Ford Expedition & Ford Explorer ｜ Ford's SUVs Compared

If you're shopping for a three-row family SUV and walk into a Ford showroom, you're gonna see both of these SUVs, the Expedition and the Explorer. The Explorer gets a thorough refresh for 2025. On the Expedition, it's all new. Now, these trucks are $30,000 apart. The Expedition's so much larger, more powerful, but there's a lot to compare here. This is the off-road trim. This is the performance trim. So what are you gonna choose? They both have three rows of seats. They both drive differently, and you actually, after driving both of them yourself and seeing this video, you might be more convinced to buy one versus the other. The Explorer has been brand new since 2020 in its sixth generation. The Expedition is new for 2025 in its fifth generation. Ford sells a ton of trucks and SUVs every year, and these two are among its most popular vehicles. What you truly need, well, that's up to you. The Explorer is not small. This is a midsize SUV. It just seems that way next to that giant Expedition. Yes, it's lower, but that's the whole point. The Explorer is a sporty SUV from the start, and in ST trim, it truly looks that way. 21-inch wheels, larger brakes with red calipers, blacked-out trim. This, of course, is all black all the way around. For 2025, the Explorer has a wider grille opening, restyled headlights. Also, new taillights that connect across that tailgate. Subtle changes, but this car has always looked good since the generation came out for 2020. I like this car because you can get in it super easy. You're not climbing into it. It's right at your hip height. Everywhere you look at, the doors open easily, very wide. So even though this is smaller than the Expedition, it's very maneuverable, and I just like the look, truly. This one's kind of dressed like the Police Interceptor, and in fact, the suspension and the brakes are borrowed from the actual Police Interceptor. But next to that Expedition, this is more my speed. If you're going large, go larger. That's the Expedition Tremor, which has a two-inch suspension lift for 10.6 inches of ground clearance. It sits on the smallest 18-inch wheels with orange accents and 33-inch high General All-Terrain tires. There's also new bumpers for improved approach angles if you really want to go off-road. Auxiliary off-road lights with the high beams on. The Expedition does look tough. I do like that. And for 2026, the same trim, the Tremor, is available on the Explorer. It's just not out yet in time for our review. So a lot of the same treatments, the skid plates, all of the tow hooks, that is all carried over to the Explorer Tremor. But if you're getting on the Expedition train, well, it's a big one, right? All around, you cannot hide the mass of this vehicle. Big glass, giant doors. At the rear, I'm not loving the taillights like I did the previous generation Expedition. I definitely like the treatment of the Explorer better. On this truck, it's a nice two-tone effect, so that's kind of cool, but it's just not as handsome of a look as the front of this truck. That's where the Expedition really shines. The Expedition is 11 inches longer, three inches longer in the wheelbase, five inches wider, and nine inches taller. Off the ground, it's nearly three inches higher. 10.6 inches versus 7.8 on the Explorer. The Explorer ST sounds pretty good. Really nice growl, almost a little bark going on here. It's really responsive in a way that BMWs, the M models, like the M Performance models, stuff like that of that caliber and that price, that's where the Explorer ST, which is the most expensive trim, alongside, well, yeah, there's the Platinum, but the ST is the one, I think, if you're gonna spend this much money on an Explorer, to order. In this trim, and on the upcoming Explorer Tremor, it's a turbocharged V6 engine, three liters, and it has 400 horsepower and 415 pound-feet of torque. Fuel efficiency, with all-wheel drive, not the best, but also not horrible. 25 mpg on the highway. Some Explorer models are available with rear-wheel drive because, like other Ford SUVs that aren't the Escape and below that, it's a rear-wheel drive chassis. It's really balanced, so therefore, it handles better inherently than a lot of other family SUVs that are front-wheel drive based. Ford's decision to do that, I think, has paid off dividends, especially in the corners. You can get Blue Cruise, if you so choose, on an Explorer. This one doesn't have it, but to me, I think it's actually way more fun to drive this car, and also, it's very comfortable. It's quiet. It's quieter than some of Ford's other products, especially the Expedition. What I also like about the Explorer is that it feels like more of a car. You're sitting so much lower, yet you are higher off the ground than, say, a sedan, but you never actually feel like you're lifted, so if you like that feeling of being lower, easier to get in and out, also easy to see out of as well, then you're gonna like driving the Explorer every day. Personally, I just like how simple the Explorer is to drive. Even