Ford Explorer review

Ford of Europe's great skill is to make a car that's good to drive even when you're not noticing. The steering assistance, the dampers and the rate of roll are calibrated so you steer it neatly and intuitively, easing it through a sequence of curves.

Which is a good foundation for when you push on more quickly. Then you find good control and responses. On a dry road both rear-motor and twin-motor versions feel much the same in corners, because the front motor is smaller so there's a natural torque bias to the back. The ESP gently brakes an inner wheel to pivot the car through a bend even before the edge of grip. Big tyres give plenty of traction but the absence of power-on understeer is welcome.

The springs are taut so the low-speed ride is a little busy, but never harsh because the dampers let the springs do their stuff. At bigger speeds or disturbances, body control is excellent, and comfort's fine. The dampers aren't adjustable or adaptive, and nor do they need to be. It's pretty different from the more wallowy Volkswagen.

It's a tidy chassis then, under a car that's quicker than a Focus ST. But not as much fun as the petrol hatch, because it's heavy and the steering gives you feedback only when you're doing something pretty extreme.

How's the performance?

More than adequate. The rear motor is 286bhp whichever version you get while the twin-motor Explorer has another 54bhp but it's also 70kg heavier at 2.2 tonnes. So the 0-62mph times are 6.4 and 5.3 seconds. In other words, get the second motor for its slow-speed traction; don't expect transformative main-road performance.

Pedal calibration is sensible, but actually the 'comfort' map is easier to drive than the 'sport' setting that puts too much action in the first whiff of pedal travel. Both give you all the power when pedal meets carpet.

The brakes are progressive too, though the pedal feels soft and remote from the action. You can switch on an adaptive regeneration system that normally freewheels but slows the car when the one in front slows, or when you're approaching a lower speed limit or give way junction.

So do I want the twin-motor or single?

The performance difference is small, and on dry roads they handle and ride very similarly, albeit the twin-motor is a hint more supple at low speed because it sits 15mm higher to give it rough-track capability. Of course if you live somewhere where the roads are often greasy in winter, you might want the twin, but electronic traction control is so good on EVs that the second motor isn't a game changer.

The RWD one has a usefully tight turning circle, at just under 10m.

Does the drive assist work?

Both specs get full driver assist and it operates smoothly enough in dual carriageway curves, controlling speed and nudging you into the middle of the lane. That said, this isn't actually a car that needs lane centring, because its steering is reassuringly stable around the straight-ahead.

But the lane departure wheel-grabber is too intrusive on twisting single carriageways and the overspeed bonger is annoying when it misreads road signs. You can set a touchscreen shortcut to quickly turn them off. They come back on again when you restart the car, as the law dictates.