AFF Technical Resources - Ford Territory Snares Drive Car Of The Decade Accolade

December 17 2010

The Drive motoring supplement in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald has ranked the Ford Territory and Fiesta among its Cars of the Decade.

Drive journalists Richard Blackburn and Jez Spinks chose the Territory among their Cars of the Decade choices because of its appeal to family buyers.

Spinks described the Territory as a milestone for Australia's automotive industry.

"The Ford Territory was the first soft-roader in Australia to be available in two-wheel-drive as well as four-wheel-drive – a now-popular trend that some brands are only just starting to follow," he said.

Describing the Territory as a vehicle that set a standard for ride and handling, Spinks said the SUV was a great example of maximising platform-sharing opportunities. The Territory shares much of its underpinnings with the Falcon.

Richard Blackburn commented on Territory: "For family buyers, it hit the sweet spot between people-mover, traditional Aussie sedan and soft-roader."

The Ford Fiesta ECOnetic was also ranked highly by journalist Peter McKay for its driveability and economy, describing it as "the best-executed, affordable exemplar of the direction car engineering is taking".

McKay said the ECOnetic's 1.6-litre turbo-diesel engine, which has a fuel consumption figure of just 3.7 litres per 100km* and has an official CO2 emission rating of only 98 grams per kilometre, was "gob-smackingly brilliant".

* Figures obtained from controlled tests conducted to Australian Design Rule 81/02 (combined cycle)