Driven: 2025 Ford Tourneo Titanium X
- Kalen Ziflian
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
Way before the humble sedan or wagon was shelved in favour of high riding SUV’s, when a family needed extra space for bodies, there was the people mover.
The draught horse of the motoring world; utterly devoid of any character and destined to carry a footy-teams worth of screaming children, along with their glass-smudging mess.
These are not attributes intended to excite, so it’s understandable that I wasn’t jumping out of my skin about a 3-week Christmas stint in Ford’s Tourneo Titanium X. Swapping from an Everest Platinum and climbing into the driver seat for the first time simply re-iterated the point.
"Climb" is the operative word, because opening the Blue Metallic driver door is like peeling the side of the Tourneo open. It’s gargantuan size results in an almost walk-in entry point, which when combined with a low step and grab handles makes light work of boarding.
The heated and 10-way electrically adjustable front seat is covered in artificial leather and features attractive embossing on the pads and backrest. Generally, I’m overly complimentary of Ford seats, because I’ve never sat in one that wasn’t perfect. In this case however, I would’ve liked a little more thigh support, especially given the seating position. Nonetheless each front row seat also has 2 folding adjustable armrests, an appreciated feature when mowing down the kays.
The cabin is a pleasant and airy place to be, but features its share of hard scratchy plastic – good for mopping up spills and mess from untidy passengers, not as enjoyable to the touch.
It takes a minute to get used to the “perch” as I called it. One sits up high in the cabin, with enormous glasshouse in every direction; ensuring visibility is unsurpassed in the Tourneo. The driver takes hold of a chunky steering wheel, whilst pedals sit far back toward the firewall, another curious attribute that just seemed to work.
It’s worthwhile noting that the Tourneo is based on the Transit; a successful commercial nameplate that’s been around for decades. So despite feeling odd to start with, the polished ergonomics came as no surprise.
Vitals are available via a digital instrument cluster which is supplemented by a 13-inch infotainment screen. Both feature familiar and logical operating systems, along with wired and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
The centre console is large and deep, with a wireless charging shelf tucked away down low and supplemented by a duo of USBC charging ports. They sit below cupholders you'll find hiding under a roller cover.
There’s also a charging port near the rear-view mirror for a dashcam, and another in the top glove box. Storage up front is plentiful, with a lower glove box and 3 large cubby holes in each door.
Grabbing either of the sliding doors actuates electric motors that handle opening and closing functions. This is the money shot for the Tourneo, because once the doors roll back, they reveal the second and third rows of passenger real estate.
It’s reminiscent of small acreage, and climbing aboard is as simple as walking in. The second-row is made up of 3 separate seats that can slide individually, fold, and even be rotated to face backwards. Our default setup over the period saw the centre seat folded, revealing a small table with cupholders. Passengers also have their own charging ports and outboard seat heating.
The third-row is no less commodious. Sliding one of the outboard second-row seats allows easy access to a space where 3 adults can sit in comfort, making this a Bonafide 8-adult transport option.
It’s a 60:40 split back there but the seats can also slide forward and aft, allowing for a cargo space behind them that can go from 672L with the seat slid back, out to 1045L with them slid forward. With the third-row removed, cargo space behind the second-row goes from 2102L to 2408L, based one where the seat is positioned. If you want to play courier in a Transit, you can remove both second and third-rows for a staggerring 4683L of cargo space.
Interestingly, the Ford Australia team explained that they use a Verband Der Automobilindustrie (VDA) measurement method in calculating all cargo numbers in Australia. In laymans terms, this means the meaurement process deploys stacked boxes to get to the capacities quoted above.
Quite different to the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) method, which fills the space with the likes of liquid or sand which can get in crevices that aren't really usable, making for potentially innacurate and inflated numbers. I say good for them, but when you have these sorts of numbers who cares?!
Regardless of which row one finds themselves on, there’s an abundance of knee and headroom which is accentuated by the huge, fixed glass roof above. Interestingly, despite hot conditions and lack of a sliding cover, the cabin was never overly hot after parking up.
The 3 air-conditioning zones did a tremendous job to keep the space cool too, no moot point given the only opening windows are in the front row. The second row gets a little portal window for venting, but that’s it.
A family night at the drive-ins was a delight, with ample lounging space across folded rear rows and the cargo space. It was here that we uncovered clever lighting in the massive tailgate that illuminates the space below, handy for distributing drinks and popcorn. The tailgate itself can be cumbersome though and requires thought when parking given its upward opening motion.
The 14-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system was a great compliment for this activity too. It produced deep lows and dazzling highs, providing a great way to take in The Bad Guys 2 for us, and everyone in a 10 meter radius.
It does however reveal the commercial roots of the Tourneo, because that hard plastic noted earlier generated way too many rattles and resonance throughout the cabin. A disappointing blight that could be easily fixed with some sound deadening for the pedantic.
But road tripping is where the Tourneo really shone. Whether it was 4 adults and 4 pre-teen kids checking out Sydney’s Christmas lights, or a family trip with the canine encumbrance out to Bathurst, the Tourneo was the ultimate companion over the holiday period.
The depth of the cargo space meant the four-legged one was well contained and happy. While the third-row was relegated to official cargo duties which included 4 pieces of luggage and various bits and pieces for the road. This left the second-row to the younger ones, who could have happily conducted an Olympic gymnastics routine had it not been unsafe to do so.
Propulsion is courtesy of a 2L 4-cylinder turbodiesel backed by an 8-speed automatic gearbox. With outputs of 125Kw and 390Nm and a portly 2321kg to move, it was never going to set the world alight. But with a peak torque figure that arrives well below 2000rpm, it gets up to and holds highway speed with ease and very little fuss.
This lack drivetrain stress would've been a factor in how unobtrusive it was in cabin. Cruising at 110km/h did reveal some wind noise, but that's to be expected given the profile. During our time, overall fuel consumption landed at 9.1L/100km against a claimed 7.4 – a reasonable number given the comfort and space on tap.
The handling stacked up to the draught horse mentioned earlier, which made a lap around Mount Panorama an expectedly tyre-squealing affair. But for its intended purpose, the ride was a prudent blend of compliance and control.
The surprising highlight of this chassis was the ease of manoeuvrability. With a wheelbase of 3100mm and overall length of just over 5m, the Tourneo is more Titanic than speedboat. When you throw in the height, it can be an intimidating thought to pilot around town. The truth is the excellent visibility, bi-focal (ha!) side mirrors, and a brilliant 360-degree camera system meant there wasn’t a parking spot that really frightened it, or the driver.
Combine this with a 10.9m turning circle, 2 full meters less than a Ranger, and it’s supremely easy to drive. Safety is also well covered, an important one given the seating capacity. If I had to pick on something it’d be the overly zealous driver monitoring system.
The truth is dropping off the Tourneo came with more than a twinge of sadness. It looks cool, it’s comfortable, it’s easy to drive and incredibly versatile. Finally and importantly, it gave us a reason to make core family memories.
Either way, if I had the chance to have more time in one, I’d take it in a heartbeat.
Like: Acreage inside with stack of versatility, So easy to drive, Excellent air-conditioning with 3 zones
Dislike: Can’t get away from commercial roots, Handbrake doesn’t arm automatically when in park, Overzealous driver monitoring
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