2025 Ford Explorer
Starting MSRP $39,755
Seating Up To 7 Passengers
Towing Up To 5,000 lbs
EPA-Est. MPG City/Hwy 20/29 MPG
The new, updated 2025 Ford Explorer brings great technology, styling, and usability to a crowded mid-size SUV market. The tricks up the sleeve of the Explorer are its 4-cylinder and V6 EcoBoost engines, as well as the industry-leading driver-assistance technology in BlueCruise hands-free driving.
For 2025, the Explorer continues its sixth generation of family hauling in comfort and ease since first debuting in 1991 and creating a whole new world of four-door, body-on-frame SUVs. Since 2011, the Explorer has been a unibody construction, which allows it to behave less like a truck and more like a car. Thanks to crumple zones, it can also aid in the engineering of a vehicle to do better in car accidents. A unibody frame is also lighter and can achieve better fuel economy.
Since Ford changed to a unibody construction in 2011, the Ford Explorer has enjoyed being an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ every single year.
Performance
The new Explorer can be equipped with two different engines: a 2.3-liter EcoBoost inline-4 that produces 300 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque or the ST-only 3.0-liter EcoBoost V6 that puts out 400 horsepower and 415 lb-ft of torque. Both engines are attached to a 10-speed automatic transmission. Rear-wheel drive is standard, while all-wheel drive is available.
Models with a 2.3-liter engine can expect to achieve 21 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway when equipped with rear-wheel drive. Opting for all-wheel drive will drop those numbers by only one mpg each. The ST and Platinum models with the 3.0-liter motor and rear-wheel drive can expect 18 mpg city and 26 mpg highway, and 18 city and 24 highway with all-wheel drive.
In testing, Car and Driver has been able to make a 0-60 mph sprint in just 6 seconds flat with a 2.3-liter EcoBoost equipped Explorer and 5.2 for the ST with its EcoBoost V6. Due to the stiffer suspension of the Explorer ST, automotive journalists have hailed it as a genuine performance SUV that rivals more expensive brands.
All models can tow up to 5,000 lbs when properly equipped and come standard with a Class III Trailer Tow Package.
Customers who purchase an Explorer ST-Line or ST can take advantage of the Ford Performance Racing School ST Driving Experience in Park City, Utah, or Asheville, North Carolina.
Exterior
For 2025, the Explorer is not a radical departure from the 2024 model. However, it has been updated to give a fresh look and feel. The front features a slightly enlarged grille with all-LED headlights. A front skid plate with lower and broader air curtains adds visual appeal. The rear tail lights are also LED and extend into the nameplate on the rear hatch.
Buyers looking for a sportier look without the feel of a sports car will love the ST-Line, which offers the ST appearance package and an optional black-painted roof. The ST and Premium trim levels can also be optioned with a black-painted roof.
Each trim has its own unique grille design:
- Active: Saw-tooth design, black mesh grille with chrome bars
- ST-Line: Honeycomb gloss black grille with black mesh insert
- ST: Honeycomb gloss black grille with black mesh insert and ST badging
- Platinum: Unique wing design, satin chrome, and Ebony grille
There are seven different wheel options available for the Explorer, including:
- 18-inch Sparkle Silver-painted - Standard on Active
- 20-inch Carbonized Gray-painted - Available on Active
- 20-inch Ebony machined and painted - Standard on ST-Line
- 21-inch Magnetite-painted - Standard on ST, available on ST-Line
- 20-inch Luster Nickel-painted - Standard on Platinum, available on Active
- 20-inch polished aluminum - Available on Platinum
- 21-inch dark alloy polished aluminum - Available on Platinum
A new 2025 color, Vapor Blue Metallic, is available on ST, ST-Line, and Active.
