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Got to drive a ST Edge and a 2019 Sport Explorer Yesterday


vmaxbaby

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I have only driven in the past a 2018 Edge Sport and never an Explorer so yesterday before the snow storm decided to take a trip to a near by Ford Dealer.  Jerry's ford in Leesburg, Virginia.  No pressure at all from them, told them my plan was to get a ST in the spring and they were 100% fine with that and still encouraged me to take both vehicles out for a drive.   I am not sure which one I am most impressed with.  The Explorer that weights (guessing 500lbs more) and ( less torque) surprised me from 0--60ish.  I have never driven one and didn't know what to expect but it does get up and go for such a tank.  It rode nice and handle the back roads he had me drive on very well.  You can feel the extra weight but if someone said you had to buy that vehicle it wouldn't be the worst vehicle to own.  The Edge felt nimble for sure and didn't feel like a vehicle that weights 4000+ pounds.  As far as pickup it did seem to get to 60ish faster from a dead stop but  wasn't a huge difference   At 40mph stood on the go pedal for both of them to see how the passing would be and that is where the Edge ST shined for sure again,  the explorer got up and moved but not like the Edge ST.  For overall looks it goes to the Edge ST for sure.  For ride the explorer won but guessing that is because it is heavier and the suspension is more for luxury and not sporty like the edge.  For cost the edge is cheaper for sure and unless you need the extra space feel the edge st is the over all winner.   Not sure how all this will change with the ST explorer but was cool to drive both of them for 20 minutes back to back. 

Jerry.JPG

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I have read on here that there may be a boost limit during breakin.  The ST Supplement in the owner manual states that boost should be 19.5-21psi with overboost, depending on conditions.  Conditions on the Focus ST were weather and fuel.  My Edge ST seemed to hit 15-16 on the gauge then instantly drop to 10 for the first 500 miles, now at 600 miles it seems to drop to around 13ish, just above the 12.5 mark on the gauge.  If you are in Sport mode it is harder to tell if you manually shift it because it pops from boost to Tach as soon as you hit a paddle.  I am not really hammering on because it is still under 1000 miles but Normally full boost should hit when getting on it but not WOT, I noticed that on the Focus since the snails are small and if you are at WOT in lower gears it just revs to quickly to get full boost.  If you are in a higher gear in the Focus it would hit full boost and hold it, of course you had to be going over 100MPH to really see it.  Lol.  Anyway the new Explorer ST is supposed to get the TT 3.0 engine and around 400 ft/lbs or more so it should be interesting. 

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I just did 300 mile trip into MSP so had both heavy traffic and open road, 27.5 mpg overall with the ST;  accelerates great off ramps to merge and handles very well in lane changes.  The 8 speed is about as smooth shifting as my 10 speed in F-150 and overall ride is a bit stiff but not bad at all.  All options work as they should and the car will actually steer itself around curves and down the straights but then warn you to put your hands back on the wheel after maybe 10 seconds.  I did trade out the Hankook Ventus AW for Michelin Premium LTX AW after dealer said the Hankook will not last.  Checked for oil consumption and still right on the full mark after 1200 miles with no drips underneath.  Pretty darn good vehicle!  No one still knows where my original order ended up or if it even left Oakville as it still states in production since Oct 16th.

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4 hours ago, vmaxbaby said:

For cost the edge is cheaper for sure and unless you need the extra space feel the edge st is the over all winner. 


The Edge actually has more space than the Explorer. Explorer only has 21cu in of cargo space to the Edges 39. Both have 42in front leg room, but explorer has 2in more for hips. To go with the Edge winning in rear seat leg room too. I had an explorer as a loaner for almost 2 months while my Edge was in the shop. Hated every minute of it, could never get comfortable since there is no left foot dead pedal to rest on. My 6ft son hated the back seat. If the explorer was only 2 rows, I'd probably love it. Though, imo, buying a 3 row vehicle and sacrificing 2nd row room just to leave the 3rd row perm down is a waste of money.

