Expedition EL vs Suburban No chevy or ford bashing please.

[Diamondpilot]

I am in the Ford camp but will say I do like the Suburbans solid rear axle if you tow a lot. My guess is in reality you tow less than 5% of the time.

My sister currently has the Expedition, my father has had two, and my uncle has had one also. Not a single issue with any of them. Never heard of the bearing issue but I have changed a number of bearings on GM and Dodges so go figure.

Around here the GM and Fords are equal in numbers but to me the Ford has the edge with the rear seat, rear hatch, power running boards, ride, ect.

Chris

 

[Bigfoot62]

I'll state my predjudice: I like Fords. Been driving them for years. Currently have three Ford trucks. (150,250 & 350)

We really like the Expeditions. We've had two of them, an '05 and '08. (we trade the wife's vehicle every 3 or 4 years) They served us well while our kids were going to school. Both kids are driving now - one still in HS and the other in college. My wife wanted an economy car, so we traded the Ex for a Corolla. (she drives about 25,000 miles per year)
My mother had an '03 and is currently driving an '11.

Of the four Expeditions, here are my observations:
Extremely quiet and comfortable ride. You forget you're in a truck.
Plenty of power, but not a gas guzzler. Real-world, all-around fuel economy runs 17-19 mpg.
We have never towed with any of them, so I don't know about the independent -vs- solid rear axle issue that Topkicker raised.
Reliability? Other than normal maintenance, of the four Expeditions, there have been three visits to the mechanic, two of them under warranty:
*The '03 had a coil to fail at about 50,000 miles. Diagnostics, new coil and installation: a little over $100.
*The '08 went back to the dealership because the traction control would mysteriously engage by itself. They checked it out and cleaned some sensors. Covered under warranty, no $$$.
*The '11 was showing a check engine light. They cleared the code. It's never happened again. Covered under warranty, no $$$.
That's it. With a total combined mileage of about a quarter of a million miles, that's all. I think that's pretty good, myself.
BTW, we've never replaced a rear wheel bearing that tcartwri mentioned.

FWIW, I would stay away from the "luxury" models. (Navigator, Escalade, etc) From my observations, they cost a bunch more, but most of the trouble that people have with those are in the "bells and whistles" area. The extra gadgets and gizmos added to make them "luxury." One example is the "active suspension" (air ride) on the Navigator. I haven't heard lately, but several years ago, it was a real headache.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I agree about staying away with items like air ride. My co-pilot has a Yukon XL and his went out. Cost a couple of grand to fix it right. He was considering just taking it out but since its such a nice vehicle he decided to fix it right.

Chris

 

[crashz]

Hard decision. I think it will come to the best deal. Both trucks are great. I've owned Fords and GMs and like them both.

Never drove a Tahoe or Suburban, but had rented a Expedition in 2009 for a few months for a project out of town. The rental company had a real nice set of aggresive tires on it and it was unstopable in the snow. The truck was so good that the only limiting factor was sight during a snow storm. It wasn't great on fuel, but I was driving it like a rental, so I didn't expect great mileage.

Towing wasn't mentioned, but I think the Sub may be a little better in that regard with a soild axle. Maybe easier to maintain and a little more forgiving with tongue weight.

 

[Ryan03]

We bought a 2011 Expedition XLT for my wife last Febuary. It is the shorter non EL version and is a 4x4 model. Overall, this is one of our all time favorite vehicles that we have owned to date. I have towed a 28 foot haulmark enclosed trailer, with a generator, toolbox, 3700lb muscle car, etc., a couple of times with it, guestimated weight is around 8k. I was suprised how well it handled the trailer. Braking and handling were compareable to my 3/4 ton GM, the 5.4 labored a little, drank some gas, but had no trouble climbing long steep grades and keeping up with traffic. My wife averages 16.7mpg computer calculated in mixed driving, and 16.4 hand calculated. We have seen 20mpg on vacation trips. My only two complaints are the headrest on the front seats suck, as they are angled way forward. You get used to them eventualy.... kind of. The last complaint is the lack of dual zone climate control for left and right seat passengers. After 15k miles, I still smile every time she lets me drive it.

 

[deerefan]

To make it rather simple, I have ridden in both. If towing is your concern, go with the suburban. If a smoother ride is your concern, the expedition is the better choice.

 

[JESSE1]

I've had five Expeditions, starting with a '97. They have all been excellent vehicles and I've towed with all of them. I've had three with air suspension, no problems. Considering that most class 8 trucks and trailers have air suspension now, I don't think you'll have a problem with it. I had a '07 EL, very good vehicle. Current Ex is an '11 King Ranch. Only reason it's not an EL is because I couldn't locate one and didn't want to order.

 

[Diamondpilot]

Not to confuse things but I would also look at the Nissan Armada and the Toyota Sequoia. Both are rated to tow the same loads as the Suburban and Expedition and are good looking well built vehicles. See a bunch of both in my area. I would actually say the split is about equal 1/3rds. 1/3 Expeditions, 1/3 Suburbans, and the other 1/3 the imports built in the US. The Armada is built in Canton Mississippi, and the Sequoia is built right here in Indiana in Princeton.

Chris

 

[deerefan]

Not to confuse things but I would also look at the Nissan Armada and the Toyota Sequoia. Both are rated to tow the same loads as the Suburban and Expedition and are good looking well built vehicles. See a bunch of both in my area. I would actually say the split is about equal 1/3rds. 1/3 Expeditions, 1/3 Suburbans, and the other 1/3 the imports built in the US. The Armada is built in Canton Mississippi, and the Sequoia is built right here in Indiana in Princeton.

Chris

I second the Armada. Basically a Titan with an SUV body. They tow well and are roomy. We used a friends to pulls a car hauler with a stripped out Z car for road racing and it handled it well, about 6000 lbs total.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I second the Armada. Basically a Titan with an SUV body. They tow well and are roomy. We used a friends to pulls a car hauler with a stripped out Z car for road racing and it handled it well, about 6000 lbs total.

And the Toyota Sequoia is basically built on a Tundra.

Chris