[Jude300]

I had done my first service on the 28th of last month and was not charged anything. The service was quick and the car was delivered in 2.5 hours. They had checked the oil levels and said that everything was fine. I took the car for the Coorg trip only after the 1st service and after I came back I started having a noise while the clutch lever is released. A very feeble "krik" noise but since I hate any such noise however feeble it could be I took it to the service centre today. It was checked and as I had predicted it was only a lubrication issue. But the service advisor first told me that they will need a full day to correct it if it involved any defect as they will need a Ford engineer to evaluate the issue. Happy now as it is not so.

Now getting prepared for another long trip (~1800 Km) to my home town and back.

[Jude300]

Completed nearly half way of the journey covering 693 kms. The mileage was 18.7 kmpl with 3 adults and a kid with the boot fully packed. AC was used 80% of the travel. Was doing about 100 - 110 kmph mostly. Covered the distance in 10 hours with a couple of stops for tea and breakfast. If I had maintained a speed of 90 kmph my mileage figures would have been much better as the instant mileage dips once 90 kmph is crossed.

[Jude300]

Completed the long journey covering 1769 Km on the 31st of Dec. On my return, the luggage was on the higher side with the boot completely jam packed and with the rear right seat packed with luggage too. The speed was also a bit high at 120Kmph. In these conditions the average fuel dropped to 16.9Kmpl. But the drive was good and had a great time home. I have posted some pics I had taken while celebrating christmas at home. These were taken in a village bordering Kerala. The lighting was a part of the christmas celebration.

[iTNerd]

Hi Jude300, nice shots of your ES. Very enticing color too. As you have the Trend variant, wanted to ask some few questions as I am also getting a trend variant in few days.

1) As the trend comes with 195/65/15 tyres, does the extra high profile makes any difference in ride comfort and on potholes/rough roads compared to the 205/60/15 tyres on the Titanium trim?

2) Does the IRVM on the Trend variant have dimming feature for night time driving?

3) I see that you have installed Fog lamps. Could you tell me if the trend variant already comes housed with the necessary wire harness and the switch panel? Is the headlight knob (euro style) same as that in higher Titanium variant that has fog lamps? I am planning to opt for after market fog lights, but want to make sure, the dummy fog lamp enclosure in the stock form already has a wire harness and switch (in the dashboard).

4) Have you installed rear view sensors/camera and rear wheel cover?

[Jude300]

Originally Posted by iTNerd

Hi Jude300, nice shots of your ES. Very enticing color too. As you have the Trend variant, wanted to ask some few questions as I am also getting a trend variant in few days.

1) As the trend comes with 195/65/15 tyres, does the extra high profile makes any difference in ride comfort and on potholes/rough roads compared to the 205/60/15 tyres on the Titanium trim?

2) Does the IRVM on the Trend variant have dimming feature for night time driving?

3) I see that you have installed Fog lamps. Could you tell me if the trend variant already comes housed with the necessary wire harness and the switch panel? Is the headlight knob (euro style) same as that in higher Titanium variant that has fog lamps? I am planning to opt for after market fog lights, but want to make sure, the dummy fog lamp enclosure in the stock form already has a wire harness and switch (in the dashboard).

4) Have you installed rear view sensors/camera and rear wheel cover?

1) I have not felt any notable difference in ride comfort due to the tyres. This feedback is based on the few trips that i have made in a Titanium variant.

2) yes the IRVM has a dimming feature. It is has two adjustments one for night driving and other for day.

3) I think the switch is available but not sure about the wiring. Also heard that the ECU will have to be programmed to ensure that the Fog lamps works. this can be done onlky at the service center. For after market ones, not sure how thi is by-passed. might require tampering with the electrical which will void warranty.

4) I have only installed rear parking sensors from the dealer. Not the rear view camera nor the wheel cover.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by Jude300

...3) I think the switch is available but not sure about the wiring. Also heard that the ECU will have to be programmed to ensure that the Fog lamps works. this can be done onlky at the service center. For after market ones, not sure how thi is by-passed. might require tampering with the electrical which will void warranty....

