Manufacturer Ford Class Full-size SUV | Production 1999–2005 | |
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Assembly Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. Body style 4-door SUV with lift gate and 2 dutch doors Layout Front engine, rear-wheel drive / four-wheel drive | ||
The Ford Excursion is a heavy duty (Class 2), Extended-length sport utility vehicle that was produced by Ford from 1999 to 2005 for the North American market. The longest and heaviest SUV ever to enter mass production, the Excursion was based upon the Ford F-250 Super Duty pickup truck. A ¾-ton chassis vehicle, the Ford Excursion was designed as a competitor for the 2500-series (also ¾-ton) Chevrolet Suburban and GMC Yukon XL.
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Due to criticism over its large size and declining sales, the Excursion was discontinued after the 2005 model year in the United States (Mexico received a short 2006 production run). For the 2007 model year, the Excursion was largely replaced as Ford introduced an extended-length version of the Ford Expedition (Expedition EL in United States; Expedition Max in Canada/Mexico).
All examples of the Ford Excursion were assembled at the Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, Kentucky; the last vehicle was produced on September 30, 2005.
Origin
Although Ford would not produce a factory-built competitor for the Chevrolet Suburban on an official basis until the introduction of the Excursion for 2000, a functional predecessor of the vehicle was created by the aftermarket. The Centurion Classic is a four-door SUV based on the full-size Ford Bronco constructed by Centurion Vehicles, a converter specializing in Ford trucks based in White Pigeon, Michigan. Two models of the Classic were produced: the C150 (based on the F-150) and the C350 (based on the F-350).
To create a four-door Bronco, Centurion mated the bodywork of two separate vehicles. An F-Series chassis (shortened to a 140-inch wheelbase) with a crew-cab body was mated to the rear body of a Ford Bronco (aft of the door openings). The use of the Bronco bodyshell gave the Classic three rows of seating, as in a Suburban; depending on the design configuration, a Classic could seat up to nine.
In contrast to the Suburban and later Ford Excursion, the Classic C350 was produced on a one-ton chassis instead of a ¾-ton chassis. Following the F-Series, the C150 offered 5.0L and 5.8L V8s while the C350 offered a 7.5L gasoline V8 and a diesel V8 (IDI and later 7.3L PowerStroke). Rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive drivetrain configurations were available.
The Centurion Classic ended its production after the 1996 model year as Ford discontinued the Bronco in favor of its own four-door SUV, the Ford Expedition. Closer in size and function to the Centurion C350, the Ford Excursion was introduced for the 2000 model year.
Chassis
The Ford Excursion is produced sharing the platform architecture of the F-250 Super Duty pickup truck. Sharing nearly all of its chassis components, the Excursion shares a common width, front and rear track, and wheelbase. Along with the common drivetrain, the Excursion shared its front and rear suspension and steering gear with the F-250. The rear axle for all Excursions was a Sterling 10.5 axle. The four wheel drive models were equipped with a NV273 transfer case and Dana 50 front axle.
Although using the 3/4 ton chassis of the F-250 (its indirect predecessor, the Centurion Classic C350 used the one-ton F-350 chassis), the Excursion was rated with a GVWR of 8,900 lb (4,000 kg) when equipped with gasoline engines, and 9,200 lb (4,200 kg) with equipped with diesel engines. Its GVWR was above 8,500 lbs, exempting it from EPA fuel economy ratings; reviewers cited fuel economy in the range of 12-15mpg.
During the development of the chassis, Ford learned that its initial design caused smaller vehicles (such as a Ford Taurus) to become severely overridden in a head-on collision. In the test, the tire of the Excursion drove up to the windshield of the Taurus, reducing the chance of survival for the Taurus driver. As a response, Ford modified the chassis to include an under-bumper "blocker beam"; the device was initially tested by the French transportation ministry in 1971. For the rear of the chassis, Ford chose to include a trailer hitch as standard equipment in production to reduce underriding in rear-end collisions by smaller vehicles.
Body
Aside from the Chevrolet Suburban and its GMC/Cadillac counterparts and the International Harvester Travelall, the Ford Excursion is among one of the only regular-production sport-utility vehicles produced with four full-length passenger doors (shared with the Super Duty Crew Cab). As with the Expedition, the Excursion received an eggcrate in place of the gray grille seen on its F-Series counterpart. In place of a liftgate, the cargo door of the Excursion was designed with a 3-way door: an upper liftgate paired with two dutch doors (similar to later models of the Chevrolet Astro). In one change from the F-Series, Ford added the larger taillights of the E-Series van to the Excursion.
Most of the interior was largely shared with the Super Duty trucks, although the Excursion was designed for three-row seating for up to nine passengers. A minor change occurred for the 2002 model year where it received a digital odometer. As with other Ford trucks, the Excursion was sold in XL (sold nearly exclusively for fleet sales), XLT (standard trim), and Limited. In 2003, Ford added the Eddie Bauer trim package sold on other Ford SUVs to the Excursion.
For 2005, the exterior changed for the first time, as Ford replaced the eggcrate grille, replacing it with the "3-bar" grille introduced on Super Duty trucks.
Reception
The Excursion was introduced in 1999 as a 2000 model-year vehicle. It was described by Popular Science as the "biggest sport utility on the planet." Sales were initially good, peaking in the 2000 model year with over 50,000 sales. However, as gasoline prices rose, sales declined. The Excursion's large size and poor fuel economy led to it being dubbed the Ford Valdez by The Sierra Club, in reference to the Exxon Valdez supertanker, and in 2007 TIME Magazine selected it as one of the Fifty Worst Cars of All Time.
F-250 Tropivan
From 1998 to 2012, a second-party SUV conversion of the Ford F-250 was sold in Brazil. Similar in design and layout to the Excursion, the F-250 Tropivan differed primarily in its being a second-party conversion (similar to the Centurion Classic). In contrast to the Excursion, two different wheelbases of the model were produced.
As with all Super Duty trucks in Brazil, the Tropivan had a different engine selection throughout its production run that included the 4.2L Essex V6 as the only gasoline-powered option, while the Diesel offering consisted of a 3.9L Cummins B-series and the 4.2L straight-6 MWM Sprint 6.07TCA.
Aftermarket
Out of production since the 2005 model year, as a result of its shared bodywork with the Ford Super Duty trucks, the rear body panels of the Ford Excursion have been utilized for a number of vehicle conversions. The practice is similar to the original Centurion Classic C350s of the 1980s and 1990s.
Although Ford Excursion stretch limousines were also created during its 2000–2005 production run, its rear body panels have been utilized to create SUVs and limousines based on the Ford F-650 Super Duty medium-duty truck chassis. Based on the 2010–2014 Ford SVT Raptor SuperCrew, the Hennessey VelociRaptor used the rear roofline of the Excursion to create an SUV body from the Raptor pickup truck.