Compare the2024 Ford ExplorerVS 2024 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Ford Explorer are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Explorer are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Ford Explorer has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Explorer has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Explorer (except Base/XLT/Limited/Timberline) offers an optional Reverse Brake Assist that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

Both the Explorer and the Range Rover Evoque have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Ford Explorer weighs 410 to 1463 pounds more than the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The Ford Explorer has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2024 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and an “Acceptable” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Range Rover Evoque has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2024.

Ford’s powertrain warranty covers the Explorer 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Land Rover covers the Range Rover Evoque. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Range Rover Evoque ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 14 times as many Ford dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Explorer’s warranty.

The Explorer has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. With 2 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Ford higher than Land Rover.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in long-term dependability. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Land Rover is rated below average.

The Explorer’s standard 2.3 turbo 4-cylinder produces 54 more horsepower (300 vs. 246) and 41 lbs.-ft. more torque (310 vs. 269) than the Range Rover Evoque’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Explorer ST/King Ranch/Platinum’s standard 3.0 turbo V6 produces 154 more horsepower (400 vs. 246) and 146 lbs.-ft. more torque (415 vs. 269) than the Range Rover Evoque’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Ford Explorer is faster than the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Ford Explorer uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The Range Rover Evoque requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Explorer V6 Turbo’s standard fuel tank has 2.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Range Rover Evoque (20.2 vs. 17.7 gallons).

The Explorer has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Ford Explorer, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a nine-speed automatic is available for the Range Rover Evoque.

For better stopping power the Explorer ST’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Range Rover Evoque:

The Explorer ST’s optional front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Range Rover Evoque are solid, not vented.

The Explorer stops much shorter than the Range Rover Evoque:

For better traction, the Explorer has larger standard tires than the Range Rover Evoque (255/65R18 vs. 235/60R18). The Explorer’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Range Rover Evoque (275/45R21 vs. 245/45R21).

Having a flat tire is dangerous, inconvenient and expensive. The self-sealing tires available on the Explorer can automatically seal most punctures up to 3/16 of an inch, effectively preventing most flat tires. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer self-sealing tires.

The Explorer’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Explorer’s wheelbase is 13.6 inches longer than on the Range Rover Evoque (119.1 inches vs. 105.5 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Explorer is 3 inches wider in the front and 2.7 inches wider in the rear than on the Range Rover Evoque.

The Explorer’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (50% to 50%) than the Range Rover Evoque’s (59% to 41%). This gives the Explorer more stable handling and braking.

The Explorer ST 4WD handles at .85 G’s, while the Range Rover Evoque pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Explorer ST 4WD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 2.1 seconds quicker than the Range Rover Evoque (26.4 seconds @ .72 average G’s vs. 28.5 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Explorer Timberline has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Range Rover Evoque (8.7 vs. 8.3 inches), allowing the Explorer to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The front grille of the Explorer uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Explorer has standard seating for 7 passengers; the Range Rover Evoque can only carry 5.

The Explorer has 1.8 inches more front headroom, 3 inches more front legroom, 5.2 inches more front shoulder room, 2.2 inches more rear headroom, 5 inches more rear legroom and 6.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Range Rover Evoque.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Explorer’s middle row seats recline. The Range Rover Evoque’s rear seats don’t recline.

The Explorer’s cargo area provides more volume than the Range Rover Evoque.

The Explorer’s cargo area is larger than the Range Rover Evoque’s in every dimension:

Maximum trailer towing in the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque is limited to 3968 pounds. The Explorer 4WD offers up to a 5600 lbs. towing capacity.

The engine in the Explorer is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Range Rover Evoque. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Explorer’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its InControl can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

Consumer Reports rated the Explorer’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Range Rover Evoque’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Explorer Platinum has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer cornering lights.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Explorer has standard extendable sun visors. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Explorer to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the Explorer (except Base/XLT/ST-Line/Timberline) keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Explorer ST/King Ranch/Platinum offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Range Rover Evoque.

The Explorer (except Base/XLT/ST-Line) offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Explorer ST/Platinum’s optional Active Park Assist 2.0 can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Explorer is available in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Range Rover Evoque doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Insurance will cost less for the Explorer owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Explorer will cost $2440 less than the Range Rover Evoque over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Explorer is less expensive to operate than the Range Rover Evoque because typical repairs cost much less on the Explorer than the Range Rover Evoque, including $135 less for front brake pads, $376 less for a starter, $320 less for fuel injection, $237 less for a fuel pump and $467 less for front struts.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Ford Explorer will be $3332 to $14915 less than for the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque.

The Ford Explorer outsold the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque by almost 50 to one during 2023.