Is your fog lamps activated by a separate switch (fit at the A$$)? In that case, NO ECU programming would be required.

[Jude300]

I went in for the original fog lamps and the dealer had to activate the fog lamps using the program. It is controlled by a soft push button switch which is integrated with the headlight level adjustment switch.

Mileage update:

The mileage on the ecosport has been inspiring. It has averaged more than 17kmpl. I have attached the screenshot of my mileage app. Please read the quantity as litres and not as gallons an the distance as kilometre and not as miles.

The data you see from 31st December is for full time city drive in Chennai traffic as I have not made any long trips in the period you see.




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[Anoop_SG]

Hi Jude,

Nice pictures of your ride and that's an impressive mileage you are getting from your Ecosport. What is the A/C usage like during this period ?

Also, read that your seat covers cost 7300/-. Is it inclusive of labor charges ? The dealership in TVM is quoting 10,200/- for the same inclusive of fitting charges.

[Jude300]

Originally Posted by Anoop_SG

Hi Jude,

Nice pictures of your ride and that's an impressive mileage you are getting from your Ecosport. What is the A/C usage like during this period ?

Also, read that your seat covers cost 7300/-. Is it inclusive of labor charges ? The dealership in TVM is quoting 10,200/- for the same inclusive of fitting charges.

Hi Anoop,

The dealer seems to be fooling you. Dont take the seat covers from him. You can get better ones aftermarket for that price. At the time of booking the accessory price list has Rs. 6700 (including labour) for the seat covers. By the time I bought, it was hiked to Rs.7300 (including labour). I did some market reaserch and found that the seat covers costed between 6500 - 8000 (for almost the same quality). Since the difference was not big and also because I liked the seat covers, i went in for the dealer provided ones. But in no case it is worth Rs.10200.

With regard to the mileage, I had yet another surprising tank fill. This time it was even better with 18.6kmpl. I use AC almost all the time and with the summer heat, its inevitable. But rarely i do ride without AC when I feel it is too cold. Thats mostly when I return late from work after 12 at night. The only thing that you should note is that, I take the Ecosport to office daily and I travel alone. And in the last month due to the tight work schedule, I have not taken my family for any weekend trips to the malls. So the reason for the higher mileage (18.6KMPL) last time could be because of the weight factor. And I have observed that it does matter to some extent in the Ecosport.

The other factor is that i return from work late. So that makes one way commute without the normal bumber to bumper traffic.

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by Jude300

With regard to the mileage, I had yet another surprising tank fill. This time it was even better with 18.6kmpl. I use AC almost all the time and with the summer heat, its inevitable. But rarely i do ride without AC when I feel it is too cold. Thats mostly when I return late from work after 12 at night. The only thing that you should note is that, I take the Ecosport to office daily and I travel alone. And in the last month due to the tight work schedule, I have not taken my family for any weekend trips to the malls. So the reason for the higher mileage (18.6KMPL) last time could be because of the weight factor. And I have observed that it does matter to some extent in the Ecosport.

The other factor is that i return from work late. So that makes one way commute without the normal bumber to bumper traffic.

Hi Jude,

Nice to know that you are enjoying your car. City FE you are getting is fabulous. Major gripes of ES owners seem to be stiff ride & unexpected rattles. How bad these two are actually, particularly ride. How stiff is the ride in comparison to Figo. How much have you done on your wonderful car till date? The VFM tagged to it at it's launch has now faded to an extent, but still it is significantly cheaper that Duster & Torreno and still have more features. But I had to say that Duster has impeccable ride quality.

I had driven Duster 85 & 110 and also had a short TD of ES diesel. Though in cabin noise of ES was good, it was way better in Duster. Terreno is reported to be still better. My TD of ES was on smooth tarmac & was with full load, thus not realized stiff ride quality.

