Explorer Sport Version Moves Ford’s Iconic SUV Franchise Upscale – Forbes

Soon after launching the souped-up Sport version of its new Explorer in late 2012, Ford got a gift-wrapped Christmas present in the January 2013 issue of Car & Driver magazine: a mostly glowing review of the pricier new trim level of Explorer with its robust EcoBoost engine and other capabilities that put it in the same sentence with German-made luxury SUVs.

“If hauling people and [performance] are your two top priorities and you can’t swing a more expensive option like the BMW S5M, Mercedes ML63 AMG, Porsche Porsche Cayenne Turbo, or Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, the Explorer Sport mostly satisfies,” magazine reviewers wrote. Explorer “occupies a rare space, and shoppers looking for a reasonably fuel-efficient … luxuriously equipped three-row crossover that won’t put them to sleep should like it – especially when they consider its low-ish $41,545 base price” that typically would be $20,000 beneath the others.

That read exactly how Matt Zuehlk might have written a reviewer’s perception of Explorer Sport. Ford brought out Explorer Sport about two years after the launch of the substantially overhauled standard Explorer in 2010 to  appeal not only to Explorer’s broad base of existing fans but also to owners of luxury-brand SUVs who would be attracted to a worthy lower-priced alternative.

The 2015 Ford Explorer Sport.

And now, Sport is running at about 12 percent of overall sales of the Explorer nameplate, with capacity constraints preventing Ford for the time being from nudging that percentage even higher, Zuehlk, Explorer brand manager, told me. Overall, Explorer sold 25 percent more units in the United States in August than a year earlier, and year-to-date sales advanced by six percent over 2013, to nearly 130,000 units.

“About one in five Sport customers are coming out of Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi Audi,” he said. “That’s because they don’t need a brand to define them and validate who they are. The Ford emblem means ‘quality’ to them, and the Explorer nameplate itself is iconic. It resonates with these customers. It’s a capable SUV and if they can get the techy stuff with it and have this iconic brand, it’s a nice stew that comes together for them.”

As a result, Explorer Sport customers tend to be more affluent than other Explorer buyers, Maritz research told Ford, with 40 percent earning more than $150,000 a year, compared with 24 percent at that level for the standard Explorer and 17 percent for Ford brand customers overall.

And buyers are all-in: Sport’s base price  now is $43,565 (higher than in early 2013) versus $31,495 for the base Explorer, and 90 percent of Sport sales come with a higher-level trim package that brings the cost to approximately $47,000.

Some other data points about Explorer Sport buyers encourage Ford as well. They tend to be significantly more educated than average Ford buyers; they are younger, with nearly one-quarter of them aged under 35 versus only three percent of that age cohort for standard Ford Explorer; and trendy New York and Los Angeles tend to be the biggest markets for Explorer Sport, followed by Flyover Country cities such as Dallas, Chicago and Detroit.

What these buyers get is the only Explorer model with Ford’s twin-turbocharged, 3.5-liter V-6 EcoBoost engine that provides 365 horsepower and still yields 22mpg on the highway. They also get a roomy, three-row SUV, Sport-exclusive stiffer springs and dampers, quicker steering, up-rated brakes, additional chassis bracing and standard larger, 20-inch tires. All-wheel drive is standard in Sport, and the outside carries plenty of menacing touches such as a black-painted grille and trim.

Nevertheless, as Car & Driver noted, Explorer Sport also demonstrates the qualities that make Explorer a continued favorite SUV, including not only passenger and cargo capacity but also a relatively quiet cabin, comfortable ride and decent performance and handling.

Zuehlk believes that the brand will continue to try to build on this successful new mini-franchise. “When we launched we had some media weight [in advertising] behind the product,” he said. “Today there’s not a whole lot of national advertising for Sport, but the beauty of the brand is that it’s at 12 percent right now with very little messaging in the market. We’d like to build on the health of the brand even more.”