What Makes the Ford Explorer Such a Fantastic SUV?

Three-row SUVs are among the most popular models these days since they deliver a great middle ground between midsize models and full-size options. Of course, that growing popularity means there are more of them available than there were not too long ago, which can make it tricky to find the right one with everything you need. The best way to deal with that is to pick a couple of models and compare them against each other to see which one has what you want in your next SUV. You can look at the 2024 Ford Explorer vs 2024 Kia Telluride, for example, and see that while the Telluride is a fine vehicle in its own right, it lacks some big features that Ford brings to the road with the Explorer. Let’s take a closer look at what the Explorer has to offer and some of the ways it delivers more than Kia’s three-row SUV.

Great Engine Options and Bold Performance

SUVs have so much to offer that it’s easy to get lost in all the features and options, overlooking certain things that are important. With three-row SUVs like the Ford Explorer and Kia Telluride, for example, a quality engine is essential to ensuring you have a good experience when you’re on the road. The size and weight of these vehicles can make them very unpleasant to drive if they have an underpowered engine. Fortunately, Ford understands this, and it’s one of the ways they’ve made the Explorer an incredible vehicle in its own right and an important way that it takes the lead ahead of the Kia Telluride.

That’s because the Explorer has two engines available compared to a single engine offered by Kia, and both engines are more powerful than what’s available in the Telluride. Kia has put a 3.8L V6 engine in the Telluride that offers 291 hp and 262 lb-ft of torque, which is paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. This is a decent engine, but it’s nothing spectacular—fortunately, it is available with either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive (AWD), creating some good options for overall drivability. With such a large vehicle, we simply wish there was more power to be had for a better experience.

Our wishes are granted with the Ford Explorer, however, because both of its engines are quite impressive. The standard engine for the Explorer is a 2.3L EcoBoost turbocharged I-4 that delivers 300 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque. You can already see that we’ve got a lot more power here than Kia offers with the Telluride; plus, this engine is paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission for a smooth and incredibly responsive drive. The icing on the cake is that this engine gets an estimated 21 MPG in the city, 28 MPG on the highway, and 24 MPG of combined fuel efficiency—the Telluride gets an estimated 20 MPG in the city, 26 MPG on the highway, and 22 MPG of combined gas mileage.

You can see that the Explorer’s standard engine is not only more powerful than what Kia offers, but even keeps you on the road longer between stops for gas. If you’re looking for even greater performance, then Ford offers an available 3.0L EcoBoost turbocharged V6 engine that delivers an incredible 400 hp and 415 lb-ft of torque. This engine also comes with a 10-speed automatic and both engines for the Explorer are available with rear-wheel drive (RWD) or AWD. With a large SUV like this, RWD is a great choice that ensures sophisticated handling if you’re not a fan of how AWD feels. Overall, Ford’s performance comes through and creates an experience that far surpasses what Kia offers.

Gorgeous Interior Features and Options

Powerful engines are important, but since most of your time with your vehicle is spent inside of it, you always want to check out interior features and options. We have to give Kia credit for doing a lot right with the Telluride, which isn’t surprising because they’ve proven plenty of times that they know what they’re doing. Standard features are decent, including a six-way manual driver’s seat, SynTex seating, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. A 12.3-inch infotainment display is standard, which is impressive, though the 4.2-inch instrument screen leaves something to be desired. The six-speaker sound system is fine but not about to win any awards—an available 10-speaker system is definitely preferable, but it will cost you.

Inside the 2024 Ford Explorer, you’ll find a wide range of terrific features, both standard and available, creating a cabin you’ll look forward to getting into each day. Standard features in the Explorer include Tri-Zone Automatic Temperature Control to ensure everyone inside your SUV is comfortable. Cloth seating is standard with an eight-way power driver’s seat, which makes it easier to get your seat just right. Overall, we enjoy the standard features in the Explorer, but Ford offers a wide range of stunning upgrades for you to enjoy such as Del Rio leather seating in gorgeous colors, with a 10-way power driver’s seat, eight-way power front-passenger seat, and heated and ventilated front seating.

You can also get a 10.1-inch infotainment display, a 12.3-inch Digital Productivity screen for you as the driver, and a stunning 14-speaker B&O sound system. One thing we should mention is that every Explorer model has seating for seven people, while some Kia Telluride models actually have seating for up to eight passengers. This might seem like an advantage for the Telluride, but remember that this is closer to a midsize model than a full-size SUV. Unless you absolutely need to have eight people in your vehicle, your passengers are going to be much more comfortable with the added room that one fewer seat provides, so we consider this a big win for Ford.

Trim Levels That Meet Your Needs

We could spend a lot of time getting into the different trim levels of the Ford Explorer, but that’s a topic that deserves its own focus. That said, we should mention that we love how Ford has set up the trims for the Explorer, giving you plenty of options without going overboard. You have the standard Explorer with great features, plus the XLT and ST-Line models that build on those starting features. There’s a Timberline trim if you’re looking for something adventurous with some off-road capability, along with the ST model developed by Ford Performance if you prefer a powerful and sporty ride. Finally, the King Ranch and Platinum give you two peak options with advanced features that represent the ultimate expression of the Explorer.

Kia also offers a lot of trim levels for the Telluride, but honestly, they’ve gone overboard with what’s available, and the whole thing becomes incredibly confusing. The simplest way to show you what we mean is to list the full trim lineup for the 2024 Telluride:

• LX
• S
• EX
• EX X-Line
• SX
• SX X-Line
• SX X-Pro
• SX Prestige
• SX Prestige X-Line
• SX Prestige X-Pro

That’s a lot. We’d say there are far too many options there, and while the idea of mixing and matching different configurations to create a variety of trims seems good on paper, the execution is overwhelming, and the names get confusing. Ford shows us that you can have plenty of options—there are eight different Explorer trims available—without getting to the point that trying to keep track of everything becomes a full-time job. We count 10 trims for the Telluride, which is simply too many, making it much harder to ensure you get the right vehicle with everything you need.

Ford Brings It All Together in the Explorer

We’re a Ford dealership, so naturally, we’re biased when looking at vehicles, and Ford models are our preference in general. Yet, we can still recognize that Kia does a lot right with the Telluride: offering AWD is ideal for a large vehicle like this, it has some nice standard features like a large infotainment display, and they certainly provide plenty of options to let their drivers get exactly what they want. Ford simply does it better; you get greater power and more engines with the Explorer, a gorgeous and richly-appointed interior, and options that let you get what you want without losing track of what’s most important. Of course, you don’t have to take our word for it or go off the facts we’ve presented here—come take a ride in the Explorer, and you’ll see exactly why we like it so much.