My mother just bought a 2015 Explorer Limited in Bronze Fire. Its an extremely nice car, but it feels ludicrously huge. I drive a full sized pickup and I am almost afraid to drive the Explorer in traffic because I cant...see...anything.

 

I'm sure he's aware...hence the ;P at the end of his post

 

Congratulations to your Mom, Josh. I hope she is enjoying it. Does she live close by?

 

agree! as you know i had the prior gen explorer which was much smaller. this new one feels more like the expedition than an explorer.

i wrote last year:

 

I have a 2014 base model I picked up with 3 miles on it two years ago next month. I've taken it to seven states, crawled rocks, beat snow storms, and off roaded all over the mountains. I've hauled a family of six, crammed several car seats, and towed multiple cars out of the snow in Wyoming. I've changed the oil and had plenty of one sided arguments with SYNC. I'm at 80,000 miles and will be getting a 2016 next spring. I have a X5 M and a GS F sport in the garage. All I can say is that super cars aside, they truly can't be what I need a car to be on a daily basis. The explorer has really been that go anywhere vehicle that I can drive and drive, and never worry about a thing (door dings included).

 

whats your take on the visibility issues?

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

Personally, the side view mirrors are excellent for eliminating blind spots. So much better than a small illumination. I can actually see what's in my blind spot with the way they designed the mirrors. I don't have any features on mine, but of course a backup camera would be convenient. I think my X5 has depreciated as much in two years and 10000 miles, as a brand new explorer and 80000 miles. I've not had one single problem, and my maintenance cost has been less than $500. I'm on the original tires and use snow tires in the winter. I can emphasize that I have NOT babied this car. Never gets parked in the garage, constantly in super hot or super cold weather. My biggest complaints. The turn signal is AWFUL. The sound and the volume. The SYNC system is like trying to reason with a two-year old. Average of 21.8 mpg since new.

 

Who thinks about this new model

 

I just had a loaner 2016 Ford Explorer Limited 4WD while my RX was in the shop after a small accident.

At first, I was quite impressed with the Explorer. The interior was huge, it had lots of features, and was quiet. As the week passed on, I grew to dislike the particular model I had. It only had 8k miles on it, but given that it was a rental I'm sure those were a hard 8k miles, so take that into consideration with my comments below.

Here are my impressions:

Positives:

- It was at least as quiet as my RX350.
- The interior was gigantic. Lots of room for my family.
- The panorama sunroof was great. My daughter loved it.
- Good handling - It handled much better than its weight would imply.
- Great features. It didn't have blind spot monitoring, but it did have front and rear cameras, rear HVAC controls, heated rear seats, and power folding third row.
- I found the seats to be quite comfortable.
- The LED headlights worked well.

Negatives:

- The worst panel gaps I've seen in a new car in years. They were uneven, and the black rubber trim around the windows had big gaps in it.
- I'd be driving along and the engine would start sputtering. The RPMs would bounce up and down the car would shutter, then it would return to normal. Curious of a previous driver put bad gas in it or something. This particular model had the NA 3.5 V6.
- All the interior room was great, but the downside is that you sit low, and far away from the door. I felt tiny in this thing. It was an uneasy feeling that I did get used to by the end of the week. Car and Driver summed it up well, stating how you feel like you are only 5 feet tall, even though you are 6 feet tall, when driving this thing.
- The interior materials felt nice to the touch - lots of padding and such, but the grain they used on the dash looked cheap in my opinion.
- The driver side footwell is a mess. The front left tire well intrudes on it. The dead pedal is angled and uncomfortable.
- The 3rd row seats rattled when stowed.
- This model had a black leather interior with a black headliner. Even with the panorama sunroof, the interior was a very dark place to be. Not at all helped by the dark, gray weather we've been having.
- The sensor under the rear bumper for opening the hatch seemed convenient enough, but several times while loading things into the back, it would sense my foot as I was loading and close the hatch on my head. It was either too sensitive or aimed too far back.

Overall, I thought it was nice, but was left unimpressed by the quality.

 

Wow--who's your insurance company that ponies up for a loaded Explorer as a rental while your car is being repaired? That's great service!

 

I was actually pretty impressed! It was covered by the driver at fault's insurance, which was Geico.

When I met with the Geico adjuster, I told her I needed something large enough to put two car seats into, and she stated she would authorize an SUV rental. I'm very thankful! I feared I'd be driving a subcompact around for a week!