2005 Ford Excursion

SUV

6.0L 8 Cylinder Diesel Fuel Turbocharged

Automatic

1FMSU43P05EA65515

Four Wheel Drive

Diesel

Power Windows

This truck is a blast to drive. It's amazingly quick and nimble for having more room than a Suburban and being the largest production SUV made, but you get that with an engine that can put out 560 foot pounds of torque. For being such a tank, it's neat to see the readout say up to “600 miles to empty” after filling up. You can hold 2 adults in the front and 6 adults in the 2nd & 3rd rows and still have room for luggage behind the 3rd row. I haven't done it, but I've been told you can fit a 4x8 sheet of plywood in the back and still close the door...that's big! I know from experience that you can very comfortably lay down the 2nd row and sleep in the back like it's a tent. This is an incredible truck for hauling people and/or gear, road trips, and towing. 4WD makes for much safer driving on snow and ice, and you just can't appreciate the limo-like room until you experience it. I bought the Excursion used 11 months ago in March, 2011 from CarMax. If you don't know about CarMax, they are very picky about the cars that they put on their lot and run them through a 125 point inspection. It’s got just over 69,000 miles now and it drives like a dream. I had all of the service done at the local Ford dealer. When I got it, I bought the MaxCare extended bumper-to-bumper warranty, which has a $300 deductible, rental reimbursement, and is transferable. It's good out to 72 months or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first, so it's still got just over 5 years or 80,000 miles left on it. Here's information on MaxCare: http://www.carmax.com/enus/maxcare/default.html And here's the policy I got: https://www.mrclaims.net/b2c/documents/MAX400310.pdf I've taken good care of it, get it cleaned frequently and detailed every few months. Ford has changed the oil, rotated the tires, and done other service and maintenance work for me. I had the truck appraised at CarMax a couple of weeks ago. I'm told that their standard formula is to offer $1,000 less than rough book for vehicles that they can immediately put on their lot and sell. They went through their inspection process, drove it, and told me it was in perfect condition, that they could immediately put it on their lot and sell it, and proceeded to give a low-ball offer of $22,000. Frankly, the fact that this Excursion has an existing transferable bumper to bumper warranty makes this a VERY unique deal. I'll pay the money to transfer the warranty as long as the selling price is $25,000 or over...otherwise I'll get a pro-rated refund from the warranty company. If you look at low mileage 2005 diesel 4x4 Limited edition Excursions that have sold on Ebay, you know what a great deal this is. FYI, the Excursion was made in the Kentucky Super Duty plant and Ford decided to focus more on Super Duty pickups rather than the Excursions due more profit on the pickups. In other words, the ones that are out there are all there are...there aren't any more being made and Chevy stopped making diesel Suburbans in 1999. The truck is pre-wired for towing and I had a brake controller professionally installed. The factory hitch is rated for an 11,000 pound load, but I haven't come close to that. It's got a “tow” mode that makes acceleration a breeze and uses the engine to help you maintain speed going down hills. The 7,000+ pound weight of the truck makes for a stable, enjoyable towing experience. Here’s what another owner had to say about his Excursion. He was actually one of the big reasons why I bought mine: “I love my Excursion and I cried the day they announced that they were going to stop making them. I'll run mine for as long as I possibly can, and then I don't know what I'll do. We load 8 people in the cab and all their gear in the trailer every year and drive 12 hours into Canada—there's just nothing else that can do that so comfortably and easily.” The interior quality on this truck is spectacular. I really haven't had any problems. This surprises me for all the gadgets this car has (power everything, in-dash CD changer, heated seats, front and rear HVAC system, rear DVD system with remote control and 2 wireless headsets, cruise control, memory and lumbar equipped power seats, auto dimming mirror, f/r defrost, defroster mirrors, central locking with keyless entry, tons of lights, backup sonar, etc). Material and build quality seem to be top notch too, everything fits together nicely and is well designed. The leather is top notch, and the polished wood is a very nice touch. The center console has a wood top and the rubber case on my iPhone sticks to it like glue, which is VERY handy. It's kind of silly, but I'm a big fan of the cup holders. There are 6 within reach of the driver/front passenger (2 on the dash, 2 on the front of the center console, and 2 on the back of the center console. Like I said...silly...but things like that matter when you're actually driving the truck and it's something that I quickly missed in my F-350. Another silly thing is the push button door locks. They're old news to Ford owners, but was a quick fan. In short, they allow you to leave your diesel running when you just need to run into a store for a couple of minutes and it would be better for your engine and burn less diesel to keep it running than stop and restart it. One funny thing to boot. When people comment about how much gas it uses, I tell them that it uses less gas per mile than a