2021 Ford Explorer Timberline Quick Spin: Gettin’ Outdoorsy

If you’re noticing that a lot of automakers are up with outdoorsy-themed trim levels for what were previously on-road-focused SUVs, then kudos to you for paying attention. Half a dozen new trims have appeared in the past few years catering to a new push by millenials and zoomers to get outside and into the woods. Some of that has been driven by the coronavirus pandemic, as we’ve been told that the safest places for recreation are out in the wilderness, away from other people. This has led to spikes in camping, state park attendance, travel trailer sales and interest by customers in vehicles that can get them there while towing these trailers.

Ford has responded with the new Timberline trim for the Explorer and Expedition SUVs, upping the off-road ability of its stalwart SUVs a bit while adding a dash of pine-scented outdoorsy style. But are they any good to drive? Have the mods made them any more capable, or are these visual trim packages only? We had a long spin behind the wheel of the new 2021 Ford Explorer Timberline, and came away with mixed feelings. 

Related: 2021 Ford Explorer Timberline: Ford’s Off-Pavement Answer to Cabin Fever

It Looks Legit

The Timberline trim’s debut on the Explorer comes with a few exterior cosmetic changes, some of which are simply for style, but some of which actually do serve to help the normally on-road-ready crossover get a bit further into the field. The first is a mild 0.8-inch lift — not much to notice from standing next to it — the result of both new heavy-duty shock absorbers, originally developed for the Police Interceptor version of the Explorer, and taller-sidewall, 18-inch Bridgestone Dueler all-terrain tires. Changes have been made to the front and rear bumpers to improve approach and departure angles for better off-road obstacle scaling, and skid plates have been added to protect the delicate bits underneath from boulders and hazards.

The Timberline is identifiable thanks to its black high-gloss painted wheels that feature a Timberline logo, blacked-out headlamps and taillamps, a black Ford oval logo and badging on the C-pillars and rear hatch. There are also unique LED foglamps, orange front tow hooks and a gray-painted grille with a prewired electrical harness for adding your own driving lamps. The look is appropriately butch and outdoorsy, especially when painted in the beautiful dark Forged Green Metallic that my test vehicle came in. It’s obviously not a super-capable, purposeful off-roader like a Ford Bronco or Jeep Wrangler, but it looks to have meaningful upgrades to help it survive in the woods better than other versions of the Explorer, including the road-rocket ST trim. 

Right Suspension, Wrong Engine

The changes that create the Timberline have something of a mixed effect on the Explorer. On-road, what used to be one of my favorite SUVs to drive in Platinum or ST (especially in ST) trims is now less enjoyable because of noisier, knobby off-road tires, steering that’s not as sharp due to the taller sidewalls and acceleration that’s not as quick due to being equipped only with the base 300-horsepower, turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine. That’s not to say it’s slow — I’d call the four-cylinder Explorer adequately powered, with decent acceleration and smooth highway operation.

That boosted little four-cylinder, the same one you’ll find under the hood of Ford’s Mustang sports car and Ranger mid-size pickup, works its heart out for you. It delivers decent acceleration at the expense of fuel economy, however — my week with the SUV netted just 20 mpg combined. It’s EPA-rated at 19/23/21 mpg city/highway/combined, which isn’t great, especially considering a standard all-wheel-drive four-cylinder Explorer is rated at 20/27/23 mpg. AWD is standard on the Timberline, and the 10-speed automatic transmission does a good job keeping the engine in its power band with smooth enough shifts that it doesn’t feel like it’s hunting at all. But I do wish that the smoother, torquier 365-hp, turbo V-6 from the Explorer Platinum were available, if not the ST’s 400-hp unit.

The ride quality changes are also curious. The “cop shocks” that the Timberline employs are stiffer on pavement, as they do indeed feel more robust, causing bouncing on my local frost-heaved, potholed asphalt and concrete roads that I don’t recall from previous drives of an Explorer of any type. One would think that the taller-sidewall tires would contribute to a more compliant ride, but that’s not what the Timberline delivers.

… Until, that is, you go into the dirt. Transferring to the washboard, super-cratered rural dirt roads surrounding my southern Michigan home showed me where the new Timberline is meant to live. It’s nothing short of brilliant on the back roads, and if I lived on a remote farm or somewhere that dirt roads outnumber paved ones, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Explorer Timberline as an all-road family wagon. The deeply treaded tires perform beautifully on loose surfaces, and those oddly stiff shocks that felt out of place on an around-town commute felt stunningly smooth and compliant in the rough at higher speeds. I found myself aiming for holes in the road that in any other off-road vehicle I’ve tried — including Ford’s own excellent Ranger Tremor pickup and Bronco SUV — would’ve upset the steering and chassis in scary ways. But the independent suspension, superior impact damping and taller sidewalls combine to prevent transmission of anything unsettling to the steering wheel.

I’d happily bomb around back roads all day in this Explorer, and while I didn’t get an opportunity to do any rock crawling in it (it does feature additional terrain modes for challenging lower-speed terrain), that’s not really its mission. The Timberline is meant to get people and stuff to a rural campsite, more people and stuff than you can cram into a Bronco, in superior comfort.

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Surprisingly Priced, or Not

It’s somewhat surprising to me that this ’21 Explorer Timberline costs just a tick less than $50,000 (including destination). It has a truly nice interior, featuring beautiful Deep Cypress green faux-leather-and-suede upholstery with orange stitching, a stonelike applique for the dash and heavy-duty rubber floormats to keep the mud out of the carpets. It definitely complements the exterior green paint (other exterior colors are available) and helps the Timberline come across as more than just a tape-and-sticker package.

But the price starts to make sense as you look around at what you’re not getting in the Timberline. The limitation of the base four-cylinder is one obvious area, but you’re also limited to the smaller 4.2-inch LCD instrument cluster instead of the fully digital 12.3-inch one seen in top trims of the Explorer, and you only get an 8-inch multimedia display running Sync 3 instead of the larger 10.1-inch portrait-oriented touchscreen running Sync 4. There’s no option to upgrade these bits of equipment, so while the ‘21 Timberline includes some useful equipment like a Class III trailer hitch with 5,300 pounds of towing capacity (the ‘22 gets a standard Class IV hitch and an upgrade to 5,600 pounds) and Ford’s Co-Pilot360 safety suite, your main options are more limited to things like whether or not you want captain’s chairs or a bench for the second row of seats, a panoramic moonroof and various paint colors. 

I hope that Ford opens up the option packages for the Timberline in the future because the trim really does feel like an interesting option for someone who wants a more adventurous experience with their family hauler. It’s far more comfortable and capable on dirt two-tracks and poor surfaces, but more power would be welcome, especially if someone is planning on towing a trailer. The 365-hp, 3.0-liter V-6 in the Explorer Platinum would be a nice upgrade, as would a more sizable multimedia screen. As it is, however, the Timberline provides a flexible and stylish option for all of these newly outdoorsy folks who want to look the part as they head out into the world. 

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