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Review 3 of 198
Price Paid:
$36000.00
from University Ford Year / Model Reviewed:
2004 XLT 4x4 Summary:
FORD should be ashamed of the poor quaility of the new Expedition. My vehicle came loaded with known problems. This is my 9th Ford in a row and after the way I have been treated the past couple of purchases, THIS IS MY LAST FORD EVER!! I am a patient man but, I expected a couple of minor problems the first few months, but combine the numerous problems, the trips back to the shop to fix problems, combined with the dealors and Ford's lack of support and willingness to stand behind thier product, my patience is all used up. There are so many problems with the quality and design of this vehicle it is a joke. Here are some of the problems that I have had: A/C stops working on long road trips after about 2 hours, bad vibration in steering wheel at highway speeds, two dealers have tried o fix it 4 times, now say they can't fix it and I have to take it up with Ford!, in addition to the vibration the the front tires are feathering, had to have the front tires replaced after 3,000 miles, and the problem still exists, they tried aligining the front end twice and the problem still exists, the dealer even had the nerve to make me pay $10 dollars to rotate the tires, they say if they cant fix it before 12k miles that I am stuck with the problem; front Brake rotors have deep grooves in them at 9,000 of light duty driving, the dealer says it's a known problem but they won't do anything about it, excessive brake dust is ugly, Ford took away too much ground clearance in the new models for decent off road use, I have driven mine many times on the beaches and it bottoms out in the sand much more than the 1999 model I had, therefore you have to drive a lot slower which is no fun; the leather on the front seats started peeling at 8,00 miles very cheap grade leather (I question if it really is leather, sure doesnt smell like it; the CD player makes a whining noise; the rear tailgate wiper intermittantly doesnt go all the way back down; I had a whining noise from the middle drive train around 45 mph, the right rear view mirror does not have the full range of movement the left does but the dealer wont admit it's a problem; the gear shift selector is quirky, you can drive it with the selector not fully engaged in drive; the design on the instrument panel is terrible, several of the important indicator lights are so low on the panel they are hidden by the steering wheel, ie, high beam indicator, low tire pressue, etc; compared to the ergonomics of the 1999 Expedition I had, the ergonomics of the 2004 is terrible, the drivers area is much more cramped, it's hard to get comfortable on long trips, the seats are very uncomfortable on long trips, the seats sit too high in the cabin and I have much less leg room than 1999 model; the enigne made a chirping noise after only 1000 miles, they replaced the serpentine belt, at 10,000 miles the noise is back; the engine intermittantly idles rough, the dealer said again that this is normal; the carpet has to be the most low grade material ever, very cheap; the arm rests on either side of the front seats are at an uncomfortable hieght, the buttons on the dashboard and overhead console couldn't be any cheaper and flimsy, they are so flimsy it's hard to tell if the button has been engaged, and the indicator lamp is so small and dim you have trouble seeing it; closing the sunroof glass is tricky, you have to time the button release just right to get it to seal properly. Strengths:
Power folding 3rd seat, roomy storage bin under console arm rest. Weaknesses:
Overall very poor quality, and the worst thing is that the dealors and the Ford company itself are very difficult to deal with, and provide very poor support. Bad A/C design, vibration at highway speeds, abnormal tire wear, excessive brake rotor wear, excessive brake dust, they took too much ground clearance away for enjoyable Off Road usage, engine noise and rough idle, terrible ergonomics for long trip comfort, some critical dash board lamps are way too low and hidden by the steering wheel, cheap leather starts peeling at 7,000 miles, abnormal tire wear, faulty rear wiper, faulty rear view mirror, cheap/flimsy buttons on dashboard and overhead console, quirky sunroof operation and gear selector, CD player make whining noise, many other minor issues. Similar Products Used:
1999 Ford Expedition, 3 Explorers, Chevy Blazer
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