1 Oct 2015
Ford might have announced that it would close its Australian manufacturing operations, but its design and engineering arm were kept very busy with the development and design of the Everest seven-seat SUV.
The Everest was never intended to be a replacement for the Australian-built Territory, instead Ford pitched it against larger, more capable and more expensive offerings, notably, Toyota’s dominant LandCruiser Prado.
The Everest was offered in base (dubbed Everest) Trend and Titanium guise and were all powered by the same 3.2-litre five-cylinder Duratorq TDCi turbo-diesel engine pumping out 143kW at 3000rpm and 470Nm from 1750-2500rpm – the same engine as the Ranger with which it shared much of its underpinnings.
A six-speed automatic transmission drove all four wheels and combined-cycle fuel consumption across the range was 8.5 litres per 100km.
Standard safety gear across the range included a reversing camera, rear parking sensors, hill-descent control, hill-hold assist, trailer sway control, seven airbags, electronic stability control, an electric locking rear differential and Ford’s Emergency Assist function.
