Ford Everest Active 2026 Review

With the 2026 Ford Everest now offering 4X4 models only, the $60,000 drive-away price for the Everest Active with the 2.0-litre diesel represents pretty good value. It’s only about $500 more than its bi-turbo counterpart from the pre-upgrade Everest range, but that earlier price didn’t include the on-road costs.

The pricing for the rest of the Everest range runs from $66,990 for the Everest Active V6 to $83,490 for the flagship variant, the Everest Platinum – also powered by the V6 engine.

The Everest Sport costs $68,990 for the four-cylinder, $76,990 for the V6, meaning the premium buyers will pay for the V6 is $8000.

Everest Tremor and the Wildtrak are priced the same, $79,990, offering a bit more ruggedness for adventurous buyers who don't mind spending more.

The Ford Everest Active we're testing here rides on 18-inch alloy wheels and features LED headlights and roof rails as standard.

Inside, the steering wheel is adjustable for rake and reach, the seat upholstery is ‘leather accented’ and there are 12V power outlets in the centre console and rear cargo compartment.

Climate control and electric windows/mirrors are standard. In its default form, the Everest Active accommodates five, but a seven-seat/third row option is also available.

For infotainment, the Everest Active offers a 12-inch vertically-aligned colour touchscreen, an eight-speaker audio system with digital radio, Bluetooth, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, Ford SYNC4A with voice control, remote controls on the steering wheel and integrated GPS satellite navigation. Always handy when the phone signal wanes.

Safety features include blind spot monitoring, cross traffic alert, lane keeping assist, driver fatigue detection, post-impact braking, autonomous emergency braking/intersection assist, front and rear parking sensors and 360-degree camera system.

Traffic sign recognition and tyre pressure monitoring are in there, and the Ford Everest Active features electronic stability control, brake-force distribution, brake assist, hill start assist, load adaptive control, roll over mitigation, traction control and trailer sway control. Lots of safety, no doubt about it.

The Ford Everest Active was sampled with both engines, the new 2.0-litre single-turbo four-cylinder diesel (125kW/405Nm) and the 3.0-litre diesel V6 (184kW/600Nm).

Both engines were bolted up to a 10-speed automatic transmission, which is now standard across the range. The four-cylinder Everest runs a part-time four-wheel drive system, whereas the V6 is a full-time four-wheel drive.

Combined-cycle fuel consumption (ADR 81/02) is claimed as 7.1L/100km for the four-cylinder variant or 8.5L/100km for the V6.

To put it simply, all the virtues of the 2026 Ford Everest Active make for a much longer list than all the shortcomings. It's a solid 4x4 SUV.

It’s an attractively-styled, practical family hauler that is just about the ideal size, shape and dynamic capability for combining urban family transport and off-road recreational activities.

At open-road speeds, the four-cylinder Everest was impressively quiet and free from engine-related noise. Road and tyre noise was suppressed to an impressive degree as well.

At a steady speed of 100km/h, the 2.0-litre Everest offers the potential for real-world fuel consumption as low as around 7.0L/100km, and the best my co-driver and I could manage was 8.1L/100km after a couple of ‘WDs’ (wrong directions) while distracted.

That figure was still commendable from a vehicle as big and bluff as the Everest.

The 10-speed automatic, which is now standard across the range, optimises the available torque in a smoothly efficient way. It feels like a great fit for both the diesel engines sampled.

Four-cylinder models get a direct mechanical shifter, whereas the V6 has an electronic unit, which is a mixed bag for ergonomics. Drivers must squeeze the button at the leading edge of the shifter head to unlock the transmission and move it from Park to Drive or Reverse.

There are sequential-shift buttons on the side and a third button for manual selection. It’s not immediately easy to use, but owners will probably adjust to it pretty quickly.

The ride/handling balance in the case of the Everest skews more towards comfort than handling, but its passive dynamics would be near the top of the class for offroading SUVs, if not at the very summit. 

