The first Spy Shots of the Ford Territory, a not-so
new small SUV based on the Yusheng S330, a cheap SUV made by Ford’s joint
venture partner Jiangling Motors Corporation (JMC). They did not change the overall
design, at all. The did make some cosmetic changes to the front an rear: new
grille, new bumpers, and new lights. It seems that even the bonnet was left
unchanged.
The Jiangling-Ford joint venture makes various
variants of the Transit van, the Ford Everest SUV, and now the Territory. With declining sales in the big
cities, Ford was in dire need of an affordable car to sell to China’s
hinterlands. But there was a problem: they didn’t have anything like that in
the pipeline. Their joint venture partner had just the kind of
sweet compact SUV that Ford needed, so they grabbed it by the grille.
It is at the back that you can best see the
similarities with the Yusheng S330. The roof line is totally unchanged, the
design around the C-D pillar is exactly the same, and Ford even kept the roof
spoiler, and the alloys. But strangely; they ditched the roof rails. Ford got a bit more creative
inside. There is a new center tunnel, a new center stack, and a new touch
screen. But other things are the same; like the door panels, and the position
of the air vents.
Ford has not announced anything on engines yet, but
we bet the Territory will use the same engine as the Yusheng S330: a 1.5 turbo
with 163 hp. There will be a hybrid too, at some point in the future, also based
on JMC’s technology.
The not-so new Ford Territory will debut on the
Chengdu Auto Show in September.
