When the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show rolls into town next week, it will give Ford the opportunity to celebrate an interesting milestone: seven million Ford Explorers have been built since its inception in 1990.
Even though the Explorer is America’s favorite SUV, it is sold in more than 100 markets around the world, with Ford expecting to export 56,000 Explorers in 2014.
“Explorer changed the way the world thought about the family hauler – adventure became something you could put in your driveway,” said Ford Explorer marketing manager Craig Patterson. “Explorer helped the family vehicle become an emotional purchase rather than a necessity. It’s no surprise it’s been the best-selling sport utility vehicle for a quarter century.”
When the Explorer hit the American market, we were surrounded by minivans and, to a lesser extent, the good ol’ station wagon. The Explorer was responsible for changing the values of the American car-buying public: SUVs became as familiar as Mustangs, offering family-hauling capabilities not available in minivans and wagons.
The Explorer today is slightly different than older models as it has eschewed body-on-frame construction for monocoque construction, yet its popularity continues; in fact, sales are up more than 6 percent through October 2014.
The new 2016 Ford Explorer will debut on November 19 at the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show and will arrive in showrooms next year for its 25th anniversary.
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