Looking to buy?

I was looking for some information on the 02' XLT Explorer. I have the chance to get into one that is fairly loaded and "seems" to be in good running condition. It is the 4x4 with 58K and the 4.0 6 cyl. I test drove the vehicle and all seemed good, no strange noises or handling problems. The under side was clean and dry except for the rear diff cover, looked like it was seeping a little, but over all a clean vehicle.
Unfortunatly I am looking at buying this after mother nature desided to drop a large limb on my 00' XJ while I was driving down the road, not the way you want to get a vehicle paid-off.
I liked the Explorer for all the interior room, and the way it rode, not to mention the nice pick-up it has. Thanks in advance.

I was looking for some information on the 02' XLT Explorer. I have the chance to get into one that is fairly loaded and "seems" to be in good running condition. It is the 4x4 with 58K and the 4.0 6 cyl. I test drove the vehicle and all seemed good, no strange noises or handling problems. The under side was clean and dry except for the rear diff cover, looked like it was seeping a little, but over all a clean vehicle.
Unfortunatley I am looking at buying this after mother nature desided to drop a large limb on my 00' XJ while I was driving down the road, not the way you want to get a vehicle paid-off.
I liked the Explorer for all the interior room, and the way it rode, not to mention the nice pick-up it has. Thanks in advance.

Quite a few of the 2002's and 2003's had a problem with rear differentials failing. Some people have had them rebuilt twice. The independent rear suspension was new in 2002. Ford now has a repair kit, and they have changed the rear diff fluid from 75-90w to 75-140w.

They also had a some problems with the transmissions - shift solenoids did not work properly, as well as some other smaller issues.

There is no real way to know if you will have these problems - If you have access to the service history on the vehicle, you can find out if they have already been worked on - but you don't often get access to the service history when buying used.

SUV's are CHEAP because of gas prices. If you can get a really good deal on the vehicle, then go ahead. Just do your homework and make sure the price is right. If you are buying from a dealer, I would make them throw in a powertrain warranty.

Thanks explod.. I did buy it today, and all seems ok, one odd thing I found was that you can't check the tranny fluid in these, its all sealed up, so I made sure that come monday they do a fluid flush and filter change, I found what looked like an axle seal leaking in the rear diff, so that too will get fixed. Other than that it runs nice and handles even better. I did get the Ford extended warrenty that covers just about everything, so if a big issue comes up I'll have it covered. One other thing, this has the 4x4 auto button with the 4x4 Hi and Lo buttons too. Does this mean that the vehicle is in an" AWD" condition unless you choose one of the other selections?
Well, thanks for your insite, any other pointers of things to look for, I would appreciate it. Thanks again.

Thanks explod.. I did buy it today, and all seems ok, one odd thing I found was that you can't check the tranny fluid in these, its all sealed up, so I made sure that come monday they do a fluid flush and filter change, I found what looked like an axle seal leaking in the rear diff, so that too will get fixed. Other than that it runs nice and handles even better. I did get the Ford extended warrenty that covers just about everything, so if a big issue comes up I'll have it covered. One other thing, this has the 4x4 auto button with the 4x4 Hi and Lo buttons too. Does this mean that the vehicle is in an" AWD" condition unless you choose one of the other selections?
Well, thanks for your insite, any other pointers of things to look for, I would appreciate it. Thanks again.


Good move on the tranny flush and diff fluid change. Its your best insurance.

I would suggest using Mobil1 synthetics in both. Synthetics handle higher temperatures and pressures than regular oils. Mobil1 is fully synthetic, not a blend. They cost more - but they do provide more durable protection.

The four wheel is a full-time four wheel system. It uses sensors on the driveshafts to determine when the rear wheels are starting to spin faster than the fronts, and then begins engaging the front wheels. It can engage the front wheels anywhere from about 10% (default) to 100% by varying the clutch engagement in the transfer case. When you pick 4 wheel high it engages the front wheels 100%. Not to be used on dry pavement.

The system is pretty finicky about tire sizes - you need to replace all four tires at once. People have reported four wheel drive issues when tire diameters are different - it causes the driveshafts to rotate at slightly different speeds. Not a problem, just an FYI.

Go to motorcraft.com, select technical resources at the top of the page, then on that page select owners guides on the left side of that page, then select your vehicle. You can download the owners manual, warranty and maintenance guides if you need em. It will explain the four wheel stuff.

Have fun with new toy!