Hot on the heels of the 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee being unveiled with a new Trailhawk variant, Jeep North America president Jim Morrison has taken a dig at rival Ford and its off-road-focused Explorer Timberline introduced earlier this year.
The Timberline is the most off-road-capable Explorer in the range and just a couple of weeks ago, Ford also launched a Timberline version of the Expedition. According to Morrison, however, Ford’s Timberline models are no match for Jeep’s Trailhawk offerings.
“I actually feel sorry for (Ford Explorer Timberline) customers that get tricked,” Morrison said in an interview to Muscle Cars & Trucks. “You can paint a tow hook red. It doesn’t mean that behind the tow hook it would even hold up in the right moment that it needs to.”
“We design all of those Trail Rated elements from the ground up… it’s not just a marketing term, it’s capability that’s bred in. You don’t just put stickers and paint on things. We build it in with incredible capability,” he added.
Morrison used the example of a Grand Cherokee Trailhawk climbing a rock face at a 65 grade incline (pictured above), noting that the Explorer Trailhawk would have no chance climbing up the slop like the Jeep.
This isn’t the first time Morrison has dismissed off-road models recently introduced by Ford. In September, Morrison said he was confident in the customer base of the Jeep Wrangler and doesn’t believe Wrangler enthusiasts will go out to buy Ford Broncos. Instead, he thinks “there’s going to be a lot of F-150 people driving Broncos.”