though there's a big touchscreen here, it's never really getting in my way. All the physical controls are here, and the performance is just fun, like really. This is probably the most shocking thing about the Explorer is that not only is it quick and responsive with the 10-speed automatic transmission, but you can also tow 5,000 pounds, so the ST trim doesn't really take away from the Explorer's capability. It's not actually lower to the ground than a regular Explorer. It just had bigger wheels and tires. Handling and steering are the reasons to buy a smaller SUV like the Explorer, and really, the Explorer ST, it handles like nothing else in the segment. Ford retuned the steering, the shocks, the dampers, everything to make it feel more secure and grippier. It really is good. Doesn't take away from the Explorer's already good ride. You could say it's slightly stiffer, but barely so, and as a unibody construction versus a truck like the Expedition, the Explorer's always going to ride better, and it's always going to be a little quieter. The Explorer is just so easy to place. There's so much torque from that turbo engine, and the fact of the matter is it just drives with an effortlessness, and that's something that the big Ford SUVs just feel cumbersome. The Expedition can never equal what the Explorer is day-to-day, and you lose that just because of the bulk, and some people truly need that. I get that. I would wager that most people really do not. Unless you're towing all the time and have eight people constantly on a regular basis, I think you'd be so much better off in a vehicle like the Explorer. It's just so much more maneuverable, and some people are really used to that big SUV size, and I'm fine driving them, I have no issue, but I don't want to drive, and that is the difference, the want versus the need. I want to be in a vehicle like this just because I just feel like it's right-sized. You got all the space you need, but it doesn't overwhelm you. The roadholding, everything on this Explorer, it says to me that Ford has a fully sorted vehicle. I'm excited to try that Explorer Tremor because it is lifted like the Expedition, but I bet it's going to handle and feel a lot closer to this ST. And that right there, I think, is a win. Things that you can't do in a big Expedition is stuff like that. I think the tire pressure is slightly low. That's the only reason why you're hearing a chirp because there's a lot of grip here. These are all-season Pirellis. The brakes feel really good. Like, this is the car you want to drive when you actually want to have a good time with your entire family. Power was never a problem for the Expedition. Twin-turbo, three-and-a-half liter V6. On the Tremor, it's making 440 horsepower and 510 pound-feet of torque. You can also get this top tune if you're getting the Platinum with the Ultimate Package or the Stealth Performance Package. All other Expedition trims use only 400 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque. It's all just a software upgrade that Ford programs into the computer. No change at all mechanically. All Expedition trims except the base Active are four-wheel drive. And on this Tremor, you're getting a locking rear differential plus a special off-road mode here that you select way down here where the headlight switch used to be. So that's a little odd. But the response is great from this 10-speed automatic transmission. And in sport mode, it will hold the revs. There's no paddle shifters. You would actually have to go down here to the dash to actually change it. Then you get a display up here. It kind of looks like it's a calculator. That's not the easiest way to really downshift or upshift in your family SUV. So it's best to just leave it be. It's automatic. Fuel efficiency doesn't change too much from the previous generation. You can get in the low 20s on the highway. You're getting in the teens, definitely in the city. There is no getting around a vehicle this big. But for all that, you get towing up to 9,600 pounds on 4x4 models. The max, because it's larger and there's more weight, takes away from that rating, goes up to about 9,000 pounds. And if you're getting the 4x2 models, it's anywhere from 6,000 to 6,300 pounds. But 9,600 is sure nice on a truck this big. Acceleration is just great. So that's the first part. Handling, less so. The steering wheel, to me, is just not even just a matter of road feel. It's a matter of the steering wheel's feel. It feels strange in my hands. It feels strange to look at. Now, I've seen this before in Toyota Prius models, all kinds of smaller cars, but you don't get the confidence of just holding something this tiny when a truck is this wide, this large, this heavy. I don't like that. It does make viewing the screen easier, yes, but from a driver's perspective, forget about the screens, it's just not giving me any confidence in how this vehicle's gonna turn. I know it does. And when you actually get used to it, which I'm not, decent feedback, just okay. Ride quality is generally pretty good. And if you get other Expedition models, you can get adaptive dampers. But there's nothing fancy going on, just four-wheel independent suspension. This trimmer model does bounce around a little bit more than some of the other Expedition trims just because it is riding higher and it is specifically tuned for off-road. I would, however, avoid the 24-inch wheel model. I haven't tested that one yet, but based on my experience in competitors with wheels that big, look at the GMC Yukon Denali, for example, that really can cause a problem with ride quality. Ford may have figured it out, but I would say try to get smaller wheels on your Expedition. It'll ride and handle better. Ford has BlueCruise available on the Expedition. You can either get a 90-day trial, sign up for a year, or get one for not the life of the vehicle, but for about seven years. Ford guarantees at least seven years after which they don't say if the service is still gonna be offered. So if you're checking that option, just be aware, just like 4G into 5G from 3G, all of these networks, the cell networks, and of course, all the hardware that's inside this truck will be eventually out of date, and it doesn't mean the manufacturer has to support it. Generally, though, the system works pretty well, similar to GM SuperCruise, automatic lane changes, and you can see graphics right up here on the instrument panel. The one thing I would advise if you're choosing the Tremor model, be aware that if you're on a trail and you get rocks and anything else in those tires, you might hear them ping off the bottom of the chassis. These tires, they're generals, they're good, but if you don't really need all-terrain tires, I would really stick with the regular street trims of the Expedition. I think the Expedition is a little bit louder than other vehicles, especially the Nissan Armada, which I think is the best driving full-size SUV in this price segment. It's not just the road noise from the tires, but wind noise. This cabin does not feel as insulated, and I felt a similar way when I was driving the GMC Yukon. These American trucks just aren't as quiet as they should be. What's nice is that when you're making a turn, Ford now has blind spot cameras right on the instrument panel. That's really nice. And there's not a lot of dive or lean in this truck. It's pretty good. Again, I would like some extra feedback from the steering wheel, and I just don't like turning this wheel. It just makes me feel uncomfortable. Brakes generally, though, those feel good. So overall, I'd say the performance here, pretty adequate. The Expedition only has another inch more headroom and legroom than this Explorer. And without the sunroof, it is a bit dark in here, and you can only get an all-black interior on this ST, but the materials are pretty good for this price. The Explorer has the more approachable interior. The screens are smaller. There's more touch points. There's more physical controls. And there's actually a lot of soft-touch materials where you don't expect them, like by the driver's knees. I like how this looks, including the soundbar-like fabric on the Bang & Olufsen stereo that's spanning across the dashboard. The Explorer is family-friendly, and I think it's family-friendly every day for the driver. The benefit of a full-size SUV is gobs of space, headroom, legroom. And for 2025, there's this. It's a power sliding console. It goes back about 10 inches. Under here, you can fit a full-size bag. That's pretty nice. This interior is higher quality than the previous generation. The fit, the finish, the panel gaps, the quality of the wood and leather, definitely a step up, down to details like the knurling on these air vents. I don't particularly like this squircle steering wheel or the screens, but I definitely cannot take away interior quality from this generation. Behind that big screen on top is a soundbar-style fabric that connects all the speakers of the Bang & Olufsen stereo. I like that, plus the Tremor's orange stitching. The Explorer is a seven- or a six-passenger SUV with these captain's chairs. On the ST, they're heated. There's a separate climate zone, and there's shades. The Expedition comes as a seven- or eight-passenger SUV. Now, on the Tremor, the captain's chairs come standard in the second row. This is an option to have the bench. The outboard seats are heated. You've got a separate climate zone, and of course, a ton of room, USB ports here. It's basic, though, and there's no shades, which, for over $80,000 and families with kids, they probably would want to have that. Cargo space is ample for a midsize. In order, it's 16 cubic feet, 46, and when all seats are folded, 85. Buttons here for the third row. It only seats two back here, and there's definitely only room for two children. You're not gonna actually put adults back here, but for cargo space total, I think it's pretty good. A welcome new feature for 2025 is this, a power-split tailgate. Now, this can fold down and hold up to 500 pounds, and if you order the Cargo Tailgate Manager, which is essentially a folding shelf and table, you can rearrange it, have nice picnics in the back of your Expedition. Now, cargo space in total has increased versus the previous generation. Now, there's a ton of space, over 108 cubic feet in total, so you're never gonna run out of room, and if you do, you order the Expedition Max. This third row also, just like before, is powered, powered up and down, and you can also remote fold the headrest from the front seat. The new Expedition has two screens, a 13.2-inch touchscreen, which you'll find in a lot of other Ford SUVs, and this, that's a 24-inch non-touch screen. Up there, it's showing basically a few things that you can adjust from this screen, so for example, tire pressure, gauges, off-road status, variable things that you can put there. The maps will also show up there because this is a Google OS-based system, so yes, native Google Maps, you get Assistant, all that stuff. Touchscreen here, which got vehicle status information. This is generally easy to use, as are the settings. So when you're parked, Ford has always been pretty good with this, and this is faster than other sync systems, especially the big, big vertical touchscreen that the Expedition was using last model year. You'll notice the steering wheel is not round. It's a squircle. That's so you can see over the top and into this display. However, if you actually wanna adjust settings, you'll notice that there's no actual buttons here. There's only two. There's actually four of them altogether, but you have to look at the top screen. So if I want to, say, adjust the steering wheel, tilt and telescope, I have to do this, go over here, and I have to drag this. So all of this effort just to do this. Now, lighting is controlled only by the screen. You have to tap over here to adjust the headlights, and of course, these off-road lights. That I don't really like, but there's also a lot of ambient lighting colors you can choose, and also zone lighting is new for 2025. Just like on the F-150, you can basically have lighting all around the vehicle, including when it's off. There's a row of buttons here. This is the gear selector, gear changing, volume. Got a few things like the hazard lights and these low-resolution cameras. That could be a lot better. But what you do get on the touchscreen are the climate controls. At least they're always there. Front, rear. You adjust this here. It's still not quite as simple as before. The big screen, again, on the previous Expedition was really just as complex, but older Expeditions were certainly a lot simpler than this. The Explorer has a single 13.2-inch touchscreen running the same Google OS. It also has a digital insert panel that is separate, and you can control it with the steering wheel. Actual buttons here. I don't actually have to use fake buttons that look like they're buttons that you have to look at a screen to then see what the button does. See, isn't that much better here? Look at all this information here at a glance. I can also get, well, two third-screen maps here once this loads. It's meant to cycle through the views you want to see. I do like that a lot. And other settings here are pretty simple to adjust, very similar to what you'll find in the Expedition. You can also go to the massaging seats here. That's extra. Ambient lighting. You know, that's all stuff we're used to. More settings here. Native Google Play Store and Maps and Assistant. That's all good. It's also over-the-air updatable. There's a 14-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo. Climate controls could be simpler to use. It's good that all these are animated, front, rear, but really, I would rather see more buttons below these air vents. It is nice, though, that there's a cell phone tray right here, more cubbies, a lot more usable space here, and just more buttons and switches. So even though there's some kind of, you know, things I don't like in this touchscreen, it's so much easier just having this one screen. The 2025 Ford Explorer starts around $40,000. There's four trims. The one I tested, the ST, $57,000. The 2025 Expedition starts at $62,000. There are seven trims, including a longer and longer wheelbase, MaxTrim. As tested, the Tremor 4x4, $86,000. There's not a clear winner here. It's a matter of preference and your ability to pay. Now, for 86 grand, that amount of money is actually reasonable for a full-size SUV with all the equipment of this Expedition. And if you truly need that cavernous space, all that towing capacity, well, yeah, it's a really good choice. But for most families, I'm gonna bet you're gonna pick the Explorer, as I would. And on this trim, 400 horsepower, all the performance goodies, it's easily the best driving SUV in the non-luxury segment. And it truly is more approachable every day, from technology to the interior, and really the ability to just park it very nice and easily. So if you don't need all of the extra capability, don't pay for it, get an Explorer. But what do you think? And what would you buy at your local Ford showroom? Tell us, go to cargurus.com and subscribe to the YouTube channel. We'll see you next time.