Ford Everest 2018 Tow Test Review

Apart from a week in the hands of evergreen road tester Ken Gratton, there’s been less urban ‘kerb crunching’ and more rough ‘n tumble load lugging for motoring.com.au’s long-term Ford Everest — unlike many ‘proper’ 4WD SUVs on the road that rarely get used as their maker intended.

The consummate multi-tasker, the Ford Everest Trend has proven its worth in the rugged Victorian High Country, keeping pace with the ever-popular Toyota Prado.

Another area our Ford Everest has shone is its almost ute-like ability to carry a trailer-load of goods in its capacious boot, with the second and third row seats folded flat.

Packed high to the roof-lining on a garage waste clean-out run to the tip, I even managed to slot in an old queen-size mattress into the Everest, thus saving a few bucks in hiring a trailer and paying the extra tip disposal fees.

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Ticking the towing box

Of course, one of the best reasons for buying a Ford Everest is for towing, with its 3000kg tow rating on par with most of its rivals. As we discovered on two separate occasions after hitching up two-tonne-plus caravans, the Everest’s is a far more realistic and achievable rating than those optimistic 3500kg figures given to most dual-cab utes, while also allowing for a decent payload in the tow vehicle with the maximum weight trailer in tow (Gross Vehicle Mass for the 2407kg Everest Trend is 3100kg, with Gross Combined Mass at 5800kg).

Given the Ford Everest the important bits like engine/drivetrain and chassis with one of our favourite dual-cab ute towing platforms, the Ranger, we had high hopes for the large SUV, and it didn’t disappoint.

While it doesn’t quite accelerate like a V8 LandCruiser with a trailer behind, it’s not far off, and what the Everest lacks in outright output to some of its rivals it makes up for with a strong, creamy surge of low-down torque from the get-go. The transmission also does a great job of keeping the engine in its torque sweet-spot, with smooth, mostly responsive shifts.

Unlike some of its rivals, the Ford Everest happily sits at 100km/h revving around 1800rpm in top (sixth) gear, or around 1600rpm at 80 clicks. There’s rarely a need to rev much above 2000rpm, except when overtaking or maintaining speeds up steeper hills. Even then, it nonchalantly drops a gear or two without labouring or sounding raucous.

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Steady and stable

Dropping around 200kg on the tow ball saw no discernable dip in the Everest’s rear suspension, and we attributed the occasional minor sway out on the highway to a combination of an empty, unbalanced caravan, and incorrect hitch height set-up.

Most of the time it felt stable and composed, with the sheer bulk of the Everest Trend (2407kg) helping provide a good counter-weight to the 2300kg caravan behind.

While there’s no doubt it could handle three tonnes, 2500kg or less would allow a sensible safety margin including leaving enough grunt in reserve for hills and overtaking.

The transmission can also be manually shifted using the central gear lever, for some engine braking down steep hills. Other good towing attributes are the big side mirrors (sufficient for when towing a smaller teardrop camper); the excellent, adaptive reverse camera for solo hitching up manoeuvres, and the dealer-fitted optional brake controller (Redarc’s Tow Pro Elite) which was easy to access when driving.

However, it’s worth noting the holes for the D-shackles to connect the trailer’s safety chains to the factory tow bar are not very big, and won’t fit some of the larger D-shackles legally required for towing heavy trailers. If that’s going to be an issue, an after-market tow bar might work better.

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Any issues?

With close to 15,000km on the clock and a far from pampered life so far, the Everest has held up pretty well.

Some careless packing during the High Country trip left some unsightly scuffing along the plastic sides in the cargo area, and the same trip inflicted some bush ‘pin-stripes’ along the shiny, gun-metal-grey doors (a lighter duco colour would hide this better!)

The dark seat cloth trim has held up better, as has the carpeted rear cargo area, although we’ve been using towels to avoid any wet dog smells. The optional carpet floor mats are a wise purchase if you plan to spend any time in the muddy outdoors.

Despite the need for a step ladder to reach the roof sections, hand-washing the Everest proved a pleasurable chore, although I didn’t bother cleaning the mud-splattered engine bay; a legacy of chief road tester Matt Brogan’s ‘muddy puddles are fun’ mantra whenever he heads off-road!

Not previously a fan of powered tailgates, the Everest’s has come in handy when the hands have been full with dog leash, towels and other beach gear – although the poor pooch has needed a big run-up to get into the back, courtesy of the jacked-up ride height.

One hundred dollar-plus fill ups have been the norm with the Everest, but with the 80 litre tank slurping just over 10L/100km around town, that’s provided a decent 800km range. You can just about halve that when towing, depending on what’s behind (we averaged between 17 and 23L/100km depending on conditions and trailer weight).

While not a patch on the Prado’s long-range tank, the Everest’s standard 80 litre fuel tank is bigger than its Isuzu MU-X and Holden Trailblazer rivals.

Other than that, we twice experienced some technical ‘gremlins’ with the otherwise excellent infotainment system, where the screen went blank but the audio continued to play. Turning the engine off and on solved the problem.

Great all-rounder

The Everest is often criticised for being over-priced, but that’s unfair considering the overall package. It’s certainly the least truck-like of the ute-based SUVs, except perhaps the Pajero Sport which doesn’t tow as well as the Ford and is less comfortable off-road.

Even the mid-spec Everest Trend gets noise cancelling tech and a bunch of useful driver safety aids. The infotainment system including sat nav is one of the best of the ute-based SUV lot, and unlike some of its rivals, Ford hasn’t skimped on audio quality.

The bulk and increased road clearance that make it shine off-road and while towing are less ideal in city traffic, although the ride/handling compromise is more than acceptable given its range of capabilities.

Light steering and the reverse camera and parking sensors make it reasonably easy to park — despite being only 10cm shorter than a 200 Series LandCruiser.

In fact, the Ford is arguably a cheaper and slightly less capable alternative to Toyota’s iconic off-roader. Throw in some sharp drive-away deals at the moment, and the Everest Trend could even be viewed as a relative bargain…