Ford’s New Year Bash

Traditionally, January is a slow month for our beat. This is the time of year when our motoring editor will normally call us up and ask us to count how many yellow cars we passed on the way to work and then write a thousand words about it. Or conduct the annual windscreen washer fluid comparo. Or give a first hand account on how automotive paint actually dries. So you can imagine my shock when he called me fresh from my vacation and asked me to meet him at the SM Mall of Asia to discuss the biggest launch of the year.

Amazingly enough, he wasn’t kidding. While most journalists are still working on their tan, and manufacturers are barricading themselves in boardrooms planning strategies, model line ups and dodging the phone calls of every advertising account executive in the country, Ford chose to start the New Year with a bang by launching not just one, but five all-new models!

Let’s see, there’s the Everest, the Escape, the Eddie Bauer Explorer, the Eddie Bauer Expedition and the newly-appointed president of Ford Group Philippines, Richard Baker. It’s like they skipped all the watusi and whistle bombs and went straight for the Pyro-Olympic-winning grand finale explosion. All in one hit. Happy New Year!

I’m yet to attend the event, which happens later on tonight at the Philippine Plaza, but of all the new models about to be launched, I’m most excited about the Everest. No offense, Mr. Baker. I know you’re a nice guy, especially after meeting you at the Indonesian Motor Show last year, but I’m in the market for a 7-seater, so it is nothing personal — it’s just a matter of timing. And those three kids that don’t fit in my car.

I’ve driven the new Ranger, see, and I now know what they mean when they say, "power corrupts". It has an incredible engine, rugged good looks and class-leading fuel economy, but all I could think about during my test drive was what it would be like when they build the new Everest up on this thing. It would take the edge off that firm, pick-up ride, that comes when you have no load in the back, but still have the grunt of Mt. Pinatubo simmering away under the hood. Plus it would seat seven.

Launched in Thailand late last year, the Everest is now into its second generation. While Mitsubishi can claim credit for inventing the segment after building the Montero Sport up from the Strada, it is Ford that popularized it by offering the third row and giving buyers a genuine SUV, with a genuine and capable 4X4 option, at an AUV price. The Fortuner followed and then the Alterra, and the rest, as they say, is history. No other vehicle has changed the landscape of upscale family motoring this millennium quite like these 7-seater, pick-up based SUVs. And Ford can always claim they were first.

But towards the end of its life cycle, the Everest had its own mountain to climb. The Fortuner proved to be a real hit and built up a longer waiting time than a US visa. Sure, you could argue that the Everest had a few good years all on its own, but Ford doesn’t measure its success by how many cars they sold yesterday; this is a company that can boast the most comprehensive line up of SUVs in the country, and they knew they had to come out with something radical to be able to keep up with the competition they can arguably say they created. And it has.

The all-new Everest features an industry-first side airbag system, a 5-speed automatic transmission that was pulled straight out of the new Explorer to be able to cope with the substantial jump in torque; three rows of seating, available with leather trim and aircon vents for each row; a six speaker MP3 capable audio system with CD changer and automatic level control, plus a fantastic common rail diesel engine that can run happily on up to 5 percent coco biodiesel, which is a very timely feature considering that it comes just as the new bio-fuel act gets passed into law and gets implemented.

Interestingly enough, for the first time in Everest history, Ford will offer two engine variants. There’s that yummy 3.0-liter DuraTORQ TDCi diesel version with the 5 speed Auto that is available only on the top-of-the-line 4X4, or the entry level 4X2 version that uses an all-new, DuraTORQ TDCi 2.5 liter diesel engine with the added option of a manual tranny. Both have common rail technology.

But if you happen to have a better car plan than the one in my office and want more insulation from reality, then the all-new Explorer is just the ticket. It also has three rows, but there has been a lot of time and effort spent tuning it for a better ride. The frame has been isolated from the body by using natural and synthetic rubber cushions to help quietness, while the insulation material has been changed to state-of-the-art foam that cuts cabin noise dramatically. Even the climate control has been made 30 percent quieter.

I actually had a chance to drive the new Explorer last year in California and one thing I really noticed, among many things, was the improvement in ride and handling. The new models have an all-new frame, new front and rear independent suspensions and an improved brake system. Thanks to increases in section height and width, it is 63 percent more resistant to bending and 55 percent more resistant to twisting. I don’t know how exactly you even arrive at a figure like that, but whoever it was who lost sleep coming up with it needs an all-new life that is 72 percent more interesting. Bottom line is that it was comfortable.

There’s also new materials used for the seats, a 10-way power adjustment for the driver, and, according to Luie Dy Buncio, Ford’s VP for Sales & Marketing, all Philippine bound models roll off the line in Detroit with a brilliant new DVD system that could have you listening to the radio up front, while the second row is tuned into a movie with headphones, and the kids in the electronic, fold flat third row seats in the back are listening to their own CD. This may sound all very superficial, but if you’re a parent, you would even go as far as calling this an environmental feature. Ford may have finally answered that question every parent dreads: "Are we there yet?"

