This is my father's 1996 Ford Explorer XLT with the 4.0L V6. He got it new when the company he worked for leased it as a company vehicle. At the time it was a $29,000 car. When the company was sold, he bought it off the lease. Though my mother drove it as basically her only vehicle, it was an open car to whoever within the household wanted to drive it. When she got her 04 Saab in 2005, my father started using it as his primary vehicle instead of getting a new one. His previous primary car, a 1984 Audi 5000s with well over 300K, had a problem with the piston that should have happened around 1986 or 87.

Nowadays, it is our everything vehicle as well as my father's primary driving vehicle (he also has a Toyota Tacoma that he uses for work and sometimes around town). It runs like new to this day. We use it for just about everything. It carries our bikes, all kinds of things from Home Depot, tools, appliances, groceries, a 426 Hemi block, we take it on vacations, the list goes on. My father taught me the basics on driving with it when I was 11 and 12, including how to handle a 4wd car in 15" of snow and deep mud (that was fun).

It has an AM/FM radio with a cassette player, a sunroof, power everything, that's about it.

With 192K and it being 12 years old, it shows wear and tear. The paint is covered in scratches, including an odd mark from when my brother took it through a car wash while a small repainted area was still wet, the interior has its fair share of tears and cracks, the passenger seat motor is burnt out, the center arm rest is a different color than the plastic, a minor fender bender turned into a hit and run, too much to list. If it was a nice car, would I put a greesy 426 in the back? It seems as if the fact that it is crappy makes it a better, more versitle car.

It runs great, it's been paid off for a decade, insurance is $750/yr, taxes are $82/yr, it gets 18-21mpg city and 20-25 highway, never needs anything other than regular maintenance, so there is nothing to complain about!

Page 2- The Story Of The Interesting Mark On The Door/Fender

                                                               The leather on the armrest is actually from a 
                                                               leather coat we bought at Goodwill for $10. 
                                                               That was a really good savings over OEM

If this were a BMW X5, would you see a bag
of fertilizer in the back?

That was from getting the 426 out.