Ford Territory compact SUV has been unveiled in China. Positioned above the Ford EcoSport in a segment above, the new compact SUV will compete against the likes of Hyundai Creta. The Creta has been much appreciated in India, something very evident in it topping the sales charts in the country. Ford Territory’s unveiling might just be good news for compact SUV segment in India. While the EcoSport has been a prodigy child beginning the sub-compact SUV trend in India, Hyundai Creta has pretty much been unfazed in the compact SUV category.
A lot of Ford Territory’s bodywork and design comes from a cross-badging job with JMC (Jiangling Motors Corporation) – Ford’s partner in China. The SUV is mostly an original JMC, except for the front end that has been tweaked to differentiate and add Ford flavour. The Ford Territory will go on sale in China early 2019.
The new SUV gets sleek LED headlamps, C-shaped DRLs (daytime running lights) and a blingy honeycomb grille up front. The flared wheel-arches and roof rails add to its SUV appeal. Ford Territory also borrows some features from the Ford EcoSport.
Ford Territory rides on 18-inch alloy wheels. On the inside, the new SUV has Ford’s infotainment system with intuitive Mandarin voice-command function, Co-Pilot360 suite of driver assistance technologies, along with adaptive cruise control and FordPass Connect with an embedded modem.
Ford offers the Territory with a 1.5-litre petrol engine for the Chinese market. It develops 161 bhp and 250 Nm of torque, and is paired with a 6-speed AMT. A mild-hybrid and plug-in hybrid version are expected to be offered as well.
Watch Ford EcoSport S video review below:
In India, Hyundai Creta has been quite a success story, especially with the ever large popularity of SUVs in the country. It has, in fact, been a bestseller in the compact SUV segment for long. And that may be reason enough for Ford to consider launching the Territory in India. Ford in truth started the sub-compact SUV trend in the country with the EcoSport, which drew immense popularity here, and hence a new mid-size SUV should receive a warm welcome in India.
