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12/03/2011
By EWAN KENNEDY
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Arguably it’s running about five years late, but Ford Territory is about to get a diesel engine. The delay has been due to the fact that Americans don’t like diesels in passenger vehicles and was exacerbated by the GFC that cut research budgets at about the time Australian Ford had finally got the message to head office in Detroit that a diesel downunder would be a good thing.
Just in time for the movie Made in Dagenham - about industrial relations and set in an English Ford factory - comes a turbo-diesel engine that’s made in Dagenham. The engine has been around for several years in a variety of formats, some with twin turbos. It’s used in Land Rovers and Jaguars as well as in Citroens and Peugeots, so is a well proven unit.
In its Territory iteration, the 2.7-litre V6 diesel runs a single turbocharger that has variable geometry turbines and the latest in high-pressure injection with comprehensive electronic controls. Maximum power is 140 kilowatts, with torque of 440 Newton metres being produced between 1900 and 2500 revs. The start of that torque plateau, at 1900 rpm, isn’t as low as that of many turbo-diesels these days, but the large capacity of the Ford engine means it should have plenty of grunt.
The use of compacted graphite iron (CGI) as the material for the engine has kept weight down, resulting in a turbo-diesel that weighs the same as the, albeit larger, 4.0-litre petrol Falcon engine that continues to be used in the Territory.
The latter engine has been revised to bring it up to much the same specifications as used in the new FG Falcon. When running on standard 91 octane unleaded its power peak is now 195 kW, with torque reaching 391 Nm at only 3250 rpm. If you use super 95 octane these figures increase to 198 kW and 409 Nm so keen drivers may well choose the better fuel.
All Territory engines are now mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. The petrol engine is the only one offered in the rear-wheel drive versions of the vehicle.
Towing capacity of Territorys fitted with the diesel engine has been raised to 2.7 tonnes, that of the petrol unit remains at 2.3 tonnes.
While engineering the Territory for the new diesel engine it made sense for Ford Australia to have a good look at the rest of the vehicle as well. This has resulted in many changes to refinement in the form of reduced interior noise and vibration. As well as alterations to the suspension and steering.
Ford tells us it has done interior measurements on its new Territory and it’s now quieter than the previously best vehicle in this class, the Land Rover Discovery.
We have yet to drive a Ford Territory diesel, or the revamped petrol for that matter. All our information to date has been based on extensive technical presentations by Ford engineering staff. Our first on-road review will take place in April and we will bring reports to you as soon as we have driven it. |
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