OCTOBER 11 - 17 | 2019
Ŷ GREAT GRILLES: Frontal look of the new Ford Endura is excellent.
Ford Endura Titanium By EWAN KENNEDY be off-road bruisers. Ford Endura has a towing capacity of up to 2000kg when brakes are fitted to the trailer or caravan. Trailer sway control makes life easier. STYLING A nice shape particularly at the front is dominated beautifully by one of the best grille shapes in the current Ford range. The sides have neat swage lines, but the side-rear area is rather generic and hard to pick from competitors’. There are some neat touches at the back, with a full width garnish below the window and trapezoidal exhaust covers. INTERIOR
The dash area is neat and tidy with good correlation between the instrument panel and the central display panel. We also appreciate the way the centre section works its way down to the console - and in particular the circular gear selector. Styling of the seats is good, even in the rear, and they tie in nicely with the door trims. INFOTAINMENT An 8.0-inch full-colour touchscreen showcases Ford's SYNC 3 system and provides Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone compatibility. DAB+ radio is part of the infotainment package and powers a nine-speaker audio system. We would like to see a larger screen, though in its favour the current one is easy to read.
ENGINES / TRANSMISSIONS Power comes from a four-cylinder 2.0-litre turbo-diesel that produces 140kW and 400Nm. It drives through an eight-speed torque-converter automatic to either the front or all four wheels. SAFETY The big Ford has a full suite of crash avoidance technology including autonomous emergency braking if an inattentive driver has not seen what’s happening in front of them. Occupant injury in a crash will be minimised by eight airbags including driver and front passenger knee bags.
Ŷ Continued page 2 E21d13123-V68/4119
AFTER a gap of too many years Ford Australia finally had an SUV to replace the very successful Ford Territory. The Ford Endura arrived late in 2018 but hasn’t created a lot of waves in the sales race at this stage. We anticipate this will change as potential buyers become aware that it's here. Ford Endura is very much set up for American drivers who tend to have different tastes to Aussie ones. (See the Driving section of this review to get our opinion after spending a week behind the wheel of an Endura Titanium.) Ford Endura is a five-seater and is offered in three specifications levels: Trend, ST-Line and flagship Titanium. As is pretty well the norm in this market segment in Australia they are wagons designed to provide comfort and refinement rather than to
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Dangerous counterfeit parts By EWAN KENNEDY THE Australian automotive industry is issuing an urgent alert on counterfeit parts after large batches of spark plugs purchased online have been confirmed as fake. Placing vehicles at great risk of major damage, 60 per cent of the hundreds of spark plugs purchased in trap buys are verified frauds, passing off low quality materials and inferior construction as genuine parts. The low-quality counterfeits could cost drivers thousands in engine repair costs. With poor ignition causing poor fuel economy and poor engine start up, the fake spark plugs’ low grade composition causes them to overheat quickly. Drivers will notice a major drop in engine power, particularly under heavy acceleration or load. If the fake spark plugs continue to overheat, they will melt and cause extreme engine damage. The trap purchases were undertaken by a coalition of automotive manufacturers, with the fakes packaged and marked with forged Honda, Nissan, Mazda and Toyota branding. The automotive industry is urging drivers to exercise extreme caution purchasing parts outside the dealer network. Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) chief executive Tony Weber said anyone purchasing parts outside the dealer network was at risk. “The best way to avoid a fake? Make certain your parts are purchased from the authorised dealer network,” Mr Weber said. “We have experts examining the packaging and spark plugs and even they can barely tell the difference. You won’t know it’s a fake, until it’s too late.” The automotive industry is working with relevant online trading platforms to remove listings and ban sellers of the illegal counterfeits from their sites. The discovery of the fraudulent parts
Ŷ FAKES: Spark plugs purchased online have been confirmed as fakes. adds spark plugs to the list of fakes encountered by FCAI initiative Genuine is Best. Other dangerous fakes include counterfeit oil filters that do not filter oil, wheels that shatter in low speed pothole impacts, brake components containing asbestos and in one case, brake pads made of compressed grass clippings. Genuine is Best offers a reporting hub for drivers, mechanics and any consumer who
believes they may have been sold a dodgy vehicle part. Reports can be made at https://genuineisbest.com.au/suspicious-part-report/. All reports are taken seriously and followed up by both the relevant vehicle maker and the Department of Home Affairs. The FCAI's Genuine is Best initiative focuses on the safety, performance and durability benefits delivered by genuine
replacement parts. Genuine parts are made or selected by the vehicle's maker and rigorously tested by that maker as an integral component of the vehicle to meet high quality, safety and performance standards. This ensures a vehicle will drive, function and protect in the way it was intended. Find out more at www.genuineisbest. com.au/.