Prius. They usually just scratch their heads, but if they push it, I defend the statement saying that a Prius uses gas and my truck uses diesel :) On that note, on quick trips around town with lots of stopping and going, the truck averages 12-13 mpg. On highway trips, it gets 15 to as high as 18 mpg, and I haven't noticed much of a difference between being empty or having people and gear in the truck. I can't really make a comment on mileage while towing because so much depends on the weight, rolling resistance, and wind resistance of what you're towing as well as your speed and the wind direction and speed. You might get better mileage pulling an 8,000 pound boat than a 4,000 pound trailer just because of wind resistance. Other things to note: -I JUST had the turbo cleaned and serviced by Ford in mid-January. -There is a small dent on the rear driver's side quarter panel. Ford laughed when I told them I wanted to fix it, saying I must REALLY love my truck to even think about fixing something that small. That happened because I thought I was smarter than the backup sonar and backed into a pole when parking. Other than that, there haven't been any accidents. -The 2005 diesels with low mileage just don't sell for less than $30k, even without a warranty. (check Ebay) Keep in mind that the 2005 6.0 diesel was considered to be a HUGE improvement over the previous years' 6.0 in reliability and performance, and there are several feature improvements with the Limited edition over even the Eddy Bauer edition. The 2005 diesel Excursions also have a much stronger transmission than the older models, over sized brakes, and the 6.0 runs much quieter, more efficiently, and with fewer emissions than the older Ford diesels. -The mirrors are extendable for towing (a feature I REALLY wish I would have known about before today) -The far back side windows open outward a couple of inches to allow great airflow when going down the road or to keep the truck cooler when parked in the sun on hot days. Here are specs that I found on it using the VIN from decodethis.com. The only obvious thing that I saw wrong was the interior cargo room, which I corrected with information from edmonds.com : Model Year 2005 Make Ford Model Excursion Trim Level Limited 6.0L 4WD (Limited was the top of the line) Body Style SPORT UTILITY 4-DR Driveline 4WD Anti-Brake System 4-Wheel ABS Manufactured in UNITED STATES Engine Type 6.0L V8 OHV 32V TURBO DIESEL Tank 44.00 gallon Steering Type Recirc Rear Brake Type Disc Front Suspension Live Front Spring Type Leaf Tires 265/75R16 Rear Headroom 41.10 in. Rear Legroom 40.50 in. Rear Shoulder Room 67.00 in. Rear Hip Room 66.90 in. Overall Width 79.90 in. Wheelbase 137.10 in. Track Front 68.40 in. Cargo Length 64.00 in. Width at Wall 55.80 in. Standard Seating 8 Standard Payload 1512 lbs Standard GVWR 9200 lbs Rust-duration 60 month MSRP $51,570 USD Destination Charge $850 USD Vehicle Anti-Theft Standard ABS Brakes Standard Electronic Brake Assistance Standard Passenger Airbag Standard Electronic Parking Aid Standard Tachometer Standard Tilt Steering Column Standard Leather Steering Wheel Standard Trip Computer Standard CD Changer Standard Second Row Sound Controls Standard Passenger Multi-Adjustable Power Seat Standard Automatic Headlights Standard Fog Lights Standard Power Windows Standard Electrochromic Interior Rearview Mirror Standard Deep Tinted Glass Standard Rear Wiper Standard Tow Hitch Receiver Standard Front Brake Type Disc Turning Diameter 50.40 in. Rear Suspension Live Rear Spring Type Leaf Front Headroom 41.00 in. Front Legroom 42.30 in. Front Shoulder Room 68.30 in. Front Hip Room 67.50 in. Curb Weight 7725 lbs Overall Length 226.70 in. Overall Height 80.20 in. Ground Clearance 8.10 in. Track Rear 68.10 in. Width at Wheelwell 52.20 in. Cargo Volume 146.4 cu.ft. Maximum Payload 1512 lbs Maximum GVWR 9200 lbs Rust-distance Unlimited mile Dealer Invoice $44,644 USD Child Safety Door Locks Standard Power Door Locks Standard 4WD/AWD Standard Driver Airbag Standard Keyless Entry Standard Air Conditioning Standard Cruise Control Standard Tilt Steering Standard Steering Wheel Mounted Controls Standard Adjustable Foot Pedals Standard AM/FM Radio Standard CD Player Standard Driver Multi-Adjustable Power Seat Standard Front Heated Seat Standard Front Power Memory Seat Standard Leather Seat Standard Third Row Removable Seat Standard Cargo Area Tiedowns Standard Load Bearing Exterior Rack Standard Running Boards Standard Alloy Wheels Standard Full Size Spare Tire Standard Heated Exterior Mirror Standard Power Adjustable Exterior Mirror Standard Interval Wipers Standard Rear Window Defogger Standard Towing Preparation Package Standard In short, this is an incredible truck….It has been a joy to drive and own and the only reason I’m selling it is because I switched to a Super Duty pickup to haul a 5th wheel. It's been detailed in and out and, other than the ding on the rear driver's side quarter panel, looks like it could be coming off of the showroom floor. I know you’ll enjoy it. If you're looking around, make sure you're comparing apples to apples...2005, diesel, 4x4, limited, leather, rear DVD player, low mileage, and don't forget the warranty that still has 5 years or 80,000 miles left on it. I spent several hours this week researching Excursions that were for sale to decide how much mine was worth and I can tell you that it's a special, unique truck that's going to go fast. In short, it looks and runs as good or better than any that I've ever seen.