With no snow yet in the mountains in mid-October, the fact the 2025 Ford Explorer ST was of rear-drive traction (no 4WD) was of no particular problem. I was glad to have the opportunity to test it.
Its powertrain of 3.0-liter, twin-turboed EcoBoost V-6 and 10-speed automatic transmission (400 horsepower/415 torque) would prove perfect for the narrow-road twists and climbs into the hills to the west.
A part of the midcycle refreshment of the midsize Ford are the larger performance brakes, with red-painted front and rear calipers and 21-inch Magnetite-painted aluminum wheels. The ST trim also has a much stiffer, sport-tuned independent front and rear suspension – better handling/bumpier ride.
Ted and Shirley King, of Denver, rode with us up U.S. 34 past the Dam store and on to Drake, where we veered to the right on the “gulch road” to Glen Haven. We stopped at the general store, where we bought cinnamon rolls from Callum Hoskins; they’re baked daily by Grandma Becky. The store, a stopping point for Jan and me for many years, was purchased two years ago by the Hoskins family. It will be open only on weekends through November.
With the climb into Big Thompson Canyon and on to Glen Haven ahead of us, we assumed we wouldn’t attain the ST’s EPA fuel-mileage range of 18/26. The overall average for the mountain drive was 21.9, which dropped to 19.9 with 100 more miles added in and about Greeley.
A new 13.2-inch LCD touchscreen infotainment system is an improvement for the interior, which also features Bang & Olufsen high-quality sound. The RT has three rows of seats featuring captain’s chairs in the middle row and resistant-wear, micro-perforated Miko surfaces. USB ports are accessible for all three rows. Cargo space is 16.3 cubic feet behind the back row, 46 cubic feet behind the middle row with the third-row seats folded into the floor.
On the downhill return route, the Ford’s paddleshifters were used to drop the gears as low as 3rd or 2nd to safely cruise the cornering.
An overly sensitive bluecruise safety system bugged me a bit. In nighttime driving, with my hands on the wheel and my vision ever forward, the message center would actuate a “watch the road” alarm, then follow with a “resume control” alert, then suddenly activate seat vibrations and flashers. Light braking or acceleration increase would reset the safety system every time.
The ’25 Ford Explorer ST review model, built in Chicago, carried a sticker price of around $59,295. Ford found a very receptive market when it introduced the Explorer SUV more than 30 years ago in the early ‘90s; a year or two later, Jeep unveiled the Grand Cherokee and those two have been battling head-to-head since.