#2011FordExplorer

Car and Driver has published an article expressing its gripes with J.D. Power’s Initial Quality Study, stating that its results tell us less about a vehicle’s defects then we might think. J.D. Power’s IQS measures new-vehicle quality after 90-days of ownership and has done so since 1987, but the advent of more technologically advanced features are now impacting quality results.

Ford‘s brand-new 2011 Explorer has just been hit with a recall for faulty second-row reclining seats. Recently awarded North American Truck of the Year, the recall affects just under 2,000 vehicles build between July 15 and December 13 of last year and sold in both the U.S. and Canada.

The 2011 Ford Explorer beat out the Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee to win the North American Truck Of The Year award. The winner was announced at the 2011 North American International Auto Show, where the Chevrolet Volt was also announced as the Car of the Year.

Ford has finally released the official EPA fuel economy stats for the new 2011 Explorer, carrying through on a promise to be an mpg leader with every new vehicle it rolls out.

Putting a new spin on “reduce, reuse and recycle,” Ford has announced they’re going to give old blue jeans a new lease on life.

Long before it has hit dealers, or even been driven by the automotive press, Ford‘s new 2011 Explorer is already shaping up to be a success for the Blue Oval.

Ford will build a Police Interceptor version of the new 2011 Explorer with the vehicle set to debut next week. LeftLaneNews has confirmed the crossover model will join the Taurus Police Interceptor in Ford’s lineup of offerings to law enforcement agencies across America.

Ford is keeping up their relentless web campaign to help promote the 2011 Explorer, and they’ve released three new videos to demonstrate what their new SUV crossover is capable of.

The three videos highlight the Ford Explorer’s Terrain Management System, Blind Spot Information System and the Trailer Control System. All three are pretty neat, although the Terrain Management System and the Blind Spot Information System are respectively, a gussied-up all-wheel drive system and an increasingly common technology respectively. The Trailer Control System is pretty cool, and considering that 30% of Explorer buyers tow, perhaps the most relevant.

[Source: Ford]

Hit the jump to see all three videos

Having unveiled the all-new 2011 Explorer earlier today, Ford has now announced pricing for its newest SUV-turned Crossover, with the reborn utility vehicle starting at $28,995 including the $805 destination charge. Along with the standard Explorer, Ford will offer a mid-level XLT model and a Limited, which will begin at a more pricey $37,995. Comparatively, entry-level Explorer undercuts the newly released 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee which starts at $30,995.

When Ford execs announced that the company would revamp its lineup, switching from a product line consisting of mostly trucks to one where the majority of vehicles sold are cars, some wondered how this would be possible. Ford’s solution is to transform trucks into cars, or, more accurately, into crossovers. Using a car-based unibody platform rather than a truck frame allows for better on-road driving dynamics and often numerous other efficiency improvements. The usual down sides are reduced utility, like true off-road capability and towing capacity.

By now, everybody’s patience is wearing thin with Ford‘s Explorer marketing campaign, whereby the automaker is obnoxiously revealing slivers of the Explorer’s exterior and interior design. It’s one thing to build hype for a car, but it’s another to have people inclined to hate your product before it’s even been revealed.

Ford Motor Company is clearly hedging its bets on this EcoBoost thing. For the 2011 Explorer, it will be dropping one of these engines between the frame rails, though unlike those found in the Flex, Taurus SHO and Lincoln MKT, this will be a four-cylinder version, a 2.0-liter mill that; via direct injection, forced induction and electronic trickery, is claimed to deliver 30 percent better fuel economy than the hoary old V6 in the current truck.

If Ford’s claims are to be believed, that means the 2011 Explorer will likely get 18 miles per gallon in town and around 26 on the highway, versus the 14/20 cycle for today’s truck. Factor in other such features on the 2011 model such as a six-speed automatic transmission, unit-construction (versus a heavy separate frame), electric power steering and a variable-capacity air-conditioning compressor designed to reduce parasitic loss and it would appear Ford has the right ingredients for helping achieving these fuel economy targets.

The 2011 model will also employ a terrain management system to aid four-wheeling ability and other current Ford fads such as Blind Spot monitoring, collision warning with brake support, cross-traffic alert and adaptive cruise control. Who said nothing good came out of the Premier Automotive Group?

Official release after the jump:

While Ford has made the decision to turn the Explorer from an SUV into a crossover, it seems committed to making that crossover as capable as possible. Ahead of its debut, Ford has announced the new Explorer will get a “terrain management system” to help owners get the most out of the 4WD system.

After market research, and knowing full well that as a crossover the new Explorer will be marketed to less off-road savvy individuals, Ford wisely decided to do away with having to make drivers choose from two-high, four-high or four-low depending on road or trail conditions. Instead the next-gen Explorer will get a simple console mounted knob with clearly marked driving modes for normal, mud, sand or snow. Every mode will also be compatible with a new hill-decent feature, to navigate steep grades. Rather than use a traditional transfer case, Ford will use more advanced electronics to send power to each wheel. This will also reduce the overall weight of the truck crossover and combined with a new V6 engine will see a reduction in fuel consumption by as much as 25 percent.

See the official release and a short video demonstration of the system after the jump:

If you were wondering which U.S. automaker was making the biggest strides toward next-generation powertrain technology, wonder no more.