From daily school drop-offs to commuting from your neighborhood to the city and highway travel, an SUV with three rows of seating and easy access in every row explains why many people choose SUVs like the Ford Explorer and the Jeep Grand Cherokee.
Both the 2025 Ford Explorer and the 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee offer spacious interiors, advanced safety technology, and powertrains ready for long road trips or muddy detours. Keep reading as we help you find the best fit for your vibrant Northshore driving lifestyle. Let’s compare the 2025 Ford Explorer and the 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee as you decide which SUV suits your driving style.
Key Takeaways
- The 2025 Ford Explorer mid-size SUV is ready for your everyday drive and long road trips.
- Depending on the engine and drivetrain, the new Ford Explorer delivers both performance and fuel economy, resulting in savings on fuel costs.
- The new Ford Explorer is the perfect three-row SUV for you and your crew.
How does the 2025 Ford Explorer compare to the 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
The Ford Explorer is both longer and taller, with a longer wheelbase. For you and your passengers, this size difference means more headroom, legroom, and cargo space. The Ford Explorer has an impressive interior cabin space with three rows of seating that can accommodate six to seven passengers, depending on the model. In contrast, the Jeep Grand Cherokee seats up to five passengers unless you choose the 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee L, which features three rows of seating and seats up to seven, like the 2025 Ford Explorer Activ, Platinum, and ST-Line models.
Where the 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee excels is in its interior luxury, featuring genuine wood trim accents, quilted leather heated seats, and a back massager function available for the Overland model and standard on the Summit and Summit Reserve models. All 2025 Ford Explorer models come with a large 13.2-inch LCD touchscreen infotainment display integrating the new Ford Digital Experience for seamless connectivity and streaming from your devices to your SUV, including access to apps, Google, and Amazon.
Each 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee model has a powerful 3.6L V6 Pentastar engine with a towing capacity of 6,200 pounds, surpassing the Explorer's maximum by 1,000 pounds. However, the Ford Explorer still delivers on performance with either the 2.3L I-4 or the 3.0L V6 EcoBoost engines, which are paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission and an optional engine block heater. Your new 2025 Ford Explorer RWD with the 2.3L I-4 EcoBoost engine is expected to achieve an EPA-estimated 29 MPG on the highway and has a driving range of 430 miles.
Which SUV has been updated and upgraded for the 2025 release? The 2025 Ford Explorer.
The last major update for the Jeep Grand Cherokee was in 2022. However, 2025 is an exciting year for the Ford Explorer, as it arrives at dealerships with a streamlined lineup of four models: Activ, ST-Line, ST, and Platinum. The Tremor, the lineup’s fifth model, is expected to debut later this year, showcasing its anticipated off-road capabilities and enhanced suspension.
Other new 2025 Ford Explorer model lineup updates and upgrades include a more comfortable interior with softer materials. The new 2025 Ford Explorer also introduces the Ford Digital Experience, the latest exclusive software for better streaming and entertainment while on the go.
Which 2025 Ford Explorer model fits my lifestyle?
Whether you choose the 2025 Ford Explorer Activ, ST-Line, ST, or Platinum, you get a reliable, comfortable mid-size SUV with large, crystal clear digital displays, three rows of seating, and the all new Ford Digital Experience that transforms your SUV into an entertainment center on wheels.
Choose the base model Activ equipped with its 2.3L turbocharged EcoBoost I-4 engine, offering either rear-wheel drive or available Intelligent four-wheel drive. It comfortably seats up to seven passengers and features LED headlamps and taillights, a Power Liftgate, roof-rack side rails, chrome accents on the grille, power-heated mirrors, and more standard features, which are also included in the ST-Line, ST, and Platinum models.
The 2025 Ford Explorer ST-Line boasts a sporty design with a distinctive blackout treatment on the headlamps and taillights, along with signature ebony and red stitching throughout the cabin, creating a head-turning appearance. The Ford Explorer ST has sport-tuned suspension, red-painted performance brake calipers at both the front and rear, and includes a rear spoiler.
The Ford Explorer Platinum comes standard with the Panoramic Vista Roof, second-row heated leather seats and other standard features in lower trims.
Your new 2025 Ford Explorer also comes with Intelligent Access with Push-Button Start, wireless charging, 360 Degree Camera, front and rear parking sensors, Remote Start, interior ambient lighting, 12V power outlets, USB ports, PowerFold third-row seats, foldable second row seats, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto wireless compatibility, plusFordPass Connect with 5G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot capability, and the Ford Co-Pilot360 Assist+ or Assist 2.0 safety technology.
Ford Co-Pilot360 Assist and 2.0 adds Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop-and-Go, Evasive Steering Assist, and Post-Collision Braking to the base technology, which includes Pre-Collision Assist, Lane Keeping Assist, Blind Spot Information System, and Lane Centering. These safety features and its design are why the Ford Explorer has been recognized as a Top Safety Pick+ by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).
Roomy, Safe, Reliable
The 2025 Ford Explorer is roomy, safe, and reliable. With three rows of seating for up to seven passengers, this J.D. Power top pick for best upper midsize SUV is more than a vehicle. With the new Digital Ford Experience, your Explorer offers streaming entertainment and access to a range of apps and platforms.
At Banner Ford, we understand the importance of quality, time, and top-notch customer service. Shop our new and used vehicle inventory online for convenience or visit our showroom to test drive the cars you've been browsing.