2020 Ford Explorer Hybrid First Drive Review | To be continued ...

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PORTLAND, Ore. – As we discovered during our first drive of the 2020 Ford Explorer, its class-besting performance is its prime appeal. Both its four- and six-cylinder turbocharged engines, paired with a new rear-wheel-drive-based platform, result in strong acceleration, class-leading towing and surprisingly good fuel economy. Indeed, despite being considerably more powerful, the base 2.3-liter engine gets basically the same fuel economy as a Subaru Ascent, Mazda CX-9 and Honda Pilot.

Which is great, but there's actually an even more efficient Explorer: the Hybrid. It pairs a 3.3-liter naturally aspirated V6 with an electric motor, which is integrated with its 10-speed automatic. Total system output is a robust 318 horsepower and 322 pound-feet of torque, which blows away the 240-horsepower 2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, the only other hybrid three-row, non-luxury crossover.

The lithium-ion battery pack resides below the passenger-side second-row seat, neatly packaged between the frame and exhaust. Placing it in the middle of the vehicle is beneficial for weight distribution, while also maintaining the same cargo capacity as the gas-only models. In previous Ford hybrids, including the C-Max and Fusion, the batteries took up a good deal of room in the trunk.

Ford has not released fuel economy data for the 2020 Explorer Hybrid, which is a shame, since we can only go by the indicated fuel economy. The display showed a rather underwhelming 23.1 mpg during a drive route mostly consisting of winding rural roads and some interstate. Reports from other journalists on the first drive event indicated similar fuel economy.

For context, the current Toyota Highlander Hybrid gets 29 mpg combined. ( Toyota says the updated 2020 Highlander Hybrid will improve to 33 mpg, thanks to improvements to the electric motors and transaxle.) Since we didn't drive a Highlander Hybrid on the same route as our Explorer Hybrid, we can't draw any definitive conclusions. However, it seems that the Explorer Hybrid won't be the fuel economy champ in this segment of two.

The Explorer Hybrid's tradeoff — reduced fuel economy in exchange for a massive horsepower advantage — represents a more rounded approach than the miserly Highlander Hybrid. The Explorer's acceleration is clearly superior; merging onto the interstate is dispatched with an ease that the current Highlander and its Atkinson cycle four-cylinder just can't match. It's also quieter, as Ford's use of a 10-speed automatic to run through gears eliminates the loud droning of Toyota's electronically controlled continuously variable transmission. Having a V6 instead of an inline-four also helps in that regard.