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Expedition Vs. Excursion

12K views 21 replies 11 participants last post by  dockrocker 
#1 ·
I'm going to have to get my wife a newer vehicle. I've been looking at Expeditions. We need a full size SUV with a V8 for towing. Any pro's or con's on these trucks? I want the 5.4L, not the 4.6L.
I don't know much about the Excursions. The few I've seen are diesels. Do they make gas versions? How are these trucks?
 
#2 ·
Excursions are made in Gas versions w/ a V10, and V8. Until 2004 they came with the 7.3L diesel as an option, after that they switched over to the 6.0L. the newer expeditions have the 300hp 5.4 which would be decent for towing power wise, we tow our 26ft travel trailer with no problem other than the fact that we get 10MPG on the highway, all be it the older 265 HP 5.4, but i wouldn't expect the new one to get much better mileage either.
The 7.3L excurion IMO would be your best option for towing, against the 5.4L.
 
#7 ·
love my familys 99 expo ediboure addition noting to mechanical has faild had to replace alt two years ago that was it tows great
the excursion with the deisle is sweet ridden in them and have seen them pull a fully loaded 30 foot travle trailer if you got the cash get it note:doesnt sound like typicall deisel more gas like in tone untill super charger winds up
 
#9 ·
Hmm...I have never heard a 7.3 or 6.0 that sounds like any gasser, unless the gasser has a rocker about to let lose...haha. The 7.3 and 6.0 definitely sound like diesels, nobody would confuse them for a gas engine, unlike the GM 6.6, or the new ford 6.4.

And once the TURBO spools up, they sound more like jets than anything.
 
#8 ·
back to the original question....both are good trucks.


The excursion is obviously bigger all around, it has a solid front axle (D50 I believe), better motor options (diesel for the win!), and will be better for towing because of the increased weight....plus more room for the family.

The expedition isn't a bad vehicle though...plenty of room for 4 comfortably, but can hold 7 if you have the third row seat, but not much room for adults in the very back.

We have a 98 eddie bauer up at our cabin for a farm truck/weekend vehicle. My parents bought it new in 97 and have put around 300k on it. It is on its third motor though, first one dropped a valve at 105k miles, and they replaced that with a garbage re-man motor that kept spitting head gaskets and leaking oil...so that was ripped out for a 5.4 that came out of a wrecked 99 expedition which had 13k miles on it...great truck since then. My dad uses it to tow his quads, and pull all kinds of stuff around the property.


If you are leaning towards an expedition, go for a 99 or newer. The 97-98's weren't bad, but the 99+ got the PI 5.4, which bumped the HP up to 260 from 235. Or if you get an 03 or newer, it will have the 300hp 5.4.



Now as far as the excursions go...the 05 was the best model. It has the coil spring front end instead of the leafs, and it will have a muuccchhhh better turning radius. Plus it has the updated grill/bumper/lights, so it looks a lot better. But there is really nothing wrong with the older models.

If you decide to go diesel (which I would highly recommend if you really plan on towing with it) I would shy away from an 03 or 04 6.0, because they had a lot of problems. The later build 04's and 05's were pretty solid, and have very few problems if any....but they wont come cheap unless they have a ton of miles on them. The older models with the 7.3 are tried and true, and will run for a long time. You can get a tuner, exhaust, and intake and pull 20+mpg with it...which you will never get with a 5.4 or 6.8.
 
#22 ·
back to the original question....both are good trucks.

...

Now as far as the excursions go...the 05 was the best model. It has the coil spring front end instead of the leafs, and it will have a muuccchhhh better turning radius. Plus it has the updated grill/bumper/lights, so it looks a lot better. But there is really nothing wrong with the older models.

If you decide to go diesel (which I would highly recommend if you really plan on towing with it) I would shy away from an 03 or 04 6.0, because they had a lot of problems. The later build 04's and 05's were pretty solid, and have very few problems if any....but they wont come cheap unless they have a ton of miles on them. The older models with the 7.3 are tried and true, and will run for a long time. You can get a tuner, exhaust, and intake and pull 20+mpg with it...which you will never get with a 5.4 or 6.8.
Some inaccurate information here... unlike the Superduty, which got coils in front in '05 as well as the 3V gas motors, the Excursion never received any of those updates. Ex's had leafs in front the entire run, only 2V gas motors, and teh 4spd trans, at least with the gas motors. I believe they may have gotten the 5 spd but only behind the 6.0 diesel.

(and I just realized this thread is older than the hills, but maybe somebody will find it useful :) )
 
#10 ·
You will never get close to 20mpg with the 6.0 or the 6.4 diesel but I agree the turning radius and front leaf springs blow in my Excursion. Otherwise it's been a great truck and I bought it used with ~40K two years ago for 21K.

P.S. I knew what he meant to say about the 02' but he didn't say it, and it was 03' that offered both 7.3 and 6.0 as others have said.
 
#15 ·
I get over 20mpg with my F-250 6.0 (stock motor) crew cab 4x4 as long as I keep it under 70 on the highway, and I'm running 38's and 3.73 gears. I can't immagine it would be any different in an excursion as long as the driver has a light foot and keeps the speeds below 70.
 
#12 ·
when I was looking at a used/auction excursion, I was advised to stay away from the V10 gasser by folks on here with far more experience with Fords.

I don't recall exactly the full litany of reasons, and in part it may have been 'cause I was asking specifically about a certain year with >100k on it as a municipal titled vehicle, and the likelihood that certain maintenance items had not been done.
 
#13 ·
the biggest problem i know of is the aluminum heads and the cast manifolds heat up and cool at different rates and the manifolds leak causing the hot exaust to cut the head. past that my dad has 98 thousand i belive and hasent had a problem. it is running 35s the only bad thing is the 6.8 mpg ha
 
#14 ·
No wonder is that it in your avatar :teehee:

I looked at a couple V10's before buying mine. The guy said in the summer he got around 10 and 7-9 in the winter or in 4wd. Big diff between that and the ~15 I get in the city and ~19 on the highway with 0 mods.
 
#16 ·
I have a 97 Expedition Eddie Bauer. Great if you are hauling people, but it drags its ass like a dog across a carpet if you put a car hauler on it. Ive been looking to get either an Excursion or an f250/350 and Diesel only. The torque from a diesel and the slightly better milage will offset the price for gas at the pump. Plus you have the option of running bio diesel that you can make at a far cheaper price.
 
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