Ford Endura Titanium
Ŷ From page 1 DRIVING There's good interior room for four adults, five without too much of a squeeze if those in the rear seat are on the slim side. The large sunroof that's standard on the test Titanium takes away a little headroom in the rear, but there are rivals which are less comfortable back there. Boot space is very good, with a capacity of 600 litres to the window line. This expands to a voluminous 1860 litres with the rear seats folded down and the cargo is loaded to the ceiling. However, it misses out on being fully flat behind the front seats - a real no-no for us
as Bailey, our standard poodle, doesn't like the way his bed slips back down the sloping load area. With its American origins the Endura is soft and comfortable on the road, it's an excellent long distance cruiser; it eats up the miles in the Aussie inland hour after hour without making anyone feel cramped. On mild non-sealed roads such as corrugated dirt, Endura remains pleasant to ride in. Handling is capable enough but it comes as no surprise this American SUV isn't intended to tackle enthusiastic driving on your favourite hillclimbs. Feel through the steering is pretty good, though most of the European competitors in this field do it better. Fuel consumption from the diesel is im-
pressively low, running in the five to seven litres per hundred kilometres range on motorways and gentle country roads. Around town it climbs to seven to ten litres per hundred. Keep in mind that diesel fuel in Australia is often charged at significantly more than petrol, sometimes as much as 20 per cent more. Sheer robbery…
port, family-sized Escape and the big, off-road capable Everest to provide for all Ford lovers in the SUV market.
PRICE Price ranges from the Endura Trend FWD at $44,990 through to the Endura Titanium AWD for $67,990, excluding government and dealer delivery charges.
MAX POWER: 140 kW @ 3400 rpm
SUMMING UP Ford Endura joins the urban Ford EcoS-
ECONOMY: 6.7 L/100km (combined)
AT A GLANCE MODEL: Endura Titanium ENGINE: 2.0 L four cylinder turbo diesel
MAX TORQUE: 400 Nm @ 2000 rpm DRIVELINE: Eight speed automatic FUEL TANK: 64 litres
3
October 11 - 17 | 2019
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Ŷ HIGH-TECH: The latest Astina hatch takes the lead in minimalist Mazda styling
Past, present and future reflected in new-generation Mazda THE name Astina might not be as old as the hills but the eponymous Mazda certainly goes back well into the past century; to 1963 in fact, when the small family car had its roots in the Familia. Progressing through the Mazda 323 and Protege to the sixth generation in 1989 when the new five-door fastback version was called the Familia Astina in Japan and was sold as the 323F or 323 Astina elsewhere. Thirty years later the Astina is still going strong as the top model of the Mazda3. The latest iteration, known as Next-Gen Mazda3, introduced to Australia in early this year in hatchback form, and joined by the sedan in May, presents a tantalising look into the future for the Japanese automobile manufacturer. From entry-level Pure G20 - $24,990, plus on-road costs - through Evolve, Touring to GT variants, the G25 Astina, the test vehicle, maintains its position at the top of the class. It sells for $37,990. Unique to the G25 Astina hatch are black finish 18-inch alloy wheels, 360 degree view monitor, adaptive LED headlights, cruising and traffic support, driver monitoring, front crosstraffic alert, front parking sensors, burgundy leather seats, smart brake support-rear crossing and sunroof. STYLING AS someone said: “Simplicity is the keynote of good design”, which could be straight out of the Next-Gen Mazda3 playbook. In keeping with Mazda’s Kodo philosophy, company creatives have forgone character lines and chrome, sticking with elegantly curved panels constantly changing how light is reflected from the moving car. The nose of Next-Gen Mazda3 hatch has been lowered from the previous model to create greater visual flow and emphasise the beauty of the vehicle’s proportions. Lights take on the ‘less is more’ in design and produce a simple ring-shaped lighting pattern for the headlamps. The wings are painted in a gloss black, the dark tone leaving the car like a broad shouldered, square-jawed comic book-style hero ready to do battle with the forces of automotive design evil. INTERIOR The minimalist approach extends to cabin design with a comfortable environment allowing the driver simply to get on with the job in comfort. A symmetrical horizontal layout of instruments and controls is minus unneces-
