We spent a few days acquainting ourselves with the Ford Everest Sport, our first experience of the nameplate, to bring you this review.
The Ford Everest is an SUV that is built on the same essential bones of the Ford Ranger bakkie. This large SUV features a ladder-on-frame construction similar to a Toyota Fortuner and Isuzu MU-X. The latest-gen Everest boasts the same, brutish front-end design of its pick-up sibling, with C-shaped DRLs and a massive central grille. If you are a fan of the Ranger’s styling, but aren’t keen on a bakkie, this is the way to go.
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Blacked Out
Our test unit was a Ford Everest Sport. Part of this trim is a blacked-out exterior treatment. The badges, grille and alloys were all in a dark contrasting hue out the light metallic shade of the body. Additionally, the windows were also covered in a light tint. It works really well and adds a level of menace to the already imposing demeanour of the large SUV.
The alloys of the Ford Everest Sport are 20-inch items, as standard. Uniquely, the optional wheel size for this derivative is smaller, at 18 inches. This option exists for those who want to venture off-road. More on this in a bit.
Car-Like Inside
The menacing outside appearance is somewhat at odds with the interior treatment of the Everest Sport. There is a massive high tech-looking tablet infotainment interface in the centre of the facia. There is another, configurable digital display ahead of the driver. The upholstery is leather and the front chairs are electrically adjusted. Front passengers have easy access to a wireless charging station and a USB-C port.
Middle row passengers have a USB-C and -A port as well as a plug point to a 400W inverter… handy. There is a third row of seats that takes total seating capacity up to seven. All passengers have little storage pockets around them. Although, we’d really like it if the front door pockets had a rubber or carpet floor. Thanks to the last row of seats rear luggage space is somewhat small, but not tiny. Although the rear chairs do fold down individually to create more space as/when needed.
All in all the interior of the Everest is a rather agreeable place to be. We had it on loan the same weekend we had friends in the Cape from out of town. They were both complimentary about the plush nature of the cabin, although it was a stretch to jump up into the rather high body of the Everest; not a problem that everyone will experience.
Diesel Power
Ford’s twin-turbo V6, as used in range-topping derivatives, steals all the headlines. Although this, turbodiesel, Everest Sport has an engine that is far easier on the pocket. The twin-turbo 2,0-litre diesel mill develops a decent 154 kW of power. Furthermore, there is a healthy 500 N.m of torque on tap. A 10-speed automatic transmission sends power to the ground via a selectable 4-wheel drive system.
Ten forward ratios may seem a stretch, but the wide spread of ratios does allow the engine to stay ‘on the boil’ at all times. We found that the torque converter unit is well suited to the rather short power band of the turbodiesel motor. The transmission generally responds well to throttle inputs. There is a rocker switch on the gearlever to choose your own ratios, but we used this only as a novelty not as a necessity. The healthy torque delivery really does make light work of moving the large vehicle.
We did not get the opportunity to venture off road with the Everest Sport. But with a full suite of off-road hardware (including low range), good approach/departure angles and the option of chunkier off-road tyres, we can see the Everest tackling pretty hefty off-road conditions. Oh, by the way, Ford claims that this derivative can return a fuel consumption figure of 7,5 litres/100 km. That is a tad optimistic. We managed 9,4 during our review period.
Firm, But Not Jarring
Most SUVs that have this type of body construction (ladder-on-frame as oppposed to unibody) tend to suffer from rather jiggly ride quality. This is a result of the body ‘shimmying’ on the chassis that it is mounted to. Somehow Ford has managed to dial out that sensation with the Everest. As a result is has among the best ride quality we have experienced in this type of vehicle. Kudos to their engineers on this front.
Summary
We gotta admit, it has been some time since we got our hands on a Ford product. The last, we recall, was a previous generation Mustang Convertible, and that was about five years ago. We don’t really cover commercial vehicles, so the Ranger range was not on our radar. Although, we wouldn’t mind trying out that latest Raptor. In recent years Ford has done away with the likes of the Figo, Fiesta and Focus. As a result, its only passenger vehicle on sale in SA (before the arrival of the Territory) was the Everest.
This is a pretty good sector to be represented in, considering buyer’s penchant towards SUVs. Not to mention the street-cred that comes with being closely related to the Ranger bakkie. There is also the small matter of the Everest’s main rival, the Toyota Fortuner, being a sales success for the Japanese brand. The Everest Sport is a darn good product, that has the measure of its main rivals. However… it is priced on the far side of a million rand. Having said that, ALL car prices in SA have escalated drastically over the last few years. Would we recommend it, yes, in a heartbeat, provided your budget stretches that far.
Model: Ford Everest Sport
Price: R1 029 000
Engine: 2,0-litre, four-cylinder twin-turbo diesel
Transmission: ten-speed automatic, AWD
Max power: 154 kW
Max torque: 500 N.m
0-100 km/h: n/a
Top speed: n/a
Consumption: 7,5L/100 km (claimed, 9,4 during review)