Official mileage estimates from the EPA have given the
Ford Explorer another advantage over the competition. The 2011 Explorer, powered by a six-cylinder engine, earned a certified EPA rating of 17 mpg/city and 25 mpg/highway, giving it the best fuel economy of any full-size SUV.
The new numbers represent a 25% improvement in fuel economy over the 2010 V6 Explorer, and even greater improvements are on the way. Early in 2011, Ford will offer its turbocharged EcoBoost engine as an option on the Explorer, which is expected to improve fuel economy by another 5%.
“These improvements in gas mileage don’t come at the cost of capability,” said Jeff Klein, general sales manager of Massachusetts
Ford dealer Thomas Ford of Beverly. “First and foremost, Ford understands that people buy an SUV because they need the passenger, cargo and towing capacity that it offers. All of those things are still part of the new Explorer, they just come with a lower price at the gas pump.”
To wring every bit of fuel economy out of the Explorer without sacrificing what has made it an iconic SUV over the past two decades, Ford took a fresh look at nearly every part of the redesigned 2011 model. Extensive wind-tunnel testing led to an all-new exterior with an aggressive, rear-sloping grille that reduces wind noise and kicks an extra mile per gallon into highway fuel economy. Electric power-assisted steering (EPAS), a new feature exclusive to the 2011 Explorer, improves handling, lowers weight and also adds to fuel economy.
The biggest changes can be found under the hood, where a new 3.5-liter V6 engine uses a combination of independent variable camshaft timing, a six-speed automatic transmission and computer controls to reduce the fuel supply whenever the Explorer slows down. These changes help to create a powertrain that is both more fuel efficient and more capable than the one found in current Explorer models. Rated for 290 horsepower, the 2011 Explorer with the V-6 offers 80 more horsepower than the 2010 edition and falls just shy of the 292 horsepower found in 2010 models with the larger V-8 engine.
Properly equipped, the 2011 Explorer offers a towing capacity of 5,000 pounds along with the features that Greater
Boston Ford buyers expect, including seating for 7 and 21 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row, expandable to 80.7 cubic feet of space when the second- and third-row seats are folded flat.
Ford is also unveiling innovative safety technology in the new Explorer, such as industry-first inflatable rear safety belts that hold passengers of all sizes securely during a collision, and an available collision warning system that displays a flashing alert on the windshield and applies the brakes when the on-board sensor detects accident risks. And now, for the first time in the model’s history, the 2011 Explorer was just named a Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
“Ford has never been happy to sit back and tell people to buy the Explorer because it’s popular,” Klein noted. “Instead, there is constant innovation and improvement to make the Explorer the most versatile, capable and reliable full-size SUV available. There are a lot of first-ever and best-in-class features packed into the 2011 Explorer, which is why, once again, this will be the SUV that all others are measured against.”
About Thomas Ford:Thomas Ford, located in Beverly MA, has been a fixture in the North Shore of Massachusetts for over 40 years. They base their success on their dedicated sales and service departments' commitment to customer satisfaction. It's never been a better time to be a Ford owner, and Thomas Ford encourages you to stop by their dealership to discover why. For more information, call them at 1-800-910-1082, visit their website at www.thomasford.com, like them on
Facebook or stop by their dealership at 211 Rantoul Street, Beverly, MA.
