Fuel-efficient Territory delayed by GFC

It's been a long-standing lament among Ford fans: where's the diesel Territory?

Holden literally doubled sales of its Captiva overnight, from the introduction of the diesel model in 2007, and R-Series diesel variants of Kia's Sorento and Hyundai's Santa Fe have attracted wide praise from the press and buyers.

But Ford has had no answer to these fast-selling rivals, and in the context of upward spiralling fuel prices prior to the global financial crisis, sales of the company's Territory SUV began to decline. Diesel engines are a way for Aussie buyers to enjoy the packaging flexibility that cars such as the Territory offer, without paying a penalty at the pump. Vehicle line director at Ford Australia for the Falcon and Territory, Russell Christophers, freely admits that diesel sales within SUV segments are growing rapidly.

"The primary reason for Territory's [market] share decline has been the increase in demand for diesel. Diesel in the segment now accounts for about 40 per cent of sales. My call is that by the end of the year, diesel demand will be around 50 per cent."

Ford was reportedly working on a diesel powerplant for the Territory long ago, but it's only now, with the imminent launch of the new SZ model that the mid-sized SUV will offer buyers that alternative to the inline six. Asked why it has taken Ford so long to bring the diesel Territory to market, Christophers responded that it fell victim to the changing global economic situation two years ago.

"We just didn't have enough engineering capacity..." said Christophers, who described the Territory upgrade as a "fall-out program", put aside as the Global Financial Crisis began to bite -- not only here but all around the world.

Now however, the diesel Territory is finally upon us. Promising combined-cycle fuel consumption of 8.2L/100km (the rear-wheel drive variants) or fuel consumption ranging from 8.8L/100km (AWD TX and TS) or 9.0L/100km for the AWD Titanium variant, the diesel is a 2.7-litre common-rail turbodiesel V6. According to Ford, the rear-wheel drive Territory diesel manages a range of up to 1154km, based on its 75-litre tank capacity.

Peak power of 140kW is delivered at 4000rpm and the engine cranks up at maximum torque between 1900 and 2500rpm.

Developed by Ford at the company's technical centre in Dagenham (in the UK) as part of a joint project with PSA Peugeot Citroen, the diesel V6 is powering a Ford-branded vehicle for the very first time in the Territory application. Unlike the same engine fitted to earlier models of Jaguar, the Territory's diesel features a single turbocharger with variable vane geometry.

"The package drives the [choice of the] single turbo and also the performance characteristics were ideally suited for what we were doing on Territory," explained David Mitchell, Ford Australia's Powertrain Development Manager. Between the need for fuel economy and the ability or otherwise to cram a potentially bulky V6 with a twin-turbo induction system into a vehicle originally designed for in-line engines alone, the single turbo powerplant turned out to be the only real choice.

One of the packaging constraints for the engine was the need to integrate the front differential with the sump of the engine, Ford's NVH team finding a way to turn a minus into a plus by isolating the engine and the differential from the vehicle's body.

Tested for hot-weather durability in central Australia, the diesel Territory was also subjected to cold-weather testing in North America, including prolonged stays in a 'cold box' reduced to -10 degrees.

Although the fuel economy for the diesel V6 is commendable in a vehicle weighing around two tonnes, the engine comes with 'run-dry protection', to ensure that if fuel is running low, the engine will eventually cut out before the high-pressure Continental piezo injectors are bled dry, potentially causing damage.

The diesel is mated to an American-built Ford 6R80 six-speed automatic transmission, which was jointly developed by Ford and ZF. Mitchell explained to the Carsales Network that the Territory's development team settled on the 6R80 rather than the ZF transmission already calibrated for the petrol Territory for reasons of cost efficiency.

"The ZF had a natural follow-on from the six-cylinder's previous transmission; when we went to do the diesel, I guess the options were there taking the Ford diesel engine and a matched Ford transmission and packaging that together for the new application. So it came about from putting together those off-the-shelf opportunities..."

For the Territory, the 6R80 transmission, which also used in Mustang and F-Series, has a longer bell housing to allow for the shorter length of the V6 diesel engine -- in contrast with the in-line petrol six.

In rear-wheel drive form, the Territory diesel drives through a 3.23:1 differential ratio, but the all-wheel drive model, with its active transfer case, uses a 3.46:1 ratio. The higher ratio diff (3.23:1) is also shared with the petrol Territory, which is only available in rear-wheel drive variants.

Changes to the petrol six are relatively few, although a new intake manifold, a fast-burn cylinder head and earlier spark timing have contributed a 1.5 per cent improvement in fuel efficiency and the engine's power and torque are raised slightly.

In combined-cycle ADR81/02 testing, the petrol Territory rates 10.6L/100km -- down from 12.0L/100km for the SY II (seven-seat) model. Over the course of the Territory's life, fuel consumption has dropped steadily from 13.1 for the SX model with four-speed BTR transmission to 12.2 for the SY model, then 11.6 for the five-seater SY II and now 10.6L/100km for the SZ model  with ZF six-speed. Total fuel consumption improvement since 2004, based on these figures, is 19.1 per cent.

Peak power (182kW in 2004) is up 7.1 per cent and torque (380Nm in 2004) has improved 2.9 per cent. The new output figures for the revised petrol six in the SZ model are 195kW and 391Nm, running 91 RON fuel.

The fuel efficiency of both petrol and diesel Territory models is also assisted by the introduction of EPAS, Electric Power Assisted Steering. Ford's Vehicle Dynamics Manager, Alex de Vlugt, claims that the new steering system (replacing the hydraulic system in previous models), delivers a number of benefits, a couple of which are quite sophisticated.

"It's no longer necessary to have a very direct trade-off between steering weight and feedback," de Vlugt explained.

The system, which varies assistance in accordance with road-speed, will be light enough in parking manoeuvres and communicative enough at speed. In addition, EPAS compensates for a mis-aligned front end -- for those in the habit of clouting kerbs. It learns from the driver's own steering input to adjust for alignment or the camber of the road, to use another example. This feature is named Drift/pull compensation and, along with 'Active Nibble Compensation', which counteracts vibration from tyres that are out of balance, eliminates some of the irritating aspects of driving.

EPAS is one of a number of changes to steering and suspension for the SZ Territory. The Dynamics team has tuned the suspension for reduced body roll (through heavier anti-roll bars and springs) and revised the front geometry for increased linear-range understeer at higher speeds. This effectively takes out 'nervousness' in the steering.

For the purposes of active safety, Ford engineers have specified Bosch's 9.0 stability control system, which allows the adoption of Roll-Over Mitigation in the Territory. The system is complemented by new brake pad materials that improve pedal feel and a self-adjusting park brake.

They all play their part in making the new Territory "great to drive", in de Vlugt's words.

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