Ford Territory Problems

Ford did, in fact, upgrade the Territory’s power-steering system to an electric set-up in the name of improved fuel economy, but that didn’t happen until mid-2011. As such, Rodney, your 2008 Territory still uses conventional hydraulic power-steering.

While the fuel consumption benefits of electric power-assistance are clear, keener drivers generally prefer a conventional hydraulic set-up for the extra feel and feedback it offers through the steering wheel. But it’s a dying technology and just about all new car designs feature electrical assistance.

The engine in your Territory uses a rubber timing belt which the trade recommends be changed every 100,000km. However, it’s not that simple. This engine also uses a second toothed rubber belt to drive the high-pressure fuel pump critical to the operation of a modern, common-rail diesel engine.

This second belt is located at the other end of the engine, between the engine and firewall, and the recommendation is also to change this belt at the same, 100,000km, interval.

Many owners also find the timing-belt change-point is a good time to change the water pump and thermostat at the same time to avoid disassembling the engine a second time should those components fail.

Some Territories of around this vintage experienced a problem with a dud output-speed sensor within the automatic transmission. The sensor could cause an intermittent fault where the transmission wasn’t telling the rest of the car how fast it was going and, in some cases, could cause the transmission to suddenly shift back to first gear. That sounds a lot like your symptoms. Ford reckons it had this problem fixed by early 2013, well before your car was built, but I reckon it’d still be worth a check of the sensor’s operation via an electronic scan.

The other recurring problem with the Territory’s transmission was when the transmission cooler failed internally and the gearbox oil and the coolant became mixed. That destroyed the gearbox both mechanically and electronically in pretty quick time and if that’s your problem, a rebuilt or replacement transmission is the only fix.

If everything is working properly, it’s less likely to be a stuck or fused relay as that would affect the operation of that circuit. In any case most relay-controlled circuits would probably be disconnected from the power source (the battery) when the car was not being used. Which, of course, brings the ignition switch into play as a suspect, on the basis that it might not be powering the car down fully when switched off.

Typically, problems like this are caused by boot lights or courtesy lights somewhere on the car staying on. In the Territory, these functions are controlled locally by micro-switches (on doors and tailgates etc) and in an overall sense by the body computer. Body computers on this generation of Ford have been known to fail, often with consequences for all sorts of functions including the central locking and possibly the courtesy lighting. Check the car on a dark night to see if there are any lights stuck on.

A security system/alarm is another great source of battery drain. Does the car have an aftermarket alarm? Even if it has just the factory security system, that would be worth checking as a cause for the battery drain. Is the car’s stereo powering down fully when you switch the ignition off? This can also be a cause of flat batteries. Again, the body computer might be the culprit.

This will come down to what roof-rack system you choose. Good quality brands have load limits of 80 to 100kg, and that’s a fair bit of weight to be placing up high on the roof of an already high vehicle like the Territory. By using all that capacity, you’ll be moving the vehicle’s overall centre of gravity and that can have an effect on handling and stability, particularly in a cross-wind. You’ll also use more fuel even when the roof rack is empty. The rule of thumb is to always put the lightest gear on the roof.

It sounds as though the engine’s idle-speed is set a little too low, and that’s making the engine feel lumpy (because it’s almost stalling). Having the transmission in Drive is adding a little load to the equation, slowing the engine even further. There are many things that can cause this, including a stepper-motor that is faulty and not controlling the idle properly.

The best advice is to have the car scanned for a hardware or sensor fault and proceed from there. But first, try this: With the engine idling and in Drive (and the vibration present) turn off the air-conditioning. If the vibration goes away, it could be that the electronics that detect the extra drag of the air-conditioner and automatically bump up the idle, aren’t working properly.

To connect your phone to the Ford Territory Bluetooth system, start by making sure your phone has its Bluetooth switched on and is in discoverable mode. You also need the vehicle to be in Park with the engine running; having the ignition in accessory mode is not sufficient, the engine must be running for phone pairing to take place.

On the stereo info-screen in the Territory, touch the Phone button, followed by the Add a Phone button. You should next receive a message that the pairing process has begun and a six-digit code will be displayed. Enter that code into your phone and the pairing process should complete. You’ll know it has when the phone’s name is displayed on the car’s screen as being added successfully.

If more than one phone is paired with the car, the system will ask if you wish to make the current phone your favourite. If you do, this is the phone that will be automatically paired with if more than one paired phone is detected.

The system will then ask you if you wish to automatically download your phone’s contact book to the car. If you touch Yes, this process will begin and could take a few minutes depending on how many contacts you have.

For more instructions on how to play music through the system, more setup options, and troubleshooting problems, refer to the vehicle’s owner’s manual.

The transmission in this era of Ford Territories was notorious for suffering a failed transmission oil cooler. If that happened, the coolant would often mix with the transmission’s fluid, causing massive damage to both the electronics and the mechanical components of the transmission. In severe cases, the vehicle could lose drive altogether. A replacement transmission is the usual fix, so it’s an expensive failure.

But the first check to make is of another part of the Territory that is also known for giving trouble. In this case, though, the end result is nothing like as dramatic as it’s caused by damaged or poorly adjusted (loose) selector linkages. A quick tighten or adjustment will have the transmission operating properly again, but you need to ascertain what’s causing your problem in the first place. Don’t forget to check that there’s actually sufficient fluid inside the transmission, too, as low fluid can cause a loss of drive. Most workshops will be able to diagnose either problem pretty quickly.

With the recent flooding across so much of Australia, there's a serious push by the government to convince people that they shouldn't drive through floodwater of any depth, let alone water that is a deep as the patch you've tackled.

The first thing to do is not drive the car any further. If there really is an oil pressure or level problem, permanent damage may already have been done. This needs to be checked by a workshop. However, since you seem to have already driven the car with the oil light flashing, here's the reality.

If the car still runs and drives as it did before, it's unlikely that the water has damaged the engine per se. The problem is more likely to involve the pressure of the water damaging a sensor or switch (or the wiring associated with it) that is designed to warn you of low oil pressure or low oil level. If the engine is running properly and there's oil on the dipstick, the next thing to do is have the vehicle scanned which should throw up a fault code that will lead you to the cause of the problem.

Floodwater is terrible stuff. It's full of silt and contaminants and as well as damaging an engine that ingests it, it can also destroy the gearbox or differential (by entering through the breather) and ruin electronics if it gets inside the cabin. The silt content can even act as an abrasive and wear out wheel bearings in short order.

That said, you could have a legitimate oil-pressure problem that happened to coincide with the water crossing. Stranger things have happened. A scan is the answer.

These units are well known for giving trouble including buttons not working right through to complete failure of the screen and unit. There are, however, companies that specialise in repairing these units and can replace the problem components to bring the unit back to life.

But even if you go with a second-hand unit from a wrecking yard, it should have been tested to ensure it’s working properly before it’s shipped to you. And if it doesn’t work, a reputable parts recycler will offer to replace it.

The problem you face of course, is what happens when the world’s supply of second-hand Territory commands centres dries up. Again, it shouldn’t be a problem as there are aftermarket units designed specifically to fit the Territory’s dashboard that are better quality, deliver better sound and often include features your car may not have such as Bluetooth and mobile-phone mirroring.