1994 Ford Explorer...still going strong

Two weeks ago, the turn signal on our 1994 Ford Explorer seemed to be blinking a little slowly. But I wasn't really sure. You know how it is - each car is different, and if you drive more than one car - you're really not sure if what you are hearing is quite right. We had just gone camping at Fort Stevens State Park on our annual church campout. I thought maybe the blinker relay was recovering from having to drive the lights on our pop-up camper.

So anyway - on Monday the turn signal still seemed slow, and on my way to work in the morning the ABS light came on. I wasn't happy about this as we just had the ABS computer replaced - maybe it has been a year or two, but it should last longer than that - right?

Leaving work that afternoon - the Explorer had a dead battery. I didn't connect these two other symptoms at the time - because that morning as I drove to work I noticed a back door partially open howling in the wind, because the door had been closed on a seat belt. I thought maybe the dome light had been on all night, and maybe I just barely got the engine started and.... I still hadn't put the puzzle pieces together. I had a dentist appointment to go to, but since the dentist was only three blocks away - I went for a quick walk.

After the dentist - Mick came with our minivan and we jump started the Explorer. So far, so good. On the way home - I now had no blinker lights, the ABS light was still on, and it almost stalled at a stop light. I soon realized the battery wasn't being charged, was completely dead, and I might not make it home. So I turned off the AC, the radio, and tried to hit all the lights green.

I made it home, but it was a Connor soccer night. After soccer practice and a quick dinner - I started to take the alternator out. It was actually pretty easy - two small bolts to remove a guard, two air hose connectors to loosen to remove an air flow hose, and then three bolts on the alternator. The only hard part was loosening tension on the belt - I needed Mick to pull the belt off as I moved a tension adjusting wheel out of the way. Then - a quick trip down to the local Tualatin Schucks store.


I got there five minutes before 8 PM - closing time. I wasn't too happy - as they "didn't have the parts to be able to mount my non-standard alternator" in the testing equipment. Non-standard? C'mon! Ford Explorers are not exactly a rare item around here. Yesterday I saw two other Explorers at a 4-way stop - and these were the same model Explorer (1991 to 1994) that I was driving. At this advanced age - lots of these alternators are probably failing!

Anyway - the Schucks employee told me the Tigard store was open until 9 PM, and they could test my alternator there. A quick 15 minute trip from Tualatin to Tigard - and the results were what I expected - the alternator was dead. This kindly Shucks employee even took $25 off the price of the alternator because of the problems I had with the Tualatin store. Nice customer service! Thanks Tigard Schucks!

A quick trip home - and a relatively painless installation of the new alternator. After pushing the Explorer back from the garage (nice thinking....drive up to where I can't jump start it) and starting it again with help from the minivan - a quick trip around the neighborhood to add some juice to the battery. Success!


Now the list of things I can do to repair our Explorer has expanded. Replace the alternator, change the spark plugs or the air filter or the battery, replace the brake pads (but due to 4 wheel drive hubs - never again!), and change the oil & filter. Everything else goes to In and Out Auto Care in Gladstone. Tell Dan that Mick & Brian sent you - and he'll take great care of your car.