Ford Explorer Review & Prices

The Explorer is Ford’s second electric SUV after the Mustang Mach-E hit the streets back in 2020, only this time Ford is borrowing a load of tech from Volkswagen. In fact, the new Explorer is essentially a VW ID4 in a pair of Ford overalls.

It also takes its name from a massive petrol-powered SUV Ford sells in the USA, so it’s a bit like an American-style diner on the side of the A303 - it still sells burgers and hot dogs, but the portion sizes aren’t quite as mad and the chef is from Tamworth rather than Texas.

The Explorer enters a very crowded marketplace, with stiff competition from the Kia EV6, Tesla Model Y and Peugeot E-3008. It’s also perfectly-sized if you want to jump from something like a Ford Kuga into your first EV.

Underneath that handsome styling you’ll find the same motors and batteries as the Volkswagen ID4, meaning you can choose between a single-motor rear-wheel drive model or a dual-motor car with all-wheel drive. Battery options include a 77kWh pack with up to 374 miles of range in single-motor guise, or the dual-motor car uses a 79kWh battery with up to 329 miles of range.

Ford Explorer: electric range, battery and charging data

Range: 221-374 miles
Efficiency: 3.6-4.5 miles per kWh
Battery size: 52-79kWh
Max charge speed: 185kW
Charge time AC: 8 hours, 10-80% at 7kW / 5 hours 30 minutes, 10-80% at 11kW
Charge time DC: 26 minutes, 10-80% at 185kW
Charge port location: Rear right
Power outputs: 170hp/286hp/340hp

Out on the road the Explorer drives pretty well, although it doesn’t exactly move the EV game on. Around town you get decent forward visibility, but the view out of the tiny rear window is poor and the suspension is a bit firm over bumps. It’s more fun to drive on a twisty road than the ID4 thanks to sharper steering, and it’s quiet and refined on the motorway.

The cabin is a lovely place to spend time as well, and there are only a few clues which give away the tie up with Volkswagen. It looks and feels decidedly more premium than the ID4s interior, and there are loads of clever storage solutions as well.

Not only is there a cavernous cubby under the central armrest, which is large enough to fit a laptop, the massive 15.0-inch portrait touchscreen can also slide backwards to reveal another secret storage space.

Speaking of the massive screen, this is Ford’s own work. It comes with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the display is great with clear graphics and it’s responsive to your inputs. The menus are pretty easy to navigate as well, although it is annoying that all your climate controls are operated through it.

This isn’t the most practical electric SUV out there thanks to a boot which is a fair bit smaller than the Skoda Enyaq and Tesla Model Y, and the rear seats aren’t the best either. Legroom is okay, unless you’re exceptionally tall, but it’s the high floor which can make it a bit uncomfortable on longer trips because you may feel like your knees are too high.

On the whole, the Ford Explorer is a good all-round electric SUV for families, even if it’s not exactly revolutionary. The range is good, it has a lovely interior and plenty of tech on board, it’s just not quite as comfortable as some alternatives or as spacious as others.

Looking to make the Explorer your next car? Check out the latest deals available through Carwow to save yourself some cash, or browse our latest Ford offers . Don’t forget that you can also sell your current car through Carwow, and if you’re in the market for something second-hand you can take a look at our used electric cars.

The Ford Explorer is a bit more expensive than the Volkswagen ID4 and Tesla Model Y, however it cost roughly the same as the Kia EV6 and Peugeot E-3008. You get loads of kit as standard as well. A cheaper model with a smaller battery pack will also be available later in 2024 which undercuts all of these alternatives.

There are two trim levels on offer - Select and Premium. Even base models get heated and massaging front seats, adaptive cruise control, a heated steering wheel and LED headlights. Stepping up to the Premium model gets you a panoramic glass roof, 10-speaker B&O premium sound system, LED ambient lighting and a hands-free power tailgate.

The Ford Explorer is more fun to drive than other electric SUVs, however the bouncy suspension means it isn’t the most comfortable

In town

In town is where most electric SUVs thrive, and the Explorer makes for a decent city runaround. Forward visibility is good, you have good-sized door mirrors and a right turning circle to make those last-minute U-turns a breeze. You also get plenty of punch from the electric motors for nipping through gaps in traffic.

What’s not so great is the suspension, because it’s pretty stiff and as a result it never really settles over potholes and speed humps. It all feels a bit busy, and a Skoda Enyaq is much more comfortable.

Still, at least there are plenty of driver aids on board to make busy urban streets a bit less stressful. All cars get rear cross-traffic alert which will warn you if a car or bike is coming as you reverse out of a space, and a reversing camera also comes as standard. If you want a 360-degree camera then you’ll have to go for the Driver Assistance Pack which also includes a head-up display and a power tailgate.

You may want to go for that pack as well, because the view out of the back isn’t good thanks to a very narrow rear window. Reversing in tight car parks or pulling out at oblique junctions can be a bit challenging.

On the motorway

If you do a lot of motorway miles, the Explorer is very agreeable. You’ll be best off going for the rear-wheel drive model here for the extended range, but regardless the cabin remains hushed at speed and the suspension settles down nicely as you go faster.

All Explorers also come with adaptive cruise control as standard which can maintain a safe distance from the car in front and steer to keep you in lane - which is great for taking the sting out of longer slogs.

On a twisty road

Hit up a winding B-road and you’ll find the Explorer is a bit more fun to drive than the VW ID4 it shares a lot of its parts with. It’s certainly no hot hatch, but the steering is sharp and direct and there’s very little body roll as you push on through the corners.

