The Ford Territory is a mid-size crossover SUV built by Ford Australia that was introduced in April 2004 and produced until 7 October 2016. It was the only SUV built in Australia and Ford's first large three-row crossover SUV. It was originally based on the EA169 platform introduced by the EA Falcon and its internal project codename was E265. It won various automotive awards and was the first SUV to win the Australian title of Wheels Car of the Year in 2004, due to its acceptable handling and child carrying capacity.
Ford Australia reportedly spent A$500 million on developing this vehicle over a four-year period. Many Australian toolmakers were lauded for their cost competitiveness in keeping this cost so low, not as cheap as the Japanese, but much lower than Detroit-based cars. Apart from being the first and only Australian-made SUV, it was also the first local vehicle to feature electronic stability control.
Design
Both rear-wheel drive (RWD) and all-wheel drive (AWD) configurations were available for the Australian market. AWD models had an optional anti-lock braking system to control the car's motion downhill.
Reflecting its SUV design, seating capacity in the Territory was for either five (two rows) or seven (three rows) passengers, making it excellent for large families with children. All seating rows were arranged in a "theatre style", whereby the first row was the lowest and the last row was the highest. The middle and back rows folded flat into the floor to maximise cargo volume.
Ford introduced the Territory alongside the existing Falcon wagon, which was built on the same Broadmeadows Assembly Plant production line. Ford Australia senior executives had expected the Falcon wagon to be discontinued soon after the introduction of the Territory, surmising that Falcon wagon sales would substantially decline as fleet buyers migrated to the Territory. However, this did not happen because the Falcon wagon retained much of its fleet sales base and the Territory appealed mainly to large families. The production of the Falcon station wagon was terminated in September 2010. The Territory was never a serious replacement for it due to higher fuel consumption and increased weight.
Ford R7 concept
The Ford R7 was a concept SUV which was developed by Ford Australia under the auspices of the late Geoff Polites and was revealed at the 2002 Australian International Motor Show held in Melbourne. So great was the reception of the R7, that Ford fast tracked the development of the R7 into a full blown production model just two years later as the Ford Territory and it previewed the new front styling of the donor Ford Falcon (BA) range.
Model range
Between 2004 and 2016, the Territory had been manufactured adopting the same chassis and sold in a total of five series (SX, SY, SYII, SZ, and final SZ II). The launch of the FG series Falcon, however, resulted in the Territory undergoing a major redesign inside and out, and unlike the donor sedan, receiving a turbodiesel powerplant, citing high fuel consumption of the 6 cylinder engines due to the high curb weight.
SX:
The first series, known as the "SX", was produced between April 2004 and September 2005.
Appearance-wise, the Territory adopted styling cues from the North American Freestyle/Taurus X, which proved to be a defining factor for the support of Ford executives at the head office in Dearborn, Michigan. Simon Butterworth, who was behind the major restyling of the Falcon that resulted in the 2002 BA series, styled the Territory. Marcus Hotblack worked on the Territory's interior, inspired by a knife. As a result, the Territory had such convenient features as flexing cup holders and a handbag holder to the side of the seat for female drivers.
The SX Territory was the first Australian-built vehicle to be fitted with an electronic stability control system. In addition, Territory was the first SUV to have won the Australian Wheels Car of the Year award, in 2004.
Its platform was available in RWD or AWD, solely powered by the , 4.0-litre DOHC straight-six Barra petrol engine from the BA Falcon albeit slightly detuned via software, paired to a four-speed automatic gearbox. All models were renowned for very high fuel consumption, averaging between .
Model range
At launch, the SX range of models (and Australian retail prices) were: TX: base package (RWD: ; AWD: ); TS: family safety package (RWD: ; AWD: ); Ghia: luxury package (RWD: ; AWD: );.
An Alpine DVD entertainment system for rear passengers, with 10.2-inch screen and infrared headphones, was offered as standard or optional depending on the model variant.