(CNN) Ford has unveiled a completely new version of the Explorer SUV, a model that helped fuel the SUV craze when it was first introduced in the 1990s. It's still one of the company's most popular products and will be even more important to Ford now that the automaker has announced it is dropping nearly all car models from its North American lineup in favor of SUVs, crossovers and trucks.

Almost 8 million Explorers have been sold and Ford bills it as the "best-selling SUV of all time." A famous rollover-related recall scandal in the early 2000s — fatal crashes, blamed on faulty Firestone tires, led to more stringent recall regulations — did little to dampen enthusiasm for the model over the long term. The Explorer is now entering its sixth generation.

Part of the Explorer's success is that it appeals to an amazingly broad swath of customers covering a wide range of ages and social classes. Shoppers can choose from a base model Explorer for a little over $30,000 or add options to a top-of-the-line Ford Explorer Platinum, creating what is essentially a luxury SUV with a price tag well over $60,000. Prices for the new Explorer will be only about $400 higher, Ford has said.

The new Ford Exlorer has a more taut look and better off-road capability.

At a glance, the new Explorer might not look that different from the one you see on the streets now, but it's actually a completely different vehicle. Most noticeable is a sleeker body style with a more sloped roofline, a design that, Ford executives say, was inspired by yachts.

"The Explorer has been really successful for us and so we didn't want to change the experience dramatically, but we did want to update it, we wanted to modernize it, we wanted to change the presence," said Cristina Aquino, Ford's large utility marketing manager.

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