2020 Explorer is the first product to emerge-more quietly-from Ford's newest NVH lab

The 2020 Explorer is the first Ford product to be engineered via the automaker's new driving dynamics laboratory, which provides multiple tools to create quieter vehicles, including a new semi-anechoic, rolling-platform test chamber. The Explorer also features a first-for-Ford “dual-walled” bulkhead; in essence this a sealed composite engine shroud to further isolate the cabin from powertrain noise.

Parker Lewis, Ford's noise, vibration and harshness engineering manager, said the new facility makes it easier to “confirm our analytical predictions with physical testing on a component system level, as well as at the full-vehicle level in the semi-anechoic room.” Lewis also noted that the new facility complements the host of front-end CAE, dovetailing virtualization software with actual production-ready components.