Off Road Experience With 5th Gen Explorer !

[peterk9]

I'll try to get some hill climb/descent photos today

I'd consider it a form of "Off Roading." Rick. The term can have various meanings including 'rock crawling' which the new Ex is not designed to do.

Peter

 

[traveler]

All the talk about places to off road in AZ actually have me looking forward to retiring there in the next few years! More pics!... More places!

Sent from my LGL15G using Forum Runner

 

[Rick]

All the talk about places to off road in AZ actually have me looking forward to retiring there in the next few years! More pics!... More places!

Sent from my LGL15G using Forum Runner

If you are really interested this is the book to get:
Guide to Arizona Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails

 

[Mighty Mike]

I've been looking at a lot of YouTube review videos between the Explorer, Durango, and Pilot. I came across this one. It blew me away. These guys don't have a lot of videos, but it seems pretty legit. I was hoping to find someone off-roading the Explorer and pushing it limits and this video delivered.

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Mighty Mike.
Thanks for posting that video. It may surprise some about the capabilities of the 5th generation Ex. As they said in the video, a good set of proper tires would have helped as well but all in all not bad for the OEM Hankooks.

Peter

 

[Mighty Mike]

Welcome to the Forum Mighty Mike.
Thanks for posting that video. It may surprise some about the capabilities of the 5th generation Ex. As they said in the video, a good set of proper tires would have helped as well but all in all not bad for the OEM Hankooks.

Peter

Thanks Peter. I'm going to test drive a Sport today. I'm going to drive a Durango AWD RT. I'm stuck between the two.

 

[Lhymes]

Thanks Peter. I'm going to test drive a Sport today. I'm going to drive a Durango AWD RT. I'm stuck between the two.

Hey Mike,
Good luck with your decision. I had responded to your other post. As stated, I just got the 2016 Platinum. I don't think I mentioned that my previous ride was a 2014 Durango Citadel with 5.7L Hemi. I actually liked it a lot, but my wife made me go in and see if I could make getting into a new Explorer make sense cause she (apparently from day one) could tell that while I really liked my Durango, I really loved my previous Explorer. Personally, the Explorer is a much more fun ride. The Durango was pretty badass sounding with the Hemi and had an impressive feel to it, but the Explorer is deceptively much more of a beast. It doesn't sound more powerful, it doesn't feel more powerful when slow cruising, but damn... the moment you put your foot down it's pretty mind blowing. I'm a sucker for tech and while the Durango's Uconnect system is nice, I'm one of the few that actually appreciate MFT in the Ford, and if you get the 2017, I hear Sync 3 is pretty rad. Other than that, the Explorer oozes tech with both conveniences and safety, while the Durango is a much more traditional, tech-lite vehicle. The Durango's 8 speed transmission was buttery smooth, but the Explorer's 6 speed is only slightly less smooth, but lends to a sportier, (and in my opinion) fun ride. Lastly, the Durango is a lot of vehicle for the money and the finishes are very nice for what you pay, but I was surprised at how much the Dodge devalued in my time owning it vs my previous Fords. That was a big red flag for me. In all honesty, they're both amazing vehicles and you can't really go wrong, but the extra money you will spend on the Ford will maintain in the value of the car and I think you'll find it to be a bit more fun to drive. On a side note, the one big benefit the Durango has is towing capability if that's important to you, but personally, I think the 5000lb limit on the Ford is fine for 99.9% of any towing I'll ever need to do. Also the Durango's much larger fuel capacity was nice for fewer fill ups, but I averaged around 11.5-12 gpm in it vs 15-15.5 gpm in my Explorer (even when not running premium fuel). Best of luck in your decision!