Base price: XLT, $31,295—$39,535; Eddie Bauer, $37,790—$41,935
Vehicle type: front-engine, rear/4-wheel-drive; 5-door 8-passenger wagon
Interior volume, F/M/R (cu ft) 60/57/48
Cargo volume, seats up/maximum (cu ft) 20/110
Wheelbase 119.0 in
Length/width/height 205.8/78.7/77.6 in
Turning circle 38.7 ft
Curb weight 5250—5700 lb
EPA city/highway mpg 14—15/17—19
Fuel-tank capacity/range 28.0 gal/392—420 mi
Passive restraints driver and passenger front and head (opt) airbags
POWERTRAIN
4.6-liter SOHC 16-valve V-8, 232 hp; 5.4-liter SOHC 16-valve V-8, 260 hp; 4-sp auto
SUSPENSION
F ind, unequal-length control arms, coil springs, anti-roll bar
R ind, unequal-length control arms, coil or air (opt) springs, anti-roll bar
BRAKES
F/R vented disc/vented disc
ABS standard
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FORD EXPEDITION
The Expedition, and its upscale clone, the Lincoln Navigator, have undergone a major redesign for 2003, which is more than just a face lift but less than “all-new.”
The most obvious and useful new thing on the 2003 Expedition is the packaging of its third-row seat. In the previous model, the space beneath the third-row seat was occupied by a large and unwieldy live axle. This has been replaced by a new independent rear suspension that makes room for a proper third-row seat which can fold flat (electrically, on Eddie Bauer models) into the floor. It’s a neat design and leaves a 110.4-cubic-foot cargo capacity that nearly equals last year’s 110.7.
Among the updates are new sheetmetal (though the roof and front-door skins are virtual carry-overs), which trims the drag coefficient from 0.44 to 0.41, and a new hydroformed chassis. And although the size and output of both engines is unchanged—a 232-horsepower, SOHC 4.6-liter V-8 is standard and a 260-hp, 5.4-liter V-8 is optional—each gets a stronger new block, with the 4.6-liter’s made of aluminum, which saves 60 pounds.
A new aluminum-control-arm, coil-spring rear suspension reduces unsprung weight by 110 pounds but adds about 75 pounds to the curb weight. (A ride-height-adjustable air-spring suspension option adds even more.) The fully independent suspension is damped by new monotube shocks and is bolted to a chassis boasting 70-percent-better torsional rigidity.
The Expedition’s four-wheel-drive system uses the same basic BorgWarner 44-16 transfer-case design (automatic front axle engagement with no center diff), but new front-axle hub disconnects permit an economical two-wheel-drive mode in which none of the front drivetrain spins. The computer controls are also enhanced so that in automatic four-wheel-drive mode the front axle will engage before the rears slip.
Heated and cooled seats are offered in front; the middle row can be optioned with either captain’s chairs or a 40/20/40 bench with a center section that slides forward right up to the center console. The dash is molded in VW/Audi-grade materials, complete with TT-like metal-ringed vents. And Ford promises that structural foam, improved aerodynamics, and better body sealing have quieted the cockpit by 4 dBA.
The double-five-star NHTSA-crash-rated truck gets optional side-curtain airbags and seatbelt pretensioners this year, along with an available tire-pressure monitoring system.
These changes have made the 2003 Expedition a far more formidable player in the big-SUV class, taking advantage of its size and making it more usable.
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