From the perspective of someone who fondly remembers the locally-manufactured Ford Territory and the first-generation Everest (with 3.2-litre engine), I can say that the upgraded Everest has found a sweet spot somewhere between its two forebears for dynamics and comfort.

And that’s no small feat, because as capable as the Territory was on the road, it could never hope to match the latest Everest in the bush.

Over a stretch of irregular sealed road surface at the heavily-guarded You Yangs proving ground, the Everest struck the right balance for damping, never pitching the passengers to and fro, but without a flaccid, underdamped quality in conflict with the Everest’s dynamic potential.

On Ford’s bush-bashing track at the You Yangs, the Everest shrugged off moguls, rocks, deep ruts and steep grades, thanks to all the off-road tech in the world, including hill descent control that actually works well. The one-inch lift kit of the Everest Tremor driven over that section was also very handy.

One smoother section of loose surface had many of the hallmarks of an autocross track. Driven with reasonable determination, the Everest handled neatly, offering a touch of trailing throttle oversteer into faster bends.

The brakes are strong – as one would hope in a vehicle tasked with towing up to 3.5 tonnes – and it will take new drivers a little while to find the right finesse and adjust to the sensitivity of the decelerator pedal.

Inside, the seats are comfortable and supportive, and the combination of digital dash and an infotainment screen in a large, portrait format provided all the information necessary for driver and front-seat passenger alike.

Rear-seat passengers benefit from overhead vents with their own separate fan-speed controller, and a USB-A charge port below the dial for the fan speed, in the rear of the centre console. Overhead vents don’t necessarily work as well for heating as face-level vents, but they’re better than nothing.

There’s plenty of headroom and legroom in the second row for older kids and adults - this is a big vehicle.

The larger section of the split-fold seat drops down on the passenger side, which makes it easier for kids to access the third row from the footpath, but also requires more muscle to raise and lower the seat for entry from the safer side of the SUV.

The loss of the 2.0-litre four-cylinder bi-turbo diesel is offset by potential durability and long-term reliability gains from the single-turbo engine hijacked from the Ford Transit van and the Ranger ute for its new application in the 2026 Ford Everest.

While the new engine lacks the ultimate performance of the bi-turbo engine it replaces – output lower by around 30kW and 100Nm – the new engine’s timing chain will ensure trouble-free motoring for years longer than the bi-turbo engine.

Most Everest owners trading up to the MY26.50 Everest Active won’t necessarily note the difference, unless they frequently exploited the power and torque available from the previous engine.

And for those customers, Ford dealers will happily sell them the same car with the 3.0-litre diesel V6, which is now available as a powertrain option for the Active trim level, the base grade in the Everest range.

While the competition has hotted up in the diesel 4x4 SUV category, the Ford Everest's biggest challenge could be the upcoming Mitsubishi Pajero, due in Australia late in 2026.

For breadth of competence and capability, the Ford Everest is impressive, to say the least. Whether it’s holding the wheel lightly at 130km/h on high-speed banking, or fighting it over rocks that pass for boulders on a nasty piece of track, the Everest is a ninety-percenter.

Even customers who aren’t dedicated weekend off-road enthusiasts could justify the purchase of the Everest if they need to transport seven – by specifying the third-row seat option – or need to tow a caravan or ski boat. Or all of the above.

That the 2.0-litre Everest uses as little as 7.0L/100km on the highway and under 10L/100km around town is a bonus, and the Ford’s overall refinement, sensible packaging and five-star ANCAP safety is just icing on the cake. The Everest has always been impressive but this is arguably the best iteration yet.

2026 Ford Everest Active at a glance:
Price: $60,000 (drive-away)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 125kW/405Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.1L/100km (2.0), 8.5L/100km (3.0) ADR Combined
CO2: 188g/km (2.0), 224g/km (3.0) ADR Combined
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2022)

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