New guy! Using a 94 ford explorer

[Rackley]

Hey guys I'm new. I have been looking at doing this for a while. I have always moved around. This is the longest I've been in the same place since I was 18. I have been here a year so I am ready to go! Unfortunately I signed a one year lease in June thinking I would be able to settle down a bit now that I have a decent job.

I have a 94 ford explorer with 86k on it. I have to do some work on it. Just on some things that tend to fail over the years. I have a bit of time before I am leaving so I am able to. Has anyone ever seen an Explorer load out before? I was looking at doing something similar to http://www.cheaprvliving.com/survivalist-truck-dweller/. In fact that's actually how I found this place. I will be building wooden shelf's on the side that my bedding doesn't take up.

 

[Rackley]

I have no idea how to edit this but I have a typo in the title and it bugs me....

[fixed by mod]

 

[Patrick46]

no worries...we all know whacha meant!


Welcome to the board!

Lotsa good folks and great information to be found on here.

What part of the country do you call home??


Hello from the Oregon Coast!

 

[Rackley]

What part of the country do you call home??

Right now I am in North Carolina. It is home for me.  I'm trying to sink every dime I can save into working on my truck. Then I'm heading to the west coast. Its always been a place I wanted to see.

 

[VanDwellerMod]

Welcome to the CRVL forums Rackley!  

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started.  

We look forward to hearing more from you.  And, we love pictures!  (Tutorial here.)

 

[WriterMs]

Welcome. I think you're doing the smart thing in taking time to get your truck safe and reliable while you have a home base and a good job. And using this time to pour over all the great info on the forum threads and in Bob's old blog posts.

You can map out your west coast adventures just based on campsite reviews and recommendations from folks on these threads and from Bob's great photos of his travels over the years (on the blog).

There is so much beautiful countryside in NC and surrounding area that you can have a great time on your days off testing out your truck mods as you make them. Seeing what will work for you and what does not suit you. With fall coming up, you are in the perfect area!

 

[akrvbob]

Welcome! Do you have the Explorer that is the SUV? If so you're first step would be take out the back seat and see if you can make a bed in back. You may need to move the passenger seat as far forward as possible and tilt the seat. There might be a gap for the floorboards, you'll need to build something to cover that or fill it in with your stuff.

If you have a place to store the passenger seat, I'd give serious thought to taking it out--you'll get a lot more storage room and it'll be easy to get a full-length bed in it with it gone.

Solar should be easily doable on that.
Bob

 

[Rackley]

Hey Bob. Yes it is an suv.  I am not sure if the seats come out.  I have them folded down right now and I have a foam pad as a mattress laying over them. I will definitely have to check that out tomorrow once it's light out.  Currently I use it for camping and I just throw everything in the other side.

 

[B and C]

The seats are probably bolted to the floor.  Just place the bolts you removed back in the floor to prevent moisture, carbon monoxide or other unwanted "stuff" from entering through the holes in the floor.  Then the bolts are there if you ever want to put the seats back in.

 

[Rackley]

The seats are probably bolted to the floor.  Just place the bolts you removed back in the floor to prevent moisture, carbon monoxide or other unwanted "stuff" from entering through the holes in the floor.  Then the bolts are there if you ever want to put the seats back in.

already checked it out. It looks easy enough to do. I work at a car dealership so I am able to borrow the tools. The hardest part will be boxing it back in with wood to create storage. I am not great at woodworking lol

 

[RollinWOT]

Welcome Rackley! Explorers are great vehicles for what you plan on using it for. I urge you to check out Safari Pacific's website, safaripacific.com. He focuses on overland travel and for a while used an Explorer(later model than a '94) but I figure a lot of info he describes will transfer over to you. Just me aware, the automatic transmissions on that generation of Explorer was notorious for breakdowns, so put away some money to have the transmission replaced/rebuilt. Not trying to scare you, just something to be aware of. Let's get some pics soon. Cheers!

 

[Rackley]

. Just me aware, the automatic transmissions on that generation of Explorer was notorious for breakdowns, so put away some money to have the transmission replaced/rebuilt. Not trying to scare you, just something to be aware of.

Thanks for the heads up! I am aware of that issue. it already has a new trans, water pump, timing belt and ignition. Oh and brand new tires. i need to get some exhaust work done but that's not a big deal.  I will be posting pictures tomorrow during my day off.

 

[RollinWOT]

Sounds like you've got a good vehicle to start out with!

 

[akrvbob]

I think it's a great live-in vehicle. It'll force you to be a real minimalist, but sometimes, and for some people, that's a very good thing.

What kind of MPG do you get with it, and which engine does it have?
Bob

 

[Rackley]

What kind of MPG do you get with it, and which engine does it have?
Bob

Bob, 
I getin the high teens on the highway and about 11 around town.  It's not great milage but it is the 4.0 V6.

 

[Rackley]

Pictures were requested and here they are! I have two 4 inch foam pads as a bed. They are wrapped in an incredibly soft king size blanket. The right side will be storage. I have an idea of wooden shelfs built custom for it but I am no good at wood working. It will most likly be a cooler and some plastic totes and drawers. ANYWAYS! Here is the old girl.

 

[RollinWOT]

Now I'm jealous of you for having an Explorer. Looks like a great place to start out. Cheers!

 

[Numpty]

Hey Rackley,

I am in the process of camperizing a station wagon. Rear seats completely out provides a lot of storage space underneath.
Gotta make the best use of space in these size vehicles.
I'm in Australia this is called a Ford Falcon station wagon. This set up has a length of over 7 feet to sleep on and is totally flat all the way.
I really had to make up the design as I went along. It's almost useless taking measurements as there's not a straight flat surface to measure from. Once you you have the first pieces true and square you can measure from that and it all gets a lot easier.

[img=480x270]http://i1312.photobucket.com/albums...hmi52cb.jpg?1442066615144&1442066617033[/img]


Tons of room under here (comparatively speaking)
[img=360x640]http://i1312.photobucket.com/albums...3suir8w.jpg?1442066615145&1442066617034[/img]
Vinyl flooring is the next step, carpet is way too dusty and traps all the beach sand.

Hope you have a ball fitting out your rig.
Although it's a small space to live in, I don't plan to live in mine, rather live out of it spending time outdoors.

 

[Rackley]

Although it's a small space to live in, I don't plan to live in mine, rather live out of it spending time outdoors.

Right now I am using it to camp. Which also includes dog sitting for my mother, I'm allergic to dogs so and I tried sleeping on the couch last night. Not happening. EVERYTHING has dog hair on it. So hey i'll be dog sitting from my truck. But untill june I will be using it to camp.

 

[Rackley]

Did a cost break down of everything I have in my explorer.

Explorer: $1200
Motor Mount: $50
AC pressure valve: $20
Battery terminal connector things?: $10
Foam pad for sleeping: $30
Blankets: $30
52 qt cooler: $40

I think I have been pretty frugal getting everything done. I still need storage but I plan on using the cheap sliding containers sold at Walmart and such.
I still need a small camp stove. I have a good bit of camping gear but I have always cooked with a fire so I have never actually owned a camp stove.