Ford Territory vs Holden Adventra vs Toyota Kluger 2004 Review

Forget the hype: it is time to discover which of Australia's big three brands has the best crossover wagon.

The new wave of all-wheel-drives have been tagged the ultimate vehicles for drivers who spend most of their time in the city, but want to head for the hills at the weekend.

The only way to find a winner was to run the Ford Territory, Holden Adventra and Toyota Kluger through the ultimate Australian test.

We subjected all three to rush-hour traffic, highway cruising, a charge through the forest, a river crossing and a steep hill climb to find a winner.

The Kluger is based on the Camry and is imported from Japan, while the Adventra (built off a Commodore wagon base) is built in Adelaide and was developed here with a budget of $125 million.

Ford's Territory was developed locally for $500 million, shares its drivetrain and some other components with Falcon, and is built here in Victoria.

Adventra is currently only available with the GEN III 5.7-litre V8, with a new V6 arriving late this year. Ford uses the Falcon's 4.0-litre twin-cam in-line six, while the Kluger has a 3.3-litre V6 from the Lexus RX330.

For our test we chose a Kluger CVX, Adventra CX8 and Territory Ghia all-wheel-drive which lined-up on price.

Holden Adventra

Ignore the styling, because this Adventra is more than just a Commodore wagon with cladding. It can handle some serious off-road work and has tough under-body protection.

Holden engineers have done a good job with a limited budget to turn a regular wagon into an all-wheel-drive machine fit for the Australian Outback.

But the Adventra lags behind when it comes to refinement and comfort.

It can crash and bang over harsh ruts that the Kluger and Territory cruise over, but rides well on less brutal bumps on tarmac and dirt.

The Adventra's automatic transmission is too harsh for stop-start traffic and the steering is too heavy.

The engine grunt is brilliant, but the V8 is the thirstiest engine of the three and still doesn't sound like a V8. A V6 would have fared better.

The Adventra, along with the Territory, feels heavy (because they are) and Holden engineers will no doubt look for ways to reduce the weight.

Interior space is a step behind its rivals, and the lack of a fold-away third row of seats counts against it.

Kluger and Territory can be used as legitimate people movers, the Adventra is not so suitable.

It is also rather expensive when you compare prices and specifications, but much of this extra price is due to the V8 premium.

Our Adventra suffered no underbody damage but it broke down when the alternator died, along with the ABS module. Holden says the module was a pre-production part which didn't have the right seal, and is investigating the alternator failure.

Toyota Kluger

Toyota has an enviable reputation in Australia for producing four-wheel-drives that are tough, capable and reliable. It is also known for building cars that can function well, but are mundane to drive and to look at. The Kluger reinforces all of these impressions.

In some ways, the vanilla car is the pick of the bunch.

It survived our torture test with the least damage, just some minor dents to the under-body cladding and is the best when it comes to tougher off-road duty, with its soft suspension absorbing many of the jolts and bumps.

It is quite refined, has seven seats and is comfortable enough, but the Kluger is not fun to drive.

The soft suspension means there is more body roll in turns and the Kluger feels more truck-like than the others.

The steering is light and you feel little connection with the road.

It also drives like a front-wheel-drive when pushed hard and can tend to push through corners.

The Kluger's 3.3-litre V6 will be enough for many commuters, but it lacks the pull or punch of the Territory six or the Adventra's V8. You have to push it hard if you want to keep up the pace and the automatic can tend to hunt around for the right gear.

Passenger comfort is excellent and there is a quality feel to the interior, which is spacious, and the fold-down third row of seats is a good standard feature in the CVX.

Value for money is reasonable and you will spend less on fuel, but options push the price up.

Ford Territory

The Territory is not as much fun to drive as a Falcon, but for an all-wheel-drive, it's great.

Ford has managed to make the Territory sit flat through corners, rather than roll like a traditional four-wheel-drive.

The engine is reasonably thirsty, but is well suited to the car and has loads of torque.

The Ford was the first to scrape on the ground over tough terrain and it is obvious that engineers chose to sacrifice a higher level of off-road ability for driving pleasure, but the Territory can still go further on the dirt than all but a few owners would venture.

The Ford's interior is the best – a lot of thought has gone into handy spaces and wet storage areas in the back.

The third row of seats is excellent, though access from the second row could be better, and there is plenty of interior room.

The steering is a little light, but the Territory is the best handling car of the bunch.

On slippery dirt tracks, the Territory's stability control system shines and works constantly to keep it in control.

The optional hill-descent control ($865) works a treat and the side curtain airbag (standard on Ghia) is an excellent addition.

The Territory is the best value. The Ghia AWD lined up with the cheapest Adventra and mid-range Kluger, while the TX Territory costs less and the TX rear-wheel-drive is the cheapest of all at $38,990.

But there were some dramas with our Territory after it bumped through a rutted mud-pool.

Its metal fuel tank cover bent and rubbed against the driveshaft (above) but we were able to fix it with a tyre lever. Ford says this problem has been sorted for the production car. The Ford also went into "limp home" mode after the water crossing, but dried out and continued as normal.

The Herald Sun are giving you a chance to win one of two four-wheel-driving courses at the Melbourne 4x4 Training and Proving Ground at Werribee Gorge. See this week's Herald Sun CARSguide for details.