Unlike the Everest, however, the Explorer comes in with only one power-plant choice; the clean-burning, 210 horsepower, 4.0-liter V6 is said to deliver better fuel consumption than the model it replaces and gets the five-speed automatic that was also donated to the Everest. But where Ford really pulls its biggest coup yet is in safety.

SUVs have been getting a lot of flak worldwide for being unsafe. A bit harsh, perhaps, but not altogether undeserved. They are heavy, require more distance to stop in an emergency, and because of their higher center of gravity, SUVs are always going to be more prone to roll overs and handling issues. This is why Ford, in conjunction with Volvo, developed Advance TracC and Roll Stability Control, or RSC, that controls over steer and under steer as well as being able to anticipate an impending rollover and take the necessary measures to correct it. The RSC system uses a gyroscope to measure the vehicle’s angle and balance and has been tested and fitted successfully on the XC90 for years, and now finds its way into the new Explorer.

If you’re starting to get blown away by all this safety stuff, wait ’til you hear about the airbags. The front seats recognize five categories of passenger: none, child, small adult, medium adult and large adult. This information is part of the adaptive seat belts, and instructs dual-stage airbags how much cushion is needed (the passenger’s airbag has a fabric tether that can keep the airbag small when needed.) Airbags also incorporate adaptive venting to adjust the size and deflation of each airbag.

To think this is only half the story. — James Deakin

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The other half, of course, lies in the fact that there are another two new models that are set to grace Ford showrooms starting tomorrow. These are the aforementioned Escape and Eddie Bauer Expedition, of course. As Mr. Deakin has astutely pointed out, news of Ford’s upcoming launch (it happens tonight) was so huge that we’d requested our friends from Ford Group Philippines to actually sit with us to discuss and rationalize the entire exercise for us. And, yes, through the course of our meeting at the Mall of Asia, I had decided that the story was so huge that we needed two writers to actually cover all the grounds — hence the Deakin-Magsajo connection.

So what is there to expect from the two other new vehicle offerings of the giant American carmaker? Well, the Ford Escape storms into the local market with a completely new powerplant — the DOHC 2.3-liter variable valve timing system (VVTi) Duratec engine, which promises some zippy driving experiences for the young and young-at-heart. Ford doffs this mini-SUV off with goodies that include an Electronic Throttle Control (ETC), front and rear disc brakes, an immobilizer system, Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA), dual airbags (driver and front passenger), and those delightfully helpful three point reverse parking sensors. As the Escape comes in two variants (the 2.3L XLS 4x2 AT and 2.3L 4x4 XLT AT models), a few extras come with the built-for-boasting higher end model. These include Control Trac II 4WD system, leather seats and an in-dash six-CD player with MP3-playing capability.

But as Tonette Lee, Ford’s AVP for ASEAN brands stressed over and over during our meeting, it’s really the Escape’s new engine that should spell the difference for the now frugal-minded Pinoy SUV buyer. "Because of the new Escape’s VVTi engine, I expect it to do well in terms of providing power and performance — with even better fuel efficiency numbers. Its drive by wire technology also dictates fuel feeding on an efficient level. I think that fuel consumption is just as much an issue of driving style as equipment — with drive-by-wire, the driving habit element is eliminated or substantially reduced, resulting in better fuel efficiency management," she says.

The spanking brand new Ford Expedition, on the other hand, practically spits at convention to once again bring that "I-could-care-less-if-you-find-me-intimidating" attitude out onto Philippine roads. Built with full-size SUV buyers in mind, it delivers no-compromise capability and toughness with interior flexibility and luxurious refinement. Aside from its outstanding presence and intuitive handling, you can easily muster all the power you require with its macho as hell 5.4L SOHC Triton 24V V8 engine and 6-speed automatic transmission with overdrive.

The Expedition’s intimidating engine delivers some exciting capabilities to the Expedition driver and is helped by other goodies like Variable Camshaft Timing (VCT), Charge Motion Control Valves (CMCV), Electronic Throttle Control (ETC) and a Fail-Safe cooling system. Safety features include an Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist (BA), Advance Trac with Roll Stability Control (RSC), 4WD Control Trac System (Electronic Shift-on-the-fly) drive configuration, four-wheel disc brakes, dual stage driver and passenger front airbags, a Safety Canopy with side curtain airbags, side thorax airbags, Securilock® / passive anti-theft system and a four point reverse sensor system. Speed sensitive variable assist power steering system, rack and pinion type with power steering then provide superb control from behind the wheel.

We’d blabber on about each vehicles’ kilometric specs were it not futile — at least for those of you whose appetites we’ve already whet enough — because here’s the bottom line. As I told both Dy Buncio and Lee in our meeting, the unconventional quadruple launch they’re staging today may have its pros and cons — but the single, most compelling and far-reaching effect is that Ford vehicle shoppers will have their hands full. They’ll be happily sifting through showrooms full of all-new vehicles starting tomorrow. What a New Year’s blast that’ll be… — Dong Magsajo