“American sophistication meets Chinese sophistication” That’s how Ford prefers to describe the New 2023 Ford Explorer recently unveiled for the People’s Republic of China. The SUV is labeled as an all-new model, but really, it’s just a big upgrade for the current generation. Right off the bat, we can see that the front grille has been made substantially wider and uses a heavy dose of chrome while being flanked by completely redesigned LED headlamps.
The side profile of this New 2023 Ford Explorer reveals 21-inch alloy wheels with a turbine fan design and there are more changes to the rear where the wider taillights resemble those of the smaller sibling Equator also being sold. in China. Prominent “Explorer” lettering on the tailgate replaces where the Ford badge used to be, with the blue oval now slightly lower between the taillights. It’s joined by a chrome bar that’s slimmer but longer than before.
By far the most noticeable change is in the interior, where the dash now houses a mammoth 27-inch touchscreen that we’ve also seen on Ford Evos sold in China. Naturally, the huge screen has swallowed up most of the conventional buttons, while the central air vents have been moved lower to make room for the XXL screen that stretches across the passenger’s side of the dash.
Will these changes apply to the North American version? Ford Authority claims that the tweaks are for the Chinese Explorer only, and that the 2023 US model will remain largely unchanged, so the current Explorer is the one we’ll continue to see on this side of the world. Order books in the Chinese market will open on August 11, and production is scheduled to start on November 7.
The all-electric 2023 Explorer is still in development, but its original launch date of mid-2023 has been pushed back to December 2024 when production will reportedly begin. It’s the same story with the fancier Lincoln Aviator Electico, with both forced to ride on dedicated EV architecture. As it stands, it’s unclear where the two zero-emission SUVs will be assembled, but it’s unlikely to be in Chicago or Cuautitlán Mexico.
