Compare the2025 Hyundai PalisadeVS 2025 Ford Explorer

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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Both the Palisade and Explorer have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Palisade has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Explorer’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

With its standard Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, the Hyundai Palisade is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Ford Explorer, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

	Palisade	Explorer
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Crossing Child - DAY
12 MPH	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH	-23 MPH	-21 MPH
	Crossing Adult - NIGHT
12 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
12 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-17 MPH
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-2 MPH
	Parallel Adult - NIGHT
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-20 MPH
37 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-22 MPH
Warning Issued-Brights	2 sec	1.3 sec
37 MPH Low beams	-35 MPH	-14 MPH

Both the Palisade and the Explorer have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, 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 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Hyundai Palisade is safer than the Ford Explorer:

	Palisade	Explorer
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	19%	26.3%
Neck Stress	161 lbs.	167 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	94/151 lbs.	230/210 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Stress	132 lbs.	187 lbs.
Neck Compression	43 lbs.	129 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	351/306 lbs.	380/405 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Hyundai Palisade is safer than the Ford Explorer:

	Palisade	Explorer
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	25	65
Chest Movement	.7 inches	.9 inches
Abdominal Force	113 lbs.	161 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	36 G’s	38 G’s
Hip Force	189 lbs.	604 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	223	288

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The Palisade comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Explorer’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Palisade 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Ford covers the Explorer. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Explorer ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Palisade’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Explorer’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Palisade for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Ford doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Explorer.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Palisade has a standard 800-amp battery. The Explorer’s 760-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Palisade’s reliability 38 points higher than the Explorer.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are better in initial quality than Ford vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 17 more problems per 100 vehicles, Ford is ranked 9th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Ford With 41 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Hyundai higher than Ford.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Ford vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Hyundai 11 places higher in reliability than Ford.

Engine

As tested in Consumer Reports the Hyundai Palisade is faster than the Ford Explorer turbo 4 cyl.:

	Palisade	Explorer
Zero to 30 MPH	2.6 sec	3.1 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	7.1 sec	7.4 sec
Quarter Mile	15.4 sec	16 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	94 MPH	89 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Palisade FWD gets better fuel mileage than the Explorer 3.0 turbo V6 RWD (19 city/26 hwy vs. 18 city/25 hwy).

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Palisade uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Explorer requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Palisade has almost a gallon more fuel capacity than the Explorer 2.3-liter’s standard fuel tank (18.8 vs. 17.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Palisade has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Explorer. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Hyundai Palisade higher (6 out of 10) than the Ford Explorer (5 to 6). This means the Palisade produces up to 6.9 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Explorer every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Palisade stops shorter than the Explorer:

	Palisade	Explorer
60 to 0 MPH	118 feet	125 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	139 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Palisade’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Explorer’s standard 65 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The Palisade offers an optional automatic rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Explorer doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

The Palisade Calligraphy HTRAC handles at .82 G’s, while the Explorer 4WD pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Palisade Calligraphy HTRAC executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Explorer 4WD (27 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 28 seconds @ .63 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Palisade has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Explorer (7.9 vs. 7.6 inches), allowing the Palisade to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Palisade Limited HTRAC is quieter than the Explorer ST 4WD:

	Palisade	Explorer
At idle	38 dB	41 dB
Full-Throttle	74 dB	77 dB

Passenger Space

The Palisade has standard seating for 8 passengers; the Explorer can only carry up to 7.

The Palisade has 2.4 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Explorer (155.3 vs. 152.9).

The Palisade has 1.1 inches more front legroom, 3.4 inches more rear legroom, 2.8 inches more third row hip room and .6 inches more third row shoulder room than the Explorer.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Palisade’s middle and third row seats recline. The Explorer’s third row seats don’t recline.

Cargo Capacity

The Palisade’s cargo area provides more volume than the Explorer.

	Palisade	Explorer
Behind Third Seat	18 cubic feet	16.3 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	86.4 cubic feet	85.8 cubic feet

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Palisade easier. The Palisade’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 29.6 inches, while the Explorer’s liftover is 31.1 inches.

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Palisade’s second and third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Explorer doesn’t offer automatic folding second row seats.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Palisade’s liftgate can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Explorer doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Servicing Ease

The Palisade uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Explorer uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Palisade Limited/Calligraphy/Night has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning, navigation instruction and driver assistance information readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Explorer doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The Palisade Calligraphy/Night’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Explorer’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

Consumer Reports rated the Palisade’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Explorer’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Palisade’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Explorer’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

When the Palisade SEL Premium/Limited/Calligraphy/Night with available tilt-down mirrors is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Explorer’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The Palisade SEL/XRT/Limited/Calligraphy/Night has standard heated front seats and second and third row heated seats also avaiable, which keep the driver and passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Ford doesn’t offer heated seats in the third row of the Explorer.

Standard air conditioned seats in the front and second seat rows keep the Palisade SEL Premium/Limited/Calligraphy/Night’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The Explorer doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

The Palisade Calligraphy/Night’s Remote Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Explorer doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Palisade owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Palisade with a number “8” insurance rate while the Explorer is rated higher at a number “10” rate.

The Palisade will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Palisade will retain 56.92% to 57.78% of its original price after five years, while the Explorer only retains 49.94% to 56.18%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Palisade is less expensive to operate than the Explorer because typical repairs cost less on the Palisade than the Explorer, including $125 less for a muffler.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Hyundai Palisade will be $942 to $7860 less than for the Ford Explorer.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Hyundai Palisade, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Ford Explorer isn't recommended.

Motor Trend performed a comparison test in its August 2023 issue and they ranked the Hyundai Palisade Calligraphy HTRAC first. They ranked the Ford Explorer ST-Line seventh.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Palisade third among upper midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Explorer isn’t in the top three in its category.

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