Auto Review: 2021 Ford Expedition King Ranch By Steve Schutz

2021 Ford Expedition King Ranch

By Stephen Schutz, MD

General Motors announced recently that they intend to stop producing vehicles with internal combustion engines by 2035. Since electric cars are “The Future”, it wouldn’t surprise me if other manufacturers including Ford made similar announcements soon.

I’m no Luddite, but I still don’t get it. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) are less than 2% of the US market, about the same as five years ago, and sleek new offerings from Audi and Porsche have yet to move the needle. So far the dogs aren’t eating the dog food.

What are the dogs eating? Full size pickups and SUVs for one thing, all with internal combustion engines, and many built, ironically, by GM. I drove one non-GM example recently, the Ford Expedition, and was reminded of why these big brutes are much more popular than any BEV.

Consider who buys an Expedition. It’s usually a 40-ish mom or dad with 2-3 kids who uses their big Ford to ferry their progeny hither and yon along with sports gear, friends/teammates, and a dog or two, doing all they can to raise what they hope will one day be productive and happy adults. Reaching that (laudable) goal generally involves driving a spacious vehicle thousands of miles around home, in addition to many road trips to soccer (or whatever) tournaments and family vacations. And doing all that is exactly where the Expedition excels. It handles all of the transportation needs you and your family might have, not just some.

It is undeniably big. Measuring around 16ft long x 6ft wide and 6.5ft tall, the Expedition can carry pretty much anything a family of five might need to haul. Neither driving pleasure nor parking ease is happening in an Expedition (please don’t act surprised), but the ability to see above traffic and cruise serenely on the highway definitely are. And let’s be honest for a sec here: when you’re a stressed parent who has to go from school to ballet to baseball to (OMG where is it, I’m already late?!!) some pizza place in Boerne, having a Ford Expedition to drive there is a good thing.

An Expedition is safe too. As noted above, it’s a large vehicle and heavy too, weighing in at roughly 5400lbs. That means that the likelihood that you and your children survive a serious crash is high, which matters to any parent (or grandparent).

A quick aside. Years ago, a friend and I were driving on I-10 just outside of San Antonio when we spotted an Expedition going the other way weaving erratically. As we watched horrified, it suddenly drove into the median and rolled over and over many times. Since we’re both physicians, we immediately turned around and ran over to help. Inside the crushed cabin was a wide-eyed young woman who was scared but completely unharmed. Thank you “big metal vehicle” and thank you Ford.

Nevertheless, the exterior design of the Expedition is uninspiring. While the F150 upon which the Expedition is based looks unequivocally cool, no matter the version the Expedition seems to have been styled tentatively. It’s not ugly, to be sure, but it isn’t cool either. Given its raison d’etre—carry kids, dogs, and parents/grandparents to the soccer/lacrosse/ballet event comfortably and safely—that’s not surprising, but I wish it looked as good as GM’s new full size SUVs do.

The interior of the Expedition, predictably, looks a lot like the F-150’s. The plastics and other materials are well considered, and, in the better optioned models like my King Ranch press car, very nice. No, the interior of an Expedition will not make you think you’re in a Mercedes or Range Rover, but it’s inviting and comfortable nevertheless.

All Expeditions come with a turbocharged EcoBoost 3.5L V6 mated with a smooth 10-sp automatic transmission. Fuel economy is 17MPG city/24 highway, and horsepower is 375 for most versions and 400 for the King Ranch and Platinum. While Expeditions start at just over $50,000, my loaded King Ranch tester came in at around $75,000, and I would guess that the average transaction price for all models is in the $60-65,000 range (Ford considers both the King Ranch and Platinum editions to be equivalent, with the former aimed at rural buyers while the latter is intended for urban customers).

I accept that the future belongs to BEVs, but I also know that the present belongs to internal combustion engined vehicles like the Expedition. It may be big and thirsty, but the Expedition fits into and helps the lives of many Americans. I don’t expect it to go away any time soon.

As always, call Phil Hornbeak, the Auto Program Manager at BCMS (210-301-4367), for your best deal on any new car or truck brand. Phil can also connect you to preferred financing and lease rates.

Stephen Schutz, MD, is a board-certified gastroenterologist who lived in San Antonio in the 1990s when he was stationed here in the US Air Force. He has been writing auto reviews for San Antonio Medicine since 1995.