Some questions on a 2021 Ford Explorer Purchase

[Dennis Kostial]

I had a 2019 Explorer Sport and lover the car. Had it for a little over 27,000 miles. Then, it happened!
Instrument cluster went “bad”, dealer installed a new one. Three days later, as I’m driving down the road, got a “transmission not in park” message and cluster went dark again. After fighting this same battle the dealership made me an offer I couldn’t say no to on a 2021 Explorer ST. Love everything about the car! Has Pirelli tires instead of Hankook like the 2019. Road harsh at first but tires were overinflated. When air pressure was corrected, I became very satisfied with the ride. Like the 21” tires and blacked out rims with painted calipers. So far so good.

We had to make the same decision ST or Platinum love our new platinum decision made , the messaging seats are great for people our age .Plenty of power especially in Sport mode she rocks .Getting the tune at Palm Beach tune shop in Florida next month when we’re at our condo there .With the tune for sure it will smoke the St so they tell me so I have to make up my mind? I don’t think I need 585 hp.

 

[Dennis Kostial]

The limited upgraded seats, audio and the rear shades make for some pretty cool upgrades. The point I was making for those of you all who did not get it is typically it costs a lot of money to upgrade modify vehicles. For the thousands you could spend on making a 2.3 liter faster you could add that much and upgrade to a Platinum or if you want something faster than that then go spend the extra on an Audi or AMG Mercedes. Someone is always faster, and the comment was not meant to be snappy.

The only thing I have added is the JLT oil separator, had 247 miles on it when we got it last month now has 1200 miles .The wife really loves it . It’s not like our 2017 Taurus SHO which she had two new ones but this is pretty sweet she likes the bling of the grill and the 21 “ polished wheels I don’t get to drive it much and still got to get use to all the different things over the SHO.

 

[Lhymes]

May i ask. Why the hell are automakers so damn greedy? They literally sell millions of cars yet just keep jacking the price up?

Funny enough you ask this. The higher end Explorer’s MSRP actually went down by around $1500 going from 2020 to 2021 for an equally speced vehicle.

 

[2012 Ford Explorer]

Funny enough you ask this. The higher end Explorer’s MSRP actually went down by around $1500 going from 2020 to 2021 for an equally speced vehicle.

Interesting

 

[jhu8]

Funny enough you ask this. The higher end Explorer’s MSRP actually went down by around $1500 going from 2020 to 2021 for an equally speced vehicle.

Well they did remove some previously standard items. And these explorers are way overpriced to begin with. Look at the telluride for example. That’s where the explorer should be priced. You can get trip trim telluride for under 50k.

 

[DoraAExplorer]

Well they did remove some previously standard items. And these explorers are way overpriced to begin with. Look at the telluride for example. That’s where the explorer should be priced. You can get trip trim telluride for under 50k.

You mean those throw away vehicles from Hyundai and Kia?

The 2020 and 2021 Explorer went back to RWD platform to put it in line with the remainder of their Truck/ SUV lineup as the Bronco, Ranger and F150 are all RWD based vehicles. The Explorer comes with some good trims for the price compared to other vehicles in its class from Subaru or Toyota which are similarly priced.

 

[jhu8]

You mean those throw away vehicles from Hyundai and Kia?

The 2020 and 2021 Explorer went back to RWD platform to put it in line with the remainder of their Truck/ SUV lineup as the Bronco, Ranger and F150 are all RWD based vehicles. The Explorer comes with some good trims for the price compared to other vehicles in its class from Subaru or Toyota which are similarly priced.

not sure exactly what you mean but they seem to do quite well. Either way, neither are for me. ST all the way.

 

[Lhymes]

Well they did remove some previously standard items. And these explorers are way overpriced to begin with. Look at the telluride for example. That’s where the explorer should be priced. You can get trip trim telluride for under 50k.

I’m referring to a like-configuration. I switched from a 2020 to a 2021 Platinum due to a bunch of little issues compounded. After a lot of work I was able to finally find an exact-same configuration as my previous vehicle (specing the panoramic roof, tech package, second row bench, tri-coat white), with the only difference being the new vehicle having 21” wheels instead of 20”. The new vehicle’s MSRP was a little more than $1500 less.

