At Ford, Quality is Job One.
That was the word from Dearborn, Mich., in the mid-nineties. Quality, as everyone learned from the ad campaign, was Ford's Big Thing, the most important ingredient in every car, truck, van and SUV manufactured and marketed by the Blue Oval Boys.

Perhaps they just forgot about that old saying when the time came to put together the 2006 Explorer. That's a shame, for what used to be America's favorite SUV has wallowed since the Firestone tragedy, and much of the reason is that Q word. For the Explorer, or at least the copy we tested, it was more like Job 57. Our Eddie Bauer tester was among the most expensive Explorers available, and the best thing about it were the mechanicals. Starting with a 4.6-liter V8 engine that makes 292 horsepower and 300 lb.-ft. of torque, and a new six-speed transmission, Ford has put some good stuff under the hood. The combination means more power, pretty good fuel economy and a tow rating that goes up to 7,300 lbs. There's also a 4.0-liter V6 engine available with a five-speed automatic, with a tow rating of up to 5,300 lbs. For the 2006 model year, electronic stability control is standard on all models, which continue to come in four basic trims: XLS, XLT, Eddie Bauer and Limited.

For a base sticker price of $33,625, our Explorer came with just about all the options, including a navigation system ($2,505), a rear-seat DVD entertainment center ($1,295), third-row power folding bench seat ($1,340) and the Eddie Bauer Luxury Package ($3,695) which includes heated front bucket seats, seat memory, manual lumbar and steering wheel controls for audio, cruise control and climate. With a destination charge of $645, the final sticker price of our tester climbed to just over $43,000. But then you have to subtract the rebate, which was recently running around $3,000 or more. Trouble is, even with a big chunk of discount cash, smart buyers fixated on the Explorer would probably be better buying an Explorer XLT, 4x4 trim – with the 4.6-liter V8 engine – for a base sticker price of $28,890. You get all the good stuff, save perhaps the nice Eddie Bauer seats.

Even then, however, we're hard pressed to recommend the Explorer, even with the great powertrain, nice ride and wonderful seats. We'd love to, and will, when the interior refinement and design improves to a competitive level, When quality becomes Job One, once again, for Ford's venerable Explorer. Here's hoping that it happens soon.

– Brian Chee