They still had better angles and solid rear axles when they first came out. Also, IFS/IRS Explorers have been out there as long as KJ's, and there is still hardly any support.
I see your point Joe Dirt, I wasn't really meaning that I wanted to see the 2011 crawling or anything crazy like that KJ you have pictured, but I'm just looking for something that involves the 2011 somewhere where it doesn't look like the operator knows 90+% of what the terrain's going to throw at them. Besides the dunes (which, like I said, means nothing if you don't go dune bashing), the only offroad footage of the 2011 that I've seen out there are those videos of the 2011 in semi-mucky environments where the operator just has to maintain momentum (which you can see them doing), and then they safely make it to the dry part of the playpit to regain traction, turn around and have another go.
I'm basically wanting the 2011 on an actual trail.
The one thing I really don't understand is how Ford did target their audience (makes sense, they are a real company), but I just feel that didn't try to cover as any bases as the other new SUVs. For example, it seems like other companies like Jeep, Nissan and Toyota (even though I really wouldn't ever want those last two, and Jeeps do get old IMO) target their suburban audience, but still have perks and hidden things to make enthusiasts happy.
To keep with the KJ example: Jeep makes a compact, girly (IMO, again) looking SUV for people who want pretty good MPG, but still want an SUV - so that's that, right? - No, surprise, it can be lifted a good bit even without SAS, and it already has a solid rear axle, good angles and a real transfer case.
So far, with the 2011, it's: Ford makes a midsize, urban-looking SUV for people who want a good ride in the city, space for stuff/people and good MPG... and surprise, we made the transmission, brakes, etc. play along with a computer to give you "traction."
I'd have to say I'm pretty depressed that I'm comparing the Ford Explorer to a KJ, and I still don't see the Ex winning. That's pretty ridiculous. What happened do being able to compare Explorers to 4Runners and stuff like that? I agree with icecube's video comment, but that one guy has a point - You can get a diff lock on a 2011 4Runner, but you can't even get a transfer case on a 2011 Explorer! What happened to Ford Tough and all that greatness? You can even get a locking center diff on a 2011 Kia Sorento - that's that thing that pretends to be an ML! Speaking of that, 2011 kind of reminds me of the W164 MLs or those GLKs, but you can at least get lockers on those in Europe. Anyway, the 2011 4Runner gets 19mpg (V6) and the 2011 Kia gets 21mpg, those are pretty good. Granted - the Kia can only tow 3500lb, no matter, a Kia should not have any offroad toy that a Ford doesn't.
I dunno, only time will tell - but I say stuff's going south in general.
