'11 Explorer Revealed!!

[thaywood]

I don't doubt they'll sell more Flexplorers initially. But I believe sales will fade as the novelty wears off. People will realize that the Flexplorer is just another garden variety imitation SUV like all the others from Japan and Korea that are already all over the dam place. And in what has become somewhat of a tradition at Ford for the past decade or so, they'll build the Flexplorer for a couple of years and then drop it when sales fall off. Instead of letting the Explorer die with dignity as a true SUV, they're going to let it writhe in sales agony for a couple of years as a pale shadow of it's former self and then quietly turn off the life support. That's my prediction. I may be wrong, but I doubt it. Only time will tell.

 

[Burns]

It will be just fine. This is what the people want. No we do not want it because you cant really just throw a set of axles under it and go wheeling but there will be a way at doing something to it. We just need to give it some time.

The explorer has always been the underdog in the suv world according to listening to everyone but hey they sell. At least Ford was not bought out in a bail out.

 

[NHarris]

No SAS on the new X

thaywood; I also do think once the novelty of it wears off it wont be as popular and sales will go down. Just have to wait and see the numbers.
Now who can work on it as easily??? Yes if you're a die-hard person who works on cars you will, but FWD cars/suvs are b*tches to work on! I hate seeing a FWD car come in the shop and being the one who works on it

 

[tmike]

No SAS on the new X

thaywood; I also do think once the novelty of it wears off it wont be as popular and sales will go down. Just have to wait and see the numbers.
Now who can work on it as easily??? Yes if you're a die-hard person who works on cars you will, but FWD cars/suvs are b*tches to work on! I hate seeing a FWD car come in the shop and being the one who works on it

What will the WARRANTY consist of?

I do the work on my wife's Staurn Vue and it's actually pretty easy to work on!

 

[thaywood]

No SAS on the new X

thaywood; I also do think once the novelty of it wears off it wont be as popular and sales will go down. Just have to wait and see the numbers.
Now who can work on it as easily??? Yes if you're a die-hard person who works on cars you will, but FWD cars/suvs are b*tches to work on! I hate seeing a FWD car come in the shop and being the one who works on it

Oh man, do I ever agree. That's why I don't work in a garage anymore and why I have never and will never own a wrong-wheel-drive car.

 

[NHarris]

What will the WARRANTY consist of?

I do the work on my wife's Staurn Vue and it's actually pretty easy to work on!

4Cyl or V6?
2011 Ford Warranty Guide
EDITL Looks like bumper to bumper is 3yr 30K and powertrain is 5yr 60K, and some FWDs are fairly easy to work on.

 

[2TimingTom]

I do the work on my wife's Staurn Vue and it's actually pretty easy to work on!

I have a 4 cylinder VUE and other than oil changes and front brakes, I haven't had to do a single thing to it in the 75,000 miles I've owned it.

And other than the 13 months I owned a '98 Mountaineer (during which time I changed the oil a couple times and installed new shocks), I've owned exclusively FWD cars. Working on the accessory side of the engine can be tight, but it's usually nothing removing that wheel won't solve.

I've even autoxed and road coursed a FWD. In the corners at the road courses, I have more than one Corvette holding me up. And at a typical autox event in the small region I was in, I would finish in the top 10 overall (out of around 60-80 total drivers).

When people cry about "wrong wheel drive" I seriously just laugh. FWD is fine in almost every situation encountered on the road. Towing a heavy load is about the only bad idea with a FWD. The rest of the time, they'll go from stoplight to stoplight and bang out the miles on the interstate just as well as a RWD.

 

[tmike]

I have a 4 cylinder VUE and other than oil changes and front brakes, I haven't had to do a single thing to it in the 75,000 miles I've owned it.

And other than the 13 months I owned a '98 Mountaineer (during which time I changed the oil a couple times and installed new shocks), I've owned exclusively FWD cars. Working on the accessory side of the engine can be tight, but it's usually nothing removing that wheel won't solve.

I've even autoxed and road coursed a FWD. In the corners at the road courses, I have more than one Corvette holding me up. And at a typical autox event in the small region I was in, I would finish in the top 10 overall (out of around 60-80 total drivers).

When people cry about "wrong wheel drive" I seriously just laugh. FWD is fine in almost every situation encountered on the road. Towing a heavy load is about the only bad idea with a FWD. The rest of the time, they'll go from stoplight to stoplight and bang out the miles on the interstate just as well as a RWD.

Ours is an '07 V6, bought it new. It's been in Colo. across south park in blizzard conditions with a foot of snow on the ground and never skipped a beat. I'd rather drive it in the snow or any weather then alot of the RWD vechicles out there!

 

[2TimingTom]

My FWD Mazda Protege (what I sold to buy my Explorer) was lowered a smidge with some Mazdaspeed struts and springs and wore a set of winter tires. It was a mountain goat in the snow. I'd rather drive it than my VUE in the snow. My Explorer has yet to have its snow debut with me. I'm hoping it will do well.

FWD isn't all bad.

 

[Garth]

I remember when ford wanted to 'probe' the 'mustang', front wheel drive and all. The probe been long dead and the 'mustang', oh lord the 'mustang'........

I am certain at some point the 'probe' was a good idea on paper.

 

[thaywood]

I remember when ford wanted to 'probe' the 'mustang', front wheel drive and all. The probe been long dead and the 'mustang', oh lord the 'mustang'........

I am certain at some point the 'probe' was a good idea on paper.

It's too bad the Explorer doesn't have the type of loyal rabid following the Mustang enjoys. That way we could have curtailed the Flexplorer before it became the Explorer's replacement. It could have become the next Escape or something like that and maybe Ford would have actually redesigned and improved the current Explorer as they did with the Mustang. Oh well, a man can dream...