The standard interior colors and finishes are listed below:
Active
- Ultra Dark Space Gray instrument panel, door panels, and console with Harvest Bronze accent stitching
- Dark Gray soft-touch seats with Black Onyx inserts and Harvest Bronze accent stitching
ST-Line
- Black Onyx instrument panel, door panels, and console with red accent stitching
- Black Onyx ActiveX® seats with cloth inserts and red accent stitching
ST
- Black Onyx instrument panel, door panels, and console with red accent stitching
- Black Onyx ActiveX® seats with Miko suede inserts and red accent stitching
Platinum
- Mojave Dusk leather instrument panel, door panels, and console with matched accent stitching
- Mojave Dusk leather seats with matched accent stitching
ST and Platinum models come standard with the ability to change the ambient interior lighting with seven different options, including Ice Blue, Orange, Soft Blue, Red, Green, Blue, and Purple. ST-Line models can be optioned with this feature.
Interior
All models come standard with a 10-way power adjustable and heated driver’s seat and a 4-way power and heated front passenger seat.
The fresh interior pushes the dashboard forward to give the driver and front passenger more space and the feeling of a more open area. Below the touchscreen infotainment system is a wireless charging pad.
More surfaces are wrapped and stitched in soft-touch materials, including the center console, door panels, and dashboard, for a more luxurious look and feel. Premium ActiveX synthetic leather seats are available, plus silver mesh accents to continue the upscale finish and feel.
The cargo capacity of the 2025 Ford Explorer is quite expansive with:
- 85.3 cu. ft. behind the first row (85.8 cu. ft. on Explorer Active Model)
- 46.0 cu. ft. behind the second row
- 16.3 cu. ft. behind the third row
Technology
Drivers of the new 2025 Explorer will love the standard 13.2-inch digital gauge cluster that can display virtually any information needed and a standard 13.2-inch touchscreen infotainment display. All models receive wireless Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™ plus Alexa Built-in.
While the new Explorer features excellent safety and driving technology, the happiness of the interior passengers has not been forgotten. Standard on all Explorer trim levels are eight USB ports, two of which are for third-row occupants, plus three 12-volt outlets and a FordPass Connect embedded modem, which allows the Explorer to become a rolling wireless hotspot with up to 10 mobile devices able to connect.
The new Explorer is the first Ford vehicle to feature Ford Digital Experience, which aims to make the time spent in your vehicle easier and more enjoyable by utilizing Google Assistant or Alexa Built-in. Either one can be set as the default voice assistant, and both can help set the in-car temperature, search information for you, find and set a navigation destination, and change the media or radio station. You can also use the assistant to place or answer phone calls, send text messages, set meetings in your calendar, and control any connected home devices you have.
Google Maps is also built into each Explorer, making it easier to get directions whether your phone is connected to the car or not. You can also stream music, audiobooks, and podcasts by downloading them from Google Play built-in. When parked, you can stream and watch video content from YouTube, Prime Video, and more. Later, Ford will add Google Chrome and Vivaldi Browser apps, through which you can connect a Bluetooth keyboard to the vehicle and surf the web.
Passengers can also download and play games from Google Play, such as Asphalt Nitro 2, which is featured as a Ford-exclusive version. Connecting a Bluetooth controller is possible and allows for total immersion into the games.
Safety
The Ford Explorer has been an IIHS Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ winner every year since 2011. The 2024 model, which the 2025 model is updated from, is considered a TSP+.
Thanks to Ford CoPilot 360, the Explorer has all of the latest safety features, including BLIS with Cross-Traffic Alert, Lane-Keeping System, Evasive Steering Assist, Rear View Camera, Hill Descent Control, Pre-Collision Assist with Automatic Emergency Braking, Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control, Auto High-Beam Headlights, and, of course, BlueCruise hands-free driver assistance.
BlueCruise is an industry-leading driver-assistance technology that combines adaptive cruise control with lane-keep assist systems to allow hands-free driving on 97% of highways in America and Canada. With the touch of the turn signal, the Explorer can even change lanes for you. BlueCruise will also assist in handling braking, acceleration, and steering inputs when in use.
