[akhil_rpmlover]

Caught the Ecosport , infact two of them . Both in the Dark blue color as that of the facelifted Figo . No camouflage, at-least in the front. Dunno if the Ford logo was cloaked or not. Couldn't notice that.

Location - MG Road, Pattom, Trivandrum.
Time - 5:45pm

Guess one was TDCi and other was Ecoboost. Both were in the opposite lane . Was unable to take a snap . Thought of turning back and following a bit, but, was in a hurry today. Both were going, one after another. Indeed i went , when i saw it because spotting an upcoming car at Trivandrum is very rare.Infact, its very first i guess.

The car was looking very good in that blue shade . Wasn't able to see if it had alloys or not. hence dont know if its top-end trim or not. it wasnt like Scorpio or so. It was that blue that caught my eye. if it were on Silver or white, i doubt, if i will notice it.

Guess both are right now at kairali ford,Trivandrum . May head over to kairali Ford tomorrow to check out, if its there.

Edit: It was doing a test run or what ? Or the launch is pretty near ? because doing testing in trivandrum seems odd.

[pgsagar]

Originally Posted by rajesh.sml

The Ecosport does look Puny in front of Innova.

Puny? Smaller may be, but puny is a little over-statement. But does it matter? Even cars costing 5 to 10 times Innova like Audi/BMW SUVs look smaller next to Innova. In any case, Innova is a paople mover/van/aiport shuttle taxi, and not an SUV by any yard stick so no point comparing here.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by pgsagar

Puny? Smaller may be, but puny is a little over-statement.

Yeah, why should it matter? In my view, the puny dimensions are its USP - a small city hatchback sized car which caters the SUV aspirations of the car buying public.

And there is actually quite a bit of cross-comparisons happening between SUVs and MPVs, which is indeed a bit weird. For me, these body types caters different sensibilities.

[agambhandari]

Originally Posted by vb-san

Yeah, why should it matter? After all, the puny dimensions are its USP right?

Nope, the USP is the low price for an SUV. and in India,if it ain't Big, it ain't an SUV

[suhaas307]

Originally Posted by agambhandari

Nope, the USP is the low price for an SUV. and in India,if it ain't Big, it ain't an SUV

Actually, if people want to buy a SUV, they will buy a SUV.

This car will not affect the sales of the Safari, Scorpio and the like. It's aimed squarely at the sedan-buying populace who'd rather have an alternative to a 3-box car.

It's USP is certainly its compact dimensions coupled with its 'SUV' like presence.

Even when you compare it to the Innova in that picture, it's got 'presence'. You can't deny that!

Size and presence aren't always correlated.

[vibbs]

I got a newsletter from Gaadi dot com saying the Ecosport has been confirmed to be launched in Jan 2013. Pricing expected to be between 7-9 Lakhs.

Dont know how true is this info though.

Here is the link http://www.gaadi.com/Ford-EcoSport

[Prodigyy]

Originally Posted by vibbs

I got a newsletter from Gaadi dot com saying the Ecosport has been confirmed to be launched in Jan 2013. Pricing expected to be between 7-9 Lakhs.

I got that mailer as well, that car in that price range is going to be a killer. Though i won't really count on that pricing till it is confirmed over here on TBHP (of-course ), but still a price anywhere between 7 & 7.75 lakhs for the Petrol vehicle and about a lakh of a differential between the petrol & the diesel and IMHO Duster can well say goodbye to its 5K+ sales per month. Ecosport in that price range should easily outsell each and every other car within a similar price band !!!

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by agambhandari

Nope, the USP is the low price for an SUV. and in India,if it ain't Big, it ain't an SUV

Not sure if we can generalize like that. With time, there will be always shift in preferences. And low price is something which is just speculation at this moment. Ford has shown (with the past two launches) that they can surprise us with the pricing - positive or negative

Originally Posted by suhaas307

Size and presence aren't always correlated.

Exactly! If size is such a huge paramater, the Duster wouldn't have become such a success. IMO, the small Duster has got better road presence than some of the bigger SUVs.

[Sree_Ganesh]

Here is one more picture from my side. I spotted the Ford Ecosport today morning at around 8:50 Am , near Taj Coromandel , Nungambakam, Chennai. I was on the opposite lane , but didnt want to miss the opportunity and made a U to check it out closely

It was the top end Titanium model . It was trailed by a white Ford Fiesta .

[fiat_tarun]

^^ Nice catch. This looks to be the Ecoboost version, going by the badge below the Titanium.

[rajshenoy]

Just wondering how Ford will place the lower end Spare wheels since they wont be alloys. !! Free wheel cap ? somehow things wont look good if they just give a steel wheel

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

Just wondering how Ford will place the lower end Spare wheels since they wont be alloys. !! Free wheel cap ? somehow things wont look good if they just give a steel wheel

Why don't you look at pictures of how they've done it with the brazilian versions?

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Why don't you look at pictures of how they've done it with the brazilian versions?

I Wish i was in Brazil too sometimes

Typically the pics will be for top end variant and by now we know how it looks. I love the Alloy design, but the high end might be above the budget for most people.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

I Wish i was in Brazil too sometimes

Typically the pics will be for top end variant and by now we know how it looks. I love the Alloy design, but the high end might be above the budget for most people.

Image from: www.motorbash.com

[swiftnfurious]

See another wheel (cap)? design from the pic on the previous page. I seriously hope this is a steel wheel & not a wheel cap. Looks like butch alloy wheels. Infact I prefer this design to the actual funky alloy wheel design.



EDIT:

One of my friend says a convoy of 5 Ecosports (white & blue - no camouflage) were spotted at Kottayam (Kerala) yesterday. However the dealers were not informed of the testing nor the cars went to the dealership (though they confirmed of testing)!

I think that cars are on Kerala roads for real world GC & suspension test! If those clear it, it should pass for thru out India! (Banging my head!! )