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SAFETY | 9 out of 10
Expert Quotes:
Good," frontal offset
IIHS
Five stars, front impact protection and side impact protection; four stars, rollover rating
NHTSA
senses impending rollovers and attempts to prevent them by applying individual brakes
Cars.com
good visibility despite thickish rear-roof posts”
ConsumerGuide
TheCarConnection.com editors note that the 2010 Ford Explorer Sport Trac is a safer alternative to most compact pickups, as it scores well in both insurance industry and federal government crash tests and offers quite a few standard safety features, such as side airbags and electronic stability control, which the smaller, less expensive pickups still don't have. Trailer Sway Control is standard for 2010.
Both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the two major crash-test agencies in the United States, have tested last year's mechanically identical Ford Explorer Sport Trac, and both strongly endorse the Ford Explorer Sport Trac. NHTSA has subjected the Ford Explorer Sport Trac to its full battery of crash tests and found the vehicle worthy of a perfect five-star rating for driver and passenger protection during both front and side impacts. The one strike against the Ford Explorer Sport Trac came in the rollover rating, where NHTSA awarded only three out of five stars for the 2WD model. In terms of impact protection, the IIHS affirmed the perfect scores awarded by NHTSA, as they also gave their highest rating, "good," to the Ford Explorer Sport Trac for frontal offset impacts.
Crash tests aside, reviews read by TheCarConnection.com show that the Ford Explorer Sport Trac lineup also boasts enough standard safety features to inspire confidence in almost any driver. Edmunds states that "antilock disc brakes, stability control, front-seat side airbags and side curtain airbags are all standard" on the Ford Explorer Sport Trac. To that list, Cars.com adds "rollover mitigation, in the form of Ford's Roll Stability Control," is standard as well. The system "senses impending rollovers and attempts to prevent them by applying individual brakes."
Outward visibility is also good in the Ford Sport Trac. ConsumerGuide reviewers are surprised to find that the Ford Explorer Sport Trac offers "good visibility despite thickish rear-roof posts," and with its relatively high-up position, overall visibility is good.
Conclusion
Ford succeeds in making the 2010 Ford Explorer Sport Trac exceptionally safe.