 

Edited by Nick Halstead
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1 hour ago, Nick Halstead said:


The Edge actually has more space than the Explorer. Explorer only has 21cu in of cargo space to the Edges 39. Both have 42in front leg room, but explorer has 2in more for hips. To go with the Edge winning in rear seat leg room too. I had an explorer as a loaner for almost 2 months while my Edge was in the shop. Hated every minute of it, could never get comfortable since there is no left foot dead pedal to rest on. My 6ft son hated the back seat. If the explorer was only 2 rows, I'd probably love it. Though, imo, buying a 3 row vehicle and sacrificing 2nd row room just to leave the 3rd row perm down is a waste of money.

 

 

That’s no longer the case with the new Explorer.   Different platform, 7” longer wheelbase.

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9 hours ago, akirby said:

 

That’s no longer the case with the new Explorer.   Different platform, 7” longer wheelbase.


I'm pretty sure OP test drove current model. I doubt any random lot is going to have a vehicle that just hit a press release, but the 2020 is down to 18cu in of space behind 3rd row now, so it's actually losing cargo space.

Edited by Nick Halstead
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25 minutes ago, Nick Halstead said:


I'm pretty sure OP test drove current model. I doubt any random lot is going to have a vehicle that just hit a press release, but the 2020 is down to 18cu in of space behind 3rd row now, so it's actually losing cargo space.

 

But it’s gaining interior space for passengers which is arguably more important for most buyers.

 

And I know the OP wasn’t talking about a 2020 - I was just pointing out that all those issues with the 2019 have been mostly fixed with the 2020.

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3 minutes ago, blitz118 said:

The Explorer ST hate begins.?

Probably will see a bit of doubt and hate initially. I am trying to convince my father to look at one (Non ST due to price) but i also don't think he will like the floating display. I hope it turns out to be a beast and I'm very happy to see its on a RWD platform again finally. I'm worried about the claim to be fastest under 60K though as with just 400hp at that weight it might be a claim with a ton of small print. 

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13 minutes ago, Fingernip said:

I do not like the floating display or the all digital cluster. The software changes are cool but I want a physical speedo at least. Im interested in the claim about it being the fastst SUV under 60K. If its around the same acceleration as the police interceptor version it will be a tough claim. 

 

The "digital" display doesn't mean a speedometer that just shows numbers... it's simply an electronic screen like on a tablet but still shows what appears to be analog instruments.  My wife's Kia has that and you can't tell it from "real" gauges because it looks so realistic.  The fact that it's not a fixed physical gauge allows lots of choices - we have it set so that it shows an analog tach and speedometer along with analog temperature, voltage, oil pressure and fuel gauges.  Besides, current dash instruments are all digital now anyway, in that they operate from an electronic signal rather than a rotating cable as they did in days gone by.

 

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5 minutes ago, Fingernip said:

Probably will see a bit of doubt and hate initially. I am trying to convince my father to look at one (Non ST due to price) but i also don't think he will like the floating display. I hope it turns out to be a beast and I'm very happy to see its on a RWD platform again finally. I'm worried about the claim to be fastest under 60K though as with just 400hp at that weight it might be a claim with a ton of small print. 

I know, and I find it funny, and it happens when a new model comes out. We'll see about the fastest claim once the reviews start coming it, and it does weight 200lbs less than the outgoing model. It's too big for me, but it's not bad, and I don't hate it.

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8 minutes ago, TheWizard said:

 

The "digital" display doesn't mean a speedometer that just shows numbers... it's simply an electronic screen like on a tablet but still shows what appears to be analog instruments.  My wife's Kia has that and you can't tell it from "real" gauges because it looks so realistic.  The fact that it's not a fixed physical gauge allows lots of choices - we have it set so that it shows an analog tach and speedometer along with analog temperature, voltage, oil pressure and fuel gauges.  Besides, current dash instruments are all digital now anyway, in that they operate from an electronic signal rather than a rotating cable as they did in days gone by.

 

Yes I am well aware of all of that. But with kinks and bugs in the systems its another point of failure with no temporary fix. I have had the system konk out in my 2011 leaving the left and right displays black but the speedometer continued to work. I'm personally  just not ready to go 100% digital display.

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I don't hate the looks of it at all,  I do like the rear wheel drive like days past.  So when I had Ford Rangers they were Rear Wheel Drive until you pressed the 4x4 button than the fronts engaged.  So does that me the Explorer is just rear wheel drive until you select snow or mud than all 4 wheels are engaged or to get the AWD (4x4) is that a extra package, standard, etc? Not worried about the other models just as the ST model. 

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