Ford Excursion - I think I must have one! Comments welcome.

[ddivinia]

I have always wanted a Ford Excursion. I could never talk my wife into driving one instead of a Suburban, etc. The prices have come down a bunch. Also, we have 2 kids now. I have a Dodge 3500 for serious towing. I was thinking an Excursion would be handy for the kids, dogs, and tow.

It must be a 4wd & leather.

I am debating gas vs. diesel. Gas ones seem to be much cheaper. I don't plan on driving it that much - so, I don't think the fuel economy difference would pay for itself. Repairs on the diesels are expensive.

If I did go diesel it would have to be a 7.3 or one of the last 6.0s made. The 2003 models had all kinds of problems.

Comments, suggestions, etc. ?

Thanks,
D.

 

[WH401]

I have an 01' Excursion 2wd w/ the 7.3 and as far as the engine and drivetrain goes, it's been a very reliable piece. It has about 98k miles and the only problems I have had with it are "normal wear" parts needing to be replaced. Batteries, starter's, glow plug relay, camshaft sensor, and the alternator. Other than those things it's been great and I would seriously consider buying another one. I hate the fact that Ford stopped making them, and unfortunately with the way the economy has gone and global warming, I doubt you'll ever see a vehicle of that size again, even though the diesel version is more efficient than most of the gas 1/2 ton models of its day. It's good on fuel, but not as good as either of my 4wd 5.9's. It'll do about 15 - 17 in mixed city/highway driving, and 20+ on the open road at anywhere from 60 - 70.

Good luck with the purchase.

 

[Cat_Driver]

I had a 2000 diesel and it was way too big. In theory and in looks it made me want one, but once I got it, I hated the size. For me I just didn稚 like it as a daily driver. Now if one was on the road a lot had a huge and i do mean huge family sure, otherwise there are better alternatives.

I went to Washington DD last week and rented a GMC Yukon. It only had 1,550 miles on it and had all the bell sand whistles. When I turned it in after a week and they asked me how I liked the vehicle I said I am buying one when I get home. Talk about a 4WD cowboy cadillac, Even the wife drove it and fell in love with it.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Never owned one but have had 3 Ford Diesels. I really looked at them last winter and decided for my type of driving and with money considered I would get the V-10. They were selling for around 10K for fully loaded Eddie Bauer ones with 80,000 miles on them. Probably should have bought a dozen and sat on them now that I think about it.

My boating buddy had a V-10 powered one, I am guessing it was about a 2003 and I drove it once. Like others said it was big but not any bigger than a 1 ton truck. It rode nice and had tons of power. He sold his big camper and bought a Motor Home so the Excursion got sold and he bought a F-150.

Chris

 

[ddivinia]

I like the Excursion size. I am leaning towards a V-10. I figure it is a lot cheaper up front and to repair. It will not be a daily driver, so the mileage is less of an issue.

I have found a 2000 Excursion 4wd with V-10 loaded 169K miles for $6300. 1 owner, etc - I need to go check it out in person.

D.

 

[JESSE1]

The Excursion was an excellent vehicle. I had planned on getting one to replace my '04 Expedition but they ended production before I was ready to trade. I bought an Expedition EL instead. I had driven both the diesel and gas versions. If you're not going to drive it much the V10 would be an excellent choice. They're really not any bigger than a short bed crewcab SuperDuty.

 

[ddivinia]

The Excursion was an excellent vehicle. I had planned on getting one to replace my '04 Expedition but they ended production before I was ready to trade. I bought an Expedition EL instead. I had driven both the diesel and gas versions. If you're not going to drive it much the V10 would be an excellent choice. They're really not any bigger than a short bed crewcab SuperDuty.

I am leaning towards the 4wd V-10.

THe nice thing is it has a covered bed. Great for the kids, dogs, hunting gear, etc and it will pull a trailer.

D.

 

[QueBota]

My next door neighbor had a nice one with the V10, every option but the sunroof(s), he got rid of it when gas went over 4 dollars a gallon. Traded it in on a F150, dealer stole it from him. I would have bought it from him at that price if my driveway wasn't already full.

