For you guys suggesting the Explorer can you narrow down the years that are considered best?
"Best" might depend to some extent on what the intended use is/how far you want to go with it, but anything from 1991 to 2010 has potential as a practical choice for an "overland" rig...
'91-'94 has the best off-road attributes. The Twin-Traction-Beam front suspension is easily buildable and can run circles around most other rigs if you build it right (yes, even the XJ too).
The 4.0L V6 engine is reliable as dirt when maintained (300K+ miles is very easy to achieve, reports of 500K+ exist too).
The A4LD automatic trans hasn't the best track record, however the factory in-radiator cooler is mostly to blame here (allows the trans to chronically run hot). An external auxiliary cooler on the return line should bring reliability to normal, if not above average levels (and of course there is the M5OD stickshift available too, which is an excellent trans, save for a slightly tallish 3.40:1 1st gear).
Aftermarket is quite good, especially for the axles & differentials. If you plan to get into anything technical such as rock crawling, these would be the ones to look for.
'95-'01 ('95-'03 Sport) lost the venerable TTB suspension to an A-arm IFS w/torsion bars (leaves only a couple of drop-in locker options available, such as the Powertrax No-Slip).
A 5.0L V8 became available, but with AWD only. A two-speed case from a F-150 is a very easy swap. The SOHC 4.0L V6 appearing alongside the OHV 4.0L for '97 is known for timing chain issues, though I believe updated chain guides from the '04-'11 Ranger 4.0L can be retrofitted.
Like the A4LD, the 4R55E (and later, 5R55E) trans on V6 models suffered the same lack of adequate cooling (again an aux cooler will pay big dividends in transmission reliability). The V8 has a 4R70W trans which seems to have a somewhat better track record on it's own than the V6 transmissions (w/o an aux cooler) do. For '01 the OHV V6 became unavailable, along with the M5OD manual for 4-door models.
'02-'05 (4-door) brought forth IRS, and the 5.0L V8 gave way to a 4.6L OHC V8. The vehicle also grew larger in size. The Dana35 IFS differential was replaced with a Dana "Super 30" IFS diff. This opened back up a much greater selection of lockers for the front axle. The IRS, with it's 8.8" centersection, continued to enjoy a wide selection of available lockers (though some might possibly need slight machining of the side gears to fit the IRS axle circlips). V6 models continued to offer a two-speed T-case, and V8 models only AWD (but still also the possibility of swapping in the F-150 two-speed case). Auto transmissions remained mostly unchanged. The M5OD manual reportedly reappeared for 2002 on V6 models, but has not been seen since.
'06-'10 saw some changes in styling and a slight further growth in size, but overall functionally is similar to the '02-'05 models.
'11-current can be considered the final demise of the Explorer as an offroad-capable vehicle. It is now a car-based unibody SUV with light-duty underpinnings and no low range at all. A sad end to a great truck that never really got the recognition it deserved in the offroad world.
×2 on
www.therangerstation.com. Pretty much anything you want to know about modifying and maintaining an Explorer (or a Ranger or Bronco II for that matter) is there. Hundreds of articles of all aspects contributed by a very active community going back to before 1999.