 

[jhu8]

I’m referring to a like-configuration. I switched from a 2020 to a 2021 Platinum due to a bunch of little issues compounded. After a lot of work I was able to finally find an exact-same configuration as my previous vehicle (specing the panoramic roof, tech package, second row bench, tri-coat white), with the only difference being the new vehicle having 21” wheels instead of 20”. The new vehicle’s MSRP was a little more than $1500 less.

Oh yeah I see what you mean. That’s awesome you were able to do that. Hopefully the 21 is treating you better than the 20.

 

[peterk9]

You mean those throw away vehicles from Hyundai and Kia?

.............................................................

That's living in the past. Both those companies are producing some excellent vehicles which are also highly rated and have much longer warranties than most domestic vehicles.

Peter

 

[Dennis Kostial]

That's living in the past. Both those companies are producing some excellent vehicles which are also highly rated and have much longer warranties than most domestic vehicles.

Peter

Can’t come close to our new Platinum Explorer we love this vehicle, twin turbos and the towing package next we’re getting the Palm Beach tune Co. To tune her.And we got a 10 year 200k Free warranty on ours good coast yo coast .

 

[Bluesnake01]

Can’t come close to our new Platinum Explorer we love this vehicle, twin turbos and the towing package next we’re getting the Palm Beach tune Co. To tune her.And we got a 10 year 200k Free warranty on ours good coast yo coast .

I actually disagree, KIA/Hyundai have come a long way. Have they actually offered the 3.5TT engine from the GV80, it would've been a coin toss for me. My brother in law had a KIA Optima for 7 years, never had one issue except for one "major" recall that had to do with a negative battery cable being loose. The Telluride and Palisade are very nice well built SUV's. Just lacking in power... badly.

I found my perfect 21 Explorer ST in red with the second row bench seat and tech package. Unfortunately, they wouldnt budge on the price. Days later, found a new 2020 Platinum fully loaded with 21's, was 6% under the 61k MSRP and had $4,000 worth of incentives on top of it. It was a no brainer for me. Came out cheaper vs the 21 ST with slight more options.

 

[peterk9]

Can’t come close to our new Platinum Explorer we love this vehicle, twin turbos and the towing package next we’re getting the Palm Beach tune Co. To tune her.And we got a 10 year 200k Free warranty on ours good coast yo coast .

Dealers don't give that kind of warranty away for free. You paid for it somewhere along the line. Was it a Ford ESP or some 3rd party warranty?

Peter

 

[msg]

Update: First, I want to thank all who offered their responses. Very helpful and I am most appreciative. After much back and forth, I ended up landing on the 2021 Limited Hybrid. The ST seats felt too firm (sporty) for me as did the suspension and the inventory of Platinums was very limited. And I liked the feel of the V6 in the Hybrid -- or so I thought. After 4 or 5 days of driving the Hybrid, I was observing very rough acceleration from the line (occasionally rather abrupt) and I was not at all liking the feel of the regenerative brakes. I returned to the dealer and took a hit on returning the Hybrid with a few hundred miles and walked out with a 2021 Limited with the 2.3L Ecoboost. I am much happier with that configuration compared to the Hybrid. Far smoother and more consistent acceleration and normal braking. Granted, it isn't the V6 Eco, but it seems to do the job and I am now satisfied. I admit, the look of the ST is just fantastic, but at the end of the day, it wasn't in the cards for me this go round. I will say that while the Hybrid has promise, I am not sure that they have the transitions figured our between electric and gas and/or the transmission just wasn't working well with that power train. The dealer told me I was not the first to return the Hybrid for a Plan B. Of course, I wish I would have heard that at first as I could have saved time, money and aggravation. In any case, I seem to have landed in a good place and I am grateful for all of the valuable information in this Forum.

