RideLust

The 2011 Ford Explorer was one of the most eagerly awaited new vehicles of the past decade. Ford did extensive market research before starting their re-design, since the Explorer has a 96% name recognition in North America, on par with brand icons like Ford’s own Mustang and F150. With the SUV segment currently at 32% of industry sales (and growing faster than the other segments), Ford simply could not afford to get the new Explorer wrong. Focus group after focus group told them what the Explorer needed and what it didn’t need to have, and the results surprised more than a few people.

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I just got back from driving Ford’s new Explorer, both on road and off, but I can’t tell you anything about it until next Monday. For now, I can tell you that the Explorer’s base engine, a 3.5 liter V6, has received a best-in-class (midsize SUV, V6 engine) fuel economy rating of 25 MPG highway. To put things in perspective, that’s 25% better fuel economy than the outgoing V6, which only managed 20 MPG on the highway. The 2011 motor makes more power as well: last year’s 4.0 liter V6 only managed 210 horsepower and 254 ft lb of torque, while the 2011 mill manages 290 horsepower and 255 ft lb of torque, thanks in part to Ford’s Ti-VCT variable camshaft timing system. Sometimes, technology is our friend.

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The VW Transporter Rockton. Photo: Carscoop

This is the VW Transporter Rockton, a beefier, off-road version of their standard Transporter. It sports a turbo diesel motor (with 140 HP or 180 HP options), a Haldex all wheel drive system with locking rear differential, an increased ride height and a reinforced suspension. If that isn’t good enough for you, VW also offers an Expedition package and a Protective package for even more serious off-road capabilities.

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It was boxy, but good, and was perhaps the only passenger vehicle less aerodynamic than a Volkswagen Microbus. After an eight year run, Honda has announced the end of Element production, citing declining sales as the reason. Originally intended as a lifestyle vehicle for Generation X, the Element never drew the audience that Honda expected; instead, most buyers were north of age 40, and they embraced the Element for both it’s funky styling and its incredible versatility. Or maybe it was the only vehicle on the market that reminded buyers of the old VW bus.

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We’ve already told you all there is to know about the Range Rover Evoque (here and here), which won’t be on the streets for another ten months or so. That didn’t stop Range Rover from creating the above video, which appears to show a virtual Evoque being virtually driven through virtual streets, by ghosts. You do get a good sense of what the Evoque looks like on the road, and you also get a decent look at the Evoque’s well appointed interior and panoramic roof.

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If you’re one of the purists who feel that real Porsches are air cooled and rear-engined sports cars, the announcement that Porsche will build a compact, entry level SUV is a sure sign the apocalypse is upon us. If you’re among those who aspire to own one of Stuttgart’s finest, but are saddled with the realities of raising a family, you probably see the Cajun as good news from Porsche. Either way, Porsche has announced their approval of the Cajun project, aimed at younger buyers new to the Porsche brand. The compact SUV is expected to compete against the Audi Q5 and the BMW X4 when it hits the market in 2013.

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The 2011 Explorer testing in Dubai. Photo: Ford Motor Company

Based on their own market research, Ford expected the 2011 Explorer to be a huge sales success. It was what the Explorer buyers in their focus groups asked for, despite the fact that critics bemoan its loss of hardcore off-road capability and heavy-duty towing capacity. Ford appears to have guessed right, since they’ve taken roughly double the number of orders expected so far. To date, dealers have ordered some 7,500 units, consumers have ordered some 3,000 copies and corporate buyers have sent in POs for some 4,500 units. Total the orders, and that sum of 15,000 is twice the 7,500 that Ford expected prior to launch.

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When Gelandewagens are outlawed, only outlaws will drive Gelandewagens.

There’s radical and then there’s radical: while American environmental activists are content to vandalize and occasionally torch SUVs, India’s Minister of Environment & Forests wants them banned from India’s roads. Not radical enough for you? He also wants driving an SUV to be considered a criminal act, according to Autoevolution. Jairam Ramesh, the Indian minister in question, even went so far as to target German SUVs as the worst offenders, despite the fact that Mercedes, Volkswagen, BMW and Porsche go to great lengths to portray themselves as green manufacturers. The German automakers have pushed for sustainable manufacturing, reduced CO2 emission levels and even increased fuel economy via the use of clean diesel engines and hybrid drivetrains.

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Thumbs Up: You can take five adults comfortably to the ends of the earth

Thumbs Down: It’s gotten awfully large over the years, no available V8

Buy This Car If: You want to travel where the busses don’t run and need more room than an FJ Cruiser

I’ve been a big fan of the 4Runner for years, although I have to admit my favorite was the second generation model, sold from 1989 to 1995. Even the third generation (1995 – 2002) was a great truck, but Toyota took a step backwards when they launched the fourth generation in 2003. What had begun life as a supremely-capable-but-bare-bones SUV had grown into a bloated parody of its former self, much like Elvis in his later years. It could still deliver the goods, but its appearance made you wonder where it all went wrong.

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The 2011 Range Rover Evoque may be the best looking SUV (or crossover, depending upon your perspective) in the history of mankind. Will you be able to ford jungle streams and climb straight up the side of a volcano in one, like you could in a Land Rover Defender or a classic Range Rover? No, probably not, unless the stream is only a few inches deep and the volcano has a gravel road to the caldera. That certainly won’t hurt Evoque sales, since the urban-hip SUV is aimed at a buyer more concerned with image than with capabilities.

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