In a ride-and-drive media event held last week from the Ford showroom in Fort Bonifacio Global City to Clark in Pampanga and on to Baguio, Ford unveiled its new Everest, now sporting a new look and an array of contemporary features that give the 7-seat SUV fresh appeal to go with its “ built Ford tough” street cred.

The new Everest’s new design elements are led by a front design with a classy multi-bar chrome grille and chrome-accented lower grille that combines with sleek, wraparound headlamps and big 18-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels wrapped by wide 255/60R-18 tires for that upscale, sporty look.

“More than ever, Ford Everest is the SUV that brings everything together in one great package,” said Masaki Makihara, Everest chief platform engineer.

“It’s powerful, with the best torque in its segment. It’s smooth, with its 5-speed automatic transmission. It’s versatile, with outstanding space for people and cargo. And it’s safe – the only SUV in its class offering both dual front and side air bags,” Makihara added.

The Thailand-made new Everest, available in XLT and top-of-the-range Limited models with 4×2 or 4×4 drivetrains, is powered by Ford’s DuraTorq TDCi common-rail diesel engine family.

The engines are mated to a sophisticated 5-speed manual transmission with a dual-mass flywheel and triple-cone synchronizers or a state-of-the-art 5-speed automatic, which offers electronic shift-on-the-fly and a rugged Borg-Warner transfer case when fitted in the new Everest 4×4.

“The name Everest lives boldly within the soul of the vehicle, not just on a badge, and that says a lot about its character and the pride Everest customers have in their vehicle,” said Scott Ferrier, design manager, Asia Pacific and Africa, Ford Motor Company.

“Our design objective was to complement the robustness and inherent strengths of Everest,” Ferrier said. “We believe that these details really fit well with the strength and solidity of the bodywork and give the new Everest an even stronger aspirational appeal,” he added.

A new Ford styling trademark first seen in the Escape compact SUV and also in the recently launched Ranger pickup – and now in the Everest as well – is a distinctive grille at the front fenders’ trailing edge. The small grille is housed in a matte silver housing with an underlying black meshwork adding visual depth. The “Everest” model name in shiny chrome is integrated within the grille.

Another detail is the Everest’s built-in side step, crafted of extruded aluminum with top grooves for a secure foothold and visual style. The sidestep is mounted along the lower sill, visually uniting the two wheel arches. Its ends feature contrasting, titanium-colored caps, one of many facets of the Ford design team’s attention to detail.

The Everest’s chrome-and-matte black side mirrors incorporate signal lamps and, on Limited models, a puddle lamp which illuminates the ground around the door of the vehicle.

The rear end of the Everest might seem more familiar but nonetheless sports new taillamps, tailgate-mounted spare tire cover, and rear bumper. The taillamps, which feature a clear lens and a glossy black housing, mirrors the height of the adjoining side and rear glass surfaces to create a visually solid ribbon of glass running around the vehicle above its belt line.

The new 3-piece body-color rear bumper incorporates reflectors and reversing lamps while colored cladding on the lower sill of the tailgate gives it a matching contour with the bumper for design coherence.

Pricing for the new Everest starts at P1.33M for the 4×2 2.5 M/T, goes up to P1.385M for the 4×2 2.5 A/T, P1.47M for the 4×2 LTD 2.5 A/T, and tops out at P1.695M for the 4×4 LTD 3.0 A/T.

“The Everest has consistently been a top seller among the local Ford vehicles, and is the vehicle of choice for ready-for-action families whose schedules are filled with fun and exciting activities,” said Ford Group Philippines president, Rick Baker.

“In 2008, nearly 2,200 Ford Everest units were sold, making it the second best-ever annual sales for the SUV. In the previous year, it was named Best Executive SUV during the annual Car of the Year Awards,” Baker added.

Under the Everest’s hood are either of two 16-valve common-rail TDCi motors: a 2.5-liter Duratorq TDCi engine, rated at 143 ps with a peak torque of 330 Nm; and a 3-liter Duratorq TDCi with 165 ps and a class-leading 380 Nm of torque at a very accessible 1,800 rpm.

Ford claims that the 3-liter model is capable of 0-to-100-kph acceleration in 14.3 seconds, with the 2.5-liter variant doing it in 14.6 seconds. Truth be told, it felt much quicker than that on our bursts of standing start and gear-to-gear (i.e. overtaking) acceleration runs on our northbound drive.

I wasn’t able to join the drive all the way to Baguio, but for fuel economy figures, Ford claims that the 2.5-liter Everest consumes 8.8 liters per 100 kilometers for an effective range of 678 kilometers per tankful. The 3-liter Everest 4×4, on the other hand, consumes 9.2 liters per 100 kilometers for a 644-km range.

I did drive on a 4-km stretch of lahar road which crossed the dike with running waters from the river. The lahar road was treacherously soft and had deep, water-logged potholes. The route also had a steep incline which necessitated a switch to 4×4 Low. Needless to say, none of the Everests bogged down or even had any difficulty managing the slippery path.

The Everest confidently demonstrated its superior ground clearance and river-fording capability. Its 32-degree approach angle and 26-degree departure angle were specifically designed for optimal off-road clearance.

The SUVs torque-sensing limited slip differential that apportions torque between the left and right drive wheels to maintain optimum torque balance also did its job. Riding comfort, while certainly not luxury car-like, was reasonably supple even on the broken surfaces of the lahar road.

Inside, the 2009 Ford Everest surrounds its occupants with car-like comfort and luxury while providing true 7-seater SUV functionality. The new Everest features ergonomically designed seats with a choice of leather or cloth seating surfaces. The second-row seats feature Ford’s Synchronic one-touch flip-fold system, which allows the seat back to fold forward and flat.

The third-row seat can flip forward to provide a generous rear storage area with impressive capacity of 1,433 liters, or removed completely to provide even more load length. The Everest also features a tiered theatre-like floor that gives occupants of all three rows excellent forward visibility.

Its RDS-capable audio system with CD and MP3 capabilities and new AUX input jack in the center console allows occupants to connect iPods and other MP3 players into the audio system.

GPS-enabled (optional feature) Everests also offer a navigation system with a large, 5-inch color display in the center console. There’s also an available DVD/CD/MP3 player with headrest-mounted screens to entertain second- and third-row occupants. There is even a handy instrument panel pull-out tray with a 10-kg load capacity that can accommodate a lunch tray or a laptop.

In the area of safety, the new Everest is the only vehicle in its segment to offer dual-stage front airbags for driver and passenger. It also has optional side air bags for the driver and front-seat passenger designed to protect the head and thorax in the event of a side impact.

Active safety features standard on all models include ABS, electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), and G-Sensor. The Everest also incorporates a Passive Anti-Theft System (PATS) for improved vehicle security. A uniquely coded computer chip is embedded on the ignition key to ensure the vehicle will not start without the correct key. PATS works in tandem with a perimeter alarm. Reverse parking sensors are also standard in the Everest Limited models.

The new Everest comes in Desert Bronze, Winning Blue, Cool White, Highlight Silver, Titanium Grey and Black Mica.

By Manny N. De Los Reyes , Philippine Star

Related posts:

1. Ford Lays Off 30 Executives In Philippines
2. Ford Philippines Post Higher Sales in 2008
3. Ford Philippines Says Layoff Options Open
4. Flat Philippine Sales for Full-Size Ford Vehicles Expected
5. Ford Philippines Asks Government to Relax Rules on Export Credits