On the side of Detroit, we do not make feelings. While the manufacturer enjoys a more than respectable reputation in Europe with its thermal models with sharpened chassis, it brutally takes into account the new European regulations and draws a line under those that have made it successful. The Fiesta, Focus and Mondeo will disappear and give way to a narrow range of 8 models, all electrified by 2024.
However, the lack of anticipation did not allow the development of an in-house electric platform and it is to a borrowing from the MEB platform of the Volkswagen group that Ford owes this 100% electric model. We will know a little more about the technical details before the summer, when its characteristics will be revealed, but we can bet on three power levels, depending on the number of engines, which would range from 180 to 340 horsepower through the intermediate stage of 270 horsepower. It's obviously a lot for what was, at the time of the thermal, a peaceful family.
Named after a 4x4 icon, the Explorer is the only link to the past that Ford now wants to move beyond. To do this, it has invested $2 billion in its Cologne plant and hopes to produce no less than 600,000 100% electric vehicles by 2026. The Explorer is the bridgehead of this somewhat biased diagonal by borrowing from German technology. But we had to hurry while waiting for a 100% Ford solution and the MEB base seemed to do the trick.
On the other hand, it dictates much more compact dimensions than the thermal mammoth to which it succeeds since its length is contained at 4.46 m and its width at 1.87 m. We therefore have to do here with a compact SUV since it is the kind that the Ford design gives it, skilfully exploiting the American traits of the franchisor.
A transmissible vocation since, 2 or 4 wheel drive, the Explorer promises escape to wide open spaces, plenty of room inside and a dashboard marked by a vast screen (14.6'') multimedia in portrait that can be positioned in height and inclination. Tip, it hides a storage space located at the back, or even locks it. The central armrest is able to swallow 3 bottles of 1.5 l.
More classic, the dashboard has a location to accommodate a smartphone and, at the top of the range, a sound bar. The trunk volume varies from 450 to 1,400 liters depending on the position of the bench seat. After the Mustang Mach-E, the electric Puma and Transit and now the Explorer, the goal of six Ford models in 2024 will soon be reached. The prices will be revealed at the start of the next school year and deliveries should begin at the end of the year.