Introducing the 2025 Ford Explorer
2025 Ford Explorer Trim Levels
2024 Ford Explorer
Active
Starting Price $39,755- 300 hp 2.3L EcoBoost® I-4 engine
- 13.2” Touchscreen, 12.3” Digital Cluster
- Ford Co-Pilot360® Assist+ with Adaptive Cruise Control and Lane Centering
- Standard Class III Trailer Tow Package w/ 5,000 lb. Max towing capacity
- Front-Row Heated Seats
- 5G LTE Wi-Fi® Hotspot
- Power Liftgate
- Ford Digital Experience
- Wireless Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™ Compatibility
- Available Active Comfort Package
- ActiveX® Seating Material
- Heated Steering Wheel
- LED Signature Lighting
- Remote Start System (Key Fob)
- Universal Garage Door Opener
- 8-Way Power Passenger Seat)
2025 Ford Explorer
ST-Line
Starting Price $44,515Includes all Active RWD and Active Comfort Package features, plus:
- Ford Co-Pilot360® Assist 2.0 With 360-Degree Camera
- 20" Machined Aluminum Wheels With Painted Pockets
- Unique Cloth Inserts with Red Stitching
- B&O® Sound System by Bang & Olufsen®, 10 Speakers Including Subwoofer
- Black Exterior Accents
- Ford BlueCruise Equipped Hands-Free Highway Driving
- Available ST-Line Street Package
- Available Premium Package
- Available Black-Painted Roof
2025 Ford Explorer
ST
Starting Price $55,505- Ford BlueCruise Equipped Hands-Free Highway Driving127
- 400 HP 3.0L EcoBoost® V6 engine
- Sport-tuned Suspension
- Red-Painted Performance Front- and Rear-Brake Calipers
- 21" Magnetite-Painted Aluminum Wheels
- Miko® Seating Surfaces With Red Accent Stitching and ST Logos
- Heated and Ventilated, Multicontour Seats with Active Motion® Massage (Front Row)
- B&O® Sound System by Bang & Olufsen®, 980 Watt, 14 Speakers Including Subwoofer
- Third-Row PowerFold® Seat (Fold Flat)
- Wireless Charging Pad*
- Available Black-Painted Roof
Includes all ST-Line RWD Features, plus:
2025 Ford Explorer
Platinum
Starting Price $51,655Includes all Active RWD and Active Comfort Package features, plus:
- BlueCruise Hands-Free Highway Driving Equipped
- Platinum Branded ActiveX® Trimmed Seats With Leather Perforated Inserts
- Heated and Ventilated, Multicontour Seats With Active Motion® Massage (Front Row)
- B&O® Sound System by Bang & Olufsen®, 980 Watt, 14 Speakers Including Subwoofer
- Twin Panel Moonroof
- Ford Co-Pilot360® Assist 2.0 with 360-Degree Camera
- Second-Row Heated Seats
- Wireless Charging Pad*
- Available Lux Leather Package
- Available Ultimate Package
At Benna Ford in Superior, WI, you will have an automotive experience unlike any other. You can find new Ford inventory, including the F-150, Mustang, Bronco, Ranger, Explorer, Expedition, and an unmatched collection of used car, truck, van, SUV and crossover inventory at our dealership near you. Are you interested in leasing or financing your Ford Explorer? The Finance Department at Benna Ford can help you find the right lease offer or finance solution that fits your budget. We cultivate relationships with many banks, lenders, and other financial organizations to provide you with great options in purchasing your new vehicle. In addition to the comprehensive factory warranty that comes with your new Ford Explorer, we offer extended warranty and protection programs to safeguard your investment. Get the best deals and specials available to you on the Ford Explorer. Our knowledgeable sales staff wants to help you find the perfect fit in a new Ford or used car. We can’t wait to welcome you to the Benna Ford family and help you find your new car or used vehicle. Your support and customer service doesn’t stop after you sign your deal. The expert Service Department at our Ford dealership near you is always ready to help with any repairs or maintenance you might need to keep your vehicle running perfectly. Our Express Service Lane will get you back on the road quickly when you need basic maintenance like an oil change or tire rotation. Would you like to make your new car all your own with personalized upgrades? Our well-stocked Parts Department has all of the Ford genuine parts and accessories you need for the best customization of your vehicle. Make your car, truck, or SUV uniquely yours to fit perfectly in your lifestyle. We are eager to help you on your car buying and vehicle ownership journey. Visit us today at Benna Ford!