LONG-TERM UPDATE 3 | Why our Ford Territory’s infotainment system is driving us to distraction

In last month’s update about our long-term Ford Territory Titanium, I made mention of the SUV’s cabin and how it was a jolly nice place in which to sit out Cape Town’s traffic. Not much has changed since then and I am still enjoying its cosy and refined confines, even on lengthier jaunts out of the Mother City to visit family in the Little Karoo.

The seats are comfortable, NVH insulation is impressive for a vehicle of its segment, while the list of standard active safety and driver aid features reassuringly comprehensive.

There is a slight fly in the Ford’s ointment, however, and that is the infotainment. 

I have had quite a few Blue Oval products on long-term review over the years (Everest, Ranger, EcoSport, Mustang) and all have been fitted with some version of Ford’s Sync infotainment system, which is usually a pleasure to use with an intuitive interface providing quick and easy access to key vehicle features, entertainment or otherwise.

As such I was fully expecting a Sync to be sunk into the dashboard of the Territory — but unfortunately this is not the case. Push the start button and the centrally mounted 12.3-inch touchscreen boots up to reveal a software ecosystem that feels strangely foreign for a product of the Ford stable. In a way it’s like turning on an iPhone and discovering iOS has been replaced with Android: not a complete train smash but a scenario that requires a fair amount of acclimatisation and recalibration to relearn the basics of operation.

Thanks to vague-sounding main menus (many of which read like they’re lost in translation, eg. “Body Settings”) that branch through to fiddly sub-menus, customising the Territory’s infotainment and safety systems to suit your individual preference can often be an irksome and needlessly long-winded experience. Clearly the product of China affiliate Jiangling Motors Corp, it's a software ecosystem that keeps things unintentionally hidden.

I will be the first to admit I’m not the sharpest crayon in the box, but it took me two weeks to discover you can actually change the vehicle’s drive mode via a digital toggle switch tucked away in the Vehicle Safety menu.

In the same breath, there is apparently a way to change the theme of the 12-inch digital instrument cluster. I spent well over five minutes faffing through an endless array of sub-menus until I lost interest. 

This tricksy operation is carried through to the climate control system, the function of which is actuated via the touchscreen and a small, scratch-prone haptic touch bar that lets you tweak fan speed, defrost the front/rear windscreens and initiate Auto mode. If you want to turn on recirculation, adjust cabin temperature or choose which vents you want air to flow through, you have to pinch and swipe yet another digitised menu.

I know this approach saves on manufacturing costs (physical switchgear isn’t cheap in 2024 and manufacturers are cutting back on it wherever they can) but it results in a user experience that is frustrating. Having to stretch and finger-tap a screen three or four times to complete a single task is not only annoying but also a legitimate distraction.

There is, peculiarly enough, a small cluster of buttons on the centre cluster that allow for a degree of physical intervention — though much like the infotainment software it controls, it feels half-baked as it effectively gives you a volume dial (there’s already one on the steering wheel) and basic shortcut buttons to telephony, music and home screen menus.

There’s also a return button that, when pressed, will take you back to whatever menu appeared on the screen beforehand. I feel if Ford had developed this feature into a rotary dial selector system similar to that which controls Mazda’s MZD Connect or BMW’s iDrive, then the Territory’s entire infotainment suite would’ve been a lot more streamlined to use.

If you think my rant is over, it’s not.

Another pet hate of mine is the toggle switch on the multifunction steering wheel. In default mode the switches set into the right steering wheel spoke will only control audio settings: volume, track forward/track back and mute.

To use this switchgear to access the onboard computer displayed in the instrument cluster, you have to push a separate button. Be quick, though, because after a few seconds it will default back to audio duties: instead of flicking between trip 1, trip 2 or the live tyre pressure monitoring system you will be unintentionally lowering or raising the volume.

The front USB ports, tucked away in a separate storage binnacle under the centre console, are awkwardly placed and at times difficult to access, while the loudspeakers (eight in Titanium specification) dispel a sound flat and hollow. In my experience Ford products have always had great sound systems — even the 2006 Ford Fiesta 1.6 Trend I bought with my own money was a winner — so this came as an unexpected disappointment. 

Last but not least is the wireless Apple CarPlay. Though I’ve never had an issue pairing it with my phone, the connection often terminates whenever I get too close to a cellphone tower.

I travel a certain route on a daily basis and when I approach a particular mast the CarPlay feature starts stuttering until it inevitably disconnects for a few seconds. I’ve never experienced this in a car before — maybe it’s a software update that needs addressing?

Now it may sound like I’m being harsh on the poor Territory here and many will think I am. However, after sampling numerous modern Ford vehicles in recent times I believe my vexation is justified. The Blue Oval knows how to do infotainment right — its stellar Sync systems attest to this fact — so the subpar system on offer here seems like it is doing this otherwise agreeable SUV a disservice.

Don’t get me wrong, you learn to work around its foibles, but I feel you shouldn't have to.

2024 Ford Territory 1.8 Titanium | Update 3

ODOMETER ON DELIVERY: 5,654km

CURRENT ODOMETER: 10,464km

AVERAGE CONSUMPTION: 8.5l/100km 

PRICE AS TESTED: R721,000

PRAISES: Still shining bright as an everyday commuter, lots of space makes it super practical; fuel consumption is holding steady at 8.5l/100km

GRIPES: Lack of a proper Ford Sync infotainment system is a letdown