By DEREK OGDEN sary elements aimed at enhancing driving pleasure. The vertical steering wheel spoke is narrower than the two horizontal spokes, and the right and left instrument faces of the three-meter cluster are angled inward to face the driver and easier to read. While recognising climate control air-conditioning is easier to access if it is positioned high on the dashboard, designers recognised it should not be conspicuous. Here it is integrated into the instrument panel. INFOTAINMENT Next Gen Mazda3’s 7-inch, thin film transistor, liquid crystal display and easy-to-read gauges manages a variety of information, while the windscreen projected Active Driving Display gauges and centre display have all been redesigned. An 8.8-inch wide centre infotainment display is operated exclusively through the Commander Control on the centre console, the display reproducing the Commander Control, suggesting how best to use it. Mazda Connect has faster processing power, is more intuitive and adds Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. ENGINES / TRANSMISSIONS At present, there is a choice of two fourcylinder petrol engines, designated G20 and G25, mated with either a six-speed manual or automatic. The revolutionary Mazda SkyactivX engine will be here before the end of 2019. The 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine of the G25 Astina is a step up from the G20 motor of the cheaper models. With a high compression ratio of 13:1, performance of the 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine has been boosted from the previous generation to give a maximum power output of 139 kW at 6000 rpm and 252 Nm of torque at 4000 rpm. Like all Next-Gen automatics, the motor is mated with Mazda’s six-speed Skyactiv-Drive transmission. SAFETY Newly developed i-Activsense technologies debut on this Mazda3. These include driver monitoring, front cross traffic alert and cruising and traffic support, while existing systems have been further developed with the most advanced technologies available. Passive safety has been enhanced with a higher percentage of high-tensile steel em-
ployed for the body, plus Next-Gen Mazda3 is the first Mazda to add a driver’s knee airbag joining front, side and side curtain airbags as standard equipment. DRIVING Settling into classy burgundy leather seats puts occupants at ease, at the same time endowing them with something of a superior feeling. Responsibility for this is new seat design, which maintains the natural S-curve of the spine to achieve the ideal driving position. When the ignition is switched off, the driver’s seat slides back to allow easier exit and entry from the cabin, sliding back into the driver’s ideal position when the ignition is switched on. The range of the telescopic steering wheel has been increased, adding to the driver’s wellbeing. Rear occupants are not so lucky. Despite adequate head room for the average size person, the doors offer reduced height causing many adults to stoop dramatically to avoid bumping the noggin. The cabin is quiet, being isolated from external, wind, traffic and tyre noise by the latest NVH technology, leaving only desirable sounds such as conversation and audio to dominate the space. The 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine also goes about business with no annoying sounds emitted from under the bonnet. With Mazda’s stop / start engine technology and cylinder deactivation under light loads, fuel consumption on the combined urban / highway cycle is claimed by Mazda to be 6.6 litres per 100 kilometres.
The test vehicle hit the mark with 8.4 litres per 100 kilometres and 5.2 litres per 100 kilometres, respectively, under similar circumstances. Next-Gen Mazda3 debuts SkyactivVehicle architecture, which has improved stability and handling exhibited over a range of driving conditions during the test period. SUMMING UP The Mazda3 Astina hatchback, over the years, has developed from a cute unassuming runabout to the Next-Gen high-tech, small-car class leader in looks it is today. With this in mind, plus a long list of comfort and convenience features introducing the future of Mazda, the 40-grand or so price on road does not appear excessive.
