TITLE VS FIGHT

FORD EVEREST IS PUNCHING ABOVE ITS WEIGHT AS IT TAKES ON THE ALL CONQUERING TOYOTA LANDCRUISER. CAN THE CHALLENGING FORD LAND ONE ON THE UNDISPUTED CHAMPION?

WITH ITS step up in size and the addition of a smooth V6 diesel engine, does the Ford Everest now qualify as a genuine alternative to the venerable Toyota LandCruiser? We lined up a top-of-the-range Everest Platinum with a LandCruiser Sahara to find out.

While they might now be closer in size and engine displacement, the Cruiser is still a far more costly vehicle to purchase than the Everest. The LC300 Sahara tested here starts at $133,881 plus ORC.….. and it's not even the top-of-the-range model. The GR-Sport and Sahara ZX models both break the $140K mark!

The Everest Platinum, on the other hand, can be had for $77,535 +ORC, so there's a lot of change there that could sway the mind of any potential buyer. Enough change to fully kit your Ford up with accessories and take an extended trip with it.

SIZING UP

WHILE Everest has stepped up in size, it is still not quite as big as LandCruiser. The Everest is only 6.6cm shorter than the LC300 bumper to bumper, and when it comes to width there's only a few millimetres separating the two.

As is now the norm in the midsize and large 4x4 wagon segments, both of these vehicles offer seven seats, and when you slide inside the Land Cruiser you'll find 70mm more shoulder room in the second-row seat and 30mm more in the third row. The Cruiser also offers more legroom in the second and third rows but falls short on space available behind the third row.

The LC300's cargo space with the third-row folded measures 1130 x 1250mm, but with the third row in place leaves just 260mm for a small bag. Toyota quotes 1004 litres of cargo space behind the second row and 175 litres behind the third row.