The Ford Explorer sixth generation was a significant engineering commitment — Ford moved the Explorer from front-wheel drive bias back to rear-wheel drive for the first time since the Explorer transitioned from body-on-frame in 2011. The move to a rear-drive platform made room for longitudinal engine mounting, which enabled a proper inline-six in the ST and Platinum variants, better weight distribution, and the ST model''s 400-horsepower EcoBoost that makes it the fastest three-row SUV Ford has built. These are engineering decisions that most Explorer buyers do not think about consciously, but that explain why the Explorer VI drives differently from every mid-size three-row SUV that competes with it.
Explorer VI owners cover a specific demographic: families who need three rows, want the Explorer''s off-road heritage and Ford''s reliability record, and chose the sixth generation specifically because of the improvement over the front-drive fifth generation. They use their Explorer daily, load it fully, and maintain it for the long term. These seven accessories address the Explorer VI interior for owners who use it this way.
1. LED Door Sills with Ford Explorer Logo
The Explorer VI''s wide body and three-row configuration means the sill is a large, frequently-used entry surface that every occupant — driver, front passenger, second-row, and third-row — crosses on every journey. Custom LED sill plates with the Ford oval, Explorer script, or ST designation illuminate that surface on door opening. The ST variant with its performance brief particularly benefits from the ST logo sill option. Available for all Explorer VI trim levels, stainless steel, LED wired to the door circuit.
2. Ambient Interior Lighting
The Explorer VI with the ST and Platinum trims includes ambient lighting. Lower trims shipped without it. An aftermarket multi-zone LED strip system in the dashboard, door pockets, and footwells provides the ambient effect that the ST''s premium positioning already sets as an expectation. Particularly effective in the Explorer''s wide, family-oriented cabin where footwell lighting creates visible illumination over a large floor area.
3. All-Weather Floor Mats — 3-Row Specific
The Explorer VI with the optional third row has a different rear floor geometry than the two-row base configuration. Custom-molded rubber mats for all three rows are available in Explorer VI-specific fitment. The third row mat section is particularly important for a family SUV where children occupy the rear row and the floor takes the most aggressive daily use of any position in the vehicle.
4. Third-Row Screen Headrests
Rear-seat entertainment screens for the Explorer VI''s second and third rows. The ST and Platinum trims offer rear screens as an option — the base and XLT trims do not. Aftermarket headrest screens with wireless connectivity provide dedicated entertainment for longer family journeys. On a vehicle designed around three-row family use, rear entertainment is a quality-of-life upgrade with direct daily relevance.
5. Cargo Liner — 2-Row and 3-Row Configurations
The Explorer VI''s cargo floor changes substantially between the 2-seat-and-3-row-deployed configuration. A cargo liner that fits both configurations uses a modular design with a separate section for the reduced cargo area when the third row is up. Full TPE coverage of the floor and side walls protects against the grocery, sports equipment, and family-trip loading the Explorer VI is used for daily.
6. Running Boards / Side Steps
The Explorer VI has a relatively high entry step compared to a crossover — particularly relevant for families with younger children. Powered running boards that deploy from the rocker panel on door opening and retract when the door closes are available in OEM-quality aftermarket form. The ST and Platinum variants particularly benefit from running boards that match the exterior trim without compromising the vehicle''s ground clearance.
7. Wireless CarPlay Adapter
The Explorer VI in base and XLT trim shipped with wired CarPlay. The Platinum and ST trims may have received wireless in later production years but early builds did not. A wireless adapter converts the connection permanently. For a family vehicle where multiple phones connect at different times, wireless connectivity reduces the friction of sharing the navigation and audio system between drivers.
The Explorer VI is a capable, well-engineered family SUV that covers more daily use cases than most vehicles in its class. These seven accessories maintain and extend the interior for owners who use all of that capability regularly — protecting the materials, improving the family-use experience, and adding the illuminated entry detail that the Explorer VI''s updated interior already sets up.
