Ford Territory Problems

We'd like to think that our cars would last longer and not give us trouble, but the reality is quite different to that. The ZF 6-speed gearbox is a troublesome one that can fail, as yours appears to have done. But as Ford has pointed out to you your Territory is out of warranty, although that doesn't end Ford's responsibility to back the product. You could pursue a full payment for replacing the transmission from Ford, but I doubt you would have any success. Should you choose to do that contact your state Consumer Affairs people in Perth for advice and support. But in my view your best course of action would be to accept Ford's offer of part payment.

You could visually check the transfer case and CV joints, but I doubt you’ll see anything that might tell there’s a problem with them. It could also be a diff. Get it to a specialist mechanic and have them check it for you.

If it's not the windscreen it could be getting in past a seal, or through the heater. You could try running a hose on the plenum area in front of the windscreen and try to identify the sources of the leak.

The idle speed is possibly too low. Take it to a mechanic and have it checked.

The Kluger would meet your requirements nicely, so too would a diesel Territory. You could also look at a Kia Sorento.

They aren't recalling it here in Australia because it doesn't affect the locally produced Territory.

It's not uncommon to hear of transmission troubles with the Territory. I'd suggest you get a second opinion by taking it to an independent automatic transmission specialist who should be able to diagnose the trouble and suggest a fix.

The used Captiva does appear to be great value, but their shaky reputation for reliability would lead me to consider other options. The Territory would be a better bet, but they are known to have electrical and front suspension issues in the long-term.  If you're after an SUV, a seven-seat 2006-12 Mitsubishi Outlander is smart buying at the moment, but if you're just after the seven seats, I highly recommend taking a look at a 2008-13 Kia Rondo. These represent excellent value at the moment. Hope that helps, and keep us posted with your progress.

Cars go into limp home mode for many and various reasons. It’s not everyday that the ECM has to be replaced, but it’s uncommon either. I wouldn’t be overly concerned about it doing it again. It’s possible that it could, but you’ll never be far from help from a Ford dealer if it does happen to fail again.

They should be pressed out; bashing them out will most likely damage the control arms. Take the arms to a local mechanic and have him press them out.​​