Skip to main content

Will it Autocross: The 2025 Ford Explorer

Is Ford's medium-sized SUV any good on a track?

2025 Ford Explorer
Dave McQuilling / The Manual

The 2025 Ford Explorer is a versatile vehicle. It can transport a family, handle a bit of light to moderate offroading, and carry a good amount of cargo. But can it handle an amateur racing event? Ford claims it’s the fastest SUV you can get for less than $60,000, and the pace is a bonus, but you may need more than raw speed to post a respectable time.

Autocross is a great way to get into motorsport. You can usually compete in your own car, entry costs are low, and expensive modifications like roll cages tend to be unnecessary. It’s also pretty safe, as the only likely casualties will be a rubber cone or two, and nobody takes it that seriously. An autocross personal best is like a golf handicap, you’re probably going to tell everyone about it even if nobody really cares.

Recommended Videos

Anything will get around an autocross course if you’re not particularly bothered about your time. So we’re judging this on two key points. Can you have fun? And is it something you could be competitive in long term?

It’s also worth pointing out that many Autocross events don’t have an SUV “class” and actively ban larger vehicles with an increased rollover risk. So stock variants of the Explorer, along with other SUVs and pickup trucks, are a no-no. Lowered versions of the vehicles may pass, and certain events may give larger vehicles a thumbs up either way. But by default, the likes of the Explorer won’t “autocross” at all. Rules aside, let’s see how it actually performs in a cone-strewn parking lot.

Will it Autocross?

2025 Ford Explorer Autocross track
Dave McQuilling / The Manual

During a first-drive event hosted by Ford, a reasonably sized autocross course was set up and a few AWD-configured vehicles were made available for those that wanted to head round it. The course featured plenty of tight turns and few long straights, as is often the case with Autocross. The idea is to make it all as technical as possible while preventing those on the course from building up too much speed. Because carrying too much speed is how accidents tend to happen.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t really play to the Explorer’s strengths and really highlights the vehicle’s shortcomings. It’s very understeer prone, and any throttle input in a curve will result in an ear-splitting screech and a few damaged cones.

I did have fun, and the additional challenge that came with shaving a few seconds off my time in an AWD SUV was oddly appreciated. However, it’s not something you would enjoy competing in every week. This is also more of a me problem than an Explorer problem, but one of my later attempts to post a time of 21-anything resulted in me coming into the box a little hot and carrying out what can only be described as a cone massacre.

So, if you have a recent Explorer and want to try Autocross as a one-off, then you’ll likely have a good time. If you want a daily driver that can easily be turned into a weekend warrior, you should probably look elsewhere. However, I didn’t come close to rolling it so the SCAA might be a bit overzealous with their regulations. Free the SUV!

Dave McQuilling
Dave has spent pretty much his entire career as a journalist; this has included jobs at newspapers, TV stations, on the…
The Range Rover Sport PHEV may solve one of the brand’s biggest problems
Can a Range Rover ever be economical?
Front view of a 2025 Range Rover Sport PHEV

High-end SUVs like the 2025 Range Rover Sport PHEV are great in many ways. They handle exceptionally, the inside is usually packed with luxury features, and the British-built vehicles are immensely practical. But there are some areas where luxury vehicles like these have historically struggled. One of these areas is fuel economy.

But history is history, and at the time of writing, it’s 2025. A year in which the PHEV exists. I recently spent some time with a 2025 Range Rover Sport PHEV to see just how good its fuel economy can be. According to the EPA and Range Rover itself, the Sport PHEV has a combined (city and highway) MPG of 21 when going gas-only. The battery, when powering the vehicle alone, is capable of 55 MPGe.
Range Rover makes tracking your MPG easy

Read more
The Ferrari Amalfi is here to replace the Roma—and raise the bar
Ferrari is finally fixing its infotainment system, and some other things
Front view of a 2027 Ferrari Amalfi

Ferrari has announced its replacement for the Roma, and this time they've taken the name a little further south. The "Ferrari Amalfi" will debut in 2027 and aims to blend "modern elegance and high performance." To be fair to Ferrari, first impressions make it seem like it's achieving those goals in several ways.

Right off the bat, you can see that some design elements, as with its predecessor, may divide opinions amongst prancing horse fans. There's nothing overly controversial about it, but attempts to add modern styling elements to a vehicle from one of the world's greatest legacy manufacturers will undoubtedly upset someone, somewhere. However, it is hard to criticize the vehicle's sporty, sleek, and distinctly Ferrari side profile.

Read more
Arkonik’s Heritage Works revives the golden age of Land Rover design
Defender purists take heed, the Arkonik World Heritage 90 and 110 are the real deal
Marine blue Arkonik Heritage Works 110 parked in an empty warehouse left front three-quarter view.

Land Rover resto-mod company Arkonik Ltd. recently introduced Heritage Works, a line of reimagined Land Rover Defender 90 and 110 models that celebrate the core function, charm, and romance of the iconic Defender. Land Rover discontinued the original Defender in 2016 after 67 years, to the dismay of fans and former owners.

The Arkonik Heritage Works 90 and 110 are old school, built for function and utility rather than luxury, just like the original Defender.
Rubbish, Land Rover still makes a Defender

Read more