Ford is also keen to note that these power figures are only with 93-octane fuel, and I personally do not know anyone willing to spend that extra money on their Ford performance SUV, if you can even call it that. It’s more of a whimpering drone that goes up in volume the more you press the pedal. The ST is equipped with aggressive trapezoidal exhaust outlets out back but the resulting exhaust note is uninspiring and frankly embarrassing for anything with the ST badge. Even with the S button on the gear dial that summons more aggressive shift mapping, pipes in more exhaust noise through the speakers, and livens up the throttle response, it does little to stimulate any driver emotion. The ST is reasonably quick in a straight line but its substantial weight bogs it down from taking home any awards. Its twin-turbo 2.7-litre V6 engine is potent and delivers a punchy 335 hp and 380 lb-ft of torque through a new 8-speed automatic transmission, but the power delivery is lazy, peaking at a measly 5,500 rpm, the transmission can never make up its mind on gearing, and though the AWD system sends the majority of torque to the rear axle for a sportier feel, we don’t sense any eagerness to rotate. Which is not to say the Edge ST is a slow and dim-witted SUV. Note that even though the Honda and Chevy are down on power and don’t even have a fancy pancy badge, they simply drive better with a superior chassis and a more authentic and efficient powertrain. No matter how butch or macho Ford has made the sheetmetal, there’s not enough going for it dynamically for us to recommend it over its better driving competitors like the Honda Passport or Chevrolet Blazer. It’s simply just a re-badged and slightly revised Edge Sport. Even the three-row Explorer now comes with an ST variant.īut just like how you wouldn’t give a five-star rating on Yelp if your food came late and cold, you don’t put an ST badge on a crossover that doesn’t drive with emotion or excitement. But Ford has now decided to take that highly-regarded ST badge and plaster it onto their crossover lineup. They drove brilliantly, handled like an old-school charmer, and gave us smiles when carving up empty back roads. Ford has used the ST badge before on their performance-oriented vehicles like the Fiesta ST and Focus ST, and we adored those pocket rocket hatchbacks. Fact of the matter is, badges are important, but what’s more critical is the product that automakers slap those badges onto. AMG symbolizes the pinnacle of Mercedes engineering and their one-man, one-engine philosophy, M gives us euphoric feelings of high-strung inline-sixes and their howling exhausts, and RS has us conflicted between a Ford Focus or an Audi TT. What’s in a badge? Certainly there’s more to it than a trail mix of letters and numbers.
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