Ford Explorer to Undergo Sea Change

Major changes are afoot at Ford. The company has recently announced that it intends to dramatically refresh its vehicle lineup between now and 2012, with the hopes that up to 90% of its cars and trucks will see significant new investment in terms of technology and design. While the pledge is global in scale, Ford’s enormous presence in the North American market means that American buyers will no doubt have a number of new and interesting options available to them in Ford showrooms.

Some of those changes are already starting to trickle down into the market. For years, the Ford Explorer has been the SUV face of Ford’s truck division, a vehicle dating back to the early 1990s that for many has defined the concept of what a mid-size sport-utility vehicle should be. Always based on a full truck frame, the Explorer has gradually traded in its off-road capabilities for a tamer platform that favors passenger comfort over ground clearance and rock-climbing prowess.

The pendulum is about to swing even further away from the idea of the Explorer-as-truck with the revelation that the next generation of the vehicle, due to emerge from factories at the end of next year, will in fact borrow a unibody platform already in use by several Ford and Lincoln vehicles. The newest Explorer will sit on the same underpinnings as the current Ford Flex crossover and Taurus sedan. These are also shared with the Lincoln MKS sedan and MKT crossover.

Such a move radically changes the positioning of the Explorer in Ford’s lineup, making the Expedition the only true truck-based SUV available. It also leaves Ford without a vehicle capable of competing with the Chevrolet TrailBlazer or the GMC Envoy. However, the move is based largely on the falling sales of the Explorer, which has seen the number of units moved drop from a maximum of just over 500,000 in 1999 to a much lower 78,000 through 2008. Sales for 2009 are even less impressive, although the current recession has hurt vehicle sales across the board.

As a further consequence of this re-launch of the Explorer concept, the Explorer Sport Trac, a crossover SUV featuring a pickup truck bed, and the Mountaineer, Mercury’s Explorer twin are being dropped from production entirely. Neither vehicle has been able to make any significant progress in terms of sales over the past few years, after the initial novelty of the Sport Track wore off and the Mountaineer struggled to find a brand identity.

Ford hopes that a newly energized Explorer crossover SUV will help to find the distinguished nameplate a broader audience amongst families looking for practical transportation. There is no doubt that the move away from a full frame will help the Explorer in terms of handling and comfort, as well as fuel economy, despite the reduction of its ability to cross the occasional stream. Ford’s decision to narrow its offerings will should help to concentrate sales along a more focused path.