1998 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 5.0L V8

Summary:

A glorified LEMON of an SUV

Faults:

Idol air control valve cleaned by dealer twice. Replace the valve twice after that. It causes the car to die for no reason. Has left me stranded 6 times.

The electronic climate control is a joke. When the heater says 90 its 90 or off. I have to open sunroof in winter with the heat on to vent some hot air out.

The air conditioning works well if you want it on 60' at all times otherwise you are playing freeze out. there is no medium even if it says 72', its not.

The rear wiper does not wipe the entire window. Have replaced glass, motor, blades and arm and none of them helped.

Power antenna quit working completely.

Rattles unbelievably at highway speeds. Very loud inside the car as well.

Replaced spark plug wires twice in less than 30K miles at $156 each time.

The radio display does not work for the first twenty minutes the car is on, then it decides to work.

General Comments:

Would never buy another Ford.

Would not recommend an Eddie Bauer. I was told the top of the line would be better, would hate to see problems of the low end models.

It does have a nice punch from the 5.0L V-83

The keyless touchpad is very handy!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 21st May, 2003

8th Dec 2003, 23:31

For all of you out there, who have a Ford Explorer, Expedition or Mercury Mountaineer OEM radio, where the display is dead. This is a GENERAL issue with 1998 to 2000 Explorers. There is some help at the site below available.

I did get my radio display fixed by figuring it out myself (just re-solder the joints on the powerboard in the upper left corner of the radio). But when the multifunction knob became faulty, I settled for a new MP3 radio. Just 97 USD after rebates + 12 USD for the in dash kit. Sound is WAY better. Wouldn't go back to the original radio if I got one as a present.

Here are the relevant links:

http://www.epinions.com/content_113223437956

http://www.shareamemory.com/radio/

Good luck.

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1998 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer SOHC V6

Summary:

Poor quality

Faults:

Parking brake cables failed at 40,000.

Power antenna would not extend all of the way at 40,000..

The air intake control motor caused poor cold idle speed at 50,000.

A drive train seal needed to be replaced at 50,000.

All of the bearings in the rear end needed to be replaced at 57,000.

General Comments:

The vehicle s very comfortable and has excellent space, however the reliability is poor, at best.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 28th April, 2003

19th Jan 2004, 08:07

I also have a 1998 Eddie Bauer Ford Explorer. It has 85K miles on it and I've had it for 16 months and have already had numerous problems with it. I got it because I love the look of it and I really needed something 4-wheel drive. Plus I thought I was getting a great deal on an "Eddie Bauer". Well, big mistake!

-The first month I had it I had to replace the spark plugs and spark plug wires. This ended up costing me over $300 (and that was just for the parts, since my husband is a mechanic).

-The back wiper doesn't work half the time and when it does it only works on 1/3 of the window. We've replaced the wiper blade and that didn't help the problem.

-Last month I replaced the Oxygen sensor.

-It's in the shop at this moment because it needs a new fuel pump.

-I have to have the back brake light bulb replaced every month or so because water leaks in the cover and shorts it out.

-And it rattles unbelievably loud at highway speeds. Road noise is also terrible.

The pros:

-Very comfortable and handles well. I love the fact that it's All-Wheel drive so you don't have to worry about locking it into 4-wheel drive. It also has good power and acceleration.