Ford Everest 2016 Review

Ford Everest Ambiente
Road Test

Even at entry-level, Ford’s Everest SUV, compared with its opposition, is expensive. At $54,990 (plus on-road costs) the Ambiente-spec Everest costs $7000 more than two of its main rivals. Does the fact it’s the biggest and arguably most refined of the new breed of ute-based SUVs justify the pricing?

It might be based on the Ranger LCV, but Ford’s new Everest seven-seat SUV is a lot more than merely a civilised truck. For starters, it not only looks more compact than the Ranger. To a surprising degree, it actually is.

With more than half a metre (534mm) lopped off the Ranger ute’s overall body length, and a 370mm shorter wheelbase, the Everest unquestionably looks a less dominating presence on the road than its workhorse sibling.

But although this pays dividends in the Everest’s on-road handiness – including important factors such as the reasonable 11.7-metre turning circle – you’d never say it feels tight inside as a result.

Legroom – right through to the third-row seat – leans towards generous, there’s heaps of headroom, it’s reasonably broad-shouldered (although slightly less than Holden’s Colorado 7) and offers better total loading capacity than the Colorado, Toyota’s Fortuner or Mitsubishi’s five-seats-only Pajero Sport.

Dimensionally, Ford has struck a good balance with the Everest: It is capable of comfortably packing-in an extended family, yet doesn’t feel intimidating from the driver’s seat – once you are up there.

Although the Everest is close to the soon-to-be-shelved Ford Territory in most measurements, it stands appreciably taller (by 123mm) which makes it more of an effort to climb aboard. And, being not quite as wide (38mm less than the Territory) this tends to give it a lofty, slightly narrow-gutted look too.

Despite its proportions, the Everest fits neatly into the ute-based SUV class. It’s neither more nor less imposing than its aforementioned peers.

For this test, which took in a family summer holiday on Victoria’s west coast, we used a base Ambiente version that would enable us to ascertain whether or not an entry-level Everest buyer is likely to feel short-changed. Certainly in view of the price differential between the $54,990 Ambiente and the $76,990 Titanium model there was some expectation that might be the case.

But in the end we thought Ford isn’t offering a bad deal here. This is despite the fact that even at this level the Everest still significantly exceeds – by $7000 in the case of Toyota and Holden, and by almost $10,000 with the Mitsubishi – its main competitors.

It basically all comes down to the new-tech gear: The Ambiente Everest lacks things like forward collision warning, lane-departure warning, driver fatigue warning, blind-spot sensor, rear cross-traffic alert, keep-your-distance cruise control and the auto parking that are standard further up the ladder, but it does get the safety basics.

The Ambient comes with seven airbags (including a driver’s knee bag and full cabin-length head airbags) stability and traction control, hill-descent and ascent control and a rearview camera, while cruise control, active noise cancellation, Bluetooth, Ford’s SYNC 2 voice command system, auto headlights and a full-size alloy spare wheel are also part of the deal.

There is, however, no climate-control, sunroof, heated and powered seats, power tailgate or sat-nav, but all the stuff you really need is there – including air-conditioned roof vents for the second and third-row seats.

In the bling-free interior, occupants don’t get any downmarket feelings (as you’d hope not, in a $55,000 vehicle) and the cloth seats are adequately supportive and large enough, even in the third row where adult passengers are not entirely ruled out.

Third-row access is pretty easy too, as the centre row seats slide forward and the backrests flip to minimise clambering. Dropping the centre and third-row seats is equally as easy and opens up a huge 2010-litre load area where a fully intact mountain bike can be casually slipped on board (our holiday cargo included two mountain bikes as well as the usual array of gear for three adults and a child).

On the open road, the Everest is a quiet, smooth companion. The 143kW/470Nm 3.2-litre inline five-cylinder turbo-diesel, with the help of an intuitive, smooth-shifting six-speed auto transmission, hauls the Ambient’s not-inconsiderable 2495kg easily and relatively quietly, providing ample thrust in all driving conditions. But while engine noise disappears into the background on the freeway, it does become more noticeable at lower speeds where some muted diesel roar is evident.

The ride is well damped too, pretty good for a short-wheelbase rework of a ute. Although there is some abruptness to the way it deals with rough, choppy surfaces, initial impact is absorbed through the all-coil suspension well enough. But once the travel starts being used up its heavy-duty nature tends to show through. When you consider the Everest is rated to pull up to three tonnes of braked trailer (an ability it shares with the Holden Colorado 7, although both are slightly below the 3100kg rated Pajero Sport) it copes pretty well. Still, the ride is more LCV than SUV.

Where the Everest best disguises its origins is in the electric steering. At 3.4 turns lock to lock it’s pretty quick and light, and is way better than dealing with the wheel-twirling traditionally required of a large LCV, where unexpectedly large handfuls of lock are often required to execute the simplest manoeuvre.

But height-only wheel adjustment? That is surely something of an oversight.

On our extended test the Everest averaged 10.6L/100km which we considered acceptable for the circumstances – it was pretty well loaded-up most of the time – although a lot of the kilometres covered were on quiet country roads. Matching the official 8.5L/100km would be a bit of a challenge.

At around 55-grand for the entry level model, the Ford Everest is not your cheapest SUV. But it is unquestionably refined, spacious, capable and safe. It's certainly one of the better ute-based SUVs presently on offer.

2016 Ford Everest Ambiente pricing and specifications:
Price: $54,990 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 3.2-litre five-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 143kW/470Nm
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Fuel: 8.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 224g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP

Also consider:
>> Toyota Fortuner (from $47,990 plus ORCs)
>> Holden Colorado 7  (from $47,990 plus ORCs)
>> Mitsubishi Pajero Sport (from $45,000 plus ORCs)

>> 2016 Offroad SUV Comparison Test (Ford Everest v Holden Colorado 7 v Isuzu MU-X v Jeep Wrangler Unlimited v Mitsubishi Pajero Sport v Toyota Fortuner)