Looking at a 2008 Ford Explorer Sport Trac as my first car. It’s got 113k miles, and they’re asking $9k. Thoughts?
Good all-around car, pretty reliable. Check the rockers and rear frame for rust. The price seems a bit high, but if it’s rust-free, it could be worth it.
I’m in NY, and rust is definitely my fear with all the salt here. The frame is supposedly good though.
I hear you, I’m in the rust belt too. Make sure you check it in person during the day and bring a friend. Crawl under the car and take a good look. There are some good YouTube videos that show where to check for rust on these.
Thanks, I’ll definitely check it out. Cars around here tend to look nice on the outside but can hide a lot underneath.
Exactly. They can look fine until you get under them. But these cars can easily hit 200K-250K miles if the rust doesn’t get to them first.
This is also relevant to the Ford Ranger forum since they’re pretty similar and were made to compete with the S10/Colorado.
Pickups tend to hold their value well, so I think it’s a reasonable deal.
Yeah, I love these cars, but $9k for a 16-year-old car with 113k miles makes me nervous.
If they’re asking $9k, you can probably negotiate it down to $8k. For a pickup in good condition with relatively low miles, that’s not bad. Just make sure it runs well and looks clean.
Does it have the 4.6 V8?
Nope, it’s the 4.0 V6.
The 4.0 is a bit riskier than the V8, especially in a NY truck where rust is a big issue. That being said, these seem to hold up better than others in the rust department.
Yeah, I’d prefer a V8 too, but I don’t really need a full-size truck. Something like a Ranger or S10 would be perfect for me. How does the engine choice affect rust, though?
I meant that the Explorer-based Sport Tracs (from 2006-2010) seem to hold up to rust better than the earlier models. They’re not built on the Ranger platform like the older ones. If you can find one of these with a V8, especially a 2009-2010 model, you’d have a solid truck.
That makes sense. I’ll keep that in mind while I look. I’ve noticed Rangers are getting pretty expensive, too.
That price does seem a bit high, but Sport Tracs hold their value. The cheapest one I could find for my kid was $4k with almost 300k miles. It’s been a great car, though. The 4.0 V6 is easy to work on, and even with a few issues, I’ve been able to fix everything over a weekend.
I’ve got $10k saved up, but my parents want me to look at newer cars and maybe get a loan since I just started a full-time job. I’m leaning toward paying cash for something like this because I don’t need all the bells and whistles newer cars have. I just want a simple car that drives well.
Older cars will always have little things that need fixing, but as long as there’s no major rust or engine issues, you’ll be fine. Just be sure to factor in taxes, title, and any dealership fees.
My first car was an '05 Sport Trac I bought for $8990 with 46k miles. It lasted about 5 years before rust took it down. I wish I’d known how to take better care of it back then, but I’d still prefer driving that over my current ‘19 Ranger. If you buy it, get an oil-based undercoating sprayed on before winter every year. It’ll help protect it from rust.