Very nice and solid vehicle, gas mileage around 10 or so, didn't drop a whole lot when pulling a trailer. His major issue was front brakes and rotors, although he did tend to drive fast and use the brakes a lot. Rides a little better than an empty PU due to the weight of the body on the back, but still rides like a truck.

Unless you need the capacity of the Excursion the Suburban isn't bad. I have a Suburban for the wife to drive and haul the kids/friends/stuff around and it does a good job and gets approx. 17 mpg city/highway combined. Leather is a must for us with three kids, wish I could have found one with the carpet delete option, may delete the carpet myself and install some rubber mats.

I have a Dodge Cummins 2500 if I need to pull or carry something heavy, the Sub is definitely not up to that task, it is very car like but does what it was built for and will go through 12" of snow without any trouble.

Dave

 

[ddivinia]

We had a 2005 Yukon XL - it sucked at towing much of anything. Check engine light would come on most times. That truck was a dud in more ways than one.

I tried to talk my wife into a 3/4 ton 4wd but she would not go for it as a daily driver. We shopped around and found a certified pre-owned Cadillac Escalade 4wd with 22" wheels. 4wd is nice in the rain and weather, etc it is all time 4wd and no low range. The factory 22" wheels look great and with the magnetic ride suspense won't beat you to death. I have never taken it off road but with no side wall I suspect it would suck.

Excursions have come way down in price and it seems that it would be a good tow, hunting, and ranch rig. Mine - not my wife's. I don't have to worry about a scratch, etc. It might sit a while between uses so a V-10 seems to make more sense.

Don't really need another vehicle, but you know how that goes. Whenever i go hunting - my Dodge Ram turns into a 2 seater if the weather is not good. Heck - I don't like leaving stuff in the bed. Blows out, stolen, etc.

I wish I could have talked my widfe into a 3/4 WD burb, but oh well. When I would need it - she would need it or something along those lines.

When we bought the 2005 Yukon i tried to talk her into buying one of the last Excursions...she would not go for it. Now - she would have. Oh well...

D>

 

[Dargo]

I like the Excursion size. I am leaning towards a V-10. I figure it is a lot cheaper up front and to repair. It will not be a daily driver, so the mileage is less of an issue.

I have found a 2000 Excursion 4wd with V-10 loaded 169K miles for $6300. 1 owner, etc - I need to go check it out in person.

D.

I bought a V-10 Excursion a couple of years ago when gas prices started rocketing up. Like your situation, it's not a daily driver but with my family of seven it certainly has it's place. I've had either 4 or 5 Suburbans over the last ten years and can say that I've honestly been quite disappointed in what you get for $50k in a Suburban. Having said that, the Excursion has been like a breath of fresh air. The interior specifically is leagues ahead of the Suburbans I owned when it comes to quality, fit and finish as well as lack of the gazillion squeaks and rattles I had in each Suburban. I'm extremely pleased with my Excursion and can't see myself getting rid of it anytime soon.

Even though I have the V-10 gas, I don't get any worse fuel economy than I got with the V-8 Suburbans and I have considerably more power and the engine feels smoother than anything I've ever driven. Mine is a 4X4 Limited version with leather, dual power seats, rear heat and A/C etc. I think it does have every option except the diesel engine. I bought it from the original owner and it had about 80k on it. Based on looking up NADA, Edmonds and KBB it appears as if the price has gone up since I bought it just over 2 years ago. I paid $6500 for it back then and diesel versions were going for about $10k more. That made my decision between the V-10 and diesel a no-brainer. As a side note, I did drive an X with a 5.4 V-8 in it and it felt extremely under powered and constantly shifted on the highway like a pickup pulling a heavy load. A friend of mine bought the V-8 I drove back then and, besides really lacking in power, he gets slightly worse fuel economy than I do with the V-10.

Good luck with your quest. I'm tempted to buy another Excursion, perhaps the last model year made (2005?), if we have another spike in gas prices. I just wish I hadn't been a 'died in the wool' GM person and would have checked out the Excursions years ago. Hopefully they'll make them again, but I doubt it. The overly liberal global warming type seem to completely miss that the Excursions were no worse on fuel than most all 3/4 ton pickups, full sized work vans or even GM's Suburbans. They got targeted by the 'greenies' and Ford folded rather than point out the obvious that I just began to mention in the previous sentence.