2018 Ford Expedition Max Platinum: Large and luxurious

Meet the 2018 Ford Expedition Max 4x4 Platinum Just call her max for short. Now little Max here is actually the largest non-commercial vehicle that Ford builds and one of the largest vehicles I had the privilege of viewing And because she's a platinum model, she's crammed with every bell and whistle at Ford's disposal. So let's hit the road, get a little dirty, and see if bigger is actually better. That's nice. [MUSIC] [MUSIC] Now what makes Max here a Max is the extra length over what's already a really long. Really large SUV. This vehicle is 12 inches longer than the standard Expedition 9 inches of which are in wheelbase that's going to free up a lot of extra space for people and cargo especially people. There's a lot more space to split between these rows for more leg room. I mean I fit comfortably back on. The third row with plenty of knee space to spare. So if you're taller than my five foot nine inches, you may find head room to be in short supply. Now, the Max is a little bit bigger, so it has a little bit of a bigger fuel tank, which gives it a slightly longer cruising range, though the fuel economy at 16 city, 21 highway, and around 18 combined It's not bad for a vehicle of this size but still gonna be in line with a standard expedition's numbers. I've been averaging around 19 from my testing which is pretty good. Now that fuel economy comes courtesy of Ford's eco boost power train, that's a 3.5 liter twin turbo charge V6 engine now. I know what you're thinking because I thought it too. A V6 in a vehicle this big, how does that work? Fortunately, it turns out that Ford's engineers know what they're talking about. That engine brings 375 horse power and an impressive 470 pound feet of torque to the party. Now, it's going to be mated with a ten speed automatic transmission, and together they are an awesome pair. [MUSIC] I was able to drive this vehicle back to back with Chevy Suburban earlier this year, and let me just say that this car feels a lot more composed than the V8 6-speed combination that Chevy's working with. I mean, there's a lot less hunting around for gears when you're climbing hills For towing, it just feels a lot better put together and it also pulls just a little bit harder because it makes power than the V8. Now four by two rear wheel drive is standard, but we've got the optional four by four system. And that's gonna come with a couple of different drive modes. We've got A 2H which is basically rear wheel drive. Again, that's going to be what you want for the highways so you can get the best fuel economy. Now, 4A is what we're in right now. That's basically all wheel drive. Again, it defaults mostly to the rear wheels but it can also power to the front axle if it needs to Climb a hill or get through a sticky or slippery situation. There's also a 4L setting, and that's basically going to be your low speed, high-torque mode. And finally we have the ability to lock the rear axil for various off-roading purposes. Now in addition to that, we've also got a couple of different drive modes That you select with the knob. You've got some on road settings, like sport, eco, and normal for the highway, but we've also got settings set for off road. There's a snow setting, there's a sand setting, and right now we're in the grass gravel setting, which is basically good for a dirt road like this. Now merely we're doing some very light off-roading basically riding down a trail, but we've been through some pretty hairy situations getting out here that made me grateful that those side step fold up when the car is moving so that you get the maximum ground clearance, but with the 22 inch wheels and the all-season tires, and that front bumper dipping way down low for fuel economy on the highway. This isn't really set up for anything super gnarly. And until Ford makes an Expedition Max Raptor, this is basically just gonna be a trail vehicle. Now, Max here, is also a platinum model, which means, like I said, it's loaded up with every bell and whistle in Ford's arsenal. We've got leather trim all over the place, a leather steering wheel, these seats, they are heated and cooled And they've even got a massage function that I'm taking advantage of right now. You have all of the tech that Ford has available, there's Ford sync in the dashboard. We're gonna talk about that in a separate video but it's basically one of our favorite entertainment systems if you don't like what Ford is bringing, there is also standard android auto and apple car play. You've also got a Ford full suite of driver grade technology. Including adaptive cruise control that works at stop and go traffic, pedestrian detecting with automatic breaking The single-lane keep itself a truck this big with steering assist imagine that heck it'll even parallel park itself. If you let it though, we're not really at a shortage of parking spots out here in the hill forget the Suburban at the Platinum trim level the Expedition, Is basically an SUV that nips at the heels of the Lincoln Navigator, or Cadillac's Escalade. This is basically a luxury SUV with a Ford badge on the front of it. Though, to get that luxury well, you're gonna have to pay a pretty hefty price. [MUSIC] The 2018 Ford Expedition starts at around $52,000 for the base XLT model. But old MAX Platinum here has a $78,500 starting point. And there aren't very many options to get. Cuz everything is included. But we got all the options. So we're looking at around an $84,000 vehicle as tested That's a lot of money but for that price you're getting the largest, most luxurious vehicle behind Ford's blue oval. [SOUND] [MUSIC]