Overview & Reviews
The 2005 Ford Explorer receives minor interior and exterior trim changes, and the AdvanceTrac stability control system is upgraded with roll stability control for better protection against rollover accidents.
- Excellent ride and handling characteristics for a truck-based SUV, strong optional V8, comfortable cabin with user-friendly layout and seating for up to seven, good crash test scores.
- Dull cabin design with some low-grade materials, low resale value, confusing controls on high-line models, lousy fuel economy.
User Reviews:
Showing 11 through 20 of 146.00-
Nice SUV with plenty of power - 2005 Ford Explorer
By HappyDriver - October 5 - 2:00 amBought Explorer new. No major problems at all. Some small issues, tire pressure sensor malfunction, gas cap sensor cause service soon light on, but nothing worse in 5 years time. Never stranded or stalled, been most reliable vehicle so far after bad luck with a few GMs, still runs good as new. Gas mileage not bad for V8, avg 16-19 in town & 22-25+ highway. Comfy interior, good layout. Plenty of power with V8, lots of room (7 passengers) but still feels sporty to drive. Great stereo (have the 6-disc w/ MP3 upgrade)! Overall, love this Explorer!
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Last Ford Ill ever own - 2005 Ford Explorer
By dale - April 24 - 2:08 pmPretty good vehicle, but Ford refused to work with me on refixing three problems "supposedly" fixed once under warranty. Cant accept this lack of concern for a loyal customer after spending 41k on original purchase. Will just have to shop elsewhere next time. If this is a common practice with other claims, I can see them losing a lot of business.
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Dont Buy - 2005 Ford Explorer
By Found On Road Dead - April 19 - 9:23 pmI have owned my 2005 Exploder for 2 years. Yeah I said Exploder, because thats what the transmission did. At 39,304 miles and only 5 years old my transmission went belly up. I used to think that these poor reviews were concocted by GM dealers hoping to ruin Fords credibility.Now I have first hand experience with my own transmission nightmare. Stay away from these vehicles. I wasted my time and money babying this vehicle and maintaining all recommended services, because Ford didnt give a diddly squat about my premature transmission failure. By the way there is no dipstick to check transmission fluid levels. Apparently Ford thinks they are bullet proof. HA HA HA HA !
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Money Pit - 2005 Ford Explorer
By MissouriEric - April 12 - 9:34 pmCurrently, my ABS light, Advance Trac, and 4x4 lights are on so Im going to have to get that fixed now. In 2007 - wheel bearings (no big deal). In 2008 - motor blew up. Changed oil every 4,000 - 6,000 miles. In 2009 - transmission was rebuilt. Never buying another Explorer. Never had these problems with a Ford before. My family members worked at a Ford assembly plant so I always bought Fords. This may be my last Ford.
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Piece-O-Junk - 2005 Ford Explorer
By James - March 3 - 10:00 amHere it comes!!! Window sticks, tail light plug breakes, handle on driver seat breakes off, engine skips (new plugs/wires= no change) TRANNY Stinks!, hard shifting into rev & 2-3. (Changed fluid w/ synth & additive= Helped for 2 months but back to same!, Drivers rear wheel bearing went out 64K mi, ($489), Squeaks in front suspention all the time, Radio cuts itself up (I do not have steering wheel cntls), Cds will not eject=New radio from ford=Warranty=Same problems, Dampers broken under dash that work airflow=plastic pieces broken=fix w/drill & metal nut bolt, overhead cnsol fell off=again plastic mount broke=Epoxy repair. Tire sens bad
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Great SUV - 2005 Ford Explorer
By Mike Otting - December 25 - 8:09 pmWe have had the vehicle for almost 4 years now and almost 78k miles and have had no complaints. We went to the dealer once for noise coming from the front of the vehicle and the dealer new exactly what it was and fixed it on an oil change. Something with the sway bar bushings. We have four kids and the room for seven is great. Here in the midwest we can get some good snow storms and this vehicle can get around with ease. The mileage could be alittle better. We get anywhere from 16-19 mpg depending on the time of the year. Our other vehicle is a 09 Sienna which we love as well, but I can certainly feel more quality with the Toyota, but for what we paid on the explorer it was a great buy
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Transmission problems - 2005 Ford Explorer
By Car owner - December 5 - 8:17 amWe purchased the vehicle new 4 years ago. We had not had any problems until recently when the car started to stall upon ignition. The transmission light came on and the problems have now begun. We have 146,000 miles on the SUV and really expected to get more before any major problems. Per conversation with Ford service department and an independent transmission company, the prognosis is the torque converter and TCC solenoid (valve body). The cost to repair is $2700 to $6500 before taxes. It is amazing after reading so many reviews that the same problem is evident in the majority of the reviews from those with 70,000 miles or more. We had a Ford car with similar problems before. No more Ford
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Lemon - 2005 Ford Explorer
By alebt - November 19 - 11:00 amThis is our second Explorer and unless we get one for free, our last. The transmission went out at 35,000. The 4WD computer failed at 40,000. The bearings are bad at 45,000. The back hatch has cracked. It has been a miserable money pit. Had we had much other choice in small V8 we would have selected differently. Ford needs to really upgrade quality and reliability in this model.
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Ford Dropped the Ball with me. - 2005 Ford Explorer
By Jack Day - November 14 - 8:53 pmI had TOO MUCH TROUBLE GETTING THE REAR END AND DRIVE SHAFT FIXED, TOOK ME 2 MONTHS OF WRITING LETTERS AND PHONE CALLS TO GET JOB DONE. THIS TOOK ALL THE FUN OUT OF OWNING A NEW VEHICLE. ALL FORDS FAULT, BAD PARTS. Handled very poorly by Ford!
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Still one of the best values on the road - 2005 Ford Explorer
By MikeD - November 3 - 2:03 pmThe re-designed For Explorer is now a few years old, but its still one of the best looking SUVs on the road. The fuel economy stinks, but it handles well in rough weather, is roomy enough to seat 7 (though your cargo space suffers), and the sound system is great.
