In its Indian career which spans for more than a decade, it is only recently that the country has gained importance in Ford's global map. Although the marque has been manufacturing cars specifically for growing markets, it was not successful in responding to the changing trend in country's automobile segment and thereby took only a smaller slice in market share. Ford EcoSport - the compact SUV which was at display in 2012 Delhi Auto Expo, was prepared to change this scenario soon after this. The company then revealed that this car, which is new to Indian market, will kick start a new era for Ford in the country. In this era the auto maker will be developing products more specifically for India and similar markets to achieve rapid sales growth across the globe.
While Ford sees the EcoSport as a potential game changer, automobile critics find this car to be a product which is capable of erasing the differences between sedans, SUVs and premium hatchback cars in India. This primarily is because of its design, adaptability to the lives of urban population and strategic pricing which turns out to be a crucial factor in this market. Blending these attributes, the sub-4m vehicle is capable of charging up the current scenario where the market has been witnessing downward trends for the past few months.
Being a compact SUV, Ford EcoSport is not more about aggression but does embody muscularity purely through form and proportions. Otherwise, the vehicle is as elegant as any other entry-level sedan in India. The hottest contenders of base sedan segment, Maruti Suzuki Swift DZire and Honda Amaze will surely have this new opponent competing from an arena which is completely alien to these models. Standing taller than the sedans and having an engine which is much more powerful than the one's in these models, the compact SUV has an obvious advantage over Swift DZire and Amaze. However, the sedans gain upper hand over EcoSport when fuel economy is considered, since the diesel motors of Amaze and Swift DZire promise better mileage figures than Ford's car.
While taking over the SUV and MUV segment, which has seen the dominance of Mahindra Bolero and the rise of models like Maruti Suzuki Ertiga and Renault Duster, EcoSport has a lot more work to do. Having a starting price of Rs. 5.99 lakhs, the compact vehicle does look attractive at first sight, but to go further it is its performance and equipment base which distinguishes EcoSport from competitors. Be it the award winning EcoBoost engine which is just 1.0L in cubic volume but churns out 123.3 bhp, Traction Control and ESP, or be it the 6-speed PowerShift transmission, the car simply outclasses all other models with its rich equipment base. The major drawback for EcoSport comes in the form of seating, since Ertiga and Bolero are designed to accommodate 7 people while the compact automobile can only seat 5.
Neglecting all other technical comparisons, if one simply looks at EcoSport, he/she can simply arrive at a conclusion to say that the car is much better looking than any other model in and around its price range. This apparently includes Ford's own Fiesta for that matter. In a price sensitive market like India, an aggressively priced automobile of this stature can surely spoil the show for other models of different segments. This, in future, can blur out the line of difference between each segment.
