2020 Ford Expedition Max review: Big-time family hauler

The first thing you recognize about the Ford Expedition Max is right there in the title: It can be enormous. It can be as close to a Canyonero as you can get these times. But fortunately, that significant-and-tall stature is easy to live with thanks to a superior roster of driver aid tech and a potent twin-turbo punch.

With its 222-inch length and 131-inch wheelbase, the full-sizing, a few-row Expedition Max is actually shorter than a 4-doorway F-150 SuperCrew pickup truck. But it feels downright enormous from driving the wheel thanks to its cavernous inside. Spec the 2nd-row bench seat and you can find place for eight inside the Expedition, and simply because of the Max’s extra length, you can find a full 36 cubic feet of space driving the third row, in contrast with just 21 cubic feet in the normal Expedition. Fold both again rows flat and this thing will haul an extraordinary 121.5 cubic feet of cargo.

My King Ranch tester is a seriously deluxe thing, as well, with leather-based all over the place and 2nd-row captain’s chairs that have an easy tip-and-slide attribute for easy access to the third row. I enjoy the liberal use of open-pore wood inside the Expedition King Ranch and there are plenty of little storage cubbies, including one particular on leading of the dashboard. All advised, there are 15 cup holders, so experience no cost to convey along a complete scenario of Eating plan Dr. Pepper.

On the tech front, Ford’s Sync three infotainment system is normal, with Apple CarPlay and Android Car included. This is one particular of the ideal infotainment devices on the current market, with easy-to-navigate menus and quick reaction situations. The 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot can retain ten units related at the very same time. Which is additional units than seats! You may be ready to retain them all billed, as well, thanks to a wireless charging pad, a few 12-volt outlets, 5 USB Sort-A ports, one particular USB-C port and a a few-prong, one hundred ten-volt plug. You could in all probability electric power Las Vegas with this thing. (Alright, not genuinely.)

The normal blind-spot checking can make it easy to gauge when it can be protected to change lanes on the freeway, although thanks to the open, ethereal greenhouse, there usually are not genuinely quite a few blind places to communicate of. Which is in addition to the other niceties included in Ford’s normal Co-Pilot 360 driver aid suite, including lane-preserving aid, automated emergency braking and automated significant beams. My King Ranch tester also will come with full-velocity adaptive cruise manage, and the aforementioned blind-spot checking can address the length of a trailer, if you happen to be the towing style.

Talking of towing, the Max can pull nine,000 pounds, which is 300 pounds a lot less than the normal Expedition. Even so, which is way additional than you can pull with a Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban, Nissan Armada or Toyota Sequoia.

The King Ranch trim is new for 2020, and it provides grey-painted lower bumpers, special 22-inch wheels and the requisite badges all around the exterior and inside. Power will come from Ford’s three.5-liter EcoBoost twin-turbo V6 engine, pushing out 375 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque, mated to a ten-velocity automated transmission. The gearbox is wonderful, developing clean shifts and largely fading into the track record. Acceleration is potent and the Expedition Max is remarkably quick, in spite of its practically 5,800-pound control body weight.

Of system, anything this significant and this potent is likely to gulp down gasoline. The EPA presents the 2020 Expedition Max a blended gasoline economic climate score of eighteen miles for every gallon but I am viewing about sixteen.8 mpg in my 4-wheel-generate tester. Still, which is superior than a whole lot of the Expedition’s rivals.

The Expedition drives about as you would assume for an SUV this sizing, although it can be easy to maneuver thanks to its extraordinary turning circle. There are Activity, Tow/Haul, Mud and Ruts, Sand, Grass/Gravel/Snow, Eco and Ordinary generate modes to decide on from, all of which alter the transmission and throttle programming, and you can find even a handbook shifting manner in which you can shift up and down through the gears via buttons on the gear selector.

If off-roading is your thing, Ford gives an FX4 off-street offer on 4-wheel generate XLT and Restricted trims, which provides skid plates, a larger radiator for superior cooling, off-street shocks, all-terrain tires and a minimal-slip differential. Even without having the optional offer the Expedition has a rear locking differential and a 4-wheel-generate auto gear in addition to 4-wheel-generate significant and reduced gears. Two-wheel-generate designs are out there for folks who do not want the 4-wheel grip.

The 2020 Ford Expedition assortment starts at $fifty four,505, including $one,695 for destination. Stage up to the Max and you happen to be wanting at $57,530. My fancy-pants King Ranch tester will come in at a whopping $eighty one,680, but you can help save a whole lot of cash if you choose for something a little a lot less decadent. Apart from, if you happen to be likely to invest leading-greenback on an Expedition, you would be wise to seem at its Lincoln-badged alternative, the Navigator. With the Lincoln you get a lot superior styling and a little bit additional electric power, and a damn fine inside to boot.

The Expedition’s other most important rivals are the new Normal Motors SUVs, including the Chevy Tahoe, Suburban and GMC Yukon, which supply diesel powertrain selections and even an air suspension on find designs. But with its solid tech choices and wonderful operation, the Expedition can additional than hold its possess in this significant-and-in-cost class of SUVs.