looking to buy an explorer, need opinions

[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

my plan right now is to have something for the next 3-4 years until i can afford a charger. so im tryin to find something cheap n reliable, but somethin decent yknow. all i REALLY care about is getting my charger after im done with this purchase.

Is there a problem with your LeSabre that requires getting rid of it? Those are generally good cars. The money you don't spend today can be spent tomorrow on the Charger or better yet, the Challenger!

Rick

 

[MrSwiss 10+ year member]

no my car is in good shape actually. just i feel its time for something new. it has 177000 miles on it. besides i wont b able to afford a charger for a good couple years. once the prices come down and i will hopefully b done with school making better money.

 

[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

The 3.8 V-6 has many more miles to go. You can use it for the time you are thinking of waiting unless you're piling up 50K a year in commuting miles. Being stuck with a Buick LeSabre isn't such a bad fate and you've got a system already in it, so Life Is Good, count your blessings and save your moolah!

That's how I would do it if I was in your position.

Rick

 

[Vindaturk 10+ year member]

IMO Dodge Calipers are complete trash. I have driven five of them. Three of the five were brand new.

Cons- The seating was hard and not comfortable for even short trips. The steering is really tight and not responsive. They struggled to get up to 55mph. They have an awful blind spot when changing lanes.

Pros- The heaters worked really well. Took no time at all to warm the car up.

 

[terra 5,000+ posts]

i have a 99 explorer w/ the 4.0 and 90,000 miles. havent had anything go wrong so far except for a snapped s belt..my fault. regular maintenance is cheap and easy. installing is so simple. gets me everywhere i wanna go and i get 21mpg with 3 batts, a 72lb 18" and a big *** box.

 

[MrSwiss 10+ year member]

The 3.8 V-6 has many more miles to go. You can use it for the time you are thinking of waiting unless you're piling up 50K a year in commuting miles. Being stuck with a Buick LeSabre isn't such a bad fate and you've got a system already in it, so Life Is Good, count your blessings and save your moolah!
That's how I would do it if I was in your position.

Rick

dont get me wrong ive owned this car 3 years and i love it, just wanna try something new. ive only put 30,000 miles on it in the 3 years ive owned it and ive really had to put minimal money into the car given its age. i agree the gm 3.8 is a very reliable engine.

 

[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

IMO Dodge Calipers are complete trash. I have driven five of them. Three of the five were brand new.Cons- The seating was hard and not comfortable for even short trips. The steering is really tight and not responsive. They struggled to get up to 55mph. They have an awful blind spot when changing lanes.

Pros- The heaters worked really well. Took no time at all to warm the car up.

The ONLY reasons I'd recommend a Caliber is the lifetime powertrain warranty and the bargain cost, which is around $15K. Are they the best crossover out there? No but they are the best warrantied ones and that counts if you are figuring on having it for a long time.

Since then, the OP says he just wants to have a rig for a couple-three years and that would blow the lifetime warranty value of the deal right out of the water. If you have a POS, at least it's nice to know someone else is going to pay for the work...LOL!

You noticed those MoPar seats are hard too...

Rick

 

[WhoSayWho? 5,000+ posts]

IMO Dodge Calipers are complete trash. I have driven five of them. Three of the five were brand new.Cons- The seating was hard and not comfortable for even short trips. The steering is really tight and not responsive. They struggled to get up to 55mph. They have an awful blind spot when changing lanes.

Pros- The heaters worked really well. Took no time at all to warm the car up.

Why?

 

[casper97ta 10+ year member]

I've always like explorers and recently started looking at picking one up too. But I've heard mixed reviews as well. Mostly bad. Here's a nice one in my area I was thinking about: http://honolulu.craigslist.org/oah/car/685675175.html

 

[bamaboy 5,000+ posts]

my 04 explorer has been great for me, been pretty normal stuff for it

i get about 18mpg with all my equipment in it, i like the way it drives alot better than the older ones

if it was me, i would spring for on of the new body styles, alot better vehicle imo

 

[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

dont get me wrong ive owned this car 3 years and i love it, just wanna try something new. ive only put 30,000 miles on it in the 3 years ive owned it and ive really had to put minimal money into the car given its age. i agree the gm 3.8 is a very reliable engine.

Can you really afford to try "something new" is the next question. Will you be better off saving the money or the debt load for later on? Can you find something today that won't lose a buttload in depreciation when the time for the Charger comes along? How much are you willing to spend (cash or monthly payments) for "something new"?

If you're just bored, go rent a new vehicle for a weekend from Avis, Hertz, etc. as the weekends are their downtime and offer a good rate. Drive the piss out of it and do that every month or every other month as a treat to yourself. It will be cheaper than buying something else and wrestling the new car into shape. I know it's fun to drive other cars so that's the way to cure the "I'm bored with my ride" problem

Rick

 

[MrSwiss 10+ year member]

I've always like explorers and recently started looking at picking one up too. But I've heard mixed reviews as well. Mostly bad. Here's a nice one in my area I was thinking about: http://honolulu.craigslist.org/oah/car/685675175.html

wow that one looks to be in great shape and a great price. i would definately hit that guy up for a test drive.

 

[MyPoison1 10+ year member]

As a former paramedic, I would not recommend an Explorer. I would never let my wife and child have one, and I wouldn't feel comfortable myself in them, either.
They have consistently been rated very poorly in rollover crash-test ratings for over a decade, and Ford hasn't done a **** thing about it.

holy **** wtf,I bet that made op's day? I guess explorer got exploded as someone mentioned earlier.

 

[profundus-sanus 10+ year member]

holy **** wtf,I bet that made op's day? I guess explorer got exploded as someone mentioned earlier.

out of the 6 roll over accidents i've seen 3 were explorers, one happened right in front of me, while i was driving my explorer //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/eek.gif.771b7a90cf45cabdc554ff1121c21c4a.gif.

i definately do not take chances in poor weather with that thing.

 

[Vindaturk 10+ year member]

Why?

Three times were rental cars from Enterprise. Once when I just got back from deployment to afghanistan. Once when my front end was getting worked on and another one when my exhaust and iac were being changed. The other two times were designated driver for a friend who owned one. Helping another friend move out of the barracks and into the city. I am assuming the reason we have so many of them on post is because of that powertrain deal that Brougham is talking about.

The ONLY reasons I'd recommend a Caliber is the lifetime powertrain warranty and the bargain cost, which is around $15K. Are they the best crossover out there? No but they are the best warrantied ones and that counts if you are figuring on having it for a long time.
Since then, the OP says he just wants to have a rig for a couple-three years and that would blow the lifetime warranty value of the deal right out of the water. If you have a POS, at least it's nice to know someone else is going to pay for the work...LOL!

You noticed those MoPar seats are hard too...

Rick

Yeah man, those seats are a pain in the ***.