It's a 2009 Ford Explorer Sport. It has ~50k miles on it, and has a few of the cool options, but doesn't have 4x4 or the luxury features. It's in pretty good shape, and it was cheap...
Cheap as in... free. Yeah, I feel so entitled even saying it, but my dad gave me the car. He wanted a new car and felt this Explorer was too old for him to be driving around. Which is funny, because growing up, he always drove cars until they were really old. We had a Volvo 240 Turbo Wagon that my parents bought new in 1983, but didn't end up selling until 2005. Anyway, he wanted something new that wouldn't have any issues... but he really liked this car and couldn't bring himself to use it for a trade-in, or sell it to someone who was just going to beat it up. I was gone for a really long business trip overseas (6 months), so I donated my own car before I left to some kid in the neighborhood. Before I left, I bought my wife a 2015 Ford Edge Titanium w/ 14k miles, and then I was just going to keep her 2008 Jeep Patriot Limited for myself when I got back (You can see it parked on the street in the second picture). My dad kept insisting he wanted to give it to me, but I told him the car was still very reliable and he could probably drive it another 10 years without issue... but he insisted. He ended up buying a 2019 Ford Explorer, which was one of the last ones on the lot as they made room for the 2020 models.
I offered to buy it off him, but he doesn't need the money, and just gave it to me. I totally feel like a spoiled brat, and it will probably continue to feel like his car for as long as I own it, but I wasted no time getting Texas tags for it. I'll probably keep it in the garage most days next to my grandfather's Crown Victoria (which you can see in the first picture), and drive the Jeep.
For some reason, I haven't seen a lot of this model year... (or 2006-2010 really). They're all usually really beat up, or have over 200k miles on them.
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: I was gone for a really long business trip overseas (6 months), so I donated my own car before I left to some kid in the neighborhood.
I remember that. That was an Explorer too, no ? You offered it here. I had asked for it as my rental car fees would have made it worthy for a road trip. I guess timing was off.
