SID297 Gets a New DD : SVTP Gets Another Ford V8 to Modhttp://www.svtperformance.com/forum...ets-new-dd-svtp-proves-well-mod-anything.htmlhttp://www.svtperformance.com/forum...ets-new-dd-svtp-proves-well-mod-anything.htmlhttp://www.svtperformance.com/forum...ets-new-dd-svtp-proves-well-mod-anything.htmlhttp://www.svtperformance.com/forum...ets-new-dd-svtp-proves-well-mod-anything.html
http://www.svtperformance.com/forum...ets-new-dd-svtp-proves-well-mod-anything.html
It’s a sad truth that in life sometimes you have to move on from a car you love due to changes in your lifestyle. That was the situation I found myself in recently. My trusty 2000 Jeep Cherokee served me faithfully for many years. It carried me through many harsh northern West Virginia winters and never let me down off-road. With a premium lift, wheels, tires, locker, power mods, and doomsday proof 4.0L I-6 it could take me anywhere I wanted to go. However, all those mods that made it great for short trips and off-roading in WV didn’t really translate well into my new lifestyle of longer trips and basically no off-road driving. The end result was the Jeep was being asked to work in a situation it just wasn’t built for. After a one last 500 mile trip with her I decided it was time to look for a new daily driver.
As much as I love this truck, it's tough to admit that it just doesn't fit my life anymore.
I then came to the realization that I didn’t know what new car I wanted to buy. I knew I wanted another SUV for utility, and I wanted something safer on the highway than my Cherokee’s 30 year old design afforded. The list of other requirements were; the ability to tow about 4,000 pounds, it had to get better mileage than the Jeep’s 13-16 MPG, decent power and reliability, better handling than the Jeep, a moderate level of technology, comfortable for in-town and highway use, overkill A/C (SC summers are HOT), and it needed to look decent. My first thought was a Lincoln Aviator. My parents own a 2005 model (last year they were made) and it’s a nice truck. I especially like its DOHC 4.6L V8 and HID headlights. But in my searches I couldn’t find a clean one that looked decent and fit my budget. Plus the more I looked at them, the more geriatric they seemed to look.
That led me to looking at the Aviator’s more successful platform sibling, the Ford Explorer. After a few hours of searching online I found the truck that would end up being my new DD, a 2009 Explorer XLT Sport V8. It really intrigued me because I had never seen a Sport model 4th Gen Explorer, I didn’t even know they existed. By checking off the XLT Sport option you get a bunch of stuff, but the most noticeable differences are the two-tone finish and the Sport-Trac Adrenaline 20-inch polished aluminum wheels. So to me, this Explorer looks somewhat unique compared to all the mommymobiles out there. I really like this generation of Explorer because it’s something of a throwback. The days of mid-size body on frame SUVs are basically over, and this model of Explorer is something of a high water mark for that type of Ford truck.
My new Ex is equipped with a 4.6L 3V V8, a 6R80 6-speed auto tranny, 8.8 IRS suspension, a fully boxed frame, AWD, SYNC, and amazingly cold A/C. While it’s no racecar it does run nicely and gets about 21 MPG on the highway. I think it’s safe to say that I’ll be adding a little more power in the future. However, the first addition I wanted to make to the Ex was the same first mundane add-on we made to the SVTP 2012 GT; some deep tread rubber floor mats and a rubber cargo liner (all to help combat beach sand buildup). As before, we made a call to Tousley Ford to order Ford Accessory mats, which always fit perfectly. I’ll be covering more mods (many more fun than floormats) being added to the Ex in a couple future articles. So if you like modding your DD to be more fun, reliable, and economical be sure to keep an eye on the SVTP Featured Articles Forum.
Next week we will have 2 more threads covering the first round of mods and a little maintenance.
-SID297:beer:
