Well... a few weeks ago our family truckster Flex met a rather unceremonious end. It was stolen, and recovered in Baltimore City, with 4 flat tires, and suspension damage (at least.) Upon recovery, it was taken to the city's impound lot... who are closed for Covid 19, where it sat for 2 weeks with all 4 windows down, and the sunroof open. That was the final dagger. Totaled (probably thankfully.) I don't think I'd have wanted to put my kids back in it.
It hadn't rained for a few days at this point, and it still had puddles in all the seats, and on the floor. The whole interior was TRASHED, and filled with personal items that weren't ours!
So... obviously need a replacement vehicle. While this is maybe the worst time to buy a new vehicle with all of the uncertainty, it's also maybe the best time because of it as well!
The finance offers, and rebates are pretty tough to beat. It made it pretty hard to make a case for a newer used car. So after a little shopping, decided on this:
Atlas blue 2020 Explorer XLT 4WD.
Was able to find exactly the one I wanted. For you spec nerds (like me), it has the 202a package (fake leather, power seats, remote start, fog lamps) towing package (5300lbs) Ford co-pilot 360, comfort package (heated seats and steering wheel) and the 20" wheels.
I think they did a pretty good job with the styling refresh, as I see more than a little Range Rover in some of its lines. The big change is back to rear wheel drive though. I'd assume most of the time this is something you'd never notice, but it does ride and drive extremely well.
It's powered by the 2.3 Ecoboost, which at first seems like an odd choice, I'll agree. However, it never feels underpowered, and is actually pretty peppy, I assume owed somewhat to the buttery smooth 10 speed being able to keep it in its sweet spot. It does not hurt for low end torque though, and if you think about it, this little engine makes more hp than any V8 ever offered in an Explorer. I've been getting low 20s mixed driving, which imo is pretty darn good for a full sized 4WD suv! The noise isn't what you expect though, lol.
Lots of room, and lots of aluminum under the hood (and the hood itself!)
The interior is very nice for a lower spec vehicle. I actually drive a Platinum model with its fancy stitched dash, computer game cluster, massaging seats, and giant iPad on the dash, and while this doesn't have those features, it pretty much is identical otherwise.
I think this size screen is actually intergrated into the design better:
2nd row gets standard buckets and a walk thru floor console. A split bench is an optional extra.
We've put about 300 miles on it so far, and everyone loves driving and riding in it. Lots of compliments on the color! The copilot 360 stuff is pretty darn neat, but I could see you getting too reliant on it. The smart cruise that's adaptive to distance, and able to read and adjust to speed limit signs, coupled with the lane centering assist is pretty much autopilot. It's very impressive. Hopefully it'll be as reliable as my Flex was!
