION that Jeep products were better made, better customer support and better re-sale value than other brands.

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

We have an Explorer Sport Trac and a Jeep. We love both. I drive the truck all the time and we use the Jeep (4X4) to go mudding and wheelin'. Both are fun and comfortable.

Selena

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God is not Santa Claus

My brother and his family had a Grand Cherokee and were involved in a roll over accident on the way home from my house on Christmas night in the rain. They rolled about 50 ft down into a ravine. Everyone had seat bealts on and everyone walked away without any major injuries (bump on head and scratch on arm). While the jeep is totaled, it actually held up pretty well. My brother said he would buy another one in a heartbeat.

refundsrus,

Your issue was apparently a recall, where Ford is required to contact owners and fix defects.

Otherwise, it normally takes a class action to motivate Ford to do the right thing.

Ford is in serious danger of disappearing. The Fusion is a pretty good vehicle, but the improvement may well be too little and too late.

Do not buy a explorer we had one and ot died within 3 years of gaving it now we have a blazer by gm a and no problewms with it for 9 years now.

I forgot -- my husband's first Explorer was recalled AFTER he'd had a tire blow out. It was a 1994.

We recently purchased a new mid-sized SUV. DH did EXTENSIVE research on the web prior to purchase. He spent months reading reviews, literally hours every day.

If you want a mid-sized SUV, start reading here:
http://www.edmunds.com

I'll ask him for the other sites he visited for his research.

I thought I would never get a new vehicle, but he finally ended up getting what I WANTED in the very beginning. I chose it based on LOOKS alone! Go figure. Toyota FJ Cruiser, LOVE IT!!! So fun to drive!

Do your homework, then go do the test drives. If you drive mostly around town, test drive in your "normal" driving conditions, get in and out numerous times, load kids, groceries, etc. Be sure you you get an accurate test of each vehicle before purchase. You'll be glad you did down the road.

The ONLY thing I don't like about my FJ is there is no "dinger" on the lights if I leave them on.

Also consider the resale value of a vehicle. You won't want it forever.

Just checked Edmunds reviews of the top 10 SUV's and the FJ has a consumer rating of 9.5!!! I totally agree! Contrary to what Edmunds says, you can't buy an FJ for $22,000. Mine came in at $28,000. PM me if you want more details.

No "dinger". Are you sure it's not broken?

My base Corolla comes with one. What a mistake for Toyota.

I have a 98 EXPEDITION LASER RED EDDIE BAUER and love this car. I will say though that our air suspenion just blew on us and we are having a difficulty time repairing and it is very costly. The other problem is that it has a Check Engine all the time and nobody can solve the mystery. But every car has its issues and this Truck has given us plenty of benefits and would highly reccoment the Expedtion. My sis has the Explorer which is very nice but we needed a bigger vehicle. Plus the Explorer offers v6 engine unlike the gas guzzler v8 Expedition. But once again love this truck big time.

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Without Health you have no Wealth!

I've had Explorers for about 11 years now, I leased my first two, so only had them for 3 years each, but no problems at all. I Bought my third Explorer used (1.5 yrs old)and drove it with no problems for two years and now I have been driving my fourth one which I bought new 3+ years ago and still love it. This one had a transmission problem after a couple of years which was covered under warranty, no problems whatsoever with Ford fixing it. Mine have all been the Eddie Bauer Editions, so they have a few extra's on them.

I like driving them, they are comfortable and sturdy and a safe vehicle. I checked out many other SUV's before buying my last Explorer just to make sure it was still what I felt was the best for me. I test drove several other makes of SUV's or just sat in them long enough to know I didn't even want to test drive them... I remember thinking many just felt "cheap" to me. Like the doors were so thin and the seats were not very comfortable or nicely made....

Good Luck!