Unfortunately there is a trade-off for this, and that’s the fact it’s quite bouncy over bumps. Reducing body roll in a heavy electric SUV usually means beefing up the suspension, and that appears to be what’s happened in the Explorer because it’s always fidgeting and bobbing around. A Peugeot E-3008 is better if you just want to waft home in comfort.

The Explorer has plenty of cubbies and loads of space up front, but competitors have larger boots

Life up front is pretty good in the Ford Explorer. The front seats have electrical adjustment with a good range of motion to suit all sizes and shapes of driver, while the steering wheel adjusts for both rake and reach - the latter in particular has a big range of motion.

Unlike the closely-related Volkswagen ID4, the Explorer’s instrument panel stays in one place and doesn’t move with the steering column. This does mean it’s possible to block it out in certain driving positions. 

You get a variety of storage cubbies, including Ford’s so-called ‘Mega Console’ - essentially, a usefully large storage area underneath the central armrest with adjustable dividers, big enough to store a laptop. You can choose whether you’d like cupholders at the front of this or a plain storage tray. The infotainment screen slides forward at the touch of a switch to reveal a space perfect for keeping assorted odds and ends - and it’s linked with the central locking so it’s secure when the car’s turned off. There are also twin wireless charging pads, positioned almost vertically so your phone stays out of sight and possible temptation.

Space in the back seats

There’s at least as much space in the back of the Ford Explorer as there is in electric SUVs such as the Volkswagen ID4 or Kia EV6. Taller passengers may struggle for knee room, but headroom is pretty good. Some models get a panoramic glass roof, which typically results in reduced headroom - but here it doesn’t, because the glass panel extends back further than the rear passengers’ heads.

The batteries under the floor also raise it up quite a lot, and this means you may find your knees are elevated too high which isn't especially comfortable on longer journeys.

Each rear door gets a usefully large door bin, there’s a fold-down centre armrest with cupholders, and two USB-C charging ports in the middle. If you’d like to carry three passengers, you’ll find a totally flat floor and a reasonably comfortable middle seat.

Boot space

Boot space totals 450 litres - bigger than the pricier Ford Mustang Mach-e but less than a Volkswagen ID4 or a Kia EV6 which have 543 and 480 litres respectively. The top trim level gets an electric tailgate (with a piercingly loud chime when you open it) revealing a square, practical space. There’s space underneath the floor to store your charging cables, and you can fold the rear seats down in a 60:40 split to carry larger items.

There’s also a ski hatch allowing you to carry long, thin items between the two rear passengers. A couple of bag hooks and some deep wells just behind the rear wheels help keep things tidy, and there’s also a 12V socket. The rear seats drop easily and leave a totally flat floor.

And if you like towing a trailer or caravan, the Explorer’s available with a towbar - four-wheel drive models can tow up to 1.4 tonnes, which is still quite rare for an electric car. What’s missing is the front boot, or ‘frunk’ that some rivals such as the Tesla Model Y offer.

High quality build, but touchscreen-driven interior isn’t the most intuitive to use

Like so many modern SUVs, the Ford Explorer has precious few physical buttons on the inside. Most items are controlled through the large 15.0-inch touchscreen in the centre, but what buttons remain are touch-sensitive and therefore not the easiest to use on the move.

The Ford Explorer’s column stalks aren’t totally self-explanatory either, with the right-hand stalk being the drive selector - leaving lights, wipers and indicators to cram onto the left-hand stalk all together. Even the window switches haven’t escaped - there are just two, with a further touch-sensitive button to switch between controlling the fronts and the rears.

It’s not all doom and gloom. The dashboard has a cool-looking soundbar on top of it, and material quality seems good throughout - the artificial leather seats in particular are nicer than the ones you get on a Tesla or a Volkswagen. The infotainment system itself doesn’t have the simplest interface, but all the virtual buttons are big enough to be easy to press which isn’t always the case. We like the shortcut buttons permanently at the top and bottom of the screen, and wireless Apple Carplay and Android Auto cover off smartphone connectivity requirements.

Rear-wheel drive versions of the Ford Explorer can manage up to 374 miles of range with the smaller wheels, however go for the Premium with its 20-inch rims and this drops to 354 miles. If you fancy a bit of extra shove from the 340hp dual-motor model, you'll have to make do with 329 miles of range.

So how does this stack up against the alternatives? Well the Tesla Model y will do up to 370 miles on a charge, and the EV6 also falls 15 miles short of the Explorer. All models will charge from 10-80% in under half an hour using a DC rapid station.

Being an electric car you won't pay any road tax, although this will change in 2025. The Explorer is also exempt from paying congestion charge until 2025, and you won't have to pay to enter the London ULEZ.

The Explorer achieved a full five-star Euro NCAP rating. The Volkswagen ID4 on which the Explorer is based did just that in 2021.

All models will include a plethora of driver assistance and safety features including autonomous emergency braking, front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera.

Neither Ford nor VW (which supplies the battery and motor technology for the Explorer) are known for stellar reliability. The relative simplicity of electric cars should mean mechanical maladies are largely avoidable, but some EVs have suffered software bugs for a while after launch.

Ford’s standard warranty is three years or 60,000 miles and is pretty standard. It doesn’t look so generous compared to Kia’s seven years of cover, or Toyota’s ten. The battery is be covered for a period of eight years/100,000 miles, which is in line with most other manufacturers.