Ford Territory drives into TV teaser

AN ABC TV reporter might have had an extra scoop today when reporting on Ford Australia worker redundancies at the company's Geelong plant in Victoria, if only he had glanced over his shoulder.

While reporter Cameron Best was doing a piece to camera about the 199 forced redundancies across the Blue Oval's shrinking local manufacturing work force (see separate story), two development vehicles – a facelifted Ford Territory and similarly reshaped Ford Falcon cab-chassis ute – drove out of the plant gates into the TV camera's shot.

The disguised vehicles were spied on television by an eagle-eyed car fan who snapped this shot of the Territory from the TV, showing the vehicle over the shoulder of the news man as he gave his spiel on the sad state of Ford manufacturing in Australia.

The drivers seemed to spot the TV camera at the last minute, hesitating for a moment before speeding off.

Ford is putting the final touches to the facelifted Falcon and Territory to be launched later this year in a last hurrah for its locally built range that will go out of production in October 2016.

Engineering mules have been out and about for months on Victorian roads, testing various engineering and design changes.

Design wise, the Falcon and Territory will both get a new nose, similar to that of the American Ford Fusion, along with interior tweaks.

The new range will also mark the return of the V8 Falcon XR8 with a GT-style 335kW 5.0-litre supercharged engine in a last hurrah for the large Aussie Ford.