Engine power is ok, it seems. What is the comfortable cursing speed on highways & how is the refinement levels at high speeds , say at 140 kmph.

Please give me some idea on cost of service. Please excuse me, if I have missed your info already posted . There were talks of child parts from Ford. Has it been implemented for ES or still limited to talks only.

If I change my car from 1.6 Fluidic Verna CRDI to ES diesel, will it be an upgrade or down grade. I am more concerned about engine power, NVH characteristics & ride quality rather than inside plastic quality & stuffs like that.


Thanks

[Jude300]

The ride is definitely stiffer than the verna or the Duster. The duster or Terrano have superb ride. If that really matters then you need to consider Duster or Terrano. But handling is good and I don't have any complaints. The NVH is actually well under control and it does not bother you. With the music on you hardly hear any thing inside.

Ford is usually on the expensive side when it comes to spares. But when compared to its competition it's no different. So this was not a concern for me as it didn't mean a significant difference with the competition. The child parts strategy is there for only specific parts and I am not sure how the service centres help you on that. Meaning whether they will actually provide you with the option to just change what needs to be changed as most of them recommend changing parts completely sighting availability issues and since they make profit for themselves.

The engine is well refined and I am loving it. I don't sprint my car. I love to ride in a relaxed manner and the ES is too good with that. You don't get that sudden dash of speed like in the swift but that does not mean it lacks power. It's more comfortable at 120 kmpl. Above that it starts losing steam. but still it can be pushed to 140.

I have done around 8700km now and have not done my second service yet will update the details when I do that.

Hope I be been able to reply to your queries.

The latest mileage is 18.6kmpl. Screen print below





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[Arvind Sharma]

Hi Jude and all ES owners!,

Thanks for the informative review. I have done 10000kms on my ES titanium mars red and i have started hearing some rattles from the rear door with the spare tyre attached when the car rides over a pothole.
Anyone who is facing this issue and got it resolved?.
Please guide!.
Thanks,
Arvind

[Jude300]

10000 KM update:

Did the second free service (10000 km) on Monday. The bill was Rs.3079/- which included the replacement of
1. Engine Oil - 3.83 Ltrs (Castrol - semi synthetic)
2. Oil Filter
3. Sump Gasket
4. Windscreen washer liquid

Wheel alignment and wheel balancing was done and the tyres were rotated. The entire cost for the Wheel alignment and balancing has to be borne by the customer and is not covered in the free labour service.

The car was serviced at Chennai Ford, Arumbakkam, Chennai and for the second time felt that the service was good.

[desdemona]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

If I change my car from 1.6 Fluidic Verna CRDI to ES diesel, will it be an upgrade or down grade. I am more concerned about engine power, NVH characteristics & ride quality rather than inside plastic quality & stuffs like that.
Thanks

If Jude will permit an interjection on his great thread on a good car!

Hey Chitta! Hi again. I have to urge you again to checkout a new Fiat Linea or the new Punto coming in June. Your needs/desires (after the Verna experience) sure sound to me like you are just the kind of guy for a Fiat, or a Ford.

Cheers Jude and Chitta.

[GSMINC]

Originally Posted by Jude300

10000 KM update:

Did the second free service (10000 km) on Monday. The bill was Rs.3079/- which included the replacement of
1. Engine Oil - 3.83 Ltrs (Castrol - semi synthetic)
2. Oil Filter
3. Sump Gasket
4. Windscreen washer liquid

Wheel alignment and wheel balancing was done and the tyres were rotated. The entire cost for the Wheel alignment and balancing has to be borne by the customer and is not covered in the free labour service.

The car was serviced at Chennai Ford, Arumbakkam, Chennai and for the second time felt that the service was good.

Enjoyed reading your thread

What was the cost of the Oil Filter
Can you pls give a service bill breakup & any idea about the

cost of Paid service