Family SUVs usually haul groceries and kids and do not necessarily blaze down the drag strip with impressive speed. But one Ford Explorer ST owner recently demonstrated just how quick these popular performance SUVs can be, even running mostly factory parts. Brad Hampton recently pushed his stock-turbo Ford Explorer ST to the precipice of the 10-second zone. Hampton took his Ford Explorer ST to Evadale Raceway for some quarter-mile passes.
A time slip from one run on April 7 showed the SUV completing the distance in a remarkably quick 11.04 seconds, crossing the finish line at 122.32 mph. His run showed some strong acceleration from the Ford Performance SUV. What makes the performance of his Explorer ST stand out from the crowd though? Hampton emphasized on social media that the vehicle achieved this time while still using its factory-stock twin-turbochargers, stock fuel system components, and the original stock transmission. He did, however, leverage the benefits of a ZFG Racing calibration with the HP Tuners transbrake feature to do the deed.
Running that close to the 10-second zone without needing major powertrain hardware swaps speaks volumes about the capability baked into the Explorer ST platform from Ford. This quick pass apparently marked a final performance baseline for the current setup, which had recently run an 11.09 as shown in the video below.
Hampton mentioned that it “was my last session on stock components.” He indicated acquiring a collection of common bolt-on performance parts that were “ready to go in.”
Based on his social media post, we can say that Hampton has some huge plans to unlock even more performance from the Explorer ST soon. Or even break new personal records. His impressive low-11-second run sets a high bar for other Ford Explorer ST enthusiasts. He clearly demonstrated the potential performance of this combo on the drag strip.