Just wanna rant. As much as some of us want to love(or hate) the 18+ ford suvs, do we rele know why we love or hate them? Ive always been a fan of expys and navis especially the 2nd gen(05/06 navi is my absolute favorite vehicle of all time), however, the third gen has always been my least favorite. The third gen, esp the refresh, have always seemed like a halfassed effort from ford to just stay in the business. The bones are good, but just not nuanced enough, esp compared to its competitors and the sales show this. The interior design and materials are just horrific, no matter how you look at or defend it. I look at these new vehicles and wonder,
"Really Ford", the current expy is just not worth this much even with the discounts. Despite this, my 09 nav though not perfect, has been the best vehicle ive ever owned. This isnt about changing anyones mind or influencing any ones thoughts about the 18, its just my love for the expy/navi in general and why ive always wanted(bought) my vehicle, and getting an 18.

I love the design of the 4th gen. I never understood the hate of the design, as it follows what ford always done with the expy: make a larger, butchier, explorer. Ever since gen 1, the expy has looked like the current gen explorer at the time. The only difference was the 15my and that was because there was no bof explorer and the 18 my was delayed(ford wanted to can it). Many people say that the design is 2 gm like or crossovery, however gm only followed current vehicle design language(one reason why they sell so well), and the crossover design was to make it more fuel efficient. The explorer is the best selling suv in its class again for a reason, but i love the look.

The first gen suvs were game changers, capable off roading machines that drove ahead of there time. The 2nd gen improved this, but ford dropped the ball by not giving us a complete product(the 05my vehicles were the completed versions, but the 07 gms came out not long after). The 3rd gens, though beautiful in they own right(in the expys case atleast), werent ambitious at all compared to the new and brilliant competitors at the time. The germans came out with critical acclaim, the japanese updated their suvs with new unheard of features and better engines, while dropping the crossovers. Gms atleast gave tbeir trucks new features that werent offered by ford, like blind spot monitoring and magnetic ride suspension. To me, the 15s were 3 yrs 2 late.

No other suv, crossover, or 3 throw utility has as much passenger space as the expy. No other suv but gm has more 1st row room, but no other suv period matches the 2nd or 3rd row room. You would have to get a minivan to meet or exceed the same interior space and comfort, and thats only a few. For reference, no other suv/crossover pd offers more than 35in in third row legroom(discovery, gls and seq offer 35in), only a few offer 40in of sec row legroom, ford offers more than 40in of legroom in all three rows. Also only the chevy traverse and suburban offers more space behind the third row upright.

As far as full sized suvs go, not many are able to drive and handle as well as an expy. Though the 4th gen hasnt been driven yet, even the current models drive near the top of any vehicle, let alone truck based suvs. Even crossovers arent superior as the critics make it seem. as much as my wife likes the new mazda cx9, even she admits it didnt ride as well as the expy(17 platinum). Most if not all people who own the current model says they ride amazing, so if thats anything to go by, a lighter, more structurally stiff truck with a longer wheelbase will be even smoother and lither.

More than 350hp, 200+ inches long, 5k+ lbs in weight, more than 9k lbs towing ability with the ability to get 24+ mpg on the highway is astounding. Smaller amd lighter crossovers are barely gettin 26+ mpg with smaller i4 engines, im very intrigued. If your wondering where i got the number from, go to the lincoln navigator official page.

As much as ppl complain about the price, i would invite anyone to configure and price out a fs suv the same as an expy or navi with the same feature content and find a better deal. Ive tried to do it; the germans charge you for all luxurious features, the japanese trucks though with better build quality start higher and are missing many of the features the fords offer. The gms are more expensive and the features arent as capable(adaptive cc doesnt completely stop, park assist is only parallel park compatible, etc.) Hell, what other vehicle let alone 3 row utility can you buy at 70k where it has a massaging front row seat(outside fords own f150).

Dont get me wrong, i love the current expys, hell i love the 1st gen expys too. However, as much as i love the current expys, i cant lie, they are way too over priced for what they are. 55k+ for a vehicle with less features as a kio rio with worse interior quality is pretty insulting. The design might have changed, but the basic truck is over 20yrs old. Yes these are trucks at the end of the day, but if ford(or any fs suv in the market) saw these big boys as trucks, they wouldnt start at 50k. These manufacturers see them as capable, lifted luxury sedans, which they honestly have evolved into whether we like them or not. I understand this, as i also understand everyones personal preference about the old and new fords. I love these forums, i love these trucks, and cant wait to post about my new 18, whenever i buy(or lease).

 

I bought a 2000 eddie bauer new and kept it for 15 years. What a beast. My most favorite vehicle ever. I think the price was about mid- 30's. It was comfortable, built like a tank, great 2nd row room and overall very pleasant.

My 15 EL platinum has power with the ecoboost and i'll give props to the HP and Torque. But I can't say that I'll purchase another expy after my 15. I ordered before they came out as I was itching for a new vehicle so I only got it at invoice which out the door was about 70k. I'm coming up on 3 years now and after seeing the 18 I'm not sure that I'd buy one in the future.

In a few years I'm thinking that the top expy will be close to 100k and for that reason, I'm out.

 

Just drove to Myrtle Beach and back. 25.1 mpg. 200 mile round trip. I LOVE my '16 Limited. Last one was a 2001. Beautiful design IMO, but nothing like this gen truck.

 

Dang! Best tank I've gotten is around 20mpg.

 

I cruised at 55 all the way. I know it's slower, but for a 100 miles one way I get there 9 minutes later and 4 mpg better. I'm more relaxed, cruising in the slow lane with some good music on. If it wasn't for a bit of stop and go the last 30 miles I would have turned about 28 mpg.

 

After 13 blissful years of ownership, my 2004 Expy is still soldiering along. She's old, unrefined and way outdated compared to what's coming out now but she's reliable, long paid for and still looks damned good.

Looking ahead, if I needed that volume of passenger space again, I'd opt for a Toyota Sienna or Honda Odyssey. These two vehicles will prove to be more reliable and will likely have a higher resale value in five years. I don't tow anything and never have so that's not a factor in my decision.