Ford Explorer V6 2002 Review

Ford's hasty conversion of the previous generation Explorer 4WD wagon to get it on sale in Australia resulted in only modest acceptance. Soft suspension and a poor right-hand drive conversion with a ludicrously located driver's footrest made the car less than pleasant to drive, even on tar.

A home-grown suspension modification package helped, but then came the fateful rollover stories from America and interest declined to a trickle.

The new Explorer is a different animal all together. It rides well given its size and truck heritage, and it is comfortable to around town, on freeway or hustling along country roads.

Amazing as it may seem the Ford Explorer is the biggest selling vehicle in America. It's as important to Ford in the US as the Falcon is in Australia.

Our 4.0-litre V6 automatic test car is expected to be the most popular model sold here. In addition there is the option of a 4.6-litre V8 motor - offered for the first time with the debut of the new generation wagon. Another first is the optional addition of a third row of seats bringing the tally to seven passengers.

There's more to the new Explorer and more to like. It is bigger with a longer wheelbase within the same overall length, and more spacious inside, has decent trim and features and drives well, cruising the freeway at an almost frugal 2000rpm at 100km/h (1500rpm at 80km/). On our mixed driving (all on tar), we averaged about 15.5-litres per 100km (according to the on-board computer), which given the 2068kg the 4.0-litre V6 has to pull, is a pretty good real world result.

From the outside the bigger body is pretty slab sided and there's a big brassy egg-crate grille up front, with Range Rover-like headlamps. A cheap-looking licence plate holder ruins the integrated effect and we suspect this is a local addition in order to keep the licensing authorities happy.

The doors are huge, and unusually at the lower edge roll over the body sill, almost like the bottom of a drawstring jacket. We can only assume this is a side-impact safety inspired styling solution.

At the rear the spare tyre is hung under the floorpan, accessible from outside. This leaves a flat floor into which the third row of seats can fold away. It also means there's no spare hung on the rear door so it hinges at the roof and is easier to open. A large pop-out glass rear window makes loading small items easier, and is released by a tab on the door or a button on the key fob.

A neat feature is a puddle lamp fitted to the underside of the door mirrors that illuminate the road around the car as you approach and flip the remote control to unlock doors.

Americans obviously have little problem with fuel tank siphoning because the petrol flap has no lock prompting Ford Australia to fit a locking cap that requires a different type of key, so you end up with an ignition/door key and a fuel filler cap key as well as the remote central locking box all cluttering your key ring.

Inside, the cabin is trimmed to a high visual standard, with a mix of trim materials that on the doors in isolation gives a very up-market feel. The dash is finished in harder more brittle-feeling plastic, some components of which aren't particularly well screwed down, especially the collar around the large T-bar auto transmission shifter (the head of which is usefully angled towards the driver).

The instrument pack is comprehensive with oil pressure and temperature gauges to complement the fuel and water temp, but the gauges are simply rendered with no fancy script or backlighting. Very F150 truck-like.

A six-stacker CD stereo was fitted to the test vehicle that provided adequate music reproduction, and the aerial is a fixed mast mounted on the right hand mudguard and sometimes interferes with your line of sight. Cruise control is standard along with 16-inch alloy wheels.

The seats are trimmed in hardwearing but attractive grey velour, and the driver has electric four-way adjustment as well as a knob to invoke lumbar support and a lever for backrest adjustment. The front passenger also has the manual lumbar adjuster but no electric assistance. In the rear, the seats are split into three separate units, the two outer folding flat and tumbling forward on gas-lift struts to allow easy entry into the third row (though there are no rear roofline grab handles). There's only a retractable lap belt for the middle rear seat but at least it has a full size headrest.

The cabin has loads of head and shoulder room and three adults should be able to sit comfortably across the back. One minor gripe is the high step-in, accounted for by the substantial ground clearance and elevated seating position. Ford says the floor has been lowered 180mm thanks to a new independent rear suspension system (which also allowed for the third row of seats). The high-up trade-off is a good view out over the large flat bonnet.

The foot wells are generously sized, though for some reason the ventilation outlet in the foot well could not be turned off so cold air slowly froze the driver's leg. The ventilation system is, as you would expect for a vehicle designed in Arctic-like Detroit, super efficient at heating, but thankfully for Australians just as powerful at cooling. Seven-seater versions have a dual zone climate control package that gives rear passengers the ability to turn on more cold air and more vents through which to receive it.

Still up front, the Explorer's full-time four-wheel drive system can be controlled by one of three buttons on the centre console. Default 4WD Auto can split torque between axles (sending up to 100 percent to the front wheels in low grip situations via an electromagnetic clutch), but normally offers a 100 percent rear wheel drive bias.

You can also select 4WD High which locks the front and rear drive shafts together for use in slippery conditions such as snow or sand, while 4WD Low locks in the transfer case for arduous terrain or pulling boats up a launch ramp.

Safety is covered by dual front airbags and anti-lock brakes, while full-length side curtain airbags are optional.

On the road the Explorer never lets you forget it is a big beast, but the steering is free of jarring kick-back often produced by vehicles with big bulky off-road style tyres. It is quiet inside too, unless you're revving the V6 hard. But with so much torque, especially at low revs, you never need to use the bulk of the rev range.

It's no racer, but off the line it gets away quick and clean. The ride is well balanced without a soggy front end or over-harsh damping. There's no teeth rattling or stomach churning, which, given its ride height and suspension travel is admirable. The five-speed automatic gearbox changed up slickly, though sometimes the revs seemed to rise as the gears change, almost a classic slipping clutch feeling.

With its bold and slightly up-market styling, the availability of seven seats and the option of a V8 engine, a far more composed ride and good levels of equipment, the new Explorer is a much more attractive proposition than its predecessor.

* Note: Our test vehicle, which had 9000km on the clock when we drove it in March 2002 was built in June 2001. If buying during early 2002, check the build date to ensure you're not getting a car that's almost a year old.

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