"Though neither Acadia engine is particularly muscular, they both get the job done.
Ford’s base engine, a 3.5-liter V6, tends to struggle on steep climbs and at highway speeds."
Hmmm? What kind of 'steep climb' is she talking about? I haven't had the occasion to have a problem with a steep climb myself other than having to push on the gas a bit more. It also 'struggles' at highway speeds? Really? I guess I got one of the good ones because I've never had a thought about my Ex's 'struggles' at highway speed. Probably because it doesn't. To me, that was a 'planted' suggestion. My experience with the 'struggling' Ford V6 is I haven't had any experience in the engine struggling to do it job. As a matter of fact, I think it's amazing a little 213 cu. in. V6 engine can handle an almost 5000 lb. vehicle with not too much effort. Even before I put a tune on it. With the tune, it just makes it better. But, I never thought to myself, "Gee, I wish this thing had more power". This coming from a person who previously owned a '13 Mustang GT/CS. That little engine is more than adequate to power the Ex, IMO.
"The Ford Explorer feels bulkier than the GMC Acadia and doesn’t handle rough terrain as well..."
I always find the opinions of many of these people who write the articles hilarious. When I read something like this, I'm thinking it's geared toward city folk whose idea of 'off roading' is a dirt road. Look at the picture they have with the Acadia on a 'dirt road' approaching a...mud puddle. Now,
that's off roading!
....
Look, I'm not going to kid myself into thinking these SUV types can go off roading to any degree other than a dirt road or something that may have a rock or two to deal with. It make no sense to me that my Ex could handle 'rough terrain' like my 4x4 Ranger could. Anybody looking to buy this type of vehicle because of it's 'off roading prowess' is kidding themselves.
"While the Acadia's base four-cylinder engine is adequate for daily driving, upgrading to the top of the line V6 engine is recommended. The upgraded engine is quieter and more refined. Each engine comes mated to a
six-speed automatic transmission."
Since GM and Ford developed the tranny in the Ex and both manufactures use this tranny in different models, I wonder if they
both use the same tranny?
Anyway, as for myself, I've never used an article wrote about a vehicle to influence my decision to buy a particular vehicle. In my view, these articles are each wrote by one person so, if you are going to use an article to any degree of your purchasing decision, you could read 10 different articles and still only have 10 different opinions. My decision is based pretty much on my own testing and that to me, is the bottom line. Since I've had my Ex, it has been quite sufficient in anything I throw at it. As for the Acadia, I'm sure it would also be quite sufficient. I also stay away from perceptions about one manufacturer over another. They all have their sorted problems and the 'perceptions' are usually driven by discrimination of one manufacturer over another . I haven't run into any problems with the new vehicles I've bought over the years. My Ex was 'born' on a Monday. I don't remember about what manufacture days to stay away from when purchasing but, I think Monday is one but, I also think that
that concept is an old wives tail type of thing anyway. Anyway, keeping it real is how I approach things like this and so far, it's served me well. YMMV, of course.
