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2004 Ford Territory Preview |
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First revealed at Melbourne's 2003 Motor Show, Ford now shows the new Territory in Sydney at the 2003 Motor Show. The interior of their new car is now on dislpay for the first time.  The Falcon BA series based Territory is one of these new "crossover" vehicles. It's a wagon design, which will be available in either rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. There will be 2 models, an entry-level version (which isn't stripped of the good gear) and a high-series model (which will be very well equipped). Territory is a 5-seater with an optional 3rd row of seating, which makes it a 7-seater. This third row is a real rear seat though. It's not an after-thought which we have seen in the past. It's not just for kiddies, but for everyone who can find their way into the rear. The driving position is up high, just as you would expect for a vehicle in this segment of the market. | Power is from the 4-litre Falcon engine. There's no mention of a V8 just yet. The sequential automatic gearbox is standard. Hopefully, the manual shifter will be the correct way with this new model. In the Falcon, you move the shifter the wrong way to go up and down, which isn't a problem if you never ever drive any other car with a sequential gearbox. Standard equipment includes air conditioning, power windows, power driver's seat (4-way), CD player (single), power adjustable pedals, trip computer, anti-lock brakes and plenty of storage compartments. The high-series also features cruise control, leather seats, leather-wrapped steering wheel, automatic headlamps on/off, dual zone climate control air conditioning, leather wrapped sequential sports shifter, 17-inch alloy wheels, electrochromatic rear vision mirror, six-way power driver's seat with memory function, front and rear door courtesy lamps, sun visor vanity mirror lamps, premium 6 Stack CD player (7 speakers), overhead console, footwell illumination (front), fog lamps, reverse sensing system, automatic reverse dipping door mirror, cargo shelf, cargo net and side curtain airbag. |
In addition, the all-wheel drive models feature all wheel drive (naturally enough) and stability control. There's an optional descent control available on the AWD versions. If cup-holders are important to you, then Ford has some very exciting news for you..... there are 6 cup-holders in the Territory, 2 for each row of seats. Clearly, Ford Australia's attempt at a "cross-over" vehicle is well positioned to take advantage of a buoyant vehicle market, which is seeing AWD and 4WD vehicles sales boom. And then boom some more. It seems people are seeking life-style and this car has plenty of style! The Territory will be in territory near you in 2004. Stephen Walker  Click here to see the Territory on Fraser Island, Queensland. | ||