 

[jhu8]

Glad you finally landed in a good spot. Seems like a very stressful experience. I have the 2.3 ecoboost in my 17 explorer and it’s very good engine. And I know it’s only improved with the 6th gen. Enjoy!

 

[msg]

Thanks jhu8. It was indeed quite a bit of stress before I landed in the right place.

 

[slow3v]

Well they did remove some previously standard items. And these explorers are way overpriced to begin with. Look at the telluride for example. That’s where the explorer should be priced. You can get trip trim telluride for under 50k.

You are absolutely comparing apples to oranges when you compare telluride to explorer. It's almost as polarizing as comparing a VW to an Audi. A Telluride is a great value, an Explorer is a great vehicle. I don't say that with bias, either.

• True "4x4" in Explorer w/an actual transfer case
• RWD purpose built chassis with unbelievable driving dynamics for a SUV
• Better powertrain options in Explorer versus the fairly wheezy N/A V6 in the Tellie
• Better exterior styling (subjective, but the Telluride already looks dated/cheap IMO and I LOVED it when it came out)
• Much more solid feel due to a more rigid chassis
• Better resale value than Tellie
• A Telluride is just yet another vehicle built on a shared FWD chassis, tarted up for the masses, and it drives as such.

 

[EXFAN]

You are absolutely comparing apples to oranges when you compare telluride to explorer. It's almost as polarizing as comparing a VW to an Audi. A Telluride is a great value, an Explorer is a great vehicle. I don't say that with bias, either.

• True "4x4" in Explorer w/an actual transfer case
• RWD purpose built chassis with unbelievable driving dynamics for a SUV
• Better powertrain options in Explorer versus the fairly wheezy N/A V6 in the Tellie
• Better exterior styling (subjective, but the Telluride already looks dated/cheap IMO and I LOVED it when it came out)
• Much more solid feel due to a more rigid chassis
• Better resale value than Tellie
• A Telluride is just yet another vehicle built on a shared FWD chassis, tarted up for the masses, and it drives as such.

I had similar thoughts to the majority of your comments above. The Telluride and Palisade are getting the love from the critics but dig deep in some reviews and one will find complaints of bad interior odors, electrical, wind noise and glass issues. They were never a contender for me due to the FWD transverse mounted platform which I personally feel is not appropriate for larger vehicles (main reason I did not like my 18 Expl).

One side note to the VW/Audi comparison and my apologies if off topic or offends. VW and Audi are different for sure, but very similar in reliabilty. Not good. Nice when they're new and under warranty but the VW and Audi makes have some serious and expensive problems when they get some age and miles. American have really been "taken" by that whole "German Quality" perception.

 

[jhu8]

You are absolutely comparing apples to oranges when you compare telluride to explorer. It's almost as polarizing as comparing a VW to an Audi. A Telluride is a great value, an Explorer is a great vehicle. I don't say that with bias, either.

• True "4x4" in Explorer w/an actual transfer case
• RWD purpose built chassis with unbelievable driving dynamics for a SUV
• Better powertrain options in Explorer versus the fairly wheezy N/A V6 in the Tellie
• Better exterior styling (subjective, but the Telluride already looks dated/cheap IMO and I LOVED it when it came out)
• Much more solid feel due to a more rigid chassis
• Better resale value than Tellie
• A Telluride is just yet another vehicle built on a shared FWD chassis, tarted up for the masses, and it drives as such.

You make some valid points. I’m all in for thr explorer. But the telluride does very well and there’s no denying that. No way the explorer has better resale value than the telluride.

 

[DoraAExplorer]

You make some valid points. I’m all in for thr explorer. But the telluride does very well and there’s no denying that. No way the explorer has better resale value than the telluride.

The limited Explorer does have some better seat material similar to the Lariat F150 and the side rear window shades are awesome. If you are an enthusiast and a car/ truck person the new Explorer checks a bunch of marks off the list that the previous generation did not. The Ranger, Explorer, F150, and Bronco are all stars in a very tight market with huge competition where wins are hard to come by.

Kia and Hyundai may make excellent vehicles however I will never own one.