AT A GLANCE MODEL LINE-UP MAZDA3 G20 PURE: $24,990 (manual), $25,990 (automatic) MAZDA3 G20 EVOLVE: $26,690 (manual), $27,690 (automatic) MAZDA3 G20 TOURING: $28,990 (manual), $29,990 (automatic) MAZDA3 G25 EVOLVE: $29,490 (manual), $30,490 (automatic) MAZDA3 G25 GT: $33,490 (manual), $34,490 (automatic) MAZDA3 G25 ASTINA: $36,990 (manual), $37,990 (automatic)
October 11 - 17 | 2019
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Ford Focus 2011 - 2018
Ŷ 2011 Ford Focus Titanium FORD Focus is a small-medium European model that has never had the success it deserves in Australia. In its market segment it struggles to sell a tenth of the number of the market leader in its class, the Toyota Corolla. The Mazda3 and Hyundai i30 also trump the Ford by large numbers. Why? Principally because dual-clutch automatics, sold from 2011 till 2015 had many problems and these led to the complete car being given a poor reputation. See our What To Look For section). The dual-clutch was replaced by a six-speed conventional torque convertor auto in September 2015 as part of a major makeover of the complete range. Ford Focus is pretty well made these days, though generally not to the extremely high standards of the Asian models. What Focus does do better than the Asians is providing superior handling and overall driving pleasure. That's even in the standard models which have attracted quite a few keen drivers. Even better, Focus comes in an impressively large number of sports variants. Ride comfort is pretty good in the standard cars, however they can be on the harsh side on rough roads. By contrast sports models may be on the firm side for those looking for comfort ahead of handling. Showing its Euro heritage, Focus is very good at high speed on motorways where speed limits are 130km/h. Focus gen-three arrived in Australia in November 2011 as the LW series. The gen-four,
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MAZDA 6 hatch 2011 Luxury Sports, manual, Charcoal grey, 130,000km, leather, sunroof, towbar, reverse camera, 5 star safety, full service, very good condition, (ABK785), $11,500. Phone Matt 0409 954 863.
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Ŷ 2015 Ford Focus ST By EWAN KENNEDY tagged as LZ Focus replaced it in July 2015. The LZ is actually a solid facelift of LW not a full-on new model. Every visible component in front of the windscreen was changed. This resulted in slimmer headlights and a sleeker slope of the bonnet. Ford’s signature trapezoidal grille was modified with a sharper look. The rear-end follows the lead of the front, with slimmer lights and modified lines that give the car a wider look when viewed rear on. Inside the LZ, there's the latest Ford Sync2 which lets the driver operate the air conditioning, audio system, satellite navigation and a linked smartphone with voice commands. Aiming to give the Focus a more upmarket image Ford Australia dropped the lower cost Ambiente model. The LZ no longer had the turbo-diesel option and the non-turbo 1.6-litre petrol engine was replaced with a new design 1.5-litre turbo-petrol, EcoBoost in Ford speak. These EcoBoost Ford powerplants are high-tech units that are significantly better than previous engines and are well worth finding extra money in your budget. A virtually all-new Ford Focus arrived in Australia in June 2019. It will be the subject of a later used car review. Ford is strongly represented in Australian country areas reflecting, in particular, the love
SOLD MOTOR VEHICLES
Ŷ 2017 Ford Focus Trend of Falcons by buyers in the bush. Dealers in more remote areas may not have spares for the Focus in stock, but can usually get them shipped in within a few working days. Most routine service work can be done by a competent amateur. Please don’t tackle any safety related items yourself, though. A workshop manual is always a smart investment in any car. With the exception of the sports models insurance charges are usually moderate. WHAT TO LOOK FOR Check the dual-clutch PowerShift automatic transmission isn't harsh in its changes and doesn't slip out of gear. Chances are all will have been rectified by now, but check with a Ford dealer or contact Ford Australia by phoning 13 FORD (133 673). Make sure the electrical systems are okay by turning everything on and off. The owner’s manual gives you a list of all functions. Shuddering under braking may indicate warped brake discs. Scratches on the top of the rear bumper will often indicate that lazy owners used the bumper as support when loading and unloading the boot. These are often used as family cars so may have suffered the usual harsh treatment dished out by some children. Look for damage to the seats and door trim, as well as carpets.
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Previous body repairs may have caused uneven panel work. Sight along the surfaces against the light to see if there are ripples. Similarly, paint that doesn’t quite match from panel to panel and / or paint overspray on non-coloured surfaces is another sign a car has probably spent time in a repair shop. CAR BUYING TIP Before you go out shopping for a car, try to spend a few weeks looking over adverts and reports on the types of cars you're considering. This can give you an idea of current prices and common faults.
EXPECT TO PAY 2011 LX: $4000 to $7000 2012 TREND: $6000 to $9000 2013 SPORT OR A 2015 AMBIENTE: $8000 to $13,000 2014 TITANIUM: $10,000 to $15,000 2014 ST: $13,000 to $19,000 2015 TITANIUM: $15,000 to $22,000 2018 TITANIUM: $18,000 to $26,000 2012 RS: $19,000 to $27,000 2016 RS: $26,000 to $35,000 2018 RS: $29,000 to $38,000
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