Ford Excursion revisited

[WineStream]

I've got an '00 V10 w/ 144k miles on it. It doesn't ride like a Cadillac, but then again it's not a Cadillac. It's a truck. I rolled down the same assembly line as F250-F550 trucks. My family rides all day in the Excursion and no one complains. As a matter of fact, there's usually a lot of sleeping going on except for me. Don't shy away from an Ex. I'm bummed that I can't go out and buy a new one. An Ex with Ford's 6.7L diesel + 6 speed auto. trans. would be awesome. Apparently there's fear in the diesel / SUV market because GM has yet to drop a 6.6L Duramax + Allison into a 3/4 ton Suburban. I'm not sure where the fear is. I think they'd sell thousands.

On the flip side, I do have to make this comment: the other day, I was out in the garage working on the Ex and I also have an appointment next Mon. to have the rear axle looked at (it's noisy) and the front end looked at for clunks. I suspect the sway bar links are shot, but I don't have the time to shotgun it. My wife came out to the garage and said (as our '99 Honda CRV sat next to the Ex in the garage and the CRV has almost 220k miles), "Why is it that the Excursion always needs work and the CRV just needs oil changes?" My response: "If Honda could make something to haul the Airstream, then maybe we'd have just oil changes on the tow vehicle."

[Mexray]

Winestream....

Noise from the rear differential may be the forward pinion support bearings (cones) - alas, a symptom of towing...

Our 2001 4x4, V-10 had about 110K on it when we purchased it (without knowing it's previous towing usage)...we use it for mostly towing our 28ft AS and at about 130K miles, the noise from the rear axle began...I finally had a buddy with a gear shop tear into it - installed new bearings (nose brg's had some small pits), road tested but still had the 'noise'...he thought it was the pinion support bearings in the 'nose', and got another set, installed em' and the noise went away - either we had a bad bearing or the preload wasn't just right...but it's fixed now!

[WineStream]

Originally Posted by Mexray

Winestream....

Noise from the rear differential may be the forward pinion support bearings (cones) - alas, a symptom of towing...

That is my assumption as well which is why I'm not taking the work myself. Axles need special tools and special attention. I had this happen before on a 99 f250...let it go too long and cost me big.

[handn]

My 2000 7.3 is still going strong. I get sticker shock every time I think about trading it. Have you priced a new 3/4 ton pickup? Whatever I spend on repairs is a lot less than one years depreciation on a new one.
I had a suspension clunk going around right turns. The mechanic opened up the rear end. It was fine. The noise was looseness in the drive shaft and is now fixed with simple tightening.
It will still go up 7% grades in overdrive solo at 70 mph + and 65 towing in third, if you have the revs over 2000 at the start of the hill. This is what it did when new.
I recently started using Stanadyne. The engine runs smoother and more quietly and I get a one mpg increase in fuel economy.
I had quite bit of expense two years ago, but little recently. The last expense was the power window regulator on the drivers side last year. The window got slower and slower and I fixed it before it stopped. The power lock gizmos went out a couple of years ago. Wish I had known about the cheap fix.
I just finished towing the trailer from San Carlos Sonora to Grand Lake, Colorado. The Ex didn't miss a beat even with temps 100+ for a couple of days.
Wish I could say the same about the trailer. I scattered pieces of a couple of ST tires by the side of the road.