Since its induction to the Ford line of trucks and SUVs in 2000, the Ford Explorer Sport Trac has impressed most who have had the pleasure of owning or driving one. The first Ford Sport Trac model was the 2001 Sport Trac, which was available to the public in the year 2000. It’s classified as a mid-size SUV, although it has a short bed, like a pickup truck. Widely popular in America, the Ford Sport Trac was initially based on the Ford Ranger. It has had fierce competition with both the Honda Ridgeline and the Chevy Avalanche.

During the initial year it was made available to consumers, there was a waiting list of 3 months in order to get a Sport Trac; that’s how popular they were and still are. The Sport Trac has an Explorer body and a Ranger chassis, combining the best of both worlds. It was more capable than the Ranger, in terms of heavy-duty capabilities, and less expensive than the F-150.

Until it was discontinued from production in 2010, there were two distinct generations of the Ford Sport Trac. The first generation consisted of the vehicles made from 2001 to 2005. The second generation was manufactured by Ford from 2007 to 2010. Many would argue that the second generation was the more capable of the two, especially with regards to workload. First generation Sport Tracs had a 4.0-liter, V6 engine with 210 horsepower. This engine never changed once, from 2001 to 2005. Then, in 2007, the second generation of Explorer Sport Tracs rolled off the line. These models had a much beefier and more capable 4.6-liter, 24-valve, Modular V8 engine with largely increased horsepower and towing capacity.

Initially Ford announced to the public that it would discontinue to manufacturing of Sport Trac models, subsequent to the 2011 production year. This was largely in part due to declining sales. However, in July of 2010, Ford announced that it would discontinue production immediately following the 2010 model year. In the end, the very last Ford Explorer Sport Trac rolled off the production line on October 29 of 2010.