The 2011 Ford Explorer is a revolutionary departure for the traditional Explorer, built for two decades, and at one time the most popular SUV in the world.

The Explorer has left its truck-based roots and is now built on a car platform, the same platform as the Taurus.

In its new crossover guise, it is a better vehicle in nearly every way than the Explorer it replaces. It is still a big vehicle with three rows of seating and it can handle the bad weather and light off-road duties of everyday life.

In the design department, the Explorer has become more rounded with such design elements as a clamshell hood, and wrap-around rear glass the flows through a black C pillar into a one-piece hatch back. The front end wears the new Ford signature grille. The interior is spacious and handsome dominated in many of the vehicles with the new MyFord Touch system.

We figure it will be a 2011 hit.

MotorwayAmerica.